Specialized Big Bikes 2011 Part 3

Subtitled – THE BLOODY PEARL…AND OTHER PIRATE STORIES

   Seb Kemp, was chosen to smash out some lairy wet laps in the Whistler Bike Park aboard the 2011 Specialized big bike range. (note – I have no idea what ‘lairy means – Ed.)

  Specialized has done away with the Demo 7 and made the Demo a focused race bike, which means it’s been on a diet, it’s lowered, and has a longer stroke shock.  There are four sizes available now, including an XS. It was decided that the large was already plenty long enough for big fellas so why not address the miniature audience. The Sam Hill effect influences children and women.

  You didn’t expect production bikes to have the same natty six speed 9 tooth setup that probably set the Internet forums afire last week did you?  They have shortened the headtube to lower the bar height for all the knuckle draggers. The Demo also includes the new BB30 Press Fit standard (?). Don’t get me started on standards, however, the big S are big enough that they are making their excitement for this new standard felt throughout the industry. Expect a few BB30 DH cranks coming out soon to appease the Big Red God. The BB30 Press Fit is like the BB30 used on road bikes and some uber race XC bikes but the frame has plastic cups pressed into the BB shell that takes a big bloody bearing.

  One thing that is very important for race bikes is that they shed mud as well as possible. World Cup racers seem to have a wet cloud following them around. After a six week drought in Whistler the heavens opened up the day that Crankworx racing began. Ask Caleb about shooting World Cup DH racing in the European summer next time you see him. Umbrella and waterproof camera housing?

  Thanks to the input of super-Aussie Sam Hill, the Demo’s geometry has one of the lowest BB and shortest chainstays on the World Cup circuit. The geo remains unchanged from last year’s model. The whole bike is very long slung keeping the CG as low as possible and the weight centred, helping the bike turn fast and feel balanced in the wet rocky hell of three minutes of disappointment, which is what a lot of racing can become.

  The yoke allows them to have a longer length stroke shock but still keep the shock in an optimal position. The shock to rear triangle(s) juncture has ball bearings rather than bushings to keep it smooth. There is also a small cam on the yoke which allows you to raise the BB height if you so desire.

And what everyone wants to know is how much it will weigh, not what it will cost. The frame has shed 3/4 lb from the previous model and this model will be 37lb out of the box. There is a another model that has a paint job like a tiger bumblebee (pretty rad) which is a lot more affordable than the all-singing all-dancing Campino one pictured here. Available end of September or October, just in time for Christmas. Or the National series and the League of Gentlemen series.

  The rear end goes to 150mm but the engineers have attempted to keep the rear as narrow as possible under strict orders of the Monster team who asked for more heel clearance. Maybe if Fairclough stopped wearing high heels then he would win a few World Cups.

Also note the pre- cut spike tyre in the above photo, the Hillbilly. These are not stock but Speccy decided to offer a pre-cut spike to racers seeing as they were seeing plenty of racers going mad with cutters on spike tyres when there is a dew in the air. This saves mechanics’ time, saves the environment from excess waste of rubber supplies, and saves tyre companies money. Boo yah!

  Speccy has worked hard to develop tyres with the help of the Monster team. The Butcher is the stock tyre. Good for intermediate conditions and comes in 2.35 or 2.5.

There’s a lot more from the launch but I’ll save them for tomorrow. Oh, and I might go beyond the bleeding catalogue and tell you what I think about the crucial ride characteristic of the bike too. I can’t do that right now, it’s 6am and I can’t grind any coffee beans without waking the whole house up. [Yawn]

---

Oh my.  That’s quite a bike.  Confess your bike lust here…