Dh bike setup

Rupert Chapman. Occasionally, they will alter the height of the handlebar by changing the headset spacer stack height. Tom Lowis of Bergamont. Not much is changed apart from stem stack height. Josh Bryceland. Josh Bryceland and mechanic Doug Hatfield take very much a race-to-race approach, and for Mont-Sainte-Anne have increased the length of the bike with both headset extender cups and a replaced rear link, raised the fork height and added bigger gearing.

Doug Hatfield, Santa Cruz Syndicate. Bryceland's bike is 8mm longer in the front end. Joe knows how to get Rachel's bike just right. Joe Krejbich, Trek Factory Racing. First-day saw the telemetry system out to play. Catch up on all the latest from the event here. I've read an article about bar width and mtb biomechanics some time ago but It did't answer why some riders having the same height run different bar width.

Fektor Dec 19, at Neale78 Dec 19, at Probably due to his moto connection, or he uses an axe. Maybe the handgrips have 1mm bottom thickness and he is very finicky about the final measure I run but i had to cut my handlebar at Jokes apart I would like to know if these numbers are referred to the final measure or just the handlebar itself.

Jaybirdy Dec 19, at I Like seeing all these stems on DH bikes.. I've ran 60mm on Enduro bikes ever since Rat Boy did a bike check video with his V Not because I'm a following fan boy, it just makes sense. Part of the reason for mm stems on DH bikes is to ensure the bar doesn't foul the top of the stanchions.

Upduro Dec 19, at Went from 45mm stock to 35 and back to 50 now on my Meta. Bike feels a bit less twitchy but not harder to steer at all, if anything I found it easier. From what I can recall a lot of the pros still run a tad longer stem, Jared Graves had a pro tip Tuesday on instagram about it. DavidGuerra Dec 19, at Due to the lower head angle, a longer stem can be used without compromising the attack position. I go with comfort but I do wonder if wheel size makes a difference.

I just got rid of a That feels awesome and a lot more in control. A smaller set up may make this harder. The one thing I dont like is the 35mm clamp. The bar feels stiff but equally stiff vibe wise. Swap out the bar first. You cant really look at a pro set up and go with that as often they are height, build, riding style, riding location, etc suited. I can't remember full ins and outs, it's proper geometry geekery, but look it up and you'll see what I mean.

Plus 29ers are just more stable anyway, I'm a convert! NicoOfner Dec 19, at A lot of pros just can't run something else. DavidGuerra Dec 20, at There is namely the theory that stem length should be the same as wheel offset length, but naturally bar backsweep eliminates this theorethical alignment. Flinty Dec 20, at Flinty : It does give more of an attack position, but yes I think a shorter offset would be better. And even 44mm, isn't it longer than what's available in That's also what I meant in my comment, 44mm is becoming pretty common for 29" enduro bikes.

Hamburgi Dec 19, at Take a cock to the pits and be a dick about it. Just on the off chance that anyone doesn't know: There is basically no difference between running bars with an extra 10mm of rise, and putting an extra 10mm spacer under your stem or having a bike with a 10mm taller head tube. You can adjust the roll of the bars so you can end up with a slightly different position, but basically what I'm saying is that knowing the rise doesn't really tell you that much because you still have no idea what height the rider's hands are at relative to the BB and to the ground both of which are important.

I just find it odd sometimes that articles quote the rise of the bars with basically no other information. I know it's awkward to actually measure the height of the bars and the bb but it's much more meaningful than just the rise.

Nah you're wrong about adding spacers under the stem doing the same increasing bar rise. Because the head tube and steerer are angled, putting spacers under the stem does not have the exact same effect as increasing bar rise.

Adding spacers under the stem raises the bar height but it also shortens the reach of the bike due to the head tube being angled. Even tho the difference with just one 10mm spacer would be small it still has an unintended effect on reach.

Sirflyingv Dec 19, at Missing one of parameters you get up to 2cm of unknown delta in all directions. Sirflyingv : Exactly, that's why these articles are quite meaningless — but hey, a pro is running this and that, so some of their fans will run that setup just for the sake of it.

You can throw your up and sweep sweep figures out right away, which can lead to things feeling very odd. Sweep sweep? Know idea wtf that is, try back sweep instead. Spacers reduce the reach but they increase the distance from the BB to the grips, which is a more determining factor regarding bike fit. Bar rise is neutral regarding reach if you don't "mess" with the tilt, that is , but it increases the RAD rider area distance, the aforementioned BB-grips distance and it's also equivalent to an increase in stem length, so the attack angle becomes less aggressive.

One can also increase stem lenght when adding spacers to maintain reach, but reach isn't really an important factor. You want to consider your optimal RAD. If you decrease the stem length you will want to add spacers if you want to maintain RAD.

If you increase the bar rise you will need to either remove spacers or decrease stem lenght to maintain RAD. And these are all things to keep in mind, but we're not bound to anything, not to a RAD, reach, stem length, bar rise, etc. Bar backsweep also has a great influence on the riding position, as different backsweeps can be equivalent to a difference of 10mm or more in stem length.

And with the higher rise bars, just tilt adjustments can also be equivalent to a mm difference in stem length. To put it differently, let's say you add a few spacers beneath the stem. If you want to maintain the former RAD, you will need a shorter stem. If you want to maintain the reach, you will need a longer stem. If you want to maintain the steering offset the distance between the line from one grip to another and the center of the steering axis you will just have to get used to the greater RAD and smaller reach.

Increasing the rise of the handlebar is just a different way to mess with these factors. And I would also introduce a different topic with this, which is the psychological one. There is a strange psychological difference between riding with different setups in which the position of the hands is exactly the same. I know it because I have experienced it. I mean, maybe a higher rise bar does behave differently, maybe it does flex more, because the higher the rise the longer the bar is or was, before it got bent for a certain effective width.

But having a smaller stem for example, might make you feel that the direction is more twitchy, than if you rode a longer stem with a bar with more backweep, that positions your hands in the exact same place. Or a bar with more rise might make you feel more confident than another with less rise that is on a longer stem with an extra spacer, and which positions your hands in the exact same place, just because of the visual element and thinking that a shorter stem and a higher rise bar gives you more of an attack position.

Higher rise bars of a given model tend to have more flex, giving a more compliant feeling over lower rise bars of the same type, so it can make a difference vs stem height even if the absolute position is the same. I read somewhere that Sam Hill uses bb to grip position as his primary critical set up point. Adding low speed compression damping does decrease suspension sensitivity, so you only want to add the minimum level to achieve enough support. Start with it fully open no additional damping added.

Pro-Tip: Try to keep your low-speed compression damping settings balanced. For example, if you run very high low-speed compression on the fork and none on the rear shock, the bike will tend to shift more weight to the rear wheel during riding, and vice versa.

A balanced setup is key. The most expensive forks and rear shocks have a high-speed compression damping adjustment HSC , controlling the damping when the suspension compresses at high shaft speeds big, fast impacts. If you find that your fork or shock is still bottoming out too easily and have a high-end shock and fork with the option, you can adjust your high-speed compression damping. Adding more high-speed compression damping reduces the amount of travel the fork uses in high speed impacts shaft speed not bike speed.

Low levels of high-speed compression result in digressive damping which allows full travel easily in response to big, fast hits, whereas high levels result in progressive damping, reducing the amount of travel available in response to big, fast hits. If you feel that your bike needs more support at the end of the stroke during high-speed hits. When it comes to rebound and damping, in nearly all cases a balanced suspension setup is essential for optimal performance.

As a final check, find some level ground and ride slowly across it on your bike. From the attack-position pump repeatedly up and down as hard as you can. The bike should feel supportive and the rebound speed should feel balanced for both the front and rear.

If the bike feels unbalanced, identify where the imbalance is coming from and make corresponding adjustments. A balanced suspension setup is very important. Traction not only comes from the tires and terrain surface, but the amount of force the rider is placing on the front and rear tire. A balanced setup is important to this element of traction. If you follow this guide, you will not only find a suspension setting that is optimised for your riding style and terrain, but also gain a deeper understanding of how each property of your suspension functions and interacts.

Good suspension performance is a balance, a compromise even, between many different factors. If you make any big changes to one setting of your suspension, you need to balance the other settings to match. Download the app for iOS or Android to read all articles on your tablet or smartphone. Trevor loves adventure.

Whisky, riding his bike and everything in between. Though he was born in England, he believes he should have been Scottish. Besides being accustomed to bad weather he's a specialist when it comes to steep and demanding trails. Once, he was in love with competition and raced in the early years of the EWS, but now, at years-old, he no longer has anything to prove. Nonetheless, demonstrating that you can teach an old dog new tricks, he continues to hold his own against the wild and fearless youth.

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