As yet there is no shipping date for the UK or Europe, infact I think Greg Minnaar himself has the only other pair!

We’ll keep you posted on price and availability when we know.

Oh and a quick check of the scales reads 624g per shoe.

Albert from Madison just beamed us this info over, at £399 for a complete bike it looks like it could be good.

Available in limited numbers featuring Atherton racing inspired graphics, the ethos around the bike hasn’t changed since the introduction of the original MaxMax a few years ago – a tough, affordable and easily upgraded introduction in the world of dirt jumping.

This point is emphasized by the use of the exact same 6061 T6 aluminum frame that is featured on all the higher-spec Absolut 1&2 full bikes. The new frame features arguably the most versatile dropouts on the market, allowing the use of a rear derailleur and pretty much all rear 135mm hub standards on the market (10mm, 12mm, 12mm Maxle or Singlespeed hubs) via the modular hanger/dropout system.

The bike also features Commencal’s new dirt fork which replaces the heavier 5pc fork used in previous year’s models, helping to drop weight.

Photos www.tombunning.com

Price: £399.99srp
Frame: Absolut AL (new dropouts)

Fork: NEW Commencal Dirt Fork (1, 1/8”)

Headset: Tange Fatty MX2 (1,1/8”)

Stem: Commencal FR 50mm oversize

Bars: Commencal 6061 Oversize Riser (2” rise)

Grips: Commencal Kraton

Brakes: Commencal V-Brakes

Bottom Bracket: Truvativ Howitzer

Cranks: Truvativ Ruktion

Chain: KMC

Rims: Alex Rims DM18 (26”)

Hubs: Commencal 6-bolt disc Front & Rear (8/9sp freehub) 14mm nutted

Spokes: Stainless Steel 72p (3X lacing)

Seatpost: Commencal Hi-Ten Steel (black)

Saddle: C Trail by Velo

Sizes: Short or Long

Colour: Atherton Blue

More info at Madison.

Thanks

Albert Steward
Press Officer

We were impressed with the performance on the early tests. Great angles and sizing it comes in short or long. This the long has a 47″ wheelbase and 63 degree head angle working off a design that has many Lawwill similarities. It includes a linkage. The Astrix has speed that’s for sure and a suspension system that is well balanced, not too progressive as on many bikes heading this way recently.

Nice touches all around including the one bolt rear axle and a competitive price of £1999 for the frame with Vivid damper. Contact RidingHigh UK. And I might wash it when it has been ridden. Just waiting for Ben Baker, Liam Mason and the boys Morgan to do their stuff.

steven jones

2011 SPECIALIZED SX – “MIGHT EVEN WASH IT”

But you know how the talk goes in hardtail circles, championing the simple approach to riding off road, practitioners of the brute force (yet usually slower) approach to root. Let the body take the hits; break the bike not the rider. Luddism is rife in the woods around here but do-it-all hardtails rarely give the shot in the arm needed. And neither do short travel bikes. But it’s that sought after tonic that everyone looks for. Good angles, hard hitting, sharp riding but not a big pile of sag. Freeride and downhill bikes are too heavy and sloppy; trail bikes are usually caught in a battle on weight restrictions and rarely strong enough. Hardtails usually get bust.

Some people will say a do-it-all suspension bike does not exist but the new Enduro can do many fast things fast. Sub thirty pound 160mm bikes are thin on the ground but for downhill uplifts or uk trail centre riding and you will find not many better than the new Enduro. But even Lord Byron would protest against the sabotage of such a bike in the bike parks of Whistler, Leogang and Cinderford.

That’s where the SX comes in. It can take Ned Ludd head on. The stout and strong frames making them a sure thing for “drops, jumps, stunts and whatever else you have up your sleeve.” Obviously the former is a relative thing, I’m kind of leaning more to the ‘whatever else’ side of the coin.

Design wise it comes with the well proven FSR system and air shock, ISCG mounts, low weight distribution, a classic swingarm protector and front mech mount. This the long version has a wheelbase that matches up with many medium trail bikes (around 45”) that will no doubt give stability on the trail even with the head angle many degrees steeper than its stablemate, the Enduro.

Spare a though thought though for genesis of the SX, it is after all fair to say that its one of the most successful slopestyle bikes ever created…well I didn’t say that, those were words from Morgan Hill, not an actor or Sam’s brother but the place where this bike was created. And that’s where we got it. Brandon Sloan is a key man in bike design at Specialized and it was him who was responsible for sending this parcel of fun across the Atlantic. Indeed you might well have to push or order to get one of these in time. It could be a pre-order frame for 2011.

More than anything this SX seems like a bike you’d look after, hell I reckon I’d even oil this bike when it’s made up.

Jones

The first thing we noticed was the colour scheme, apparently Sam took a sander to his original brown frame and leaving bare metal stripes.
The second thing was the long stem, 70mm. Sam likes this set up which he reckons helps with tailwhips and the like.
The third thing, the purple tyres. I think that’s a nod to the fact that he ran purple rims last year.
It’s also got a mech hanger so I suppose you could run it as a 4x machine too.

I’ll take this up to the Unit for Kev and Yanto to thrash. Stay tuned for a bit of a test/video/lark about.

Frame: Ashton Closure
Fork: Rock Shox Argyle 302 Coil
Hubs: Quad QDH-01F, Quad QHD-01R
Rims: Quad QWR-3.2
Spokes: 14G Steel Black
Tyres: Halo Twin Rail (Purple) 26″ x 2.2″
Rear Derailleur: NA
Cassette: Formula 1/2″ X 1/8″ X 32T
Chainset: Truvativ Husselfelt 1.1 (170mm) (white) -38T
Bottom Bracket: Cartridge (Howitzer)
Chain: KMC810
Brake Levers: Quad Dime
Brakes: Quad Dime (rear only) with 160mm rotor
Headset: FSA semi integrated
Bars: FSA Gravity- White
Grips: Propalm
Stem: FSA Gravity
Seatpost: 30.9mm Pivotal post
Saddle: Alienation Recliner pivotal (white/black)

Closure complete bike: £999.99
Closure frame-set: £299.99

Checkout AshtonBikes

If you read any sort of magazine associated with your chosen discipline of cycling, then you’re guaranteed to have come across the part where pro riders show off their pimped out bikes. BMX, Dirt Jumping, Downhill….they’re all at it, with custom paint jobs, blinged out rims and whatever else they can think of.

Here at Chain Reaction Cycles we can help you to create the bike of your dreams. Everyone knows standard just doesn’t cut it any more, so if you have a spec list in mind then why not get in touch with our sales staff and get the wheels in motion? Our qualified mechanics are here to get it built up for you, the sky really is the limit!

We have pretty much every part you can think of and endless colour possibilities, so whether you want something sleek and colour coded or you prefer to stand out from the crowd then we can do it for you. For an example of just what is possible, check out this bad boy we built up for our showroom….

Spec

Custom Build Bike Spec & Cost

• Frame – Evil Bikes Faction Frame Yellow – £474.99

• Forks – Rock Shox Argyle 409 Forks 100mm Purpletrator – £350.00

• Chainring – Macneil Primary BMX Sprocket Green – £33.99

• Seatpost – DMR Tilt Seatpost Blue – £29.99

• Seat Clamp – DMR Grab Seat Clamp Green – £10.99

• Saddle – DMR Void Slim Saddle Green – £22.99

• Crankset – Stolen Team BMX Cranks Neon Orange – £89.99

• Bottom Bracket – Primo Euro Bottom Bracket – £39.99

• Chain – Shadow Conspiracy Interlock Half Link B<X Chain Electric Lime – £21.00

• Stem – Spank Tweet Tweet Stem Blue – £33.00

• Handlebars – Funn Full On Handlebar Pink – £37.00

• Headset – Stolen Insider 45/45 BMX Headset Neon Orange – £22.99

• Wheels – Spank Spike Rim 32h 26inch Chrome Tokio Collection – £52.00

Spank Subrosa Royala Rim 32h 26inch Gold – £61.99

• Hubs – NS Bikes Rotary Rear Hub 32h Gold – £110.00

NS Bikes Rotary 20 Front Hub 32h Red – £40.00

• Tubes – Airwave MTB Tube 26 x 2.1-2.6 Schrader – £2.99

• Tyres – Halo Twin Rail 26 x 2.2 Purple Std – £21.99

Halo Twin Rail 26 x 2.2 Green Std – £21.99

• Pedals – NC-17 CR44 Pro Plastic Pedals clear Green – Ball Bearing – £14.99

NC-17 CR44 Pro Plastic Pedals clear Red – Ball Bearing – £14.99

• Grips – Alienation Ratchet Grips Rasta Swirl – £11.99

• Brakes – Hayes HFX-9 XC Front Brake – LTD Edition 6″ V6 Disc – Chrome 10th Anniversary – £89.99

• Brake Adaptor – Hayes Mount Adaptor Rear IS 6″ Black – £7.00

• Rotors – hayes Disc Rotor V6 (OEM) 6″ 6-Bolt Rotor – £15.00

Total – £1633.83

This stand-alone video unit costs about £200 and comes without the wires and separate battery/recording “tat’ that tended to get in the way with earlier recording devices. It does however come with a range of fittings to enable you to record most of your extreme sports pursuits. It’s about the size of a can of Redbull and weighs in at 190 grams. Playback can be made instantly but frustratingly via the robust and rubberised colourful casing incorporating a LCD screen only half the size of most mobile phone screens. Although the weight doesn’t sound much it can be felt when worn on your helmet especially if it’s of a looser fit than recommended.

The first ride out led to a few low branch encounters and a fair bit of tree bark was stuck in the battery hatch when we got back. There is a bar mount for the camera which would enable you to power-up the camera without a mate doing it for you (or taking your lid off…), but bizarrely you need to remove the handlebar controls first to slip the clamp on – it isn’t a split design. That said it’s a very simple unit to get up and running -even when lacking proper instructions (ED: sorry Leaky I lost them), and once we’d worked out that the lens has to be twisted and orientated according to how the camera is mounted… ( there is a notch indicating ‘up’ on the lens swivel that I failed to spot before recording two days of North Wales trail centre footage!) ….operation is as they say ‘Simples’.

Playback revealed awesome quality with very little in the way of pixilation evident, no mean feat considering the rough granite tracks and sorely inadequate 1.9″ Jones Mud tyres…The 170 degree lens works like a fish eye and you get a view when helmet mounted from the ground under the front tyre, right to the tree tops and skies beyond.

Singletrack riding is given the ‘Star Wars’ effect as features like trees and rocks accelerate past you faster as you near them. After dark and on our Wednesday night ride out the camera was able to pick out reasonable detail when the subject was right in the spot of a 35 watt Halogen light set-up, but that meant hanging off the rider in front’s back wheel at about ten foot… at full pelt down ‘Deadend Down’ (local trail) this was going to be a tall order knowing the number of ‘offs’ this trail creates – although the mix of Downhill action and ‘Blair Witch’  video was pretty cool.

There is a rather cartoon-like remote control that you strap to your wrist to stop and start recording once the camera is booted. You get a barely audible ‘bleep’ to tell you if you’ve pushed the remote’s buttons but ideally (and being very picky) it could do with a red-to-green LED on the remote that confirms the camera’s operation.

Sound is acceptable but not brilliant when the camera is helmet mounted, the upside is that it doesn’t seem to record as much ‘wind noise’ as some.

Battery life was dire with normal Alkaline AA’s and investment in Lithium or good rechargeable NiMh’s is the way forward.

The 2GB SB card at high resolution giving at least an hour’s recording and in the name of research we mounted it rear-facing to a seriously quick remote controlled racing buggy and the picture was spot on even at the 2 seconds the car takes to get to 30 mph!

Using it gives you great post ride, wall-mounted pub TV viewing of you and your mates riding, crashing and generally showing-off (as they will…) in front of a camera, it beats bloody ‘X-factor’ although that’s hardly the endorsement it deserves!

Price:£199 from ActionCameras

• Sensor type: CMOS
• Lens angle: 170°
• Built-in Microphone
• Video format: MP4 or MJPEG AVI (user selectable)
• Frames per second: 30 fps
• Video format: 4:3 or 16:9 (user selectable)
• Batteries: 2x 1.5V AA batteries
• It is highly recommended to use Lithium-ion batteries
• Power-Save option saves batteries by powering down the screen
• Built-in memory: 32 MB
• SD memory capacity: Supports memory cards up to 16 GB
• Video resolution: 720 x 480
• Photo resolution: 5 Megapixel
• Exposure: Auto
• LCD screen: 1.5” colour TFT
• Lens focal range: 0.5m to infinity
• Dimensions: Camera – 133 (L) x 50 (D) x 33 (W) mm / Remote Control – 52 (L) x 40 (W) x 13 (D) mm
• Power: Camera – DC 3V, 2x AA batteries (included) / Remote control: DC 3C, 1x CR2032 battery (included)
• RF: Receiver (Camera): 433.92MHz ISM band / Transmitter (Remote): 433.92MHz ISM band
• Weight: Camera – 128g / Remote control – 19g

More Mountain Biking >>

In the meantime, if you fancy one then check out the webber the frame is SRP £1899.

They’re also available in flavours called Magic Black, Apple Red, Grape Purple, Zesty Orange,Vanilla White. Not sure how much they’d smell after a week in a Welsh bog, the box says the aroma should last for 4-6 months but at £7.99 they’ve got to be worth it for the pungent pong.
145mm length with flange, ultra thin for responsiveness, de-bossed logos, expander caps with stainless hardware.

Hit up RHUK if you’re interested.

Here’s a quick look at the products which should be in the shops in early November.

First up we’ve got the oversized (31.8 mm) DH bar which clocks in at 745 mm width, 5 degree upsweep, 9 degree backsweep, 20 mm rise,
weight 315 grams.
Then a 4x dirtjump bar with 50 mm rise, 3 degree upsweep, 7 degree Weight 322 grams.

SRP £54.99

Here’s the seat, featuring a touch of Kevlar protection on the nose and
a Microfiber saddle cover, weighed in at 215 grams and will cost you £49.99.

The seat post comes in a 27.2 mm x 250 mm (225 grams) and a 31.6 mm x 250 mm, (not sure grams) both feature an easy off system. £54.99

Direct BoXXer and Fox mount, 45 mm. 31.8 mm bar clamp, with 5 mm Allen key bolts all round so you only need one Allen key. Low 33.5 mm stack height, weight 160 grams. SRP £79.99

Atherton oversize 31.8 mm DH stem, 0 degree rise, available in 35, 50 and 65 mm. 50mm stem weighed in at 201grams. SRP £79.99

Enclosed end cap, so if you like to wrap your hands round the end of the bar and not snag on the collar then you’ll like these. You’ll need a 2.5mm and 3mm Allen key to fit these.
135 mm long, 125grams per pair. SRP £17.99

Here’s the Thomas Vanderham range, I think should have been called “Vander-Bars” etc…
Oversized 31.8 mm clamp diameter. 5 mm Allen key bolts with M6 thread across range for secure installation and minimum tool requirement.
Stem angle 0 degrees. 40 mm stack height.
For 1-1/8 inch fork steerers, available in 50mm and 65mm. Weight 195 grams.
SRP £79.99

31.8 mm FR riser bar, available in 740 mm x 30 mm and 20 mm rise. SRP £54.99 Weight 315 grams

Thomas Vanderham FR seatpost is made from 7075 aluminium weighs 285grams and has the same fiddle free release system, it comes in a 30.9 mm x 350 mm or a 31.6 mm x 350 mm with a SRP: £54.99.
The titanium railed saddle with the Microfiber saddle cover weighs in at 240 grams with an SRP of £49.99

The Vander grips are a shade longer than the Atherton grips, weigh 100 grams per set, and will set you back an SRP of £17.99

More infomation available at Madison.