After multiple spottings of prototypes, and nearly 4 years in development, Rocky Mountain’s new downhill bike is finally here. While the prototypes spotted in the wild were mostly made out of aluminum, the new Maiden is a stunning carbon creation.
Not happy with simply abandoning 26″ wheels all together, the Maiden accepts both small and midsize hoops without sacrificing the geometry. Throw in additional adjustments in head tube angle and a new suspension design and you have a long travel bike perfect for racing, days in the park, or ripping down the face of the mountain…
Using one frame for both wheel sizes, the Smoothwall carbon construction is found on the full carbon frame, link, chain stay, and seat stay. Pipelock collet pivot axles make for wide pivots that end up allowing for lighter frame components and all pivots run on Enduro Max cartridge bearings.
Frame details include a PressFit 107 bottom bracket, 157mm rear axle spacing, ISCG 05 tabs, and a IS42/52 drop in style headset. The removable lower headset spacer along with a second position for the rear axle allows for the two wheel sizes which they call the Equalized Wheel Concept. The two wheel positions keep the bottom bracket height and fork trail perfectly in check for both sizes. Additionally, the Ride-4 lower shock mount allows for 1/4º changes in head tube angle without changing the shock tune.
Internal cable and brake routing is future proof with Di2 electronic compatibility as well as an internal stealth battery port. Finally, integrated frame protection is included to protect the carbon with a molded downtube guard, shock fender, chain stay protector, and bolt-in fork bumpers.
On the suspension side, the Maiden has been built with a specific suspension curve that is meant to capture the best attributes of both 4 bar and VPP suspension designs. In order to provide a ride that has great small bump compliance and doesn’t bottom out while still providing enough support in the mid stroke and at sag, the Maiden uses a 40 degree slope that starts low and ends high enough to allow for the use of lighter weight shock springs. Using a near constant rate of rise, the design is suspension friendly and allows for more effective adjustments.
A high level of anti squat should provide efficient pedaling with 140% with 27.5″ wheels and 100% with 26″. Chain stay growth has been limited to 21-26mm to improve small bump compliance while still allowing for their desired axle path. In order to improve suspension performance under braking, Rocky’s Autonomous Braking design using a virtual swingarm concept. The virtual axle starts behind the bike and lengthens backwards as the suspension compresses, ending up in front of the bike once compressed. The idea is said to avoid the “grip-slip” from other bikes where braking stiffens the suspension, and causes the bike to break traction.
Working with BOS on the suspension, Rocky chose the company for their open bath damper feel, effective adjustments, and quality builds. BOS suspension front and rear (200mm travel) is found on all of the Maiden builds with the exception of the Park bike which runs X-Fusion.
Available in four different builds, all of which run 27.5″ wheels and tires, the top Unlimited model is a no compromise $10k+ exercise in stealth. The Maiden World Cup is still an incredible bike at $6,999, followed by the $5,499 Pro and $4,499 Park. Frames will be available with a BOS Stoy RaRe rear shock for $3,999. Bikes and frames will be available worldwide in late October. Head over to Rocky’s site for full build specifications.
Pricing (USA):
- Unlimited — $10,499
- World Cup — $6,999
- Pro — $5,499
- Park — $4,499
- Frame Only — $3,999
