Looking to shatter the preconceptions that carbon wheels are just for road bikes, Edge Composites will be putting wheels and parts under the likes of Brian Lopes and will be the official wheel sponsor of the Santa Cruz Syndicate. This combination of athletes will put the components through a whole new level of testing and development in mountain bike disciplines like Downhill, Dual slalom, Enduro, and Super D.
Edge Composites has been on the cutting edge of carbon fiber technology since the inception of the company, and this is clear proof that they mean business. There aren’t too many companies that would be willing to dish out expensive carbon parts to a group of guys that tend to break parts – often. In order to accommodate the strenuous conditions the wheels will be exposed to, Edge has already made some changes to make their wheels faster and more durable.
More on this, plus pictures after the break.
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While some companies may see this as a suicide mission, Jason Schiers – founder of Edge composites jumped for the opportunity. “We are beyond excited to work with athletes of this caliber. There is no better testing and proving platform that the World Cup. For the Syndicate, we’ve customized our layup to provide a more compliant rim, yet, increased impact resistance for the unique application of 200lb guys racing downhill on ten-inch travel downhill bikes, going 35 mph over terrain that would be a challenge to walk over!” said Schiers.
While the Syndicate will only be on Edge wheels, Lopes will be riding their wheels and components. More specifically Lopes will equip his stable of Ibis bikes with the Edge AM rims laced to Chris king hubs, and will be riding the all new Edge Sweep bar, Edge Stem and seat post. Lopes will also be collaborating with Edge engineers Jason Schiers and Kevin Nelson on a yet to be released signature line. Both factions are extremely excited and proud to be riding for such a forward thinking company such as edge, and all believe that edge wheels especially, will truly help them to get to the bottom of the mountain first.
