Ride 2 Recovery had a charity ride leading out of (and finishing at) DealerCamp, which meant there were several modded bikes floating around.
The most amazing example was Matt DeWitt’s completely customized Diamondback Mason Sortie full suspension mountain bike.
DeWitt is a double amputee, so the challenge was to get him on a mountain bike that could be ridden without hands. To do that, his bike has Di2 shifting integrated into paddles on the top tube and a butt-actuated brake lever.
Tap past the break for lots of images…
This is the second build, the bike he rode in the 3rd Annual Wounded Warrior 100k had been stolen and partially stripped, then left at the park in Alaska where it was originally stolen once word got out. It’s about a $20,000 project. He’ll be racing it in Leadville this year.
Two thin, flat panels were placed on either side of the top tube. To shift, he simply taps his knee against the front or rear panel to shift up or down.
To brake, he just pushes his butt back and it pushes the bar. That pulls cable to actuate a TRP Parabox, which pulls both brakes simultaneously.
Interestingly, they’ve used a standard Di2 rear derailleur even with the wider range mountain bike cassette, not a K-Edge conversion.
Best of luck at Leadville, Matt!
