Following Katy Winton’s announcement that she’d parted ways with Trek Factory Racing Enduro at the end of 2020, fans were left scratching their heads in disbelief. A consistent Top 5 finisher on the EWS Circuit was unable to secure a deal with a Factory Race team. What has become of this industry?
With the decision from Trek coming so late in the day, Katy was left to put together her own programme. This is a journey she has documented with unreserved honesty, humility and self respect over on her YouTube Channel in a series entitled Keeping Up With Katy. Now two episodes in, Katy shows us just how brutal the world of professional mountain bike racing can be. There’s a lot more involved than just riding bikes, having a grand old time and posting to the ‘gram.
At any rate, Katy Winton has now successfully put together her own racing programme called Moxie XI. What does that mean? Katy explains in her own words in Episode Two of her YouTube series – watch it at the bottom of this post. Here are the details of Katy Winton’s ride for the 2021 season; a Nukeproof Giga in the mullet configuration.
Katy Winton to race a Nukeproof Giga Mullet
Wait. You can’t buy the Nukeproof Giga as a mullet! Correct. It comes as a 29er or a 27.5″, but there is no mixed-wheel size version. Until now.
How does that work? Nukeproof have supplied Katy with the front triangle and linkage of the Giga 290, pairing it with the rear end of the Giga 275. Katy’s ride has its own unique set of geometry figures; a 430mm reach paired with 435mm chainstays.
Despite having that smaller wheel out back, Nukeproof say that, aside from the increase in rear wheel travel to 180mm, nothing else about the bike’s geometry changes. The head angle and seat tube angle remain at 63.5° and 77.75°, respectively.
We caught up with Katy immediately post training ride. This was her third ride ever on the new bike. As you might imagine, setup is still a work in progress. That said, you could be be forgiven for thinking she had it pretty much dialed when you watch her shredding in the launch video below (12:32 onward).
With that in mind, here’s how Katy has her ride setup for her (now dry) steep, tight, technical local trails of the Tweed Valley, Scotland.
Katy Winton’s Giga Setup
Thanks to the placement of a lever-actuated mechanism on the main pivot, the Nukeproof Giga can run one of two possible leverage curves at any one time. Riders can switch between the two (+ and -) in a matter of seconds while out on a ride.
Katy has, so far, only tried the less progressive of the two options, with an overall progression of 25.5%. That’s the value quoted for the bike in a non-mixed wheel size configuration.
Weighing just 55kg in full riding kit, Katy Winton runs a RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate (the non-MegNeg version) shock at 127 PSI with 1 volume spacer. As for the external damper adjustments, the low speed compression is set at two clicks from fully open, while the rebound damping is set to 7 clicks from slowest.
On the front end, Katy’s RockShox ZEB Ultimate is set to 42.5 PSI. The low speed compression damping is set to 3 clicks from fully open, while the high speed is at 2 clicks from fully open. On the rebound end, Katy is running it at 13 clicks from slowest. Of course, with Katy having not spent heaps of time on the new bike yet, these settings are all subject to change over the coming weeks and months.
One of the things that attracted Katy to the Nukeproof Giga was the super short seat tube length of 380mm. Why? It means that, for the first time her life, she’s able to run a 150mm travel dropper seat post (RockShox Reverb AXS), maximising the standover clearance. The Sam Hill Signature Nukeproof Horizon Saddle plays a part in this equation too. It features low-profile rails giving it an ultra-low stack height, approximately 8mm lower than standard rails.
Seated on the Zipp 3ZERO MOTO Wheelset are Michelin tires, running 20 PSI in the rear and 17 PSI up front. That’s the new Michelin Wild Enduro 4-ply Racing Line tire on the front; 2.4″ wide with the softer GUM-X compound. On the rear is the faster rolling DH22 2.4″ tire.
With SRAM as her main componentry sponsor, Katy is running the electronic shift X01 Eagle AXS drivetrain with oil slick 10-50T cassette and a 32T chainring. In the cockpit, Katy prefers the new SRAM AXS Rocker Paddle upgrade over the original stock shifter.
Slowing this Super Enduro bike down are SRAM’s top-end downhill spec 4-piston Code RSC brakes, clamping 200mm rotors on the front and rear wheels.
Why the Giga instead of the Mega?
Given that Nukeproof now have two hard-hitting enduro bikes in their stable, this is a very good question. Katy opted for the longer travel Giga as she feels it is the better option for tackling the longer alpine races. She is also a fan of the suspension platform derived from the Dissent DH Bike, appreciating the low-slung weight distribution.
