Spotted in prototype form this summer at the bike park, Richie Schley’s new 200mm gravity bike is not so much for downhill as it is for him to crush trails in Whistler.
They finished up testing this summer and, thanks to a killer response from riders after seeing it in prototype form and Schley himself, made the commitment to go into production. It’s designed with a low BB, low standover and a short rear end (440mm chain stays) so he could whip it in the air. Goal was to give it the bigger roll over capabilities of 27.5″ but keep it as nimble as a 26″ bike.
More details on this, plus the revised team 29er FS and hardtail bikes, the road bikes they train on and *gasp* e-bikes, below…
Tube shapes are heavily hydroformed, and the top tube’s junction into the head tube was particularly formed to give it the stiffness and strength they want without having to add a gusset, which can weaken the material.
Claimed weight for the complete bike is 15.4kg with a long coil shock.
It only comes in one version, the Richie Schley version, which is outfitted as you see here for €4,999.
Stepping down a bit, the RX1 trail bike gets 145mm travel and a Richie Schley approved build (shown) for €5,999. That gets you a X-Fusion 34 Sweep fork with 160mm travel up front, Crank Brothers Iodine wheels and stem w/ carbon Cobalt 11 handlebar. A Kindshock LEV Integra dropper post and XTR 2×11 group round things out.
Similarly extensive hydroforming on this bike yields a massive downtube and headtube junction to keep it very stiff. Pro and Performance models are also available for €3,499 and €4,499 respectively.
For 2015 they refined the layup and process and pulled about 5% of the weight out of the carbon fiber 29ers. They use a Modular Monocoque Technology that sees some parts of the frame made and inspected first, then placed together in the mold and made into a complete frame. The FS is 10.4kg for the Team level.
Team hardtail is 9.4kg frame is ~1,110g. They offer the same build spec for sale as their AMG team racers.
ADP is Rotwild’s parent brand, which also makes the Porsche and Mercedes branded bicycles. They worked with Porsche Design to create their own line, and those relationships provide the resources for them to develop the Rotwild products we really want to ride. Hence the AMG branding and team affiliation.
Rotwild is traditionally a mountain bike brand. But their team riders need something to train with on the road, so they developed the RS2. And it is indeed quite developed – it’s not just something cobbled together so their sponsored pros were staying on brand.
The complete bike here is team spec, but it’s only sold as a frameset. Internal routing for shifting and rear brake, tapered headtube and direct mount rear brake placement keep everything looking clean and sharp.
The frame’s meant to be a performance piece but still be comfortable for long days in the saddle.
It’s a carbon monocoque frameset that includes frame, fork and headset for €1,999…and it’s their only road bike offering.
Rotwild’s mountain bike frames see a lot of translation over to e-bikes for the European market, sharing virtually identical geometries and features.
R.E1 is a direct copy of their Enduro bike, but with a motor. That is, the suspension system puts the linkages and pivots in the same positions save for a few slight tweaks to handle the additional forces and torque of the motor. It’s important to point out that the pivots weren’t moved to make room for the motor like most brands. Their engineers worked with Brose, which is one ofthe largest electric motor manufacturers in the automotive industry, to develop a system that drives the crank’s spindle.
This one comes in at 20.5 kg.
The battery and electronics are housed in the downtube, leaving the rest of the frame virtually unchanged.
The command center sits on a reversed “out front” style mount. Control buttons sit neatly beside the brake lever clamp.
The RQ1 and RE1 both run 27.5″ wheels, and the hardtail is a 29er. Even Schley’s digging them some days, when and where they’re allowed of course.
