Having the opportunity to ride with your kid is awesome. You want them to come back to the bike over and over again, slowly becoming a lifetime user, right? I mean, in my opinion, that’s our job as cyclists; to help everyone discover the bicycle, even our little ones. There’s nothing wrong with raising the kiddos on a healthy dose of two-wheeled freedom, am I right?
And making sure your children have the proper fitting clothes, helmets, gloves, and shoes is just as important. It’s part of the investment in helping them have a successful intro to mountain biking… in turn, keeping them coming back to it.
Jeez, I just brought that full circle right there. *boom*
microSHIFT thinks components should be on that long list of things that fit your kids properly. So they’ve come out with a kid-specific MTB drivetrain in the new SUPER SHORT! The Super Short will be a part of the ADVENT and ACOLYTE groupsets, and consist of the shifter, rear derailleur, and wide range cassette.
Borrowing DNA from their ADVENT mountain bike group, microSHIFT made every part easier to use. The new groups get lighter shifting, a shorter shift-lever reach, and a properly short rear derailleur cage offering more ground clearance for smaller wheels. Modern MTB drivetrains have gotten so big that some derailleurs will practically drag the cage on the ground when used on a 20″ wheel –not here. However, the new rear derailleurs still have the same chain tension, metal construction, and wide range as their bigger relatives.
Deets on the new Super Short groups:
- The new shift levers sit closer to the handlebar, claiming that the lever throw is 43% shorter than their competitors.
- The new rear derailleurs have the same clutch and metal construction as the standard ADVENT and Acolyte groups.
- The new rear derailleurs also have a 20% lower clutch force with a custom spring leverage curve that allows you to really dial in your little ones’ shift effort without sacrificing chain security.
- The new rear derailleurs work with 11-38t cassettes…with a 20″ wheel, that means climbing is as easy as a 27.5″ wheel with a 52t rear cog…with climbing gear inches of: 16.40″ (20″) to 16.45″ (27.5″)
Everything that made the ADVENT and Acolyte popular stays on the new Super Short line: reliable chain tension, metric hardware, durable metal construction, direct cable routing, and evenly spaced gears.
What You Get
ADVENT Super Short: Comes with your choice of Quick Trigger Pro (with or without an indicator) and Quick Trigger (with or without an indicator). Super Short clutch rear derailleur. 9 speed 11-38t cassette.
Acolyte Super Short: Comes with your choice of Quick Trigger Pro (with or without an indicator) and Quick Trigger (with or without an indicator). Super Short SpringLock rear derailleur. Super Short rear derailleur. 8 speed 11-38t cassette.
We don’t have any info on pricing or availability yet. But microSHIFT told me at Sea Otter Classic that these two new groups will be coming as OE spec on new Prevelo bicycles.
