Orbea goes all in on gravity mountain biking with an all-new carbon Rallon DH bike, with Tahnee Seagrave racing it to an Elite World Cup win at its debut in Bielsko-Biała, Poland. But it’s not just a Downhill bike. Thanks to a swappable alloy shock mounting bracket under the downtube protector, 1 carbon frame can transform into 3 different bikes: a mullet DH bike, a full 29er Enduro bike, or a mullet Enduro bike.
Orbea Rallon DH carbon downhill bike, also an enduro transformer!
We’ve been covering race-ready Orbea mountain bikes for years. And their long-running Rallon enduro platform has routinely proven itself on the EDR & World Cup circuit, with the occasional foray into downhill with a double crown strapped on tight.
And we just caught up with Tahnee Seagrave in the snow and muddy at the World Cup
But now, Orbea commits to gravity by rebuilding a more burly Rallon, and making it a proper DH bike.
Besides making the shared carbon frame tough enough for DH racing, what sets the new Orbea Rallon apart is its GravityLink an interchangeable machined aluminum lower shock mounting bracket that can change the bike’s geometry, travel & suspension progressivity.
Pick either 170mm or 200mm of plush single-pivot / split pivot suspension and pair it to either a 180mm single crown or 203mm dual-crown fork, and a build suited to how you ride gravity.
GravityLink Up Close
Held by just four burly bolts to the bottom of the carbon front triangle, the CNC-machined, color-coded GravityLinks bring the lower shock lower in the frame. Lower for DH allows for longer stroke shocks and more rear wheel travel. Then, two higher shock mount positions deliver less travel with shorter stroke shocks, and variability to maintain geometry when choosing either a 27.5″ or 29″ rear wheel in Enduro-mode.
It also allowed Orbea’s engineers to integrate a flip-chip in a protected location to adjust progressivity in either DH or EN setups. And on the enduro bikes, also ride height +/-7mm & +/-0.5° geo tweaks.
A big benefit of the GravityLink is its low center of gravity, keeping the shock and weight low in the carbon frame, and letting engineers lower the toptube, as well. Gravity racers love to get their weight low for stable handling & grip. Plus, Orbea built the DH GravityLink to allow racers (or rather their mechanics) to hang extra weight off the bottom of the bike for even lower weight distribution. Three different bolt-on weights can be added – 93g, 95g, or 395g – or add all three to add an extra 583g (a full pound and a quarter) low on the otherwise light carbon DH bike. (Only one 553g weight possible for the Enduro links.)
Plus, it looks like it gives race teams the flexibility to create custom GravityLinks to suit racer needs that might even change from track to track.
Gravity Race-Ready Geometry – DH or EN
Tech details
- full OMR carbon front and rear triangles with alloy rocker link
- single pivot suspension layout with rear pivot concentric around the rear axle to isolate braking forces and a linkage-driven shock to control kinematics and minimize pedal kickback
- 3 interchangeable Gravity Link shock mounts available: a mullet DH, 29er EN & mullet EN
(the carbon frame, chainstays, seatstays, and linkage are the same for all three configurations) - GravityLink DH has a 2-postion flip-chip: for Progressive or Linear shock curve (30% or 25% progressivity)
- GravityLink DH with 225x75mm Trunnion shock provides 200mm of rear wheel travel
- DH configuration is mullet-only
- both GravityLink EN have a 4-position flip-chip: High or Low & Progressive or Linear (22.5% or 27.5% progressivity)
- GravityLink EN with 205×62.5mm Trunnion shock provides 170mm of rear wheel travel
- Enduro configuration is compatible with mullet of full 29″ wheel setups
- available with playful 442mm or stable 450mm chainstay – requires new carbon chainstays (not a flip-chip)
- 1.5″ Angleset headset – +/-0.75° head angle adjustment
- fully guided internal cable routing, through ports in the side of the headtube
- internal LOCKR frame storage in the downtube
- magnetic FLP multi-tool stored inside the main rocker pivot axle
- 1 bottle cage mount on top of internal storage cover
- 73mm BSA threaded bottom bracket
- 31.6mm seatpost, internal routing compatible with dropper posts
- ISCG05 tabs
- sealed cartridge bearing pivots
- quick-release removable translucent downtube protector / GravityLink cover
- sound-deadening rubber chainstay protector
- Boost 12x148mm rear end
- UDH for compatibility with all derailleurs
- max 2.5″ tire clearance
Orbea Rallon D & E carbon DH & EN bikes – Pricing, options & availability
Raced last weekend, ready to buy for this weekend to take to your local bike park, the new carbon Orbea Rallon is available now at your local Orbea dealers now. You can pick one up in four sizes (S-XL), three standard colors – white, green, or tan, or get a custom color via Orbea’s MyO customizer.
Rallon DH
The downhill bike like Seagrave raced it, is available in just one complete bike build – the 8000€ Orbea Rallon D-LTD. For that you get the full-carbon transformer frameset with the purple ano Gravity link installed, plus 200mm of Fox Factory 40 X2 & Float X2 suspension front & rear, new Oquo MC32-Team alloy wheels, a Shimano Saint 10-speed drivetrain, and a new set of unreleased Shimano XTR M9220 4-piston brakes with 2 different piston diameters!
Rallon Enduro
As for enduro builds, there are three complete bike options. At the top, there’s a 10,000€ Rallon E-LTD build with Fox Factory suspension including the latest Float X Neo automated shock & a 38 X2 fork, a T-type SRAM X0 AXS transmission drivetrain, those suspicious new XTR brakes, and a new set of Oquo MC32-LTD carbon wheels.
Next up, the 7000€ Rallon E-Team sticks with conventional Fox Factory 38 X2 & Float X2 suspension, Oquo MC32-Team alloy wheels, and a current-generation Shimano XT M8100 + SLX 12-speed drivetrain. But it also gets its own unreleased M8220 XT brakeset with similar 4-piston brakes, like the upcoming XTR.
Lastly, an ‘entry’ point to the new carbon gravity transformer platform is the 5400€ Orbea Rallon E10. At that pricepoint, you get the same carbon frame and swappable shock mount tech, and even top-tier Fox Factory suspension (just a Float X shock and non-X2 38 fork) and the alloy Oquo MC32-Team wheels, but settle for existing Shimano SLX drivetrain & Deore 4-piston brakes.
You can pick up any of the DH or Enduro builds in four stocks sizes (S-XL), three standard colors – White Chic, Aloha Green, or Nickel brown, or get a custom color via Orbea’s MyO customizer.
