A swing by the MS Mondraker Team pits at Lenzerheide revealed that at least two of their riders, Brook MacDonald being one of them, are racing a prototype frame that is, sadly, still under wraps. Both bikes were clothed at the linkage area, with the shock completely out of sight.
Mondraker are tight-lipped on this one, but Brook’s mechanic, Jake Ireland, was able to share a few key details.
Prototype Mondraker DH Bike
First up; it’s aluminum, and we are told it will likely stay that way for production. Secondly, the swingarm still lacks any pivot separating the chainstay and seat stay, and while it looks as though the shock is mounted at a slightly different angle to that seen on the current Summum, it doesn’t look as though the linkage will be dramatically different.
In addition to being Brook MacDonald’s mechanic, Jake Ireland was part of the development team that designed this new bike. He wasn’t able to divulge much, but he could tell us that underneath the wrap lies some cnc-machined parts, the exact layout of which is still being finalized with key patents filings going on in the background.
What we do know? What is sure to be the new Summum will have adjustable flex in the rear triangle thanks to the availability of two seat stay bridges that can be switched out to tune the ride feel.
Also, the BB shell is bolted onto the underside of the front triangle!
The team is able to experiment with different BB positions thanks to this bolt-on shell, the position of which can be moved up, down, fore and aft. Such changes in BB position will undoubtedly affect the bike’s kinematic.
With that in mind, it’s not impossible that the cnc-machined link(s) under the wrap also have multiple mounting positions to accomodate changes in BB position.
Other than that, little can be inferred. The frame still has rear-center length adjustment thanks to a flip-chip at the dropout, and the head tube looks chunky enough to accomodate an angle/reach adjust headset.
The team riders have spent no more than 10 days riding this new bike. We look forward to seeing how Brook MacDonald and his team mate, David Trummer, get on this weekend.
Eleonora Farina is out with a collarbone injury at the moment, but her Instagram story tells us she is working very hard to be back on the bike very soon.
