This year, Steve Smith took time from the busy World Cup schedule that kept most pros from attending Sea Otter to walk us through the highlights of the one-off prototype frame he raced last year at World Champs. And when we say “walk” us through the details, he mostly just stood there holding this pose until the wind knocked him over. That said, he was a really friendly guy, and took photos with everyone who stopped by!
Now back to the frame…..
Devinci Racing proudly emblazoned the bike with several “one-off” decals, but the truth is it’s actually number four of four. Each of the prototype frames was welded in house, at the company’s factory in Quebec – where they make all of their aluminum frames! Keep this company on your short list if you’d like your next frame to made in North America.
Developed in conjunction with Steve Smith and suspension mastermind Dave Weagle specifically for the pedal heavy Pietermaritzburg course, the bike sports 165mm of rear travel and was designed specifically for 650b wheels.
There are few things better than the look of raw aluminum.
The frame gets a version of the Split Pivot suspension system utilized by all of Devinci’s full suspension bikes, but a few special tweaks make this prototype look and perform differently than it’s big brother, the Wilson.
Unlike the Carbon DH bike Smith normally races, the shock position of this one is more conventionally located. On the Wilson, the shock is placed as low as possible, and it actuated by a rocker arm that rotates around the bottom bracket. Here, the lower pivot is quite a bit higher.
Our earlier jokes aside, those who follow the World Cup series may have noticed that Smith did not race at the season opener, which was held at the same venue in South Africa that this bike was designed for. Word on the streets is that he’s still out after hurting his ankle while casing a massive gap in New Zealand. No one at the Devinci tent could give us any updates on his condition, but we wish him a speedy recovery!
