More 29″er Rumors!
April 2nd, 2007 by Guitar TedIn a busy day here at the Twenty Nine Inches office, we are hearing even more juicy 29″er related rumors. Check out the following….
We’re hearing stuff that is pretty incredible, so much so that we waited on posting this one until after April Fools Day so you wouldn’t think we were pulling your leg! This stuff actually came in late Friday and Saturday, but anyway…..
Specialized Full Suspension Model With 4″ Travel It seems that there is another full suspension Specialized model and it’s got 4 inches of rear travel. Apparently the proto type is a 6.6lb frame with a Fox RP23 rear shock. Horst style linkage, of course. The frame sounds like something more than an Epic, which we’ve heard rumors of previously. Perhaps an Enduro? No word on a fork, but Specialized does do it’s own in house 26 inch suspension forks, so who knows? More as we can dredge up the info!
Large, Meaty Tire On The Horizon!: Another piece of juicy news! Hearing from overseas that a 2.6″ aggressive treaded, true free ride, all mountain fatty is actually on it’s way. The tire, which I don’t have a name or brand for yet, is expected in the U.S. for testing soon and may even be available by the end of the summer for folks like you and I to ride!
Again, I have no idea who is producing this fatty, but if I had to take a stab at it, I’d say Kenda is a likely subject, since they have invested in a mold machine capable of such a tire. Stay tuned for more as we learn it.
Big Wheels- Big Travel! Finally, I have heard from a source on the East Coast that a seven inch travel monster is being developed for the 29″er all mountain/ free ride/ DH set. Dual chainring only, sliding DH style dropouts, 150mm OLD rear axle standard, and coming soon.
Makes one wonder, if there is a seven inch travel rear, then we may be seeing a match for the front too? And rims? Maybe the above mentioned tires? The pieces are coming together, it would seem, for a true burly long travel 29″er. This is something I had predicted would happen a couple months ago. I never expected it to be this soon though! I think we’re going to see a few more “myths” about 29″ers fall by the wayside.
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Yup, must be Kenda. They have already sold substantial numbers of 29″ tires, and must have gotten a good taste after launching the Nevegal.
Also, Mike Curiak has been teasing about a big tire on MTBR, and he’s got Kenda connections. Always showed new 29″ Kenda’s first.
4-5 years ago I gave it my all (which ain’t much) to get a 30″ bike together. I wanted (still do) to call meaty 700c FR/DH 30″, to make a distinction from the XC-ish 29″, and have a size that should orally appeal to DH folks better. You betcha they’ll like “thirty” better than the to them gay twenty-nine! Eventually, neither the frame builder, tire maker or rim roller would do it at their own costs. I’ll be asking them for comments after the first raving reviews of the 7″ bike are in. They could have been selling parts for it for a few years already, starting with a monopoly
I talked to a guy at my LBS which sells Specialized and when I told him about the FS 29er rumor, he just grinned and said to keep an eye on Sea Otter.
Well my deep throat at Pacific said that they are working on a Schwinn 29er that will see big box floor space in the spring of 09′. It will be a hardtail but there will be a FS close on its heels and more than likely at the same time. All the usual spec of low end parts and pieces to keep the price down in the under $200 range. I suggested they should call it TYA for ten years after.
7″ travel FS frame - east coast rumor?? East Coast company too?
Jamis? Iron Horse? Sinister? Cannondale?
name:este: So, a 29″er in a “one size fits all” package like most Mall Wart bikes? That’ll be rich!
The interesting thing will be to see how many adults pick the 29″er over the 26″er based upon fit and proportions alone. Could be a true case of “kiddie” versus “adult” wheels in a market that hasn’t got a clue what a 29″er is.
Interesting. If 26″er sales get hurt by the introduction of the larger wheel format several interesting scenarios could be imagined. Mall Wart type stores sell and forecast based on sales figures, so there’s no “bike passion” involved at all in their decisions. Maybe we’ll see other branded 29″ers like Murrays, Roadmasters, and Nexts!
Crazy!