SWATCH PRIME LINE MUNICH

It’s almost time for Swatch Prime Line! The rider field is now complete and 24 of the world’s top mountain bike slopestylers are honing their tricks in advance of the Munich Mash weekend and the Swatch Prime Line headliner set for Saturday June 27^th. Swatch Proteam athlete and legendary FMB World Tour rider, Sam Pilgrim (GBR) is back again after a thrilling performance and 2^nd place finish at the first-ever Swatch Prime Line event last year. Sam will be up against elite riders from around the world – including last year’s winner Louis Reboul (FRA).

And here they are:

Brett Rheeder (CAN), Anthony Messere (CAN), Thomas Genon (BEL), Sam Reynolds (GBR), Anton Thelander (SWE), Szymon Godziek (POL), Nicholi Rogatkin (USA), Louis Reboul (FRA), Yannick Granieri (FRA), Logan Peat (CAN), Tomas Lemoine (FRA), Tomas Zejda (CZE), Antoine Bizet (FRA), Carson Storch (USA), Mehdi Gani (FRA), Paul Genovese (CAN), Simon Pagès (FRA), Greg Watts (USA), Sam Pilgrim (GBR), Bobby Lamirande (CAN), Max Fredriksson (SWE), Amir Kabbani (GER) and Tom van Steenbergen (CAN).

In addition to the top mountain bike athlete line up – BMX icon and multi-time X Games medalist Ryan Nyquist (USA), has been invited as a wildcard to compete in the giant MTB slopestyle contest.

Building on the debut of Swatch Prime Line last year, the new course will send the riders from the top of Olympic Stadium all the way down to the Olympic lake. It starts with a drop from a 13m/ 43ft high tower which is followed by a 5m/ 16ft high step-up box. Flowing round the berm, the riders will now drop down from a 10m/ 33ft step-down into Coubertinplatz where tens of thousands of cheering spectators will show their support as they hit the two big doubles (10m/ 33ft and 7m/ 23ft long). From there, they will shoot up onto the bridge, over a spine and send it off the 10m/33ft step-down to gear up for the grand finale on the lake. The huge 12m/39ft long jump will be their last chance to earn big points at Swatch Prime Line.

After last year’s event drew more than 50,000 fans, Swatch wants even more people to enjoy the show – so this year’s Swatch Prime Line is free! No tickets needed for the headline event: thrills, chills and amazing performances by mountain biking’s slopestyle tricksters.

And what better way to wind up the day than at the Swatch Up Your Night after-party? The Niceguys, from Bern, and the new shooting star from Paris, Guillaume Berg, are polishing their playlists for the party of the year – with Swatch Prime Line athletes and sports fans out on the dance floor…     

For the live stream and event videos go to www.swatch.com/primeline, and for more information about the event, please visit www.swatch.com/press and www.swatchprimeline.com.

Pivot Mach 429 Trail

The greatest trail bikes do everything well, no matter what or where you ride, and Pivot’s new Mach 429 Trail raises the bar for amazing bikes even higher. Our goal when designing the Mach 429 Trail was to create a new category of trail bike - one that takes advantage of the best features of 29 and yet maintains the performance characteristics that make you forget about wheelsize and, instead, translate to the “best-ride-ever,” every time you ride.

We produced many iterations of this new design, tweaking angles and measurements with each generation of prototype and ride testing every version until we created the perfect formula. The result? A bike with the incredible pedaling efficiency and small bump compliance of the dw-link™ design, a slack front end and a short back end that is fast, flickable, and energy efficient.

To complement this new 29er formula, you’ll find Boost™ 148 spacing, our own hollow core, internal, high compression carbon molding and the obsessive detailing you expect from Pivot. Effortless trail bike handling, incredible power transfer and precise cornering are all yours, without compromise, in the perfectly balanced chassis of the Mach 429 Trail. It is the perfect choice for your next ride.

PIVOT'S NEW MID TRAVEL LINKAGE DESIGN

The 429 Trail marks the introduction of Pivot’s new mid-travel trail linkage design, specifically for trail bikes. With major influences from the clevis design of the Phoenix DH Carbon and Mach 6 Carbon, the 429 Trail utilizes an entirely new upper linkage to provide the same ultra-precise control and bottomless feel of our longer travel dw-link™ designs in a more compact, lighter package for trail applications.

When we pair the new upper linkage design with the same lower linkage design that we utilize on the Mach 6 Carbon, the result is a bike that you can take anywhere and over anything – an incredibly versatile 29er with seemingly endless suspension and noticeably increased traction. The Mach 429 Trail’s dw-link™ suspension delivers unmatched handling characteristics combined with pedaling efficiency and climbing capability for riders who demand the best performance in both XC and technical terrain. 

To match the never ending feel of the Mach 429 Trail’s rear suspension, we’ve paired it with the new 130mm Fox 34 for a perfectly balanced ride both on the ups and downs. This fork sets the new bar for trail specific suspension performance.

To complement these trail-proven angles, you’ll find new Boost™ 148 spacing in the rear and 110mm front hub spacing. The extra width between dropouts with the Boost™ system lends itself perfectly to Pivot’s drive to produce the stiffest frames with the best energy transfer available. The extra room between hub flanges gives that 29er wheel a ride feel that is as precise as any wheelsize with the added advantage of big-wheel rollover capability. In addition to enhanced frame and wheel stiffness, the Boost™ system also enables us to add more tire clearance, allowing for a wider range of condition specific tire choices.

When creating the Mach 429 Trail, our engineers worked to find the perfect combination of purposeful, clean, composite design for strength, large cross sections for stiffness, and the right combination of composite materials to produce a high value frame worthy of the name Pivot. With our hollow-core, internal-molding process to bring this vision to reality, riders can now put the Mach 429 Trail at the top of the list when it comes to choosing a one-bike quiver.

Additionally, we’ve designed this full carbon frame with value in mind – building on our years of composite layup and construction experience – we’ve maintained the highest levels of stiffness and strength to weight, while making focused changes to keep the costs down and the technical advantages high, such as strategic, easy-to-service external routing combined with key features of the Pivot Cable Port System – including ports for use with an internal dropper post and clean cable/housing routing through the chainstays.

Debuting on the Mach 429 Trail is a new ultra-clean, removable front derailleur mount. For those that want to run two chainrings, this mount offers the best shifting performance you can get, utilizing Shimano’s new side-swing front derailleur system.

For those who love the simple functionality of 1x systems, remove the front derailleur mount for an incredibly sleek, clean installation with almost no evidence of the un-needed hardware.

Our mountain bikes feature the PF92 bottom bracket. Collaboratively developed by our engineers and Shimano, this allows for wider pivots and better bearing support, both of which contribute to increased frame stiffness and strength as well as the best bearing longevity.
 
Other essential details include post mount disc brake mounts for easy set up and weight savings, internal stealth dropper compatibility and Enduro Max cartridge bearings throughout. There are mounts for 2 waterbottles on every frame and the Mach 429 Trail is available in 4 sizes – S, M, L, XL – and in two great colors.

The Mach 429 Trail frame and rear shock retail for $2,499 USD. The Mach 429 Trail is available in eight different build options, from a value-oriented XT/SLX build ($3,999 USD to an XTR dream kit ($7,699) USD for complete build kit information, technical specs and more visit our site. The first shipment of Mach 429 Trail hits stores next week - see your dealer to order.

FMB Diamond Series: Round 2 this weekend

·        LIVE webcast on www.fmbworldtour.com : Finals on Saturday, June 27^th at 4:45 pm (CEST)

·         The second round of six FMB Diamond Series stops

·         Stacked rider line up with top 10 athletes from 2014 already pre-qualified.

·         Check out the Swatch Prime Line teaser here: https://youtu.be/AzPIu6JX7Sg

Munich, June 23^rd 2015 – Round 2 of the FMB Diamond Series brings the world to Munich, Germany for Swatch Prime Line! After round 1 in New Zealand and a three month break, the top FMB contenders are reenergized, and have even more tricks dialed-in to show off at the first European Diamond Series event this season. Brett Rheeder currently leads the standings after Crankworx Rotorua – but close behind, Nicholi Rogatkin and Thomas Genon are eager to jump ahead here in Europe. You  can watch the top athletes drop in for Swatch Prime Line, live on fmbworldtour.com on Saturday, June 27^th from 4:45pm (CEST). Take a look at the event trailer here: https://youtu.be/AzPIu6JX7Sg

Some of the riders have been attending FMB Gold and Silver events across Europe, while others have been focusing hard on dialing in their best tricks for round 2 of the FMB Diamond Series. Here, the current ranking leader, Brett Rheeder could secure his position even more with a win, or his closest rivals, Nicholi Rogatkin and Thomas Genon could jump ahead and put the pressure on the only X Games MTB Slopestyle Gold medalist. Once again, the top 10 athletes from the 2014 Diamond Series ranking are automatically qualified for Swatch Prime Line, so the competition could not be on more of a knife-edge. Here is the rider line up:

Deeply missed in the line up is Martin Soderstrom who unfortunately broke his leg. We all wish him a fast recovery. Anton Thelander is no stranger to Olympia Park after winning Red Bull Phenom here just 2 years ago – he will replace Martin as first alternate in the line up. A keen addition to the list is BMX legend Ryan Nyquist, who after a strong performance at 26TRIX not 2 weeks ago has secured the event wildcard from Olympia Park Munich. The German crowds are excited to see this legendary athlete take on Swatch Prime Line. Also at 26TRIX, Tom van Steenbergen won the FMB Wildcard and will certainly strengthen the Canadian force. Reigning Champion, Louis Reboul will return to defend his title, but can he win again on this bigger and longer course? Swatch Pro Team athlete and former World Champion, Sam Pilgrim will also be in Munich to throw down for the crowds.

On Friday June 26^th, 24 invited riders will be cut down to 12 during qualifying. Then the finals on Saturday will give the athletes 2 runs to go big, be victorious and claim some big points towards the FMB Diamond Series standings. The contest is another chance for the FMB Factory Teams to climb the standings. Currently Specialized lead the way, but with Martin Soderstrom out, can American rider Nicholi Rogatkin keep them ahead or will the Canyon Factory Team take over the lead? With a strong Canadian presence, maybe we will see TREK C3 Project move in front. You can follow the rankings on www.fmbworldtour.com.

Save the date and tune in for the live webcast. Here are the viewing times:

SATURDAY, 27 JUNE, 4:45PM CEST

SATURDAY, 27 JUNE, 7:45AM PDT

SATURDAY, 27 JUNE, 10:45AM EDT

SUNDAY, 28 JUNE, 0:45AM AEST

SUNDAY, 28 JUNE, 2:45AM NZST

Useful links:

Check out the new FMB World Tour teaser here: http://youtu.be/G72oFgGHsoM

More information about the FMB Diamond Series can be found on the FMB World Tour website:  http://www.fmbworldtour.com

For news and updates follow FMB World Tour on: www.facebook.com/fmbworldtour & www.twitter.com/fmbworldtour as well as Instagram!

2015 Leogang Final Results

2015 UCI WC 3 Leogang Finals Junior Men Results

2015 UCI WC 3 Leogang Finals Women Results

2015 UCI WC 3 Leogang Finals Men Results

Brook MacDonald Takes 9th Place in Leogang, Laurie Greenland Scores another Podium

With the threat of rain hanging over the technical Leogang track in the Austrian Alps, all four Trek World Racing riders put in solid crash fee runs which resulted in all 3 elite men improving their World Cup ranking, and Laurie Greenland back on the podium for the 5th time in a row since Méribel last year.

In the Elite Men’s race, Brook MacDonald and George Brannigan qualified on almost the same time with the latter having the edge in 11th place, Brook in 12th. Come race day and Brook stormed the track and looked to be in great shape, fastest at the second split, but lost 7 tenths in the bottom sector. He was still very happy with his first top 10 of the year.

George was next up and went faster than Brook at the first split, but a small mistake in the second sector needing to put his foot down a few times, cost George valuable time crossing the line 7 tenths behind Brook and eventually finishing 12th. Brook moves up 4 places in the overall, back into a protected position, while George moves up 3 places to 23rd. Greg Williamson had a run he was happy with to finish 25th, moving his overall ranking up from 52nd to 37th overall.

Brook said, “I’m very happy with that. I know where I lost some time in the bottom, casing a section before the rock garden which stalled me, but overall I had a great bike set-up this week and felt great in my run. There was also a really strong headwind for most of the race that seemed to die down for the last 8 guys, so I know there was some time there.”

Laurie Greenland qualified 2nd Saturday, after injuring his knee in training on Friday. The swelling restricted mobility on Saturday and he rode the qualifier fairly conservatively as no points are at stake. Sunday race day saw his knee back to near 100% and Laurie was ready for a great race. Fastest at the first split Laurie unfortunately lost his chain just prior to the long motorway section and dropped a lot of time in the prevailing headwind. To finish 3rd after that is a great result and keeps Laurie in the points chase for the overall, now in 2nd.

The team heads down the road the Schladming for a European iXS Cup at the classic ex-World Cup venue. The next round of the World Cup is in 2 weeks at the new venue of Lenzerheide, Switzerland.