” Everytime you put a product on your bike I think you should think about the places you intend on riding it.  The majority of my riding is around the Surrey hills on this bike, probably 80%.  I chose the long as I’m 6foot and I kinda liked the idea of having a longer and more stable bike to ride.  I haven’t set my Bolt up to ride any form of slopestyle really.  Its pretty much a pure All “mountain” build based around riding in the Surrey hills (my local spot).  I find a longer bike slightly more confidence inspiring when you are hitting turns super hard,  A little less twitchy than the standard Bolt.  I chose the Yellow because its super obnoxious”

” I run a 1 by 9 setup as its all I have in my shed!  Its really all I need.  36T on the front and then 9speed on the back gets me up all of the climbs that the Surrey hills have to offer (bar a few nasty ones).  I run a viral guide and a Praxis chainring up front along with my Saint cranks at 175.  I wanted to use stuff which is super strong and stiff rather than wimp out and go super light.  It allows me to hit nasty stuff with full confidence in my bike.  As far as pedals there was really only one option, the Brendog Vault”

“My bike weighs 30lbs which is on the heavy side compared to most of the bikes I ride alongside on the trails I ride.  This doesn’t bother me.  We are talking about small differences and I’ve built it up to take hits not as a race bike.  One day I might be riding a full on downhill trail and the next I might be hitting some big gaps.  I would rather not compromise stiffness or reliability on my Bolt”

“Up front I run our new Wingbar35.  I have it cut to 760mm and in a 35mm rise, pretty high for a bike used primarily for XC but I like a more upright and aggressive stance.  The 35mm cockpit really gives me a lot of confidence out riding.  The stiffness is really noticeable.  If you are jumping something to flat or you get a bit wild then the 35mm size really inspires confidence, plus its lighter.”

“I’m running X-fusion up front and back for the bumps.  I have my 2013 Slant RL2′s set up to 150mm of travel.  They seem like the perfect trail fork.  34mm stanchions offer the right combination of weight and stiffness.  With a tapered steerer they are super stiff for a fork of such weight.  Loads of settings for me to obsess/leave alone too”

“The rear shock is the upgraded version from the stock Bolt.  It offers more adjustment and setup options than the standard.  I have my shock providing 125mm of rear wheel travel but they can be adjusted to offer less on slope builds, a pretty cool option if you wanted to run shorter forks and a lower BB.  I run my suspension pretty hard.  I love the feeling of carrying speed through the trails I ride and like my bike to feel responsive.  I’m also running the X-fusion Hilo post.  Its a must have product for me and the Hilo works perfect all year round”

Check out the Bolt L here for more information and colour ways 

This racing event attracted many top international teams and riders who were using this weekend as shakedown for next weeks Fort William world cup race.  The international flavour was clear on track walk Friday night with lots of different languages being spoken including French, German, Spanish, Italian and visitors from Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

Large number of entries meant another sell out event for orgnaisers but limited parking created a cosy camping and parking area. 

Friday 31.05.13 – Trackwalk revealed a long fast track with many rocky sections, steep chutes to road gaps and jumps. Bottom section had big jumps, tight berms and lots of spectator/media viewing points that were well used throughout the weekend.  Weather forecast was good with blue sky and sunshine although possibility of light showers.

Saturday 01.06.13 – DMR Bolt was set up with X Fusion forks, YBN Chain, TRP Quadiem Brakes, Kenda Nevegals and Micrsoshift running gear.  Early practise went well with no major issues but slow uplift meant only five runs during day.  My last run and front end washed out on loose gravel resulting in torn shirt, trousers.

Sunday 02.06.13 – Woke up to another great sunny day but when checking bike noticed front tyre had gone down due to hole in sidewall – probably that costly last run yesterday.  Have been running Kenda Tyres tubeless for a while using Caffelatex but had run out so ended up running front tyre with inner tube and rear without which gave the bike an unusual riding feel..

 Lots of red flags during race meant that start times were delayed for long periods and it seemed the fast pace of racing was catching out many riders.  My seeding run felt slow and I was surprised and pleased to be seeded twelve in category. I needed to speed up to improve position for the single race run format used at BDS events.

 My run did not start well as I had spent a long time at start waiting for track to reopen after a rider had crashed – hope you get well soon.  Perhaps this led to loss of focus as I was unusually slow out of start but soon picked up and at finish felt I had out in a solid performance in front of large crowds. When results were posted I saw my time of 2.56 which gave me 8th place finish so very pleased with race and within my top ten target finish.

 For a short time I even managed the hotseat:-

http://uk.extreme.com/mountainbike/1026110/bds-2013-round-3-innerleithen-scotland

(see video clip at 17mins)

Check out the Pinkbike write up here

We will be keeping up with Fábios progress during the year.  Check back here!

With the van packed we just needed to get some people in…

The stand acted as our headquarters for the weekend, as well as making for a great viewing platform over the Bergline

Ray and Clint spent the weekend riding the bikepark and numerous lifted trails dotted around the place.  Ray competed in the SKS slopestyle in some nasty mountain-fog conditions and managed to finish up in 3rd place in front of a wild crowd.

Check out the highlight edit from the SKS slopestyle above

Brendan and Sam in the Whip off contest.  Things got out of hand!

Amongst other events the big highlight ended with the Bergline contest.  After Rays 3rd place finish he was listed as a back up rider if one of the invited riders couldnt make the main event, this didn’t come about however and he had to sit out and watch the finals on the packed course

The view from the giant walkway next to the DMR tent was insane!

Best trick went wild just one day before the finals, A few riders turned heads with the tricks they have in their arsenal.  2 Cashrolls in one contest?!

The finals were really eye opening.  The level of riding is truly ridiculous.  Stand out riders for us at DMR were Sam Pilgrim with his flat drop backflip, Martin Soederstrom with his crazy tech runs, Brett Rheeder with his Opposite 3 on the flat drop and Anton Thelander for his flawless smooth runs.  Check out the highlight video below:

Rheeder on his way to his first Gold FMB win

Overall a great weekend which ended up holding out, weather wise, for when it really mattered.  Thanks to Cosmic sports for all their help and Barbecues.  Look forward to next year!

We’ll get together a go pro edit of the event real soon, stay tuned!

Whilst the pro riders battle it out for cash prizes, we supplied the open class with a tonne of Sect prizes.  As the first round of the season you know its gonna go off.  Check out the edit from last year:

Sect 2013 on Pinkbike

More product talk here too.

THE POND on Pinkbike

We’ll get more pictures up soon.  Notice the addition of dropper post cable mounts

Check out the Bolt frame which Ray rides here