Eurobike 15 – Rocky Mountain Maiden DH Bike
A couple of weeks ago Rocky Mountain unveiled their new DH bike, the Maiden. Check out all the details on this hot new steed.
The Maiden has been in development for the last 4 or so years with input from riders including Thomas Vanderham, Geoff Gulevich and Wade Simmons. A load has changed in bikes during that time including the influx and normalization of 275 wheels. During their development they have worked with both 26 and 275 wheels, and this remains in the finished bike. As well as the godfathers of freeride, they called on World Cup DH racers for their influence. The finished product is neither the super-long pure breed DH racer that won’t get playful, nor is it an overly short bike that will destroy A-Line but get wild if fired into a burly rock garden.
Enormous pivots across the carbon chassis give the bike a really solid look, and should mean it stands up to some good old fashioned hucking. All of the hose guides give the option to run either internal or external routing, keeping the bike looking clean. There’s also a secret port for a Di2 battery if you really want… The back end boasts 200mm of travel, with a virtual pivot point that gives totally independent braking throughout the suspension travel, hopefully meaning the bike will continue to grip, even under hard braking.
As we said, the bike had been in development for over 4 years, and some of the riders involved in the design wanted to stick with 26″ wheels, others wanted 275. Rather than compromise, make two frames or just ditch a wheelsize they managed to integrate both into the same chassis and maintain almost identical geometry with both wheel sizes. The rear axle has two positions, the rear brake has two sets of mounts and the headtube contains a cup that swaps out. As well as these wheel-based adjustments, the lower shock mount has 1/4 degree adjustments that allow you to tweak the head angle to suit the track you are on, giving nearly a degree of range.
The Rocky Mountain team were suitably stoked to receive a Eurobike award, especially as it’s their 35th birthday.
It was also Wade Simmon’s 20 year anniversary with the brand, but he looks a bit red in the face here…
The Maiden comes in 4 builds from the budget “Park” with X-Fusion suspension, and three options with BOS suspension – the Pro, World Cup and Unlimited, as well as a frame only option.
We could only get our hands on the European Pricing.
Unlimited – €13,000
World Cup – €8,500
Pro – €6,500
Park – €4,900
Unlimited/WC Frame – €4,900
We are super excited to get a Maiden out into the Welsh countryside and see how it rides.