7-2-07 // Online Exclusive: Trek's Sun Valley Launch

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Trek displayed prototypes of the new Fuel EX bike to illustrate the development of the new platform.

After Vadeboncoeur adjourned the presentation we got a chance to ride some of the new bikes, which in addition to the new Fuel EX bikes included full suspension and hard tail 69ers from trek, a carbon fiber Gary Fisher HiFi, a carbon fiber Gary Fisher 29er hardtail called the Super Fly and a 29er version of the Gary Fisher.

Some of these bikes were previously unveiled in April. Click HERE for Bikemag.com’s coverage.

The difference between April and this latest unveiling is that we had production bikes to ride, not just ogle at. We also were able to ride production Fox 29er forks for the first time. Gary Fisher 29ers and Trek 69er bikes all use Fox 29er forks with custom offsets to quicken the steering response of an otherwise sluggish 29er front end.

The launch marks the first close-up look at its wholly redesigned Fuel EX platform, which uses a floating shock link and a concentric rear axle/pivot to dish up a “smarter” 120 millimeters of rear-wheel travel.

Following closely on a redesign of the Fuel EX platform just last year, the new R1i design will come on all 2008 Fuel EX bikes down to the Fuel EX 7, representing retail prices ranging from $6,600 to approximately $1,750. The Fuel EX 5.5 and 6.5 will use last year’s frame. Trek also added a new, 18.5-inch frame size to the lineup, which flushes out the size range of existing 15.5-, 17.5-, 19.5 and 21.5-inch sizes.

Trek product manager John Riley said that the redesigned suspension system capitalized on three areas of improvement: 1. influence of the rear brake on the suspension feel, 2. better shock actuation and 3. overall frame stiffness.

The first two goals are achieved by the redesigned pivot location, dubbed ABP (Active Braking Pivot) and by Trek’s “Full Floater” use of a suspended lower shock mount. Trek’s suspension engineer, Jose Gonzales, also worked closely with Fox Racing Shox to custom tune Float rear shocks to the new bikes.

Overall frame stiffness on the new bikes comes by way of a redesigned one-piece welded rocker link and wider-stance bearings, which adds significant stiffness to the rear end. The top end carbon Fuel EX bikes will use a magnesium rear end to shed even more weight. Expect longer-travel bikes in the Trek lineup to start using similar designs.

The trails in Sun Valley were almost too smooth to really appreciate the Active Braking Pivot, but look for a full-fledged review of the new bikes in a future issue of Bike, and look for the bikes themselves to start showing up at dealers in August.

The Fuel EX 7, 8 and 9 models use aluminum main frames and feature the same ABP technology as the top-end EX 9.5. Fuel EX 5.5 and 6.5 use last year’s R1 rocker link design.