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Saracen’s new Myst Carbon Race bike put in a low key appearance at Eurobike before being ridden by UCI Downhill World Championship silver medallist Manon Carpenter. Now the brand has released the full details of the new pro-level factory build race bike.
There are several key performance improvements from its predecessor, being lighter with a lower centre of gravity, yet has retained its durability, Saracen said.
Built from a mixture of Toray 24T/30T UD carbon with 3K reinforcement in strategic areas of the downtube, Saracen has saved 560 grams on the existing alloy front triangle. The design team at Saracen have incorporated the ability to fine-tune the front-centre -/+5mm with its custom headtube and headsets and following another stellar race season, the rear brake hose routing has also been updated to run internally through the seatstay.
UD carbon links save 110 grams over the original CNC machined alloy linkages and the shock cradle has also been relocated to the downtube to lower the centre of gravity and improve standover – no small feat as it needs to accommodate the next generation of air shocks featuring large volume air cans, the brand said. Additionally, integrated fork bump-stops help clean up the front end of the bike and house the cable ports for the rear brake hose and rear derailleur cable.
Simon Wild, cycle project manager at Saracen, said: “We have come so far, growing from a small UK team to compete at the highest level of downhill racing and starting the 2015 season as the world’s number one ranked UCI team was an extremely proud moment.
“A lot has changed over the years but the ethos is still the same; to build a chassis that can to compete at the top level of downhill racing and be available for the general public to buy. We are thrilled to introduce the Myst Carbon Factory Race chassis which is at the pinnacle of downhill race-bike design.”
Manon Carpenter won two world titles on board versions of the Myst, and finished with an impressive silver medal at the weekend’s world championships. Prior to the tournament, Manon said: “I’ve grown pretty close to my Myst over the past four years – from winning junior worlds in 2011, then the world cup overall and world champs in 2014 – it has been quite a journey!
“The bike has developed so much over that time and it has been great to be a part of a team that values feedback from us and then puts it into practice.”
Production bikes will be available to buy from winter 2015 for £4,999.
