SAN CARLOS, Calif. - Sept. 9, 2009 -Nino Schurter of the Ritchey Design-sponsored SCOTT-Swisspower Team captured the 2009 Cross-Country Mountain Bike World Championship title in Canberra, Australia on September 5, 2009, while team member Florian Vogel rounded out the podium with a third-place finish.
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Scott Bikes Win Gold and Bronze

Nino Schurter and Florian Vogel made it happen by winning gold and bronze at the XC World Championships in Canberra, Australia! Congratulations from SCOTT Bicycles for this fantastic effort by the riders and the entire team.

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Scott Launches New Website We have launched the 2010 product website. The site still has a few bugs, but we invite you to surf at your leisure and check out some of the improved imagery and functions. Selected product pages now enable the user to mouse over the product image to use a localized zoom function. The 360° spin feature has been improved with a mouse control function and 2X and 3X zoom. Additionally, users will be able to download images and navigate directly to the dealer locator from the product page. Click here to try the new functions.

source: Scott USA

Reviewed by Sharon Bader

Scott, a company making its mark as an innovator starting with ski poles in 1958, to the first carbon mountain bike in 1995, the Genius is their latest conception. Forced to redesign their suspension from previous horst link to the 2009 Genius with a linkage assisted single pivot design. The unique feature of the Genius is the proprietary DT Swiss engineered shock that offers three levels of travel adjustability. Matched with a travel adjust fork, the Genius allows the rider to choose their bike style depending on terrain - from fully locked out, to mid travel to long travel. The sub 30lb weight for a 150mm/5.9inch travel bike puts this bike at the top of the long travel, marathon style bikes.

The Bike

This bike was obtained by Obsession: Bikes in North Vancouver, Canada for this review.

The Scott 40 alloy bike, reviewed here, weighs 28.19lbs. Six versions of the Genius are offered, the 50 and 40 being alloy, the 30, 20, 10 and Limited being Carbon and are progressively lighter to 22.9lbs for the Limited version. The hydroformed tubing provides varying diameters throughout the frame to offer strength and stiffness where required and weight savings where possible. The popular asymmetrical chainstay is also present on this bike.

The Traction Control lever on the handlebar changes the rear travel from 150mm to 95mm to locked out and back with the flip of a switch. This allows for efficient locked out - hard tail climbing on smooth surfaces, traction mode - mid travel on irregular surfaces for increased traction and full travel when heading down on any terrain. A blow out is present in the locked out mode in case you forget to unlock the bike when riding over rough obstacles. In full travel mode the 68.5o head angle provides an all mountain geometry which steepens as you click through the other travel modes.

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Innovative Is Just The Beginning

Great Googly Moogly

Go ahead and gawk, everyone else is. Taking the Scott Genius 10 to the trailhead is akin to showing up to the prom with Jessica Alba or rolling up to the local cruise night in a Ferrari. Other riders stalk and they stare. Some go as far as to approach with skepticism, fear and wonder. Others still dare run a finger along the carbon fiber top tube or push down on the saddle to see if the shock really extends rather than compresses (it does). We might have gotten annoyed had we actually dropped eight large on this black and white beauty but as seeing how we were forced to borrow a demo model from a very generous local shop, we found ourselves joining in on the drool-fest.

Specs

We better come right out with the specs before even attempting this bike test as there is a lot of, what’s the word- uniqueness to talk about later on. The Genius 10 comes equipped with a Fox TALAS 32 RL fork (15mm quick release) and Scott’s own Equalizer2 TC shock in the rear. The entire drivetrain (shifters, cranks, both derailleurs, chainrings and cassette) is Shimano XTR as are the brakes. Getting the pedal-power to the ground are Schawalbe Nobby NIC tires wrapped around DT Swiss XR rims. The remaining bits come in the form of Ritchey Carbon (stem, bars and seatpost). Finally, Scott spec’ed the Fizik Tundra saddle.

All told our medium (17.5 inch) test bike came in a shred under 26 pounds.

The Walk Around

We started this review by saying that Scott Genius 10 gains some serious trailside attention and this really is expected considering many of the bike’s unique characteristics. The carbon fiber frame is extremely trick in person and that Scott Branded shock definitely sports a look all its own. To put it simply, the Genius looks expensive and (when you stop to consider that there is a $13,000 version of this bike available)- it is! The sticker hanging off this particular bike’s handlebar read $7395 and that was including a discount since it was used as a demo model! Ouch.

Climbing on board instills a very cross-country race bike persona. The reach to the bars is a bit longer than comfortable and the relationship between the razor thin saddle and the pedals allows for full, extended crank rotations. Even though the bike targets the very hot (at the moment) 6-inch travel all mountain market, there is a rigidity and stoutness about it that screams XC.

Setting the bike up is an exercise in oddity (even for our own in-house mechanic who thought he had seen it all). The Equalizer shock requires a special pump provided by Scott (don’t leave the dealer without it). We quickly discovered that what makes it so special is that it’s equipped to deliver the type of air pressure commonly required to inflate a blimp. We settled on 300 PSI in the positive air chamber and understand that we were running it a little on the low side!

The shock also has a unique system Scott calls OTS (or Oil Transfer System) that allows the rider, via a bar-mounted trigger, to choose from three variations- full six inches of travel, three and a half inches of travel or fully locked out.

Finally and certainly adding to uniqueness theme, that’s no simple single-pivot linkage back there either. Well technically it is, but what makes this system unique is that leverage being fed in from the back wheel actually causes the Equalizer2’s shock shaft to expand like the pneumatic cylinder when you swing open your screen door rather than to compress like a normal shock. Are there any benefits to this configuration? Even after two weeks of testing, we can’t say that we discovered any. In fact because the design requires such outrageous air pressures to function, expect a lot of trial and error before getting the shock dialed in correctly.

The Ride

Now that we’ve overloaded you with technical details to ponder, you’ve got to be wondering just what it feels like to clip in and blast of on the Scott Genius 10. We know that after a few days of tinkering to get the suspension setup, we were certainly getting anxious. Unfortunately, thanks in no small part to all of the anticipation; the word to summarize the experience would have to be anticlimactic.

The Genius feels a lot like a cross-country race bike. The flat bar and stretched out rider position hint toward this even at a standstill but powering away really seals the deal with spurt-like acceleration and a rigid-feeling chassis. It’s pretty easy to loft the front end with a pedal mash so our testers quickly discovered that to get the Genius flowing the rider needs to stay seated and work an even cadence. This is a bike that requires a lot of shifting to find its rhythm. Fortunately the XTR group was more than up to the task appointed it.

The chassis comes into pretty confident balance when clipping along at a good pace on the flats but we were never fully comfortable with slamming it hard into a corner or powering through a tight switchback. While we’re normally quite enamored with the Fox 32 TALAS’ performance, the Genius chassis tends to overwork the fork. As such cornering is often vague rather than planted and the sensation that front wheel just may wash out was always present.

Fortunately, that same lackluster steering works surprisingly well on the climbs. The front-end nervousness immediately disappears and in fact allows the rider a better ability to stick his lines once the ground starts pointing skyward. Again, we hate to keep coming back to the cross-country comparisons but this area further confirmed our initial instincts that the bike enjoys spurting up-hills rather than zinging down them.

The Genius flows well along tight singletrack but can become an instantaneous handful if the trail turns rough, choppy, or rocky. We’re not sure if the high shock air volume is to blame or if it’s the chassis itself, but the bike exhibits some instability when the conditions turn ugly. The rear tire tends to buck off line if you don’t make a conscious effort to get your weight way off the back. Doing so gets the rear to stay planted but allows for enough chassis flex to get out of shape up front. It’s a shame really as the six inches of travel occasionally show signs of brilliance but never seem to collaborate when called upon.

Braking from the XTRs is, as always, quite impressive and dependable with minimal burn-in required.

Conclusion

We really don’t like to come down hard on products- especially those that have clearly been the result of countless hours of hard work and pride. However, the best way to judge the Genius 10 is to look upon it as a work in progress. With a few years of refinement, Scott can very easily have a world-class All Mountain entry based on this starting point.

Were it ours to keep there are a few simple swaps that could certainly help it achieve its intended purpose. We would drop kick the flat bar in favor of a nice riser and without a doubt, slap a WTB Rocket V where once sat the Fizik Tundra. The Scott Genius’ greatest strength has got to be its weight. The bike is light- not just on paper but it feels even lighter on the trails than its numbers reveal. It’s a real attention getter because of its high-class looks and quite inviting as the choice for all day epics thanks to its wispy persona. With a few tweaks it could easily be a class leader.

We began this review by comparing the Scott Genius 10 to a Ferrari and we’ll end it with that analogy as well. The Genius is a high-class, expensive, exotic of a mountain bike that demands a rider who is willing to treat it with the respect it deserves. Riders who beat their equipment down then put it away wet need not apply. Everyone else should prepare to gawk.

This review brought to you by Mountain Bike Tales digital magazine: http://www.mountainbiketales.com

Columbia-Highroad Announces Philadelphia Roster Team members preliminarily slated to take the start in the Philadelphia International Cycling Championship include Andre Greipel, Bernhard Eisel, Gert Dockx, Greg Henderson, Edvald Boasson Hagen, Marco Pinotti, and Vicente Reynes. The cyclists will complete 10 laps of a 14.4-mile circuit through Philadelphia, which will include 10 climbs up the 17% grade Manayunk Wall. They will finish with three laps of Lemon Hill and Logan Circle, having logged 156 miles total in one of the biggest special sporting events in the country. To celebrate this great American race, SCOTT is hosting a VIP function on the course at Lemon Hill. Please contact SCOTT Northeast Regional Sales Manager Bart Passanante to get your VIP pass to this fantastic Philly event: bpassanante@scottusa.com or 908.797.7440.

source: Scott News

Scott11 – An International Mountain Bike Downhill and Four Cross Team sponsored by Scott Bicycles. Scott Bicycles announces a new World Cup Downhill and FourCross Team, Scott11. Scott rounds out its’ WC presence with this gravity team, complimenting the Scott-Swisspower WC XC Team. Scott11 is a developmental program for both riders and the Scott Engineering department. For the riders, many of whom are young talents looking to make that break on the WC Circuit, it’s a chance to ride the World’s best equipment and enjoy some of the finest support available. For the engineers, taking concepts to production after testing at the racetrack is the best possible opportunity to fulfill consumer needs. “We stepped up for ’09 and became title sponsor to Scott-Swisspower, one of the finest XC Race programs ever created, and the brainchild of Thomas Frischknecht,” stated Adrian Montgomery. “With Scott11, we took a similar approach by investing in another professional, Claudio Caluori, who could mentor and guide young riders on the way up. At the same time, we gain valuable experience we can use to further develop our gravity product and the entire Mountain Segment.” Scott11 Athletes Fabien Pedemanaud Aari Barrett Nick Beer Adrian Weiss Mirco Weiss Robin Hagen Emilie Siegenthaler Manager Claudio Caluori The Team will ride the Scott Gambler DH bike, outfitted with Shimano components, DT Swiss wheels and Fox Suspension. Other sponsors include FSA Gravity, TSG, Prologo, Schwalbe, E13 and the French Ski Resort Chatel, where the team is based. Red Bull is involved as well as Park Tool, Movetec an Guller Bausysteme. ###################################################################### SCOTT USA, Inc., established in 1958 and located in Sun Valley, Idaho, is a leading international manufacturer of premium bike accessories/equipment, motorsports, running, and wintersports products.

source: Scott News

Nino Schurter, Florian Vogel and other members of SCOTT-Swisspower MTB Racing got a jump on the season during a three-week training camp in Stellenbosch, South Africa. Their efforts were well rewarded this past weekend when the 2009 mountain bike season kicked off at the Maremma Cup in Massa Marittima, Tuscany. Florian capitalized on his early season form by taking out the win, and Nino followed him onto the podium making it a SCOTT-Swisspower MTB Racing one two.

For more information from Scott USA, contact Adrian

source: Scott News

Scott Contessa Triathlete Sibylle Matter recently won the Hawaiian Airlines Double competition that ranked athletes entering both the Ironman WC in Kona and the X-Terra WC in Maui 2 weeks afterwards. Matter placed 13th overall in the Pro Women’s field in Kona and a respectable 14th overall at the X-Terra with a combined time for both events of 13:12:08.

Sibylle rode a new Scott Contessa Plasma for the Ironman, featuring the Plasma2 frameset that also produced the fastest bike split in Kona under Ain Alar Juhanson. She competed on the Contessa Spark RC for the X-Terra event. It’s takes tremendous work ethic and training to pull off “the double”.

Ironman WC: 9:44:54
X-Terra WC: 3:27:14
Combined Time: 13:12:08

For more information, visit Sibylle’s website or contact Adrian Montgomery

source: Scott News