Talk about the dampers on the full suspension bikes.
SW: The first bikes were normal four link bars, they worked quite good, we got all the shock data and we used the simulation before I started with YT because I was very interested in this since I have loved riding bikes over the twenty years.
A relatively simple thing to do, to match the shock to the suspension design. Not everyone does that.SW: Yes, but what does easy mean? It’s easy to use the data from the shock manufacturer if you can get it, or if they have it and use it for the simulation programme. The thing is there is not only a kinematic behaviour – progressive rate, rebound and compression behaviour – but you need to think about the balance of the bike, geometry, position of the rider, take the bike on hard rides and normal rides. Also it’s important to bear in mind what you need for the pre–load of the system due to the chain force. I guess over twenty years I have ridden so many bikes and written many articles and met so many guys and put my experience together with CAD design and simulation programmes, my own axle calculations and mix it together and…well that’s it.
Markus talk us the graphics, the bikes look right.MF: Yes, thanks a lot. The graphics are not based around other mountainbikes or parts in the bike scene, but from other things like cans of beer, old advertising, a rally car, anything really.
Self taught?MF: Yes, I did it all by myself.
And have you won awards?MF: Yes, Red Dot is a design award, one of world’s biggest awards in the design industry not only for bikes or mountainbikes, it’s also for a huge range of items – the Apple iPhone and Mercedes SLS are examples of the kind of things that win. It’s important for us not just to sell more bikes, but it’s good feedback and gives us the right image obviously.
OK more on the bikes. Playbike for example, what a great model, not many companies make anything like this?MF: Last year the idea was to have had a play bike, but only 100mm travel front and rear. The idea was build a dirt jump/slopestyle full build.
You can go trail riding too?
MF: With the new one we went a bit of a different way because we decided on more travel front and rear and so the range of use is much higher now.
135mm travel, 67º head angle, I was amazed to see one of your riders (Toby) yesterday doing some pretty massive stuff on that bike.MF: But also Nikki Leitner our team rider from Austria he makes backflips tabletops tailwhips, huge supermans and all the stuff with this bike, so they use them on the bigger slopestyle contests. It’s really flexible.
Talking of riders, you mentioned yesterday that you had a social responsibility to your team riders.MF: Most of our riders are young talent. So in my opinion, yes, we have a social responsibility because here is the first step for them to make from what is their hobby to a job. Now they make money for riding and they get the materials but they also need to know to handle it like a job. They also have a responsibility to the sponsor. The guys are pretty young and some have had no job before and now they concentrate for next four five or six years on mountainbiking. But also, what is after their sports career, they will have to do another job and so we prepare them for this.
SW: A nice story about one of our riders Toby. He’s now top five in Germany. He had an apprenticeship as a mechanic, the company went bankrupt and after a year his apprenticeship was done. I was linking him to a new company who I knew from my former business and we organize a new apprenticeship for him.
MF: There will be a new Tues LTD in the autumn this year, but at the moment I cannot say anything about the specification and price, but it will be really, really, really amazing.
Refreshing to see a bike company get so many models right–on. Keep an eye out for the YT Noton 170mm bike in one of the next few issues.
