For World Cup XC racing, it’s all about the race to the top and then keeping things together on the downhill. Most riders take a beating on the downhill because they demand the utmost in efficiency on ascents. BMC engineers have developed a compromise of sorts — a hardtail with just enough travel to make top XC racers giddy, but not enough to smooth out the ride for us mortals.
That said, it’s still a wicked-light hardtail with enough compliance to take the edge off — no matter what your last name is. Speaking of last names, reigning World Cup XC champ, Julien Absalon, shares his thoughts at the end of the following video.
BMC Teamelite 01 Softens the Blow
BMC calls the elastomer “Micro Travel Technology” or MTT. The XCell Damper sits near the seatstay/seattube junction and will remind many of us of softtail designs of yesteryear. This damper is available in three durometers to further fine-tune the ride. No question, BMC has pulled out all the stops with the Teamelite 01 and it looks the part — and weighs the part at only 1080 grams for the frame.
While many manufacturers are going for 27.5 wheels for smaller sizes, BMC is sticking with their Big Wheel Concept and insisting that smaller riders can also rock the big wheels with success. It’s all about geometry and as a 29er fan, I think wagon wheelers can be designed to accomodate smaller riders.
The Teamelite 01 is available in three flavors (XTR Di2 for $10,599, XX1 for $6,599 and XT for $4,599) as well as frame-only for $3599. With this new rig, BMC is aiming to win over hard core racers and those who demand a lot out of their hardtails, but want just a tad more compliance to take the edge off.
More Info: Visit BMC-Switzerland.com
