Derailled

Pretty sure I rode that one back in uni.
However, riding the track doesn't mean I didn't walk some of it.

We took a mate on a spesh enduro (with the Spesh DC fork) down it a while back without even thinking, and he failed on many corners that we rode. It is super tight walking track switchbacks tho...

I read an interesting article on a guy who rode those for a season - then rode Fox. He concluded that he had spent a year adapting to shite Speshy forks, and that he had wasted his time and the season.

Can't remember the details (was probably 2002), but I've never ridden a corner which has hit the stanchion bumpers on the frame. Usually by the time the stanchion bumpers hit, the bike isn't going in the direction you want it to. Often you and the bike are going in different directions.

That said, I haven't ridden the specialized DC forks. Not sure I want to. They do have bigger stanchions than my Xverts which means less clearance between the frame and stanchion before you start to turn.

They seem to be 'religated' to the top-of-the-line model (which no-one buys anyway) now. Says something, I guess, but I'm not sure what.

Both Charlie and my single crown forks were passing well under our downtubes to get around a number of the corners up there, and we were still on our bikes and getting around the corners just fine.

I've never had to turn that sharp, with the bike leaning even 30-45 deg of steering lock makes for a very tight turn. I'll see if I can get some photos of a DC fork going around some sharp corners when I get back.

To get around these corners the bike is pretty much vertical, and forward speed is very slow. I dont need photos Dougal, I know what a DC fork is capable of.

In my opinion, if you are riding specific mountain bike trails you will never find a corner that a DC fork will have problems with. If you like to ride technical trails that were never designed for mountain bikes then you might find some corners that can still be ridden, but that probably cant be ridden with a DC fork.

If you draw a line along the front axle and another along the back axle. Where they intersect is the centre the bike turns around.

With my Xverts the stanchion bumpers contact with the centre about a foot away from the rear wheel. Meaning the bike is turning tight enough that the rear wheel makes a two foot (60cm) circle.
But that's with the bike vertical, as you lean, it's tighter still.
That 60cm circle above, with a leaning bike puts the rider over the centre of the arc. Put your foot down and the bike can turn a circle around it.

In 6 years riding solely DC forks I never found a corner the fork stopped me riding. I ride lots of trails that aren't built for riding. I haven't found that mythical corner yet.

Show me a photo looking down on your bike with the forks turned enough that a DC fork would hit. I'm curious to see just how tight this is.

Peat shows how at 1m10s here (From Earthed 5).

Next time I ride Grey I will take a photo of the corners and see if I can get a photo with the fork passing under the down tube.

For anyone else that has ridden out there I am specifically thinking of the switchbacks in the tussocks up near the top.

You can anal-lyse it all you want Dougal, but the only way to find out is to get you up and riding the switch backs in question up Mt Grey

#t=1m10s on the youtube URL. I never knew you could do that

Strange sense of deja vu from a vorb conversation. I think I even referred to the Voullez nose wheelie too!