rewrite this content and keep HTML tags
It’s Crankworx, and it’s always an interesting time for cycling brands and the media. Some brands are launching new or updated components, others are unveiling new bikes, and others are not-so-stealthily “hiding” their upcoming products in plain sight. One thing’s for sure: if you’re trying to keep a new product under wraps, you should probably have the biggest name at the event racing on it for all to see. Am I right? But seriously, it’s got to be challenging to have your top-level athletes test products while simultaneously keeping them out of the public eye.
Our man, Steve Fisher, is at Crankworx this week. Yesterday, he spotted Jackson Goldstone in the finish corral on his Santa Cruz DH bike, which had several interesting components attached to it. He snapped a few “spy shots” and passed them along to us. While we initially assumed that it was just a Prototype Fox 40 we were looking at, a closer look revealed a couple of other items worth mentioning. Let’s speculate!
Prototype Fox 40
Fox has been on a roll with fork updates this year, so it stands to reason that they’d update the Fox 40, too. The fork that Jackson is riding is very obviously a prototype, with the word “prototype” clearly printed above the Fox logo on the lowers, along with the large RAD sticker denoting that it is part of Fox’s Racing Applications Development Program. There’s also a small 40/29 sticker confirming that it’s a Fox 40 and that it’s made for 29” wheels.
Beyond those dead giveaways, the biggest visual clue is the new arch design. The current Fox 40 has a smooth, curving arch, whereas this fork’s arch is a bit more squared-off and has cut-outs similar to what we’ve seen on Fox’s latest forks, like the new 36 and 36 SL and lightweight 34 SL. Using “generative design”, those forks were redesigned with new arches that not only reduce weight but also reportedly increase torsional stiffness. It’s fair to assume the same approach is being taken here.
Beyond that, there isn’t much to see from the outside to make any definitive calls about other design differences. Based on the photos, the damper controls look the same as the current Grip X2, and the other knobs and bleed buttons look similar, too. But it’s fair to assume there are some changes to the internals that Fox hopes will make the next version of the Fox 40 better than the current one.
If this update follows the trend of Fox’s other fork updates this year, that probably includes more bushing overlap to help increase stiffness and reduce friction. According to Fox, the bushing overlap on the new 36 and 34 forks grew considerably with the recent updates, so that seems logical here, too. Another likely update for the Fox 40 is the move to Fox’s new “GlideCore” compliant air spring. We saw this on the Podium inverted fork and also on the new 36s when those came out. Essentially, this spring has small bushings that are intended to reduce friction by allowing the shaft to flex along with the fork.
New Maxxis Tire?
While examining the fork, we also noticed the front tire that Jackson is riding isn’t presently in the Maxxis lineup. It appears to be a prototype as well, with a tread design that looks like an updated version of the Minion DHF or simply a new model that shares some characteristics with that tire. Maybe it’s a DHF II, or maybe something completely different?
This new tire has alternating pairs of tread blocks in the center, but looks a bit more aggressive than the ever-popular DHF. The familiar rectangular center lugs are paired with sets of L-shaped knobs and a burly-looking row of shoulder knobs. There isn’t quite as much of a gap in the transition zone between the center tread and the burly-looking row of shoulder knobs as the DHF either.
New Shimano Gravity Brakes?
Last but certainly not least, we spotted some curious, unmarked, and unfamiliar raw silver brake calipers on Jackson’s bike. We didn’t get a great shot of the brake levers, but they appear to be a production version of the new XTR levers (can’t say for sure), so we’re assuming the calipers are some sort of Shimano Gravity brake prototype. The large calipers certainly look gravity-oriented, and quite large, like the SRAM Maven or the Specialized/Brembo prototypes.
Is this the long-awaited update to the Saint? That brake hasn’t been updated in seemingly forever, so it would make sense that Shimano has something in the works. I guess we’ll have to wait and see. We’ll be keeping our eyes and ears open, and we’ll let you know about any or all of these products if/when they hit the market.
