A holey wheel
Posted by PeterD Wed, 28 Jun 2006 23:08:00 GMT
You may have seen this wheel around the shop. It looks a little different than what you have on your trail bike, doesn’t it?
This wheel was specifically made for an observed trials bike. If you have ever seen Hans Rey hopping around back in the 90’s – that is observed trials. It is actually a competitive sport, where a rider tries to get through a very technical section without putting their foot down. More details (and some video clips) can be found at http://www.observedtrials.net.
Some of the differences on this wheel:- This wheel is very wide, which allows the rider (Jay, in this case) to be able to run very low tire pressures, which greatly improves traction.
- The round blue spots you see are actually the rim tape – Charles drilled these holes to lighten the wheel. Note – this is not something you should do to your trail bike’s rim…
- The rim surface was also ground up, so that Jay’s hydraulic rim brakes will get extra grip. Trials riders don’t want their wheel (particularly the rear wheel) to just slow down – but instead they want it fully stopped. A rough braking surface allows the brake to grab very well.
