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Predictions for 2009 Transition BR

gackrider24

Monkey
Jun 4, 2007
150
0
NJ
What do you all think, It hasn't changed much since its first year, do you think there will be lighter version for 09 or will they keep the if it isn't broke don't fix it motto
 

joelsman

Turbo Monkey
Feb 1, 2002
1,369
0
B'ham
The Bottle Rockett is designed to be a slopestyle bike, not a short travel dh race only frame. It needs to be strong to handle the large gaps, drops with some what not straight landings. maybe you should look at some stronger AM frames instead, or just build the rest of the bike lighter.

I hope they don't make it weaker.
 

TheInedibleHulk

Turbo Monkey
May 26, 2004
1,886
0
Colorado
Like the man said, it's a slopestyle frame. Since only like 50 people in the US even have the ability to do anything that could be considered slopestyle, most are not going to need it to be quite as burly as it is. Regardless, if you are going to build a slopestyle bike, it damn well better be strong enough for slopestyle.
 

dhkid

Turbo Monkey
Mar 10, 2005
3,358
0
Malaysia
The Bottle Rockett is designed to be a slopestyle bike, not a short travel dh race only frame. It needs to be strong to handle the large gaps, drops with some what not straight landings. maybe you should look at some stronger AM frames instead, or just build the rest of the bike lighter.

I hope they don't make it weaker.
i understand that it is designed for slopestyle, but there is a difference between a strong frame and an overbuilt frame.

its not like they cant make things lighter too, they dropped a fair bit of weight on the blindside. unless of course people believe that a slopestyle frame should be built far stronger then a dh frame then fair enough.

just my two cents.
 

zahgurim

Underwater monkey
Mar 9, 2005
1,100
12
lolAsia
A floating brake option would be nice, for those of us that use it for a mini-dh machine.
Mostly unneccesary, but would be cool to have as an option.
Rest of the bike is fine, I wouldn't change a single thing.

Maybe they could figure out how to add boobies?
 

manhattanprjkt83

Rusty Trombone
Jul 10, 2003
9,644
1,214
Nilbog
i say keep the thing as is...if you want an anorexic machine get something else, it works and they dont break...Mine was built up very respectable last season from a weight perspective with air shocks and reasonable spec.
 

mandown

Poopdeck Repost
Jun 1, 2004
20,130
7,679
Transylvania 90210
how much weight could be saved and still have it be "strong enough"? the wildcard is of the same bike variety and the weight difference is about one pound on the frame (last time i checked, which was a while ago). assuming that other bikes of this ilk are about the same weight as the wildcard, the BR is only 1lb off the mark. if you go super light on the build and get the bike down to 35lbs, is that 1lb going to make that much of a difference in how you ride? i doubt it.

my first BR build had me at about 42lbs. i brought it down to about 38.5 and didn't notice much of a difference. i took it back up to 42 at one point, and didn't notice the change going up either.

other than weight, the geo is on, the bearings are good, the kids like it. i agree with that weirdo that said "RAD paint schemes" will be about the only thing worth changing :busted:
 

gackrider24

Monkey
Jun 4, 2007
150
0
NJ
i think its cool like it is, i was just wondering if they had any plans of changing it in the future. Strength is important to me i wouldn't build one to be a weight wenie machine, i just didn't know if there were any rumors of changes or something
 

DirtEveryDay

Turbo Monkey
Nov 24, 2003
2,692
4
Pacific North Wet
I predict its time on this planet is about over...Everyone I know who's had one pushed it on everyone else. Then 3 of them sold theirs to get a bike with more travel and less weight and claim they're not sure what they were thinking. Some would call it a TREND....

Damn...who the hell said this...?
"The Bottle Rocket: All the weight of a DH bike without the annoying travel."
I friggin loved that!
 

mandown

Poopdeck Repost
Jun 1, 2004
20,130
7,679
Transylvania 90210
only reason i sold mine is because i got a raging deal on a nicolai UFO ST, and i have ALWAYS wanted a nicolai. the geo and weight on the two bikes is close, though the UFO ST does get 2" more travel (not that i needed it for my riding).
 

manimal

Ociffer Tackleberry
Feb 27, 2002
7,212
17
Blindly running into cactus
i got the BR because it fits my riding style much better than my demo did. i'm a big guy, it's a burly bike. i ride dj's and stunts in the woods and it flows much better than my demo did but isn't as harsh as my hardtail. i can race DH on it for my weekend warrior sport level of racing and it's actually faster on most of the flowy tracks around here and is only hindered, compared to the demo, in long rock gardens. for me it's like having the best of both worlds, a dj bike for us bigguns. yup, it's heavy but i don't like the flex i get when riding lighter DH race rigs.
the only change i'd hope for in newer models is maybe a licorice dispenser near the headtube.
 

marshalolson

Turbo Monkey
May 25, 2006
1,770
519
the bottlerocket needs to be just as stiff, so putting smaller tubing would be dumb. butting the main triangle would lighten the load, but obviously add cost. if dropping a pound is done by using fancier and more expensive tubesets, then i'd say BOOOO. part of the radness of transition is the ablity for most people to afford them.

having the blindside QR and 12mm axle would be sweet though, and as was mentioned, i bet alot of folks would be stoked to run a floater.
 

DirtEveryDay

Turbo Monkey
Nov 24, 2003
2,692
4
Pacific North Wet
Affordable? You can get a nearly complete Mongoose Khyber for the cost of a BR. It's got 7" of travel, is lighter, and pedals a sh*t ton better. Or if you just gotta have 4" of travel, wait for the Nugget...
 

jvnixon

Turbo Monkey
May 14, 2006
2,325
0
SickLines.com
Affordable? You can get a nearly complete Mongoose Khyber for the cost of a BR. It's got 7" of travel, is lighter, and pedals a sh*t ton better. Or if you just gotta have 4" of travel, wait for the Nugget...
Mongoose is not the answer to everyone's needs/wants in a bike. Just because it may work for you doesn't mean that is what everyone is looking for.
 

ZHendo

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,661
147
PNW
i think there are definitely ways to lighten up the bottlerocket without sacrificing stiffness. more machining in a few spots, a butted tubeset, it all adds up. there is absolutely no reason a bike with that compact of a frame and that amount of travel should weight what it does. it weighs the same as the blindside. and as for the cost aspect, i think that there would be plenty of people willing to pay the slight difference in price for the lighter and more refined design. or maybe they offer a lighter option and the current design, i'm not sure. transition is already on to something good, they just need to figure out the weight issue.
 

DirtEveryDay

Turbo Monkey
Nov 24, 2003
2,692
4
Pacific North Wet
It's evolution. The bikes really aren't even on the same level, and the Mongoose is still better priced. Massive company with deep pockets and a humble attitude. It's what Specialized would be like...on weed...

Transition will survive...IF they remember where they started. I lost ALL love for them within the last 6-8 months. They left a few of my buds hangin with broken frames, forgetting to ship parts, etc. They'd be absolutely great CS...right up until a warranty issue or even a crash replacement issue popped up. Then magically no call backs, no retuyrned emails. I started out on a Transition when they were small. I actually had one of the first Dirtbags. It was nice back then.
Seems like the explosion of that damned Bottle Rocket made them lose their grounding. And I MAY be wrong somehow, just goin off what I've seen and heard person to person. Bound to happen though, company gets bigger, gotta lose touch somewhere.
 

DirtEveryDay

Turbo Monkey
Nov 24, 2003
2,692
4
Pacific North Wet
Mongoose is not the answer to everyone's needs/wants in a bike. Just because it may work for you doesn't mean that is what everyone is looking for.

Ahhh...that's just because not everyone's gotten close enough to one yet!
So when you gettin the 411 on Neethlings 09 proto??? I need some geo, damnit!
 

William42

fork ways
Jul 31, 2007
3,908
634
It's evolution. The bikes really aren't even on the same level, and the Mongoose is still better priced. Massive company with deep pockets and a humble attitude. It's what Specialized would be like...on weed...
I know you love mongoose. I've had some ride time on a black diamond - it was fun. Did it blow my mind? not in the slightest. Different bikes work for different people - i know it works for you, but telling everybody their bike sucks and yours is way better is a good way to alienate people from wanting to converse, listen, etc.

Most people I know or have met have loved their BR's. sounds like for the riding you do and the crew you ride with, BR's aren't the ticket. For flowy jumpy courses, they're pretty bomb. if you don't like something, go look at your mongoose and think about it instead
 

jvnixon

Turbo Monkey
May 14, 2006
2,325
0
SickLines.com
Ahhh...that's just because not everyone's gotten close enough to one yet!
So when you gettin the 411 on Neethlings 09 proto??? I need some geo, damnit!
Ha, some people don't need/want multi-pivot bikes and the baggage they often carry (maintainance, etc). The bottlerocket, and the goose both rip it up.

Needles bike will replace the EC-D and will be called the Booter i believe. Don't worry about the details of the proto geometry, as they'll likely be refined as they get ridden this year.
 

pedalmunky

Monkey
Jan 15, 2007
124
0
I sell Mongooses. Mongeese? Anyways, I've got no problem recommending them to my customers. They really do make great bikes. EC is the man. The Khyber is awesome. The Nugget looks like the real deal. I'm sure that Needles' 2009 proto EC-D rails. Hell, even their Ritual dirt jump line holds up. I'd say that Mongoose is hitting it harder right now than any of their Pacific bretheren, C-Dale included.

They even have a very generous pro deal system. I wish I could tell ya what a pittance a new Kyber super would cost me.

Having said all that, I'm riding a Preston FR and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Saying that Transition bikes "really aren't on the same level" is quite accurate, but perhaps not exactly in the way that you intended. With all due respect, my man, it really isn't even close.
 

DirtEveryDay

Turbo Monkey
Nov 24, 2003
2,692
4
Pacific North Wet
I know you love mongoose. I've had some ride time on a black diamond - it was fun. Did it blow my mind? not in the slightest. Different bikes work for different people - i know it works for you, but telling everybody their bike sucks and yours is way better is a good way to alienate people from wanting to converse, listen, etc.

Most people I know or have met have loved their BR's. sounds like for the riding you do and the crew you ride with, BR's aren't the ticket. For flowy jumpy courses, they're pretty bomb. if you don't like something, go look at your mongoose and think about it instead

I don't think the BR sucked. I think it was extremely overhyped and came out at EXACTLY the right time. The Blindside is possibly more of a worthy bike, but I think stuff like floating calipers are bandaids for a poor design, and that's not JUST the Blindside. Different purposes entirely, I know.
And I don't think the BR was all that "affordable" at all. Not even a little bit. I think that everything else in it's class was WAAAAY over priced! And still are! Both the Specialized SX and the SXT are retardedly expensive and I think are less efficent than the BR, but they're a LOT lighter. I can't even think of all the other generically coined "slopestyle" bikes..all former XC/AM bikes rebadged and repriced. And while the BR was supposedly the first frame claimed to be designed specifically for slopestyle riding, sure don't see em on the podiums much. Maybe it's just the rider?
I dunno, I don't think it was even TBC that claimed the BR to be the SS bike, THEY claimed it was built for stuff like Woodlot, so maybe it was all the fanboys that blew it's rep out of proportion.
Oh christ, I gotta go to bed, I don't even wanna read all that **** up there! Basically, if the bike WAS designed for "smooth, flowy trails" then it WASN'T designed for slopestyle and it DOESN'T need to weigh as much as it does. And since it does it should not cost as much as it does. I need some asprin.
 

DirtEveryDay

Turbo Monkey
Nov 24, 2003
2,692
4
Pacific North Wet
WTF??? No one's torn me apart yet??? You TBC guys are gettin soft!
Hey, just wanted to shoot out a quick apology for all the above stuff^^^ ! I'm not going to say I was drunk last night...let's just say that I have a pretty serious hangover today, though!
Not taking back anything I've said(mostly since I can't quite comnprehend it yet!), but I sure as shouldn't have put any of that crap here!
I wouldn't be having this problem if my damn bike would just arrive(yes, another Mongoose!) and if I could find a fork for it! Help me find a Boxxer WC and I swear I'll stay off the internet for one whole week! Been riding nothing but my chair for over a month now!
So...my bad, I have a big mouth...carry on...
 

DirtEveryDay

Turbo Monkey
Nov 24, 2003
2,692
4
Pacific North Wet
i was going to but i kept getting distracted by your avatar :twitch:

Yeah... I don't like to think about how much trouble that girl's gotten me out of!
You can't imagine how many PMs I've gotten over her!

But back to the topic, I still don't really know what I rambled on about up there, nor do I even know why I'm on this thread(???) but since I'm here, I'll verify my first reply...which is the only one I can understand. I DO think that the Bottle Rocket's reign is about over. But I also think that slopestyle is about over. There will always be the comps and the insanity, but I think everyone is starting to realize what it really takes. Someone on another thread stated it about correctly: that there's 50 people on the planet that can do it.
As for the BR, I think it needs to get aimed back at it's claimed roots: buffed trails like Woodlot. I'd say it was designed to be a flowy jump bike that can take the abuse of unpleasantries such as cases and stacks(With that in mind, pretty much EVERY bike made can do that and weigh a bit less). When my bud had his BR he defended it to the bone about how tough it is and that it handles DH courses fine and he hit up the same 20' drop...but why? He now rides a Blindside and doesn't want to talk about it.
 

dhkid

Turbo Monkey
Mar 10, 2005
3,358
0
Malaysia
i dont get why people are asking for a floating brake on the BR, it just shows that a) they should work on their braking technique b) they aren't using the BR for its intended purpose. i haven't seen much braking bumps on slopestyle courses lately.