Hutchinson UnitedRide Team Rumors...

You: Who's that Pink Izimu frame for?  

(Fabien sneaks into room)

Me: Oh, oh, pick me, pick me, I know!  It's for...

(Fabien, drops the cloth dosed in ether and walks out of the room)

Merry Christmas from the iXS Morewood Factory Team and the usa.morewoodbikes.com elves!

A Morewood Christmas Wish

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house  
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;   

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,  
In hopes that the Sukuma soon would be there...

Well, March 20th...you only have to wait until March for the NEW Sukuma.  150mm of All Mountain Dave Weagle Split Pivot Morewood love!  So how will you build yours?  Mine?  Well, you will see parts from Deity, MRP, White Bros., VP, Enve, Formula, etc.  Want one for yourself?  Order one now at your local Morewood dealer or click the link above!

Oh Lord it's hard to be humble...

Dirt 100, 3 years in a row for the legendary Makulu...

2012

2011

2010

This year's addition?  The Kalula makes the cut too!

2012 Kwela 29er Video Review with Bunny Hop Bikes

Watch Ben rip up the East Coast trails and than give you the technical specs of the all new 2012 Morewood Kwela 29!  There is another Kwela 29 in black just waiting for you at Bunny Hop Bikes in Lancaster, PA.

Let's make a Makulu...

Some photos from the factory over the past few days. 

(Source: morewoodbikes.com)

VP Under Foot and in Control

VP Components will be helping the Team keep things in control with headsets and pedals.  The 69's are made to fit Jackie and Dante's 5.10s perfectly.  The Vices will be brought in for more traction.  Add the forged Ti axle and take off even more weight from the already low 378g to a scant 308g.  The headset comes 9 colors and weighs 89g!  You can check out the whole VP Components line in the Team pit!

VP-69

VP-Vice

VP-A69AC Headset

Okay riders set 'em up, riders ready, watch the Morewood BMX?

In the last Olympics we cheered on Sifiso Nhlapo on his custom Morewood BMX (Skizo's Test 1).  Well, what if you had a chance to buy a 2012 Morewood BMX frame?

These were taken at the Morewood factory in South Africa with the comment, "For everyone :) available in early 2012".  Morewood...Got snap?

Who's down with MRP? Yeah, you know me!

The iXS Morewood Factory Team will be rocking the finest guides - MRP.  

Hmm...blue/black/white matches the jersey but the orange and blue match the iXS knee guards.  We are stoked that we don't have to worry about our chains in 2012.  We will be offering complete bikes featuring MRP guides at the factory outlet soon!

Video: Interview Morewood's DK

Check out the interview of DK, the Morewood factory powder coater, on sicklines.com!

http://www.sicklines.com/2011/11/28/video-morewood-south-african-proud/ 

Snow Bike? Got Wood?

Black Friday shopping for a snow bike and what pops up on the screen?  I am not sure what it says above the bike or why the sickle and hammer are on there...but there it is.  The Snowood?

iXS Protection for the Team

What is going under those sick iXS kits?  iXS protection from iXS USA of course!

Knee/shin, knee, elbow, shorts, and back; iXS has the team covered with however much protection they required.  You can almost see Mikey running down A Line in nothing but bright green protection, a helmet, and...dang, did it again.  


To see the gear up close visit the iXS USA Factory Outlet or tell your local dealer to get iXS in their own store.

Morewood Izimu Video by Bunny Hop Bikes

Ben over at Bunny Hop Bikes did this fantastic video describing the 2011 Morewood Izimu frame.  Sure we have some 2011's left but this is a great video for the 2012's too.  Thanks Ben!  Look for Ben to review the 2012 Kwela 29 soon.

iXS Team Kits...oh so sexy!

+

=

Naturally we are adding our sponsors logos all over these.

Hmmm...maybe we should make refrigerator magnets of the team kit so you can build your favorite rider like Jackie...er, wait did I just leak the first name?

2011 Morewood Makulu Season Review

This is my review of the 2011 season spent on my Morewood Makulu.

Frame:     2011 Morewood Makulu, Med, Red
Fork:       2011 Marzocchi 888 EVO TI
Shock:     Cane Creek Double Barrel, w/ TI Spring
Bars:        Spank Spike 777 EVO, Red
Stem:       Marzocchi 50mm, Black
Grips:       ODI TLD, Red
Brakes:     Formula The One FR, 203mm Rotors
Headset:   Cane Creek 110, Red
Seatpost:   Woodman LS, Gold
Seatclamp: Woodman TI Bolts, Gold
Saddle:       SDG Falcon, TI Rails, Red/Black
Cranks:       MRP Camber 170mm, Black
Pedals:        Crank Bro's Mallet 3....Spank Spike Flats, Red
Chainguide:  MRP G2 SL, Black
Chainring:     MRP 37T
Chainring Bolts:   Vuelta Bolt Set, Red
Chain:           SRAM 10spd
Shifter:          SRAM XO, Redbush Red
Derailleur:      SRAM X9 10spd, Red
Cable Set:     Aztec, Black
Cassette:       PG-1080, 11-26, Red
Hubs:            Hope PRO-2, Polished, 32h
Spokes:        DT Swiss Champion, Black
Nipples:        DT Swiss, Gold
Rims:            Spank Subrosa, 32h, Black
Tires:            Maxxis Minion DHF 2.5, Maxxis High Roller II 2.4

My first ride on the Makulu was at the Windham WC race in Windham, New York. I was given the chance to ride and race Fabien Cousinie from team Morewood Unitedride's factory Fox equipped Makulu.

This was a custom sized frame with a degree slacker head angle than stock. I can say I was more than blown away with everything on the bike. This particular bike was a bit big but was still really good. The first thing I noticed was how confidence inspiring the bike is. I could immediately put the bike where I wanted and it tracked like a dream.


The rear swingarm is extremely stiff and really translates well to the trail. The rear suspension is very responsive on small hits and take the bigger stuff very well. I have not ridden a linkage driven single pivot that responds that well to terrain and still pedals really well. It is the definition of fast.

The 2.1:1 leverage ratio is fantastic, coming off a Commencal Supreme DH with a much higher ratio the Makulu blows the Supreme away. Pedal feedback is virtually non-existent. It is extremely stable in the air and and really sticks to the ground. I must reiterate the fact that this bike just simply makes you go faster. I am now riding sections of tracks faster than I should but I'm still comfortable enough to go faster. I can push this bike and keep pushing. The more time I spend on it the faster it gets.



I am very happy with this bike and I love every minute I spend on it.

Thanks for reading!!

Top Viewed Frames on VitalMTB

Once again Morewood has the most viewed frames in the VitalMTB Product Guide.

Product Guide 1. Morewood Bicycles Jabula Frame 2. Morewood Bicycles Sukuma Frame 3. 2011 Cove Gspot Bike 4. Morewood Bicycles Makulu Frame 5. Giro Remedy Full Face Helmet

Check out the rest of the frames here: MOREWOOD ON VITALMTB

Morewood Kalula Review

The great people over at Unrealcycles have been nice enough to recently let me demo the Morewood Kalula. Before this bike I didn't know much about Morewood  but I did some research and found out both through the internet searching and first hand that they make some pretty rad bikes!

The Kalula is Morewood's 7 inch "lite" downhill bike. I don't think you can categorize this bike nor should you try. I've been riding it for almost two weeks now and every time I throw my leg over it I am smiling from the first pedal stroke to the last corner I hit. 

This bike is the little sibling to the Makulu, Morewoods 8 inch full on downhill race sled. It is set up extremely nice with a Fox 36 Vanilla 180 front fork and a Cane Creek Double Barrel in the rear. I'm guessing on the weight but I feel as if it can't be far off from the 34lb area. It feels lite enough when its a flat pedal but heavy enough on the decent that I don't have to worry about it bouncing all over the trails. 

Since riding this bike I have seen my confidence level rise. The angles on the bike are so forgiving and with the  suspension set up the way it is I am able to attack a few of the rock gardens that I use to have to be a little tentative with before. I am not saying the bike is a plow, I feel like it likes to be finessed through rough sections but it just soaks everything up. Also the faster and harder you ride this bike the better it seems to react. And with the single crown it handles technical tight trails awesome. 

Coming out of corners the bike feels energetic, the pedal efficiency is great from a bike in its class. It really does so many things well. After a few rides I was itching to get up on our jump line and hit some of the sections that have alluded me so far this season. After one rip through I was sold. The bike felt so natural in the air and I felt like I could really manipulate it if I needed to. I was able to hit and clear three pretty big jumps that before this bike I had only ridden around.

It amazed me what this bike could really soak up. We have one trail that has a 7-8 foot rock drop to relatively flat. Again before this bike I never felt confident enough to launch. Well a few days ago I figured I had the equipment mine as well give it a shot. Man I was impressed 8 foot to almost flat and felt great, super smooth. All in all I am stoked with the bike, I've actually been pricing them out. I feel for the riding that I like to do this bike is perfect. I'm not sure I would need all that an 8 inch bike has to offer, and I'm almost positive I wouldn't even ride this bike to its potential. But what ever level I am riding it to it sure is fun !!!

Team Bikes for 2012

Being that we are "The Bikes that DH Built" you can expect us to hit the DH circuit. In addition we are going to support riders at Enduro and Super D events too.

So since the team will need a soild frame for competition you can expect to see the riders to be rocking the Makulu. Makulu means Big Momma...and just look at that girl. Low leverage, 8", South African made with a couple of National Championships in 2011 and a 5th at the World Championships. Good stuff!

For Enduro and Super D expect to see the team rocking the Sukuma. The Sukuma will be the first Morewood bike that features the Dave Weagle Split Pivot suspension design.

Sukuma in Zulu means, "Arise". We will. More sponsors to be announced soon. Oh and the team members too...stay tuned!

They're Coming!

No, not Zombies! (We all know that will happen on October 14, 2012...at 11:20PM...GMT -8.) A new US based Morewood factory team is being assembled to assault DH and Enduro events around the World. Who is on the team, how are their bikes equipped, how do you protect yourself from a Zombie invasion? All your questions will be answered soon.

Happy Halloween from Morewood!

Click for Aaron Laroque's short, "Strahan of the Dead"

Morewood returns to US

Not that we ever left really, but yes we are back.

Morewood, for the uninitiated, have been designing and

manufacturing the highest quality mountain bike frames for the last 10 years.

Over the years ideas and manufacturing techniques may have evolved, graphics and even corporate identity has changed. But one thing remains constant and that is our belief that simple is better.

The fundamental point to our frame design is single pivot suspension systems and that runs in our blood.

The current model range is leant heavily towards gravity, and dont expect that to change too much as we go forward, there will be some new models this year that will raise a few eyebrows, buts lets wait for more news on that later.

For now the main news is simple.

Morewood is now fully behind a new distribution in the US with all models available for immediate delivery. The new distribution is based in Southern Oregon and will be able to support new sales plus warranty and service for existing Morewood customers.

A demo fleet is being prepared so for those of you looking to buy a new race or play bike for next year, consider Morewood, and contact us for information on our ability to get you on a Morewood demo bike before you make that all importent decision.

There will be more, lots more, but for now pass the word.

Morewood is back.