aryo's posts with tag: commencal
|  | Max Commencal has god-like status on the alpine mountain bike trails in France, and understandably so. A large percentage of people riding the steep and technical tracks around the French Alps have been doing so for years aboard bikes bearing the Commencal name written in distinctly funky fonts. One of the early riders piloting Max Commencal's bikes was Cedric Gracia, who would eventually become one of the greatest downhill and freeriders of our time. At the time, however, both he and the Commencal brand were up and comers. Eventually Gracia was picked up by Cannondale, where he would quickly become a living legend on two wheels for his fearless riding and partying lifestyle. But much to many people's surprise, Gracia went back to his roots in 2006 and is once again riding for his old friend Max Commencal.
Forget anything Gracia might be able to do aboard his Supreme DH bike, just having a rider of his calibre willing to ride for Commencal has made everyone stand up and take notice. All this to say Commencal is quickly become a solid mountain bike option for Canadian riders. Commencal was first picked up by distributor Kempter Marketing in 2005 and now the movement is led by KMI's National Sales manager Peter Appleton, the promoter of the Ontario downhill series, who has held an association with the French company for a number of years.
But while Gracia spends his time piloting the Supreme DH, Commencal is also known for its all mountain bikes, such as the Meta 5.5 you see here. Our test rig was the Numero 3 version, which uses the same frame as the rest of the Meta 5.5 line with slightly downgraded components. The frame itself is made of 7005 aluminum and uses Commencal's unique Contact System pivot design. The design looks more complicated than it is with connecting rods and rocker links, but the result is what the French company calls the ultimate grip in all conditions (more on that later). This year's Meta line was upgraded from four inches to 5.5 inches of travel, and this comes by way of a Fox Float R rear shock and a Marzocchi All Mountain 4 fork. The drivetrain is primarily from the SRAM family with X.5 shifters, X.7 rear derailleur and Truvativ cranks. Braking power comes from Formula Oros 6” hydraulic discs and the bike comes stock with Alex rims wrapped in Hutchison tires. While some companies push six inches as being the must-have travel length for all-mountain bikes, Commencal proves five inches will do the job as good, or better with its Meta 5.5 line. |
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