My new hybrid XC/SuperD/DH bike

(CLICK ON THE IMAGE FOR A BEAUTIFUL CLOSE UP)

For some time, I have been flirting with the idea of a bike with enough travel to help me clear more technical sections, race Super D and Downhill while keeping it light enough to to ride it all over Marin trails with all its climbs and descends.

I wasn't sure a hybrid bike like that was possible but after riding in Santa Cruz with my friend and MotionBased team member Dan O'Connor (he rides a Nomad), and also hearing that Mark Weir rides his Nomad as a trail XC bike all over the place, I decided to give it a try...

About 32 hours of research later (gosh the equivalent of 3 full working days!) I was able to come up with a list of components to go with my brand new Santa Cruz Nomad frame.

The end result is a hybrid mountain bike with 6.5 " rear travel and 6.3" front travel that weights only 29 pounds, light enough for XC and Super D riding and also for lots of Down Hill riding!!! That is what I call VERSATILE.

To give you a better idea, here is the weight of my 3 mountain bikes with equivalent tires:
* Hardtail SS bike, Seven Ti Sola frame, 22 lbs (it could be 20 lbs with a lighter fork, but got a Fox Talas perfect for technical riding)
* Full suspension Santa Cruz Blur XC: 25 lbs (it is 23 lbs when I swap to my racing wheels Olivier built for me with lighter racing tires)
* Full suspension Santa Cruz Nomad XC, Super D & DH: 29 lbs!!!
(I also got a road bike, Seven Sola Ti frame, 17.5 lbs and I hope this is it for me!)

But before I tell you the components, I have to thank 3 guys (and good friends) that knowing how I ride helped me so much to give birth to this awesome hybrid bike:

* Joe Towbis, the guy in the picture below building my bike, who besides advice and deals, built the bike with me in his garage. He actually has built 3 of my bikes and I know how to maintain and work on my bikes mainly thanks to him. (Tom, Olivier and Frank have also taught me and encouraged me to work on my bikes).



* Olivier Bock, my favorite MotionBased team captain and the one encouraging me to keep training hard and stay in shape for XC races. He actually sent me the original list of components he would put on the bike which is not very different from the list I ended up with!
* Michael Yares, Dana's boyfriend, who gave me critical advice for the DH components I ended up putting on the bike e.g. awesome gravity dropper!!!

Olivier and Joe's advice based on XC riding got balanced by Michael's advice based on DH riding. This was critical for the creation of the hybrid versatile Nomad.

I also wanted to thank Eric Admunson from Pleasant Cyclery, for his business and my bro the Puertorican Frank who I am already missing at Sunshine Bicycles.

Santa Cruz Nomad Components list:
Frame: Nomad Anodize Small w/ DHX 5 Air rear shock http://www.santacruzbikes.com
Rear Derailleur: SRAM X0 Rear Med Derailleur http://www.sram.com/
Front Derailleur: my old SHIMANO XTR (the SRAM doesn't work for that frame!)
Trigger Shifters: SRAM X0 front & back http://www.sram.com/
Cassette: SRAM 9-speed PG-990 11-34T option http://www.sram.com/
Chain: SRAM 991 http://www.sram.com/
Pedals: SHIMANO Shimano PD-M647
Chainguide: e-13 DRS Dual Ring Security http://www.e13components.com/product_drs.html
Handlebar: Easton MonkeyLite SL riser handlebar http://eastonbike.com/
Brakes: Magura Marta SL Brakes w/ 160 rotor in front & back http://www.magura.com/
Wheels & Hubs: Stan’s Rims ZTR 355 light with silver revolution spokes, front WTB 20 mm thru-axle hub, back wheel American Classic hub http://www.notubes.com/
Seatpost: Gravity dropper with 30.9 shims, 3 inches drop, 350 mm long http://www.gravitydropper.com/
Fork: 36 Van RC2 http://www.foxracingshox.com/
Crankset & Bottom bracket: 3 rings Truvativ Stylo Team Giga X Pipe 44/32/22T 165 mm arms
http://www.sram.com/en/truvativ/index_content.php
Stem: Thompson Elite 0° x 50 x 25.4 mm http://www.lhthomson.com/
Headset: Chris King Black http://www.chrisking.com/
Tires for XC: front Kenda Nevegal 2.35, back Kenda Karma 2.0 or Kenda Short Tracker 2.1
Tires for Super D/DH: front Kenda Nevegal 2.5, back Kenda Karma 2.2