Hotlines Show – Paintworks, Bristol

October 27th, 2011

By in Tech

Hotlines are far more than another UK importer and distributor and when they’re not too busy offering the UK market some of the best brands from around the world, they’re busy developing and unleashing their own brands and products and exporting them to the rest of the world. When the invite dropped to pop down to their latest show in Bristol, we jumped at the chance to check out what they’ve got coming our way in 2012.

Words: Henry Marsh and Olly Forster

Photos: Henry Marsh

Nukeproof.

Nukeproof are intending to have this World Cup ready machine in the shops for around £3500. That’s a crazy price for such a bike and check the spec – Cane Creek DB, Boxxer WC and Sram XO DH – nuts!

The Nukeproof Scalp frameset was released last year, coming in cheaper than the majority of DH frames, starting at £1500 and with a world cup pedigree to boot proved to be an incredibly popular choice for the amateur and pro alike. For 2012 they are releasing complete bikes at prices that will please all budgets.

The Mega is Nukeproof’s tough AM bike with versatility written all over it. With enduro racing becoming increasingly popular, and with the UK Enduro series entering its second season next year, this style of racing is on the up as are the demands placed on the bikes designed for the job at hand. This is the top of the line model, dripping with Nukeproof and Sram parts, including carbon XO cranks and a Reverb seatpost as standard and should be around £3200. Not bad aye?

Whilst being one of the most bombproof frames on the market, there were some problems with the chainstay, but all issue were all rectified through warranty and for 2012 they have been beefed this area up, meaning this frame is ready to be thrashed and pushed to the limit – the perfect Downhiller’s trail bike? We think so.

Riders ready, watch the gate! The Snap has proved incredibly popular with 4X racers and riders looking for a fun, stiff and responsive frame – just look at the lines.

To complete the line up of complete bikes on offer in 2012 is their Snap 4x hardtail. This was the top race ready model, but there will be a budget model aswell, which will be incredibly popular with those looking for a perfect pump track and fun bike to take down the jumps. These frames did pretty well at this years 4X Nationals, with riders such as The Bike Yard’s Nathan Parsons riding them to a successful maiden season and I’m sure 2012 will see even more at the races.

General Nukeproof goodies – Titanium springs, light thin pedals and quality hubs, which are a lot quieter than most hubs on the market – perfect for a stealthy bike.

New body armour and well thought out at that. Looking for some neck brace friendly armour?

Nukeproof body armour, including this full suit looks very comfortable, and being fully Neck-brace compatible is a nice touch and one that will prove popular with riders looking for something that won’t get in the way of their riding and save them should the worst happen.

Sombrio.

Sombrio have never really had a great representation in the UK and have proved more than a challenge to get hold of for those looking for kit that works as good as it looks, but that’s going change in 2012 with Hotlines taking on the iconic Canadian brand. With a mixture of on and off bike wear, Sombrio have always brought style to the mountains and trails and 2012 looks to be their best year to date.

Hotlines will also be bringing in Sombrio’s stupidly nice casual clothing range and with designs like these and especially coming for a bike brand, could well be the gear to be seen in next year.

Ragley.

If any one brand or products caught our attention at the show, it was the new Ragley 10-4 and G6 bikes, which follow Ragley’s design ethos from their popular and now established hardtail frames, with their steep seat tubes for climbing and slack head angles for descending; Ragley have made a name for themselves when it comes to bikes that put a smile on your face. But Ragley have also taken what they learned from building snappy and responsive hardtails and transferred their ideas into a full suspension package with a difference.

The 10-4 sports a 67 degree Head Angle and the longer travel G6, pictured here, sports a more descending friendly 66 degrees.

A tapered Head Tube keeps everything stiff up front and the great colours and graphics just add to the reasons to why these look as good as we know it’s going to ride.

Look familiar? Who cares and at the end of the day there’s a reason all cars, planes and trains follow the same shapes and designs – it works! The parallel link is an awesome design and one that makes for a fun and dialled bike and suits the Ragley’s geometry and suspension travel. There will be two price points and a frame only option too, but some of the prices being discussed are amazing to say the least.

Parallel Link, 142 x 12 rear axel and ISCG mounts – you know this was designed to shred!

The biggest thing that separates the 10-4 and G4 from similar bikes are the amounts of travel front and rear with the 10-4 sporting 140mm up front with 100mm out back and the G4 sporting a similar 160mm to 130mm equation. The reason for this resonates back to their hardtail designs where responsiveness on the trail is paramount and reducing the rear travel in relation to the front increases the feel with the trail and helps reduce squatting and brake jack.

Not to let the new full sussers steal the show, Ragley also had this little beauty on show, called the M74, which boasts Ragley’s proven geometry, a 1 x 10 drivetrain and all the parts you’ll need to shred the trails and coming in at a crazy price of around £700 is going to be a winner in our books. New winter bike? I reckon sweet bike any time of the year.

Leatt are a brand we’ve always championed and for good reason, but we won’t get into that now. Hotlines had this stunning custom Leatt DBX Pro on show and up for grabs via a raffle, but unfortunately we didn’t win (unless Henry hasn’t told me?).