- [Neil] We're here in the south of Spain at Mijas at the SRAM test track.
It's a downhill track where loads of top pros come here early in
the season to test out their new bikes.
- [Scott] You may have seen Aaron Gwin's amazing downhill run where he won
the Leogang World Cup without a chain.
- [Marc] So we're going to do a test of our own and we're going to try and see how
fast you can go without a chain versus with a chain. We'll each do a run with a
chain and without a chain and see what the times.
- Could be interesting.
- When you're ready, Marc, chain run first. Three, two, one, go!
Go [inaudible 00:00:38]!
♪ [music] ♪
- Oh man, certainly pretty physical, so be interesting to see what the difference is.
♪ [music] ♪
- So we've taken our chains off and it's time to have a go at a chainless run.
- Carry momentum will be so important, especially for the flatter straights
towards the bottom.
- Yup, one mistake and it's all going to be over. You're going to have to
maximize your corner speed.
- All right, Marc. Three, two, one, go! Go [inaudible 00:02:20].
Go on then.
♪ [music] ♪
- How was that for you?
- It was good fun. Suspension definitely feels different. Probably
a little bit more active. I'm just trying and pump everything as hard as possible.
- Yeah, one thing that really stood out for me was how quiet the bike was.
- You don't have the chain slapping around making the noise.
I think, the big point for me is how much you concentrate on getting perfect form
and perfect technique. And almost ride better because you know you don't have any
drive to get back up to speed so you really do rail the corners.
- Yeah, definitely. There was definitely some slow parts in the flat
bits, but I'm looking forward to seeing the results.
- Right, boys, so the times are in.
- Yup, I was two seconds slower with my chain off. I'm pretty happy with that.
- Not bad at all.
- I was a second slower without my chain. It's quite weird that you can
actually manage to be so close relative to how flat the bottom section was.
I was really surprised at how that could elevate your riding without
the chain. It's weird.
- I was five seconds slower, which made sense. I made a bit of a mistake on
the flat stuff and I was pumping as hard as I could, but I just felt really slow,
so it made sense. You need to pedal yourself back to speed if you
can't make it. So what do you think about Aaron Gwin's run?
- I think, knowing that track, he must have pushed so hard in the tree sections
and the more technical parts because there is quite an open sort of stretch that's
not particularly steep. So how he managed to carry momentum there is really
impressive. But then you still got to make a big difference to those guys because
he's going to lose time. He had to have lost time in that flat section.
- He's obviously an incredible rider and that was an incredible run.
I do think your suspension works a little bit better without a chain so on the rough
stuff it's going to be a little bit more compliant, but doesn't take away the fact
that he won a World Cup without a chain.
- On average, without a chain, we're two and a half seconds slower.
- Yeah, I let the side down a little bit there, because I was five seconds
slower with that mistake, but it just goes to show that less than a percent
difference slower without a chain is not a lot.
- I think you would really exaggerate all the technicalities of riding,
like leaning on your edges, getting your weight back. Using the ground
to generate momentum. Almost, you elevate your technique because you really have to
focus on that technique. Otherwise, you're going to stop.
- Yeah, really felt like I was concentrating super hard and maybe it's
something we should all do a bit more often, ride without a chain. Cool.
If you want to see more videos on GMBN, why not click up there
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- Thumbs up if you think Aaron Gwin is a beast.