Words by Mark Canofari

Background

Since its inception in 2001 there have only been two significant changes to the Fly, which are a beefed up seat assembly that surrounds the shock and a standard floating disk brake. I got my hands on one of these improved rigs a few months ago and have been tearing it up ever since. Foes Fabrications has built a solid reputation for producing top quality downhill racing bikes and The Fly is the company's entry into the emerging freeride market.

The Fly comes as a frame only with two shock options: the Fox Vanilla RC or Curnutt. Both the Fox and Curnutt (with the Ti spring) were tested as part of this review.

Frame Specifications The frame is a heavyweight at 10.5 lbs, and utilizes a triangulated swing arm with a single pivot located directly above the bottom bracket. To increase lateral stiffness, the rear triangle is anchored with a swing link that guides the swing arm. The suspension is adjustable between approximately 6, 7 or 8", depending on the choice of shock. A floating brake mount is standard equipment and helps neutralize brake jack. Nothing in the market offers the same kind of package as the Fly. When it comes to mountain bike frames, fewer pivots result in more stiffness and decreased maintenance. That is why the single pivot architecture used by Foes has been so successful. The Fly takes a 135mm hub, and the standard skewer nut is replaced with a stainless steel nut that has the

The Foes Fly in action

One small criticism I had with the frame was that it does not have International Chainguide Mounts. Rather, you have to use the Foes chainguide, which relies on one bolt to keep the guide mounted to the frame. After two runs it broke off. Although, to be fair I was using a 24" wheel at the time that lowered the bottom bracket 1" and that caused the guide to more easily come into contact with rocks and roots. That being said, having the standardized mounts would be a nice improvement and provide riders with burlier chain guide options.

Initial Impressions

I set the shock up with 5 clicks of compression and 9 clicks of rebound, which firmed up the beginning of the stroke and kept the rebound slow. The new pedal pro valving does not make that much of a difference to the way the shock performs - it is not a stable platform. For shuttle runs, the Fox was fine although there was definitely some pedal bob, and for a long travel frame like the Fly it became an issue because it made the bike slightly more difficult to handle in some situations.

One of those situations was when I launched the 5' boulder located halfway down CBC, which requires the rider to go around a tree, take one pedal stroke and hope for the best. That one pedal stroke is the difference between landing rubber side down or munching on terra firma. Regrettably, with the Fox a good portion of that all important pedal stroke was absorbed by the bob in the suspension. This made it difficult to gain enough speed for the huck, but with a little help from my good friend Monster T everything turned out all right and I didn't add to the trail erosion on CBC by eating dirt.

The Curnutt and Fox shocks, hangin' with Indy

The Curnutt Shock Foes' answer to this problem is the Curnutt shock, which it claims is the basis for all other position sensitive shocks, and is the only truly effective anti-bob/anti-bottom shock available. I made it my mission to find out if the Curnutt could walk the talk. First off, the Curnutt is huge in diameter and length. It is a titanic shock that dwarfs the Fox in comparison. One look at the Curnutt tells you this shock means business and is ready for big hits. In addition to being big-hit friendly the Curnutt is very sophisticated.

Pedal bob is minimized by using air pressure, which is the basis for the stable platform. There is an adjustment that permits the last 30% of the stroke to be firmed up so that bottoming out can be prevented. And there are the usual preload and rebound adjustments.

The Fox shock, which once ruled the shore, is now a technological dinosaur compared to the Curnutt, and the difference was immediately obvious on the trail. There was no bob and the suspension held firm making for a smooth take-off, and the Curnutt felt plush when I landed. The anti-bob feature of the Curnutt makes it much easier to control the bike, but it does not feel as plush as the Fox. The reason for that is the air pressure that actuates the anti-bobbing makes the shock firmer and less resistant to absorbing small bumps, but this is not necessarily a bad thing seeing as the Fox felt too soft at times.

Overall Ride Foes has done everything right with this frame. The single pivot with the swing link makes the rear extremely resistant to lateral flex, without the headaches of multiple pivot points. The floating disk brake eliminates brake jack. The suspension with the Curnutt is impressive. All of this translates into a dope ride. Also, the bike can be equipped with a front derailleur so you can actually climb to the top of the hill, although not too quickly. The set-up I have weighs in at approximately 46 pounds, but you get used to climbing it over

Composed at speed, antsy at rest; The Foes Fly

Bottom Line