NSMB.e.MAGAZINE - Freeride, Extreme and North Shore style Mountain Biking

For the most part every other component on our bikes is built to take a beating. If my ride goes flying onto the non-drive side I generally don't worry, but when that spindly little piece of aluminum is about to hit anything I cringe and hope for some divine intervention. The best outcome you can expect when you bang your derailleur is screwed-up shifting and at worst you are walking out of the woods a c-note poorer. Hopefully those days are behind us.

Shimano invited all the Saint test pilots along for the trip - Wade Simmons, Thomas Vanderham, Richie Schley, Hans Rey, Brian Lopes as well as local North Shore rider Aurelio Marogna and Shimano tester Paul Thomasberg from Oregon. One thing the riders commented on was how much the thru-axle stiffened up the rear end of their bikes. Riders who had been campaigning for 150mm rear axles are now satisfied with 135 spacing because of the way the new system firmed things up.

I was disappointed not to see cartridge bearing hubs. The braking forces hubs are exposed to could be one reason that few cup and cone hubs stay adjusted when used in freeride or DH environments. I have had problems keeping most XT disc hubs I have used adjusted properly - and I know how to adjust a hub. Interestingly Shimano has opted for dual cartridge bearings for the freehub and they have added a third pawl for more immediate engagement - a nice touch. Loose ball hubs are more easily serviced than cartridge bearing hubs but they also need servicing at much shorter intervals. It has also been suggested that a traditional hub is stronger than a cartridge bearing system. I haven't spoken to anyone who has managed to make a cartridge bearing hub fail and the fact that cartridges are the norm in industrial and automotive applications (like transmissions) leads me to believe that they are more than burly enough for the North Shore. We'll have to wait and see if these hubs are up to the Saint task. You'll notice that these hubs are not ISO disc compatible. Team S from Japan has instead opted for an "Oversized Center Lock rotor-hub interface." This 'advancement' was never explained to me in terms that justified the change. The brochure boasts 'supreme rigidity and reduced mechanical complexity.' A more jaded journalist than I might jump to the conclusion that this is yet another attempt by Shimano to ensure that if you want some of Saint you'll have to get all of it. It is possible to use Shimano ISO type rotors and apparently rotors from other brake makers will work but let's face it

Shimano has fallen off the crank radar of gravity riders in recent years. Their square taper bbs were not up to the punishment of big drops and almost every Shore rider I know broke one before switching to Race Face. Since the advent of ISIS drive crank problems have largely become a thing of the past - the interface works and it is strong. Shimano's Hollowtech/splined system may be strong but it never got a foothold on the North Shore.

With the Saint package Shimano is offering single, double and triple ring configurations. The double comes equipped with a plastic bash guard which is said to take a beating without becoming scarred the way aluminum does. The interface looks almost identical to the new XTR bb system but it is heavier and stronger. Shimano has tested their cranks against all comers and despite tipping the scales at 1000-1124 grams - about half a pound lighter than 3-piece chromoly cranks - they came out ahead. There is a steel insert in the wide, burly crank arms that should make stripped out cranks a thing of the past. If this all works they way they say it does, it will be great to have options beyond Race Face, Truvativ and Profile.

The Ride
There were only a few bikes available that were fully Sainted so we didn't get all the laps we wanted but we were on the bikes long enough to forms some opinions. First of all A-Line and Dirt Merchant are fun no matter what you are riding and the new, elevated section of Clown Shoes rocks. Oh - and the Saint equipped bikes ran pretty well too. The brakes worked flawlessly - good modulation and excellent power. I noticed that the cranks were very stiff - probably due to the outboard bearing placement of the bottom bracket and the fat profile. Both the Balfa 2-step I rode (sinfully fun) and the RM7 (heroicly confidence inspiring) shifted perfectly. I wasn't on the bike long enough to get used to the Rapid Rise shifting but after couple of runs I stopped moving the chain in the wrong direction. I didn't go out of my way to bang the derailleur but I wasn't diligent about avoiding sharp and pointies either and the performance really was spotless. I can't really tell you much more because the long-term performance will truly seal the fate of these parts. When we get our greedy little hands on some we'll be sure to let you know how they fare in our testing laboratory; the North Shore.

Compatibility issues aren't as bad as it appeared initially. You can for example use the brakes with a bolt on ISO rotor and you have many Shimano options for shifting and braking control. If you opt for the revolutionary rear derailleur you are, for the moment at least, bound to use the Saint hubs and rotors. More on this below.

I can say that thus far I am very impressed with the Saint Gruppo - there are some brilliant solutions here and the focus seems to be very close to the mark. It just might be what we gravity punks have been looking for all along. Expect to see Saint in January on complete bikes from GT, Rocky Mountain, Norco, Balfa, Brodie, De Vinci, Haro, Kona, Santa Cruz and Titus. If you want to drop the cash on Saint as an aftermarket addition you should start to see it in your local shops around Christmas time - start saving up.

My best side - you can't see the fear in my eyes. Photo Pete Roggeman

Saint Compatibility - Does Bill Gates run Shimano too?
It seems to me the scenario will often play out like this; having broken more than enough hangers as well as Shimano and SRAM derailleurs Buddy Rider is going to want to opt in to the 'Saint Solution.' Buddy soon discovers he needs a new rear hub to go along with his new derailleur (no word on whether these will be sold as rear only). Just as he's ready to pull out his card he learns he'll need new rotors, and, if he's not running Shimanos already, new calipers and levers. Purchased separately these are going to set you back a large portion of the Gruppo cost. Our friend Buddy is left with a decision to make. He walked into the shop expecting to drop some cash on a derailleur and now he's faced with mortgaging his home to replace most of the parts on his bike - even ones he loves - or sticking with his old flimsy hanger. Product managers will be faced with a similar dilemma. They won't be able to spec Windows - er I mean Saint hubs and Hayes brakes or with hubs from anyone else with this new system and soon it becomes an all or nothing decision. This was unavoidable for the rear hub and in that instance it appears bold rather than calculated but the new hub-rotor interface actually appears more complex and it is no doubt more expensive to make because the rotors are now comprised of two pieces (joined together at six familiar points). I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions but while you are thinking about it don't forget to look over the grassy knoll.

Compatibility Update - Aug 11th, 2003
Aurelio Marogna gave me some more info on Saint's ability to fit in with the crowd. One thing he mentioned is that some bike manufacturers are speccing bikes with a Saint rear derailleur but with a hub as well as brakes made by another company. Basically you get the derailleur and Saint axle with a 135mm through-axle rear hub made by companies like Hadley and Atomic Labs. This means you will be able to pick up the Saint changer and axle on their own and use the system on an appropriate hub, and use a brake system of your choice. There is also talk of aftermarket 150mm axles being made available so you may be able to use Saint on a bike that requires the wider format.

To get more Saint scoop as well as amazing photos by Sterling Lorence check out ridesaint.com

Thanks very much to Chris Distefano and Joë Layno of Shimano for hosting us in Whistler.
Cam McRae