05/16/2008

First Look: The 2006 Rocky Mountain Slayer 50 Words Mike Wallace Images Cam McRae

Be afraid, be very afraid. Rocky has launched the new totally revamped Slayer with an aggressive marketing campaign. The timing is good as the new breed of 6-and-6 all-mountain bikes are very popular right now.

Bike designers from many manufacturers seem to have the frame designs nailed on these ‘do everything’ bikes. Combine these new frames with the new levels of rear air shock and single crown fork technology and you have a very capable ride coming in not much over 30 lbs.

What's going on there?

Rocky’s approach to the all-mountain category makes a lot of sense. They have placed the rear shock low and centred to achieve a low center of gravity, which in turn should result in a great handling bike. The new frame and linkage is designed to be stiff and the frame is kept light (7 lbs.). Rocky is calling the new suspension design LC2R - Low Center Counter Rotating.

This type of bike is designed to appeal to a large range of riders, which is why they have gone with four different spec levels. The most economical in the line is the Slayer 30 and the high-end is the 90; we're riding the Slayer 50.

The 50 is spec’d with a Fox Float RP3 rear shock, Marzocchi All-Mountain 2 fork, Avid Juicy 5 brakes, Mavic Crossride wheels, Race Face Evolve cranks, SRAM X-9 rear derailleur and Maxxis Minion 2.35" front and rear tires.

It looks like summer on the Shore but this shot was taken December 14th.  Rider ~ Mike Wallace

When a few of the nsmb crew first jumped aboard this bike, everyone thought they were sitting on an XC bike that was going to be anything but fun on the Shore.

But after removing the clipless Shimano pedals and replacing them with flats, changing out the front tire for a Syncros 2.5, swapping in a shorter stem and letting out about 60 lbs. of air pressure out of the rear shock, things are looking and feeling much better. The Slayer is now Shore ready.

We’ll get back to you in a few weeks once we've had more time on the Slayer.