Di2 Mountain Bike
Part List
The Di2 Mountain Bike project
was conceived upon considering
the following question, “What
will the future of mountain biking
be?” Internally routed hydraulic
and electrical lines, carbon fiber
rotors, “single sided forks”, and
electric shifting are just some of the
possibilities this bike executes. The
main focus was to bring together a
variety of unique parts in a durable
racable platform. The build is not
necessarily the lightest, but still
weighs a feathery 18lbs.
The paint scheme was designed
by Fairwheel’s Brian Meyer after
a discussion involving how to
implement Di2 in to a mountain bike
platform. Discussion considered
the pro’s and con’s of combining a
classic panel design with emerging
technology and components. The
paint lets the carbon tubing emerge
amidst classic banding and paneling,
while utilizing new color approaches
to old designs. The schematics of
the seat and top tube cluster are a
combination of Di2 elements and
circuitry.
The amount of secrecy surrounding
the development of Di2 also
informed the design. Internet
forums had been abuzz with spy
photos and speculation. Questions
ran the typical gamut asking, “how
does it work”, “how will it perform”,
“how much will it weigh”, and most
humorously - “what if I run out of
battery power during a ride?”.
How did Fairwheel implement
Di2 on a mountain bike? A bit of
soldering, a bit of drilling, and a bit of
wiring.
A big unknown was just how the bike
would perform. Afterall, mountain
biking places unique stresses on a
bike. The answer was a relief, with
the bike riding and shifting flawlessly,
under all of the demands of cross
country riding. The project has left
us quit certain that we’ll see a MTB
specific electric design in the future.
