Bike Check: Max Hartenstern's German Championship Winning Custom 2021 Cube TWO15
Last month the sole race of the IXS Downhill Cup was also the German Championships with Steinach in the Thuringia Forest as the host. The reduced capacity event was successful despite the wetter-than-an-otter's-pocket conditions and the man who stood atop the podium in the Elite class was Max Hartenstern aboard the recently released new Cube TWO15.
Max, who's part of the Cube Global Squad, ended up with a commanding 3.15 second lead over second-place once racing was finished and has been selected by the German federation for the World Champs in Leogang this week. Here's a look at his German Championship winning machine that will be in action on the Austrian slopes in just a few days.
Max Hartenstern
Height 184 cm/ 6'0.5"
Weight 80kg / 176.4lbs
Age 21
Hometown Geringswalde, Germany
Instagram @max.hartenstern
Bike Details
Frame Size L
Wheel Size 29" F & R
Suspension Fox 40 and Fox DHX2
Brakes Magura MT7 Raceline
Drivetrain SRAM XO1 DH
Cockpit RaceFace Atlas
Wheels & Rubber Race Face Atlas & Schwalbe Magic Mary
Height 184 cm/ 6'0.5"
Weight 80kg / 176.4lbs
Age 21
Hometown Geringswalde, Germany
Instagram @max.hartenstern
Bike Details
Frame Size L
Wheel Size 29" F & R
Suspension Fox 40 and Fox DHX2
Brakes Magura MT7 Raceline
Drivetrain SRAM XO1 DH
Cockpit RaceFace Atlas
Wheels & Rubber Race Face Atlas & Schwalbe Magic Mary
0% Loaded
1/21
At 184cm tall, Max is on the size L HPC version that uses 29" wheels front and rear and a composite mainframe and rocker link mated to a 6061-T6 aluminium chainstay and seat stay. The frame is custom painted in the German flag colours, adorned with the sponsor logos and even some top tube motivation that lines up with the stereotype of the German's love for logic.
The TWO15 HPC is a race focussed bike and so a permanent fixture on Max's bike is the number plate holder. That way the bike can be set up once with the number plate in place and each race's individual plate easily mounted with less faffing with cable routing. Bars, stem and grips come from Race Face with Max on the 35mm rise Atlas bars and 50mm long Atlas stem.
Brakes are Magura MT7 Racelines with 203mm rotors front and rear. There's also a neat formed composite brake protector to help stop the ingress of grit and mud into the caliper and keep the brakes consistent in sloppy conditions.
There's a mix of SRAM XO1 DH 7-speed gearing with Race Face Atlas aluminium cranks with a 34T chainring. A full MRP guide keeps the chain in check and helps deflect impacts. Max runs Crankbrothers Mallet DH clips with all the pins in place but only fairly modestly sticking out.
Fork
Fox 40 Factory // 29" // 203mm
Pressure 98psi
HSR 6
LSR 6
HSC Fully open
LSC 9
Shock
Fox DHX2 Factory // 241.3 x 76.2mm
Spring 475lb
HSR 5
LSR 10
HSC 6
LSC 4
All clicks measure from fully closed, unless otherwise stated.
Fox 40 Factory // 29" // 203mm
Pressure 98psi
HSR 6
LSR 6
HSC Fully open
LSC 9
Shock
Fox DHX2 Factory // 241.3 x 76.2mm
Spring 475lb
HSR 5
LSR 10
HSC 6
LSC 4
All clicks measure from fully closed, unless otherwise stated.
The new TWO15 HPC version is built around the imperial sized Fox shocks, namely the 241.3 x 76.2mm DHX2. That was done to take advantage of a slightly longer stroke in a shorter eye to eye than the metric equivalent, which would be a 250 x 75mm. That allowed Cube to design around a smaller shock package in the frame and lower the standover. Being sponsored by Fox suspension, Max is also on the RAD programme giving them access to setup, tuning and specialist parts generally before they are even released to the public. He's on the latest Fox 40 Factory in the Heritage Edition Battleship Grey colour.
Max is on the Schwalbe First Ride programme and uses their Magic Mary 29 x 2.4 tyres with Super Downhill casings front and rear with an Ultra Soft compound in the front and Soft in the rear. There's also the addition of the Schwalbe Procore system in the rear tyre. Pressures are 24psi front and 26psi rear with 75psi in the Procore. Wheels are from Race Face with the Vault 422 hubs and Atlas aluminium rims.
Seat and seat post are from SDG with the I-Beam system. Seat post is the carbon fibre version and the seat is a custom edition for the Cube Global Squad.
Author Info:
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www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/97
Great looking frame, but the shock choice, and associated design concept is inherently flawed.