Bontrager uses a scandium-enhanced aluminum alloy for its latest Race X Lite wheels. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Trek's Active Braking Pivot dropouts yield a noticeable improvement in rear wheel traction under braking. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The flat Bontrager Race X Lite carbon bar is full-width at 620mm. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The BB90 bottom bracket shell uses drop-in bearings instead of threaded or press-fit cups. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Magelky runs a 180mm rotor up front (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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…matched to a 160mm out back though it's not by preference; that's just how it came from Trek. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The carbon fiber Bontrager Race X Lite carbon bottle cage is matched to a stainless steel King cage down below - but Moab's notorious rocky course claimed a weld on the inverted King cage so a zip-tie was put to use mid-race. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The Shimano CN-HG73 chain is held together with a KMC master link. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Nothing fancy to see here: just reliable Shimano Deore XT bits. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The Deore XT crank features a carbon-reinforced middle ring with steel teeth. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The one-piece magnesium Evo link helps keep the back end light and stiff. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The front end of Magelky's bike is held up by a RockShox SID Race fork. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Kelly Magelky (Trek Co-op Racing) took his Trek Top Fuel 9.8 to an impressive second-place finish in this year's 24 Hours of Moab. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Magelky's refreshingly standard race rig serves as a healthy reminder that it's still about the rider, not the bike. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Magelky's battle-scarred ESI silicone foam rubber grips are very well used: check out the indentation on the left-hand side from his thumb! (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Trek opts for a non-tapered head tube on the Top Fuel to minimize weight. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Trek's latest Top Fuel frame uses a semi-integrated seat tube. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Keep an eye out for this rider during next year's key 24-hour races. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Shimano XTR pedals aren't the lightest in their class but they're utterly reliable and can take a lot of abuse - key features on Moab's rocky course. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Magelky runs the ProPedal knob on his Fox RP23 rear shock at the firmest setting so it's nearly locked out when engaged. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The Shadow-style Deore XT rear derailleur has a lower profile to minimize rock impacts. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Magelky's Top Fuel features Trek's latest suspension tricks, including the ABP dropouts, Full Floater dynamic shock mounts and the one-piece Evo upper link. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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The Bontrager Race X Lite wheels features the company's new rear hub design. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Magelky stuck with the stock Bontrager Race Lite saddle that came on his bike. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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A spare tube and Genuine Innovations Big Air canister are taped to the back of the bike for quick access. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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This duct tape isn't left over from holding gel packs. Magelky relied on 'normal' food during the race and the tape helped keep his handlebar lights in place. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
…is matched to a faster-rolling Bontrager Revolt Super X rear. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
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Magelky's low bar position nets a long and efficient position but it does place the controls in jeopardy of slamming the top tube in a crash. (Image credit: Emily Wren/www.emilywren.com)
Consider the following numbers: 386km (240mi) and 6,630m (21,760ft). That's how far Trek Racing Co-Op team rider Kelly Magelky rode and how much climbing he did during this past weekend's 24 Hours of Moab, which also served double duty as the 24-Hour US National title race. Though Magelky ultimately wasn't able to catch eventual winner Josh Tostado (Bach Builders), he did push Tostado to his physical – and mental – limits, finishing barely one lap behind and with the confidence moving forward that he can one day win.
Like most elite 24-hour solo riders, Magelky's bike is a decidedly standard machine with none of the fancy ultralight bits typically found on dedicated short-course cross country bikes – durability and reliability are more important over the long haul here, not shaving a few grams. In fact, everyday riders will be comforted to see that the bike is a nearly 100 percent stock Trek Top Fuel 9.8, not the top-end 9.9 SSL.
Though the 9.8 shares all of the 9.9's features and suspension technology – including 100mm of travel, the one-piece magnesium Evo upper link, Active Braking Pivot rear end and carefully tuned Full Floater dynamic shock mounts – the OCLV Black carbon fiber blend (instead of the 9.9's Red series mix) and workhorse Shimano Deore XT componentry (instead of the 9.9's XTR and custom FSA two-ring carbon crankset) obviously add some weight.
Substitutions and upgrades from stock are also few and far between, including a matching Deore XT cassette and Shimano chain, ESI Racer's Edge silicone foam rubber grips, and a faster-rolling Bontrager Revolt Super X rear tire. Magelky has even retained the bigger – and heavier – 180mm-diameter front rotor in spite of his wispy 65.7kg (145lb) weight, if only because he couldn't be bothered to make the switch.
Total weight is a reasonable – but far from superlight – 11.44kg (25.1lb) complete with his requisite spare tube, CO2 canister, rear light, and bottle cages.
But don't think the extra weight slowed him down much: Magelky's 1:03 first lap was the fourth-fastest of all participants – multi-person pro teams included (Tostado was just four hundredths behind) – and the conservative parts pick netted a mechanical-free run throughout the race. And don't forget that that first lap also included Moab's traditional Lemans-style start.
So no, kids, while super tricked out bikes are undoubtedly nice to have, they're clearly not an absolute necessity to go fast.
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In addition to the short-course cross-country speed, Magelky's laid-out short-course cross-country position stands in distinct contrast to the more relaxed setups preferred by some of his competition. Though he stands only a moderately tall 1.83m (6' 0"), Magelky rides Trek's largest XL frame size and runs a 120mm-long stem – flipped down.
"I've lengthened out a lot more and my bars are a little lower. I feel like any time my bars are higher I have a lot more pressure on my hands," he said. "My bike is pretty much set up the same way if I did a two-hour cross-country race or a 24-hour race and I've had no issues with my back or anything like that."
According to Magelky, that efficient position is only possible through lots of off-season core work in the gym – a key pointer he picked up from long-time 24-hour veteran Mary Grigson. "She was always an advocate of a lot of core strength," he said. "I would see the difference going to the gym all winter long and then staying on top of the fit ball, especially before 24-hour races. I would realize that I was very comfortable, even 18 hours in."
Magelky's training regime is fairly classic but his race day nutrition is anything but, including virtually everything but typical energy foods. According to the self-employed video producer (whose high-powered clientele includes National Geographic and musical group The Fray), 'normal' grub ruled the day.
"Corn chips, tomato soup, oatmeal – anything that's warm in the middle of the night that can keep your morale up and has good calories and good salt," he admitted. "I drank an Ensure pretty much every other lap, Snickers bars, Kit Kats, gummy bears… you name it. If it was sweet and had sugar and had calories, I was going to eat it. Quick calories but my stomach was 100 percent fine at the end of the race."
Magelky's stomach wasn't the only thing that was fine at the end of the race as he looked surprisingly fresh when he came into the finishing tent for the last time and also maintained fairly consistent lap times to the bitter end. Indeed, Magelky says he's never felt fitter or faster than this year's event and save for two separate instances of light failures during his night laps and a lapse in concentration, one can only wonder what might have been.
Next year, next year. And in the meantime, any lighting companies out there looking to sponsor a promising 24-hour rider? We might know someone.
Complete bike specifications
Frame: Trek Top Fuel 9.8, size XL Rear shock: Fox Racing Shox RP23 Fork: RockShox SID Race w/ Pushloc remote Headset: Cane Creek integrated Stem: Bontrager Race X Lite, 120mm x -7° Handlebars: Bontrager Race X Lite flat, 620mm Tape/grips: ESI Racer's Edge Front brake: Shimano Deore XT hydraulic disc BR-M775 w/ titanium-backed pads and 180mm XTR Center Lock rotor Rear brake: Shimano Deore XT hydraulic disc BR-M775 w/ titanium-backed pads and 160mm XTR Center Lock rotor Brake levers: Shimano Deore XT BL-M775 Front derailleur: Shimano Deore XT FD-M771 Rear derailleur: Shimano Deore XT Shadow RD-M772-SGS Shift levers: Shimano Deore XT Rapidfire Plus SL-M770 Cassette: Shimano Deore XT CS-M770, 11-32T Chain: Shimano CN-HG73 Crankset: Shimano Deore XT Hollowtech II FC-M770, 175mm, 22/32/44T Bottom bracket: Shimano Deore XT Hollowtech II FC-M770 Pedals: Shimano XTR PD-M970 Wheelset: Bontrager Race X Lite TLR Disc CL Front tire: Bontrager Jones XR Tubeless Ready, 26x2.25", 30psi Rear tire: Bontrager Revolt Super X Tubeless Ready, 26x2.2", 30psi Saddle: Bontrager Race Lite Seat post: Bontrager Race XXX Lite Bottle cages: Bontrager Race X Lite, King Cage stainless
Critical measurements
Rider's height: 1.83m (6' 0") Rider's weight: 65.7kg (145lb) Saddle height, from BB (c-t): 770mm Saddle setback (ask mechanic): Seat tube length, c-t: 375mm Seat tube length, c-c: 360mm Tip of saddle nose to C of bars (next to stem): 612mm Handlebar drop: 35mm Head tube length: 172mm Top tube length: 641mm (horizontal) Total bicycle weight: 11.44kg (25.1lb) w/ tube, CO2 canister, rear light, bottle cages
