Emily Batty is the latest 29" convert to join the Subaru-Trek team.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Serfas bar ends provide extra leverage on the climbs.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The prototype Bontrager hubs on Emily Batty's Subaru-Trek team bike uses Center Lock rotor mounts.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Oakley sports marketing man Steve Blick is a popular figure among the pro ranks so it's no surprise that he's been inundated with support for his son, Tyler, who's currently battling leukemia.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Emily Batty (Subaru-Trek) is on Crankbrothers' latest Eggbeater 11 pedals.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The SRAM XX rear derailleur moves the chain across an 11-36T SRAM XX cassette.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The hydraulic fork lockout remote neatly integrates into the brake lever clamp.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Bontrager supplies the Subaru-Trek team with its lightweight Race XXX Lite carbon fiber tubeless-compatible 29er rims.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Claimed weight on the Bontrager Evoke RXL Carbon is just 145g.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Emily Batty (Subaru-Trek) runs her saddle all the way forward on the rails and even has to flip the seatpost around, too.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Some clear vinyl tape offers some protection to the underside of the down tube without adding as much weight as the stock "Carbon Armor" plate.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
A couple of strips of electrical tape helps keep the housings from rattling.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Subaru-Trek team bikes are fitted with Nokon cables and housing.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Subaru-Trek team mechanics don't bother with the cosmetic covers/strain reliefs for the hydraulic hose ends.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Omitting the upper headset cover leaves the bearings exposed to the elements but saves another few millimeters of stack height.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Gary Fisher bikes have always featured a tiny "Man's Best Friend" decal down by the bottom bracket but Subaru-Trek's female riders' bikes get their own version.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The bottom bracket bearings press directly into precision molded sockets in the extra-wide bottom bracket shell.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Torx-head titanium bolts fix the Avid XX caliper to the carbon fiber tabs.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Emily Batty (Subaru-Trek) uses a Bontrager Race XXX Lite flat carbon bar mated to a forged aluminum Race Lite stem.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Not surprisingly given her height, Emily Batty's (Subaru-Trek) Truvativ XX cranks measure just 170mm long.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Subaru-Trek riders were among the very first to receive RockShox's new SID 29" forks.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
While racers are often heavily focused on reducing weight, Emily Batty's Trek Superfly Elite (Subaru-Trek) still features a thru-axle fork - something even the production version doesn't have.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Subaru-Trek team mechanics Matt Opperman and Andrew Shepard add a little chunk of high-density foam to the underside of the cage for better chain security.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
While racers are often heavily focused on reducing weight, Emily Batty's Trek Superfly Elite (Subaru-Trek) still features a thru-axle fork - something even the production version doesn't have.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Despite the bike's short head tube, Emily Batty (Subaru-Trek) still has to run a -25° stem.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Short center knobs on the Bontrager 29-0 Team Issue tires provide a fast roll while the taller side knobs offer up decent grip in dry to moderately muddy conditions.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Subaru-Trek must have something in the team mandate that requires all of its female riders to be of shorter stature. The team lost World Cup contender Willow Koerber to its more globally oriented Trek World Racing squad during the off-season but making the opposite move was Emily Batty, who stands just one inch taller than Koerber and yet has still happily made the move to 29in wheels – once considered the sole realm of the vertically gifted.
"I do have the option to ride 26" wheels although after doing some test riding on the 29" wheels and realizing that Subaru-Trek had such a lightweight option for bikes and wheels I've chose to roll on the big wheels," Batty said. "It's such a light set up and gives me a lot more confidence descending and pushing the bike.
"The early season World Cups suit the 29" bike set up so perfectly," she continued. "The later season World Cups make for a difficult decision as the courses could suit either of the bike's strengths. I will have to try both bikes and then make my decision. The equipment overall is getting so reliable and lightweight now that it really comes down to the rider's preference on the day."
Despite the bike's short head tube, Emily Batty (Subaru-Trek) still has to run a -25° stem
Not surprisingly, team bike sponsor Trek produces its top-end Superfly Elite carbon hardtail in an especially accommodating 15.5in size, complete with a short 103mm-long integrated head tube and manageable 570mm effective top tube length. Even so, Batty's position still requires a few tweaks: the seatpost is flipped around to provide less setback and there's a -25° Bontrager Race Lite (instead of the usual RXL or RXXXL model) stem fitted up front, sitting right atop the headset compression ring with the upper cover removed to cut out a few millimeters of stack height.
Aside from the sizing tweaks, Batty's Superfly Elite frame is standard team-issue and supposedly identical to those available to consumers. In addition to the lighter weight relative to the first-generation Superfly hardtail, this latest iteration also features Trek's trademark extra-wide bottom bracket shell with direct press-fit bearings, a tapered head tube, and carbon dropouts. Trek team mechanics forego the standard Carbon Armor plate on the underside of the down tube, however, in favor of a lighter swatch of clear vinyl.
The bottom bracket bearings press directly into precision molded sockets in the extra-wide bottom bracket shell
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For the most part, the build kit is fairly standard stuff, too, including a complete SRAM XX group, RockShox's latest SID World Cup XX fork (with a standard-offset crown instead of the consumer-spec G2 version), Crankbrothers Eggbeater 11 pedals, Bontrager cockpit components and tires, ESI silicone foam rubber grips, Serfas bar ends, and Nokon cables and housing.
Batty's prototype wheels foreshadow things to come in the 2012 model year from Bontrager, however. The tubeless-compatible carbon hoops are laced with straight-pull spokes to new oversized aluminum bodies with flanges pushed way out to the edges in a "stacked" configuration that Bontrager product manager Chris Clinton claims to yield a boost in lateral stiffness.
Subaru-Trek team bikes are outfitted with prototype Bontrager hubs
Those new hubs are also equipped with freehub internals from as yet unnamed European source (apparently not DT Swiss) and the convertible axles will work with 135mm quick-release or 142x12mm thru-axle rear configurations and 9mm quick-release or 15/20mm thru-axle front fitments – a good thing since Subaru-Trek has also opted for 15mm-compatible front ends for enhanced steering precision and a change Trek will likely integrate for 2012 consumer models, too.
Total weight as pictured is just 8.93kg (19.69lb).
Frame: Trek Superfly Elite, 15.5in Fork: RockShox SID World Cup XX 29", 100mm travel, 15mm thru-axle dropouts Headset: Cane Creek integrated, 1 1/8-to-1 1/2in tapered Stem: Bontrager Race Lite, 9cm x -25° Handlebars: Bontrager Race XXX Lite Flat 31.8, 580mm Tape/grips: ESI Racer's Edge Front brake: Avid XX World Cup, 160mm rotor Rear brake: Avid XX World Cup, 140mm rotor Brake levers: Avid XX World Cup Front derailleur: SRAM XX Rear derailleur: SRAM XX Shift levers: SRAM XX Cassette: SRAM XX, 11-36T Chain: SRAM PC-1091R Crankset: Truvativ XX, 170mm, 26/39T, 156mm Q-factor Bottom bracket: Enduro press-fit for Trek BB86 Pedals: Crankbrothers Eggbeater 11 Wheelset: Bontrager Race XXX Lite TLR Disc 29 w/ prototype hubs Front tire: Bontrager 29-0 Team Issue, 29x1.9in Rear tire: Bontrager 29-0 Team Issue, 29x1.9in Saddle: Bontrager Evoke RXL Carbon Seat post: Bontrager Race XXX Lite Bottle cages: Bontrager Race X Lite Computer: n/a Other accessories: Nokon cables and housing, Serfas Stabilizer AL bar ends
Critical measurements
Rider's height: 1.59m (5' 3") Rider's weight: 48kg (106lb) Saddle height, from BB (c-t): 614mm Saddle setback: 11mm Seat tube length, c-t: 394mm Seat tube length, c-c: 315mm Tip of saddle nose to C of bars (next to stem): 459mm Saddle-to-bar drop (vertical): +29mm Head tube length: 103mm Top tube length: 570mm Total bicycle weight: 8.93kg (19.69lb)
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