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The Leadville 100 mountain bike race is perhaps the most well-known marathon mountain bike race in the United States. Since 1994, it’s always attracted deep fields comprised of both domestic pros and big European names.
Beyond its competitiveness, Leadville has in recent years seen some creative bike setups. The course is less technical than other mountain bike courses, with lots of pavement and doubletrack, but also includes fast, rough descents. The duality of the course leads to rigs optimized for efficiency and speed but always with an eye toward a crucial truism: crashing or flatting are both quite slow.
While hardtails have been the weapon of choice for the winners in recent years, there is still a diversity of what the pros think will go fastest. We wandered the pits on Thursday and Friday ahead of the race and spotted all sorts of setups that will be launching from the pro corral on race day. We saw everything from quite traditional XC hardtails to full-suspension bikes with drop bars.
Let’s kick off with the latest version of a bike that has won Leadville before. Michaela Thompson raced aboard the 120 mm Specialized Epic 8 and finished third on Saturday.
Thompson’s S-Works model features Fox suspension and Shimano XTR components. The only significant shift from her normal XC setup is a rigid seatpost.Fox’s Kashima coating leads to a buttery-smooth ride on the 34 Step-Cast fork.Unlike previous Epic models, there is no Brain system here, instead using a manual lockout lever on the Float SL. A mechanical Shimano XTR drivetrain powered Thompson up Leadville’s high-altitude climbs. She said the frame could only fit a 34-tooth chainring, on the small end for Leadville. Some pros, like Howard Grotts, ran as large as a 40-tooth up front. Given all the road miles at Leadville, the theory is that a larger chainring allows for a better chainline and thus increased drivetrain efficiency more of the time.Specialized Renegade tires front and rear will roll fast across the 100-mile “Race Across the Sky.”Similar to Thompson, Jack Odron is also one of the younger riders on the domestic circuit. He was aboard a Scott Scale hardtail this weekend. Odron has won the Silver Rush 50-mile race in Leadville, so he has good memories here.The Scott rider’s bike is equipped with the SRAM Transmission drivetrain, though the crank is an older model. Also of note is the Scott Syncros Silverton wheelset. It’s unclear if the Silverton moniker was inspired by Silverton, Colorado, but if it was it’s a good choice for the Colorado-based Odron. The Maxxis Aspen has long been popular for high-speed courses. This ST version is even lower-profile, and in theory faster. It was recently made available to consumers after a few years as a pro-only prototype.The Scale’s integrated cockpit certainly looks sleek. The three levers on the left control the dropper, the front lockout, and absolutely nothing (the third one would normally control a rear shock, but this is a hardtail).Trek’s Paige Onweller also opted for a hardtail, saying that the low weight was her primary reason for choosing the Procaliber at a race with more than 10,000 feet of elevation gain. Onweller is racing after recovering from an ankle injury earlier this year, returning just before Unbound Gravel in June.No dropper post for Onweller. The saddle was custom-made by Trek with a 3D printing process and has alleviated saddle sore issues that she had been experiencing.A SRAM Transmission is paired with a Quarq powermeter. The DT Swiss hoops are wrapped in Kenda Rush Pro tires.Kenda Rush Pro tires have a uniform center tread pattern with just enough bite on the side knobs. Another integrated cockpit, with the computer mount behind the stem rather than in front of it. SRAM Level Ultimate Stealth brakes provided the stopping power needed for Leadville’s high-speed descents.Bar tape inboard of the brake levers allows Onweller to more easily ride in the “puppy paws” aero position that has been outlawed in UCI road racing.Shifter buttons below the bar also help with keeping an aero profile when riding puppy paws. Racing at the front of Leadville is a familiar feeling for Sarah Sturm. Since 2019, she has placed 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 7th. This year she finished 15th.
The Specialized-sponsored rider opted for the Epic World Cup model. Ostensibly designed for the MTB World Cup circuit, the Epic WC is a low-travel full-suspension mountain bike. The S-Works frame features a lively paint job. Any guesses whose hand that is?Like many riders, Sturm’s bike is outfitted with SRAM XX Transmission.A Quarq power meter helped keep the effort nice and steady up here above 10,000 feet.A bottle cage by small maker King Cage, based in Sturm’s hometown of Durango, Colorado, was modified to fit Specialized’s SWAT multi-tool. There’s also a tire plug system from Dynaplug (the Racer model, specifically) mounted to the right-hand side and CO2 inflator mounted on the other side of the seat tube bottle cage. Sturm’s strategy is to have as many tools mounted to the bike as possible, in case of emergency.Specialized Mimic Power saddle. This RockShox fork featuring Specialized’s Brain system was lowered to 90 mm of travel by Sturm’s mechanic, Dylan Stucki.One more look at the pink camo paint job. Big bottles provide hydration. After some testing, Sturm raced on Specialized Renegade Control T5 tires.
