 Suspension design - with X-Fusion O2 DVA shock - click to enlarge
 Reservoir on the rear shock - click to enlarge
Bionicon Willow
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For months we'd been trying to hook up with Roger at Bionicon to get a test ride of the Bionicon Golden Willow, a unique mountain bike with on the fly adjustable geometry to suit climbing and descending! A first glance would suggest the Willow is a freeride bike with it's dual crown forks and 120mm rear suspension, it's ready for some serious hardcore riding, hucking and rocky singletrack enjoyment. Look closer and the adjustable geometry system suggests it'll adapt quite nicely to steep climbs too, but how?
The technology
So how can the geometry be adjustable and how does it affect the handling? Well, it all works by moving air between reservoirs in the integrated shock and fork system. The fork length changes by pushing a button on the handlebar and you either weight or unweight the fork to shorted or lengthen the travel. This in turn adjusts the bottom bracket position and alters both the head angle and seat angle. Head angle is adjustable from 68-73 degrees whilst seat angle is 70-75 degrees.
The system works on specifically developed fork and shock by Bionicon and there is a proceedure to get the pressures correct at both ends so the reservoirs and air distribution works correctly. Just so you can't get confused the details are written (and designed beautifully we must add) on the frame so you can easily make changes out on the trail.
So how does it work in practice? If you want to adopt a good climbing position and steeper head angle, simply push the button and put some weight on the fork to reduce the travel (adjustable from 70-150mm). The fork locks down in the position set and is infinitely adjustable so you get exactly the angle you need for the pitch of the climb. Heading into a descent you can press the buttom and lean back slightly to slacken the head and seat angle and increase the fork travel to give a more laid back and DH effective rig set-up. Rear travel does not reduce or lengthen and stays a constant 120mm.
Gimmick or geometry saviour?
Sometimes a new take on an old problem is just what an industry needs and we hoped that Bionicon had got it right rather than created a complicated or ineffective solution to an age old issue. It's easy to be cynical and just accept the usual bikes that are offered to us as riders so when a left field idea comes up trumps we're always keen to shout about it. And shout we are doing, we really liked the Willow and the adjustable geometry. If like us, you enjoy riding local trails and big mountain riding (lift assisted or otherwise) the Bionicon pneumatic geometry adjustment system is a tangible solution to the ancient problem of which bike to ride where and the compromises that single purpose bikes hold.
First ride
Playing around the carpark we very quickly worked out how the variable geometry worked and a five minute session on setting the air pressure and suspension set-up made what looked like a daunting process really quite simple.
Out on the trails we were switching from climbing position to fast DH set-up at lightning speed. We tackled short sharp climbs in the slacker ride position and played around with the steeper head angle adjustment too so we could feel the benefit of the system and increased speed on climbs thanks to the system. On descents we enjoyed the full fork travel and slacker angles especially on the steep DH courses that Aston Hill has to offer. An hour later we were beaming from ear to ear wondering how we;d managed before and why we'd wasted hours of our life pushing freeride and DH bikes up the steep climb to the top of the DH courses at Aston Hill. Even allowing for the slippery conditions on the day we could ride the Willow back up the usual steep push back to the carpark. What a refreshing change without any major compromises to the descending fun we experienced too.
We'll bring you a full review once we'd had some more fun on the Willow, in the meantime you can find out more technical details at www.bionicon.com or calling 01202 518069, email: roger.seal@bionicon.com.
 Bionicon Golden Willow - click to enlarge |
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