ROLLING OUT THE YELLOW CARPET

There isn’t a wheelset with a more prestigious history in downhill racing than the Mavic Deemax. The iconic yellow hoops have been ridden to victory by many of the sport’s top names, including Troy Brosnan, who this year won his second World Cup on a set of the 2018 wheels. These have undergone a few changes, starting with an increase in internal rim width from 21mm to 28mm. This is still quite conservative, but Mavic aren’t believers in the ‘wider is better’ trend and reckons this width gives the best balance of ride quality and tyre choice.

The new asymmetric rim profile gives more even spoke tension on the rear wheel, increasing lateral sti ness and, Mavic say, delivering more predictable handling. Following the lead of the Deemax Pro enduro wheelset released earlier in the year, the DH rim now has a hookless profile, with vertical sidewalls for extra strength.

Many features of the old Deemax have been carried over, such as Mavic’s weightsaving ‘ISM’ machining and the large-diameter spoke nipples that screw into the outer rim surface, meaning that no rim tape is required. The hubs remain pretty much unchanged, apart from a reduction in spoke count from 32 to 28 on the rear. This and the new rim design mean a weight saving of around 70g over last year’s wheels. Mavic aren’t o ering a 29in option just yet, but we hear that something may be in the pipeline.