We brought you news of Genesis’s redesigned Core mountain bikes earlier this year, and can now tell you about the developments the British company have made with their Alpitude, Latitude and Latitude Ti frames.
The new Alpitude and Latitude use steel gurus Reynolds’ latest DZB (Dual Zone Butted) 853 tubing. Genesis product manager James Olsen says: “[They] use triple-butted DZB top and down tubes, and an externally bulged/triple-butted 631 seat tube, plus double-butted chromoly stays.
“Alongside the tube shaping we’ve done, we also have a 631 XX-44 head tube for our new 853 frames. It’s meant that we’re able to remove the gussets and gain front end stiffness at no weight gain. In fact, the new frames will be a few ounces lighter than the old frames.”
While the Latitude is designed to take a 120mm-travel fork, the Alpitude ups travel to 140mm – although according to Olsen it “passed CEN with ease with 160mm forks” – and has a stiffer top tube.
The titanium version of the Latitude shares the steel frames’ 44mm head tube and is also designed to take a 120mm fork. Olsen says: “It’s got an XX-44 headtube, DZB-inspired down tube triple-butting, double-butted top and seat tube, gussetless front end and round section down tube at the head tube end for better fatigue life, plus a new asymmetric chainstay plate for full 2x10 chainline compatibility with no loss of tyre space.”
The Latitude Ti frame should cost around £1,099 and will be available in late October, with full bikes expected in November. Pricing and availability for the steel frames has yet to be confirmed.
