Lachlan Morton tests the limits of stem slamming (and geometry)
Distintive Scalpel build for Leadville and Brek Epic racing
Photo by:
Breck Epic / Instagram
If you thought the #slamthatstem fad was over, Lachlan Morton is here to revive the trend. Or put a nail in that coffin. Whatever your opinion, the divisive bike is definitely distinctive.
Morton put together the Scalpel HT Hi-Mod to suit the equally distinctive needs of the Leadville 100 mountain bike marathon race. The iconic high-altitiude sufferfest is known for long, punishing climbs, an extended paved section that resembles a road TT and just enough singletrack to still call it a mountain bike race.
Cutting it close
The base of this beast is Cannondale’s Scalpel HT Hi-Mod Ultimate hardtail frame with a 100-mm Lefty Ocho fork. It’s already a lightweight, meant for smooth mountain bike courses, but Morton pushes it to the extreme with a FSA Varius adjustable stem, with all 120 mm slammed to the headset and tilted to (maybe beyond?) the max -40 degrees. At Leadville this was mostly hidden by a number plate wrapped around the stem like some sort of weird exhaust port. A 640-mm FSA KFK carbon bar is the most aero you can be on a flat bar, while Prologo foam grips add traction at minimal weight. Oh, and bar ends.
Morton pushed a massive 42-tooth Hollogram chainring to spin a SRAM XX1 AXS Eagle 10-50 cassette and wireless drivetrain (not Transmission, since that drivetrain can’t take a 42 chainring). FSA Gradient Off-Road I29 rims spin on Vittoria Mezcal tires with, in one small concession to reason, the minimalist Airliner Light XC tire inserts inside.
EF says the bike weighs a paltry 21.6lbs (9.8 kg). Ideal of climbing way up in Colorado’s high-elevation mountains.
Whatever your opinion on the bike, Morton made it work. The EF racer sent it to ninth place on Saturday in Leadville, Colo. And he clearly likes how it rides as he’s keeping the build rolling into the Brek Epic stage race, also in Colorado this week.
