Meet Yeti… and Bike Otago
Yeti Cycles and innovation go hand-in-hand. Take for example, Yeti’s Switch technology; a mechanism that switches direction as a bike’s swingarm moves through travel, and which was developed by Yeti Cycles more than two years ago. Since then, the Yeti Cycles team has filled a bag with awards for the innovative technology.... So they’ve introduced it to a 27.5” wheel size.
The Yeti SB75 has inherited the same small bump compliant Switch technology of its predecessors. So it's quite the mountain goat, yet its suspension opens up when the bike’s in downhill mode.
Stiffness is delivered via custom butted aluminium tubes that mean the aluminium frame will gobble up a trail; the tougher the riding, the better this bike handles.
Nobody knows this more than three-time Olympic cross-country mountain bike rider-turned-bike-shop-owner Kashi Leuchs from Bike Otago, Dunedin. He might not be riding for NZ these days, but he certainly takes the Yetis out on local tracks and gives them a wicked workout.
Kashi and his team are all about passing on the passion of riding, and the store is run more like a community space where people come to meet for rides, get their bikes fixed, get their bike retail fix, or just catch up with the crew for a chat about anything and everything bike related.
The shop has been stocking Yeti Cycles for years and is a big fan of the brand.
“Yeti bikes are designed in Colorado, which would have to be one of the world’s greatest mountain biking destinations… Outside of New Zealand! A lot of the people behind the brand are ex pro riders, so the decisions they make are about what’s best for the rider and the ride, versus the economics,” said Kashi.
“The Yeti team is driven by genuine passion and that’s really fun to be around,” he said.
In addition to Yeti Cycles, Bike Otago also stocks URGE helmets. The really interesting feather in URGE’s helmet (sorry, but we just couldn’t resist!) is their high regard to products' ecological impact (much of the material is recycled). Kashi connected with this ethos but is also quick to point out that URGE design one of the world’s only enduro-specific full face helmets (the Archi-Enduro). They look just that little bit left of the norm, making them a unique and very cool helmet range that Bike Otago is only too happy to stock (and the locals only too happy to wear).
So if you’re in Dunedin, or just lucky enough to be biking through the area, then bee-line it to Bike Otago. Whether you need a product, advice, some mechanical help, or you just want to chew the fat about all things bikes, these guys do it best.
