The Yonder has been upgraded in a number of ways that has, to put it mildly, created a herculean bike that will have you making excuses all day long about why you just have to keep riding. So what’s new?
Hub Size
The hub is that mechanism in the center of the wheels on your bike. Hub size matters! Why, you ask? It’s about the job they do. The front hub is designed to enable the wheel to spin–pretty straight forward. The rear hub is a bit more complicated, as its role is to allow the wheel to turn freely and to transfer the force of pedaling directly to that rear wheel.
On A New Leaf 3.0, the Time of Your Life 3.0, and the 29er Max 2.0, the front hub is 100 mm, and the rear hub is 135 mm. On the Yonder, however, we’ve increased the width and substantially increased wheel strength and steering responsiveness. The front hub is 135 mm and the rear is 170 mm. These size increases mean a greater response to your input. These are strong hubs, built to take a Zize rider all day long.
Q-Factor
One of the frequent requests we get for our bikes is for more space for your feet–the pedals often seem to be placed too closely together. In bike terminology, the stance width, where your feet rest on the pedals, is called the Q Factor. The typical solution for widening the Q Factor involves using pedal extenders, which, because of their tiny size, may not be the safest solution. (Most pedal extenders are pieces of steel that are screwed into the crank on one end and the pedal on the other, and are about ½ to 1” long.)
With the Yonder we’ve turned that methodology upside down. While our other amazing Zize Bikes have the larger of the standard bottom bracket widths of 73 mm, the Yonder has a 100 mm bottom bracket–which is over an inch bigger. This size increase makes a huge difference for the rider, because it is the steel bottom bracket itself that is 1.06” wider–not a couple of slips of steel that just make the pedals easier to use.
Okay, so, who cares about the Q Factor? Actually, with your feet correctly placed, the wider Q Factor improves the pedaling bio-mechanics. It also distributes rider weight and torque over a wider area of the frame for increased strength and stability. And you just feel more comfortable. Those of us with bigger bodies have a wider stance, so it makes sense that we have a bigger Q Factor!
Frame
Our super-strong chromoly is showing up in bigger tubes on this bike. And with the wider rear hub, not only do you get the benefits of the bigger Q Factor, but you also get the benefits of that bigger build going all the way through the rear of the frame. This means, quite simply, more stability for you. Who wouldn’t love that?
Derailleurs
Our three other Zize Bikes all have internal gears, which we love because they’re easy and fool proof. But some riders want more gears, and they want to ride harder and faster–enter the Yonder. With a 10-speed rear hub and an easy to use trigger shifter, a wide range or gears is easily available for wherever your ride takes you!
Tires
Along with the benefits above, our new Yonder frame allows us to specify wider tires that have more air volume than standard tires. These wider tires distribute the load of the bike and rider over a bigger area, giving better traction and comfort.
These are the highlights of what’s changed. What always stays the same is our commitment to your safety, comfort and fun.