PREVIEW
Supercross BMX | The Vision F1
The next generation of the Supercross BMX carbon vision…
Supercross BMX | The Vision F1
The next generation of the Supercross BMX carbon vision…
Supercross BMX have been nonchalantly, or rather, deviously dropping the word ‘Vision’ into their social media and print ad vocabulary recently. Hinting that something was coming, something new, something visionary … and here it is, the Vision F1. The ‘next generation of Carbon BMX frames.’
Lighter, stronger, stiffer, faster … upgraded carbon materials, new tube designs for a better launch, a fixed rear end, disc or v-brake, Flip/Chips … if the Vision F1 proves to be even a little better when compared to their brilliant Envy BLK 2 we’re in for something special, something very special.
Since the original aluminium ‘V Series’ frames and the first Carbon Envy BLK, Bill Ryan, the man pulling the strings at Supercross BMX, has been on an evolutionary path, … the path that spawned the Envy RS7 and the previously mentioned Envy BLK2. The Vision F1 has been on a separate path … a revolutionary path! The Vision F1 is not replacing the Envy BLK2, it’s going to live above it, if there is such a place. The ultimate Supercross race frame, designed from the ground up to get you from the gate to the finish line in the fastest time possible.
Bill tells us that the Vision F1 started taking shape in his head sometime in 2019, but when Covid19 kicked into top gear in 2020 and caused an initial, across the board, slump in BMX sales, the Vision moved from an idea to a full-on mission. ‘When Sales slumped for that month or so, I went into a deep manic phase and was drawing and working with the vendor five times a day to get things done right. The ENV2 BLK 2 pro XL 24” actually has some early Vision DNA in it and that was the bridge to doing the VISION F1’.
Visually, the Vision F1 cleverly retains the look and feel of a carbon Supercross. The front of the frame to the bottom bracket all retain the familiar BLK tubing profiles, or close to, from what we can decipher from the images anyway. Thankfully we get to keep our trouble free and rock-solid Euro Bottom Bracket. The graphics are cleaner, crisper, and more modern in our opinion. The first major new thing you’ll notice about the new Carbon Vision F1 is the fixed rear end and the shape of the rear stays which are more aggressive than the BLK2 before it, and have been dialled in to increase stiffness and launch control. While Supercross has flirted with disc brakes on their RS7, which they developed into the disc specific ‘Fastback’, this is them jumping in with both feet when it comes to carbon. ‘With everyone wanting to go to a disc brake, I had said it on ‘Rail the Berm’ almost 2 years ago, that the only way to properly do it was with a fixed rear end. I love what Meybo have done for some of their team riders with the fixed rear end so they could have it as a proper disc bike and not have to worry about the horseshoe dropout opening up. But BMXers are a fickle group and in order to do it right, you need a fixed dropout, but with adjustment. Hence the FLIP/CHIP design, where we have a fixed dropout that can be changed from a standard length (mid Supercross geometry) wheelbase, or a one chain-link shorter wheelbase, so you can still dial in the way that you like the bike to ride for personal preference, and you have the disc locked in and don’t have any stress.’
If the disc is not for you, the Vision F1 may still be. The frame is adaptable, allowing for v-brake adapters to be attached, and while it’s certainly not the first frame to allow for this, it has cleverly hidden the attachment points, which you can just about pick out in the images on the inside of the rear stays. The frame includes two internal cable routing options, the upper for v-brake and the lower for disc brakes.
The aforementioned Flip/Chip, while we’ve yet to see one in detail never mind hold one in our hands, is intriguing to us. This little engineering marvel may be the jewel in the Visions crown, admittedly we do get excited by these little details. We expect, or we hope that these small inserts will be beautifully finished and maybe even colour coded … and will open multiple options for hubs and wheel positions. ‘It’s an Oval Dropout Insert and is a fixed wheelbase at the longest length of the MID position of the traditional Supercross BMX geometry with a 43/16 gearing. And then when you FLIP the Chip around, to the front position, it is the equivalent of taking 1 link out of your chain’ Bill told us, ‘The Vision F1 is forward thinking and is set up out of the box to be Disc Ready, V Brake ready, 15mm ready and 10mm ready. There are no adapters needed, the FLIP/CHIP is either a 10mm or 15mm size, and both are included with the frame, the V-brake mounts are removeable and come with the frame, and the Disc Brake Mount is removeable and comes with the frame. We have tried to make it very user friendly for everyone.’ The Vision F1 will also come with a chain tensioner that will resemble, or at least work in a similar way to the Meybo one used on their fixed rear end frames, although, with a standard gearing, 44/16 for example, you will get away without the tensioner.
Aside from all that exciting tech that you can mostly wrap your head around, the real star of the show here is the material used and building technique of the Vision F1 … lighter, stronger, stiffer … faster! ‘The Vision F1 is a full Monocoque Carbon Frame, most of the frames on the market are done as piece meal, like the ENVY BLK and the ENVY BLK 2 are a full Carbon Frame, but they are a multiple piece construction, similar to an old school Aluminium or Cro-mo BMX frame, where you have a Head Tube, a Down Tube, a Top Tube, a Seat Mast a Chain Stay etc. and they are carbon welded, bonded together. It is a great process, don’t get me wrong, it has built many of the best race frames on the market, hence the ENVY BLK2, and others, but this is a full Monocoque chassis, it is all formed at one time, one piece from tip to tip, a solid piece of carbon, no carbon welding. Similar to the way that many Formula 1 Car chassis are made, many Supercars and Hyper Cars, etc. It is a true performance piece. By going full monocoque it is lighter and stronger, which is faster. Now that also allows us to use more of the material in the proper places to further enhance the launch of the frame. We really are trying to build the ultimate BMX racing frame.’ Ryan explained, ‘The material is Torray T1100 KS carbon, which is the highest end Torray material available to the cycling world. It has a much higher tensile strength, yield strength and impact resistance. We have another material we have been working with as well, but it is not quite ready for the prime time. Probably needs another year or two of testing. Torray on the other hand is a proven leader in the Carbon game and we are proud to of been working with them for well over a decade.’
With hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in its 18-month development, the Vision F1 is not going to be cheap, as we’re sure you’ve guessed. But it may not be as bad as you would first imagine. The current Supercross plan is to deliver a full ‘chassis kit’, which will include the Vision F1 frame, the matching Vision F1 Carbon Monocoque Forks, v-brake adapters, disc hanger, and all the Flip/Chips any one person could require, and a Speedline headset for $1995.95.
The Vision F1 should be available during October 2021, or shortly thereafter, in a whole lot of slick colours and finishes in Expert, Expert XL, Pro XL and Pro XXL sizes … with more sizes following in the near future. We think it’s about time we raided the Supercross warehouses again …
