Interbike 2011: Yeti Launches new SB95 29er and SB66 Carbon for 2012

Switch Technology Moves Deeper into Yeti’s Line

(September 12, 2011), Las Vegas, Nev. - Just 5 months ago Yeti introduced the new SB66 trail bike with Switch Technology and generated a laudable buzz from media outlets, Yeti fans, and just about anyone who was lucky enough to grab an early test ride.

With somewhat un-Yeti-like speed, they have now introduced two new models using the same Eccentric Dual Link suspension design: the SB95 29er with 5-inches of travel and a carbon version of the 26-inch SB66. For more background on the SB66 and Switch Technology read our original report HERE

Unfortunately the only carbon SB yeti had at Bootleg Canyon for Dirt Demo was a frame – so none of us were able to ride one – but we did log some quality time on the SB95 and loved every minute of it. Just like on the SB66, the Switch Technology makes for an amazing ride both up and down: the SB95 climbs like a goat, rips up gravel roads under pressure with a snappy reactive feel reminiscent of a hardtail, and descends with a predictable and plush feel of a full-on trail bike. Thankfully, it appears as though bicycle engineers are zeroing in on what could be considered suspension-perfection.

Yeti nailed the 29er geometry on the SB95 - it’s tight and sits low with a compact headtube, relatively slack headtube angle, and short wheel base making it quick in the corners and stable through even the gnarliest terrain. The trails of Bootleg canyon are unforgiving in the most physical sense of the word: shark fins of embedded rock make company with loose, gravely off camber singletrack in a sick collaboration of crash inducing madness. Making contact with the ground is not recommended. This also makes it a great place to test a bike and the SB 95 performed perfectly (but the test rider did not…).

This bike will likely be in extremely high demand and for good reason – it’s a ripper. The only initial point of concern could be the 7.5lb frame weight. It’s not meant to be a XC racer but it’ll be hard to build it up under 26lbs. Still, the SB95 is an awesome rig with an unbeatable ride.

Of note, the aluminum SB95 and the SB66 frames each weigh in at 7.5 lbs. The carbon SB66 frame drops to 6lbs. making it one of the lighter 6-inch travel bikes out there.

Full Specs Sheets Below:

SB95 29er A PDF

SB66 Carbon PDF

What is Switch Technology?

Dual link designs utilize a link (or set of links) joining the rear swing arm to the frame at the bottom bracket creating a migrating virtual pivot point somewhere in front of or behind the bottom bracket. By adjusting the length of the links and position of the pivots, engineers can fine tune the virtual pivot point, suspension leverage, and path of the wheel travel to be optimized to their liking, reducing pedaling bob and brake jack while gaining shock rate characteristics that make the bike handle like no bikes have before.

Clearly, it’s complex. Even though nearly all the designs are popular, so far it’s hard to say that any one particular dual-link design can be considered the holy grail of bike design. In a very Yeti-like bravura, the SB66 is patently different from previously existing dual link designs.

David Earle and Luke Beale of the Sotto Group developed the technology and came to Yeti with the concept two years ago at Sea Otter. Yeti worked with them over the last two years to optimize the design and build it into the current form after multiple iterations and extensive R&D. Sotto owns the patent (actually, patent pending) and Yeti has an exclusive license. The result is an astonishing break through: They call it Switch Technology.

What’s different about Switch Technology and the SB66 is an eccentric mechanism at the main swing arm pivot above the bottom bracket. The eccentric link turns, and at a critical point, switches direction as the suspension moves through it’s travel, effectively changing the location of the virtual pivot point, rate of chainstay growth, and wheel path. This also helps maintain a linear leverage ratio throughout the stroke.

At the beginning of the suspension stroke, the pivot is positioned so the eccentric link is moving in a rearward counter clockwise motion, creating a solid pedaling platform with a high rate of chainstay growth. Chainstay growth is desirable at this point because is counteracts forces on the suspension, keeping it from bobbing or sagging-out.

As the suspension travels deeper into the stroke, the eccentric pivot reaches a flat spot before it begins to rotate in a forward motion. Here, Yeti's goal was to create a more responsive mid stroke by keeping the rider higher in the travel (a larger sweet spot, if you will) until a bigger hit is encountered, at which time the suspension will be ready for it.

About 100mm into the travel, the eccentric pivot starts to rotate in a clockwise direction, pulling the swingarm with it, drastically slowing the rate of chain growth and allowing the suspension to work more freely for the remaining portion of the stroke.

In effect Yeti has found a way around the elusive game of identifying the sweet spot, which is inherently a compromise. Rather, their eccentric pivot allows the virtual pivot point and the relative chain growth to be optimized throughout the travel by switching directions of the pivot point's migration.