Sam’s Boxxer-red Forbidden Dreadnought V2

Sam Minnell loves riding big mountains – whether on wheels or skis, his all-time ideal weekend is above the tree line. He’s also a rider you’ll see putting his BMX skills to use around Christchurch, folding a table on his 20-inch like it’s 2010, or dangling a Five Ten on a bike-park flow trail. When it came time to build a new bike, it made sense for Sam to choose something that did the business in both departments – a Forbidden Dreadnought. Sam shared his motivations for building the bike, how he likes his bikes to feel, and some strong feelings about wheel sizes.

Q. Why this bike?

A. I’ve just had a really good run with Forbidden over the years. Previously, I had the first generation Dreadnought and I’ve been riding the second-generation Druid exclusively for quite a while, but I decided that I just wanted a little more travel again. I tend to break a lot of frames, and the Forbiddens are the only frames I’ve never actually broken. 

Q. What was the inspiration for the custom paint job?

A. I picked this frame up off Ranui Herangi Harrison at Ride Perfect Concept, an automotive refinisher in Christchurch who also paints bikes. The colour reminded me of the old original cherry-red Boxxer downhill forks and I was like, “yeah, that’s rad”.

Q. How do you like your bikes to feel?

A. I like my bikes to be a little bit supple off the top but with quite a lot of ramp up from that point. That way you get a little bit of goodness going into the chop but some pop if you’re hitting a nice flow track or jumps. I also like to be quite forward on the bike so I like the stack to be quite low. Because I come from a BMX background, I like my bikes to be quite small and to kind of ride like a big BMX. I’m 178cm and I ride an S2 (medium).

Q. What parts are you fussy about?

A. I’m pretty fussy about all the contact points–brakes, pedals, and grip and bar combo. I like my bars to have a rise of 20mm. I’ve been pretty much sold on the OneUp handlebars for the past couple of years, and I won’t run anything else now.  

I really like the Burgtec Penthouse Mk5 pedals for the feel and grip balance. I run the same pedals and brakes across all my bikes because I like to be able to jump between bikes and have them feel exactly the same.

I also like to keep the stack consistent across all my bikes. I run 20mm-rise bars on all my bikes and I tend to like my stack low, probably a maximum of one or two spaces under the stem.

Also I only run 29-inch wheels. I hate mullet bikes. I just find mixed wheels make the bike feel too much like a chopper – really unbalanced, like I’m too low in the back end. I also find that the smaller rear wheel hangs up if you’re rolling through something choppy, whereas a 29-inch wheel just rolls straight through it. Modern 29-inch bikes are playful enough that the loss of stability from the smaller back wheel just isn’t worth it for me.

Q. What’s your favourite thing about this bike?

A. I just love the look of it. I’ve always liked Forbidden’s designs, the way the lines of the frame flow. They look different but tidy and well put together. It helps that they ride awesome as well.

• Frame: Forbidden Dreadnought V2 S2, custom painted “Boxxer” red
• Shock: RockShox Vivid Coil spring 550lb
• Fork: RockShox Zeb Ultimate 170mm travel
• Wheels: DT Swiss 240 Deg 3 Decades Anniversary Edition hub set laced to DT EXC 330 carbon rims
• Tyres: Front: Maxxis Assegai MaxxGrip Double Down 29×2.5. Rear: Maxxis Dissector MaxxGrip DH Casing 29×2.4
• Derailleur: SRAM Eagle 90 Transmission
• Shifter: SRAM Eagle 90 shifter
• Crankset: Race Face Atlas 170mm
• Chainring: Race Face ERA carbon chainring 32-tooth 
• Pedals: Burgtec Penthouse Mk5 Red
• Brakes: TRP DH-R Evo with S0rE Race rotors
• Handlebar: OneUp bars 20mm rise
• Stem: Burgtec Enduro Mk3 40mm long
• Grips: RevGrips thin
• Dropper post and lever: RockShox Reverb AXS 150mm drop
• Saddle: Specialized
• Extras: Specialized SWAT tool from my old ebike, Fidlock bottle holder