Bike Check: Polly's Juliana Roubion

Dirt School Assistant Coach, Polly Henderson, is gearing up for the next block of Enduro World Cup racing in Europe. Currently sitting in 18th overall, Polly is heading out to Finale with a fresh bike, ready to tackle the rough and rocky trails that await her at rounds 3, 4 & 5 of the Enduro World Cup. 

Before she headed off, we caught up with Polly to get all the details on her Juliana Roubion. From suspension setup and tyre pressure, to bar width and cockpit setup, it’s all below, read on for all the details on her bike setup. 

Polly stands at 162cm tall which puts her near the upper end of the height range for her chosen frame size, small. With the frame setup in the low position, this gives her a reach figure of 427mm which, when coupled with the Roubion’s 432mm rear centre translates to a wheelbase of 1189mm. This shorter wheelbase keeps the Roubion agile on the trail, something which comes in handy when racing long and technical race stages as it makes it easier to react quickly to sudden changes in direction on the trail. The mixed wheels (29” front, 27.5” rear) allow the rear end to be super short, whilst still retaining front end stability; something which is aided further with a 64.5° head angle and 160mm fork.

The Roubion’s 150mm of rear travel is controlled by a Rockshox Super Deluxe Ultimate rear shock. Setup with 145psi for Polly’s 60kg weight gives the bike around 25% sag when seated, Polly runs her suspension slightly harder than factory suggested settings to keep the bike riding high in the travel and to give more resistance to bottom outs. Low and high speed compression are both set to fully open, letting the rear wheel react as quickly as possible to trail features. Polly has her rebound set to 3 from fully open. This faster rebound speed keeps her rear wheel in contact with the trail as much as possible, increasing traction and letting the suspension ride higher in the stroke, giving a more supple feeling across successive hits.

To match her rear shock, Polly runs a Rockshox Lyrik Ultimate 160mm fork at the front of her bike. Inflated to 60psi and fitted with 1 token, Polly has mirrored her compression settings from shock to fork, with high and low speed compression both set to fully open. Rebound is set to 4 from open which gives a balanced feeling across the bike. Similarly to the rear of the bike, Polly is aiming to keep the front wheel in contact with the trail and keep the fork up high in its travel as much as possible.

A Maxxis Assegai leads the charge on the front of Polly’s Roubion. In DoubleDown casing and MaxxGrip variety, Polly runs her front tyre at 19psi, inflating by a couple of psi for the faster, more open tracks at some race venues. Out back is a DH casing DHRII also in MaxxGrip. Flicking between DoubleDown and DH for the rear tyre, Polly has settled on the DH casing for the added security given by the thicker sidewall. She runs her rear tyre at 21psi with no inserts front or rear.

Reserve 30|HD wheels are the rolling stock of Polly’s bike, the 30mm internal width giving the Maxxis Wide Trail tyres their ideal profile (a narrower rim gives a more ballooned tyre profile). Lightweight and stiff, the Reserves are built to take the punishment dished out by enduro racing at the highest level. Built on to Industry Nine 1/1 hubs with 4° of engagement, these wheels will see Polly through the roughest and rowdiest trails she encounters, whilst still being light and fast engaging enough to flatter the bike on rolling singletrack.

One thing that allows Polly to ride as fast as she does is the confidence that she can slow down in a hurry if she needs to, a job she has entrusted to SRAM Code RSC brakes. Maximising the power she can dish out are the 200mm HS2 rotors fitted to the front and rear of her bike.

At 2mm thick, the HS2s are slightly thicker than other rotors, which gives them greater heat dissipation properties, as well as giving a more solid lever feel at the bar. Running sintered pads front and rear increases the heat resistance of Polly’s brake setup even further and maximises the power she has available.

Steering the way, Polly has her Burgtec Ride Wide Carbon Enduro handlebar cut to 740mm. Choosing a 20mm rise bar and running just one 5mm spacer under her stem, Polly runs a low front end to enable her to weight the front wheel effectively through turns, giving her as much traction as the super sticky MaxxGrip Assegai can dish out. A 35mm Burgtec Enduro mk.3 stem keeps Polly’s cockpit compact and the steering sharp.

A SRAM X01 AXS drivetrain keeps Polly’s wheels turning as she rides the liaison to the top of the next stage. A 32t chainring turns the 10-52t cassette, giving plenty of range for easy climbing and high speed sprints.

Polly has changed her shifter paddle to the rocker, preferring the ergonomics of the larger rocker paddle.

Finishing off Polly’s bike is a 150mm Rockshox Reverb dropper post, Juliana house grips and Burgtec axles front and rear.

Polly keeps trailside repair essentials close at hand, with a tube strapped to the top tube and a OneUp EDC 70cc pump with an EDC multi-tool stashed inside the Glovebox along with a C02 canister, tyre levers and extra snacks. 

Polly’s Juliana Roubion full spec:

Frame: Juliana Roubion, size Small, 150mm rear travel, Low position

Fork: Rockshox Lyrik Ulitimate, 160mm, 60psi, 1 token, LSC: 0, HSC: 0, Rebound: 4 

Shock: Rockshox Super Deluxe Ultimate, 145psi, LSC: 0, HSC: 0, Rebound: 3  

Wheelset: Reserve 30|HD rims on Industry Nine 1/1 hubs, MX 

Tyres: Front: Maxxis Assegai, DoubleDown, MaxxGrip, 29”, 19psi Rear: Maxxis DHRII, DH casing, MaxxGrip, 27.5”, 21psi. No inserts.

Handlebar: Burgtec Ride Wide Carbon Enduro, 740mm wide, 20mm rise

Stem: Burgtec Enduro mk.3 stem, 35mm reach

Grips: Juliana House Grips

Brakes: SRAM Code RSC, sintered pads

Rotors: SRAM HS2, 200mm 

Drivetrain: SRAM X01 AXS w/rocker paddle shifter

Cassette: SRAM XG1275, 10-52t

Cranks: SRAM X1, DUB, 170mm

Chainring: SRAM X-Sync 2, 32t

Chainguide: OneUp Bash Guide

Seatpost: Rockshox Reverb, 31.6mm, 150mm

Saddle: Juliana saddle

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