Before we had long reach, steep seat angles and slack head angles, mountain bike and component makers attempted to make our off-road bicycles better by offering on the fly adjustments. The idea being we could have our downhill cake while still being able to eat our uphill eclair.
The earliest example I can remember was the Hite Rite a precursor to the now indispensable dropper post. Nothing more than a simple spring that kept your saddle pointing in the right direction as you released your QR before hitting a descent.
More extreme examples included the early Bionicon bikes featuring a piston on the rear shock which adjusted the entire geometry at the flick of a switch, an idea still alive today with the Canyon Strive’s Shapeshifter system.
I’m sure you can think of countless more examples, but the fact is even with our modern geometry there are some manufactures out there who think we can still get a little more out of our bikes with some bolt-on adjustability.
Meet the SwitchGrade
If you’re a bit of a mountain bike tech fan then the SwitchGrade might be familiar to you already. The product was promoted earlier this year, but today it finally goes into the pre-order phase.
So what exactly does it do?
Quite simply it attaches to your existing dropper post/Seatpost and gives the rider control over the seat angle. It’s all controlled via a simple lever under the saddle and the angle can be adjusted back and forth on the fly.
On the trail, this means you could have your saddle level while pootling along the flat, but quickly drop the nose when hitting a steep and technical climb. Letting you stay seated while keeping the weight balanced for rear-wheel traction without front wheel float. The SwitchGrade also has the ability to lift the nose of your saddle too, useful when hitting steed downhill sections because it drops the rear of the saddle lower for more manoeuvrability.
Those are the obvious benefits of the SwtichGrade, but the manufacturer, Aenomaly Constructs also claims the 160g+ bolt-on piece of kit helps you to generate more power by improving biomechanical efficiency, overcome the effects of suspension sag, ride with a more open torso and have a stable platform to maximize pedalling efficiency and reduce fatigue and more.
SwitchGrade benefits for climbing:
- Generate more power by improving biomechanical efficiency
- Offset incline grades, effectively rendering climbs flat
- Counter the effects of suspension sag, especially for long-travel bikes in the 150mm+ range.
- Riding with more open torso and hip angles provides increased mid-stroke power and efficient spinning while relieving pain and discomfort
- Have a stable platform, support, and ‘push-point’ to maximize pedaling efficiency and reduce fatigue
SwitchGrade benefits for descending:
- More room to manoeuvre over and around your saddle
- Easy exit and entry off and on your bike saddle as you shimmy down rock gardens, steep chutes and root-filled lines
- Perfect solution for riders with shorter inseams who want the benefits of a long dropper seatpost but are limited by interrupted seat tube design
- Angling down provides a measure of protection and effective safeguards against accidental brushes with the rear of saddle
Perhaps best of all is that the SwitchGrade can be fitted to most dropper posts in less than 90 seconds. Check out the installation video below.
The SwitchGrade will be available for pre-order later today (25th June 2021) and at the time of writing, we’re unsure what the retail price might be for this clever gadget. Do you see a SwitchGrade on your bike in the near future?
