More lukewarm than hot off the press, we can now bring you news of the 2003 Mavic wheels line-up over the next couple of days. The gallic purveyor of all things wheel-related, put up with us recently in the stunning surroundings of their Annecy base, before transporting us off to Morzine for three days riding around the Portes du Soleil and a stab at the Freeraid Classic.

And our hats are well and truly off to them, because for each of the thirty-odd journos and their personal bikes, they had assembled four separate wheel packages, each complete with disc rotors, tyres and cassettes. With military precision, at the end of every ride, the boys in yellow would appear, wheel our steeds away, only to return them later with a fresh set of hoops! It was the Everest of logistical mountains, but Mavic pulled it off.

Anyway, back to the wheels. The mountain bike line-up has been simplified considerably for ’03, with two models aimed at the cross-country crowd. They are both based on the wheel that kicked off a revolution; the Crossmax. Next year, Crossmax will be spilt into XL and SL derivatives, with the XL being built strong enough to cope with light freeride duties, while the SL is a stripped-to-the-bone, weight weenies’ wet dream. Both wheels feature UST tubeless technology.

The workhorse of the mountain bike range. Light enough for cross-country riding and racing, sturdy enough for drops and jumps.

It’s available in both disc and non-disc versions, with the rim brake version featuring ceramic sidewalls and an 18-spoke front, 20-spoke rear configuration. Claimed weight is 730g front, 885g rear. For disc users there are extra spokes (24 front and rear) to offset the greater dish, six-bolt International Standard rotor compatibility and a claimed weight of 860g front, 945g rear. An added Brucie-bonus for disc users is Mavic’s new adaptable front hub, which allows the same wheel to be clamped by quick release or 20mm bolt-through axle. It’s a tool-less two minute job to make the change, and best of all; all the components are included FOC.

The usual Mavic features abound, including their Fore drilling process that leaves the outer bridge in tact and airtight for tubeless compatibility, specifically engineered bearings and a fully rebuildable freehub. Don’t forget that all UST rims are compatible with standard ETRTO tyres and tubes, so you’re not forced to convert to tubeless. Expect a price tag of around €600 for the rim version and €640 for the disc version (£380-£420).

‘Super light and tubeless for swift riding and built-in vitality. A beautiful cross-country wheel with a volcanic temper for racers’. That’s how Mavic describe the Crossmax SL, and while we can’t explain exactly what that means, we can tell you that these silver beauties will make any weight watcher weak at the knees.

Again, the SL’s are available in two versions depending on brake choice. The rim brake version features ceramic sidewalls, 18/20-spoke lacing and a minimal, composite front hub. The Maxtal SUP rims are machined between spokes after rolling to further reduce weight (known as Inter Spoke Machining). Claimed weight is 650g front, 820g rear.

The primary difference with the disc wheel are 24 two-crossed spokes to compensate for the wheel dish and International Standard rotor mounts. Claimed weight? 770g front, 915g rear.

Price-wise, the SL’s won’t be cheap; reckon on €800 for the rim version and €850 for the disc (£500-£540).

We had the opportunity to ride the Freeraid Classic aboard a pair of Crossmax XL’s shod with Kenda UST tyres. First a word on UST; over 75km of gravity-assisted terrain – encountering rocks the size of watermelons and foot-deep water bars – we didn’t suffer a single puncture. In fact there were three of us participating on the same wheels and there was not a flat between us.

We found the XL’s coped superbly considering the hammering they took – 10km out there probably equates to about a month of riding back home. What they lacked in punctures, they made up for in stiffness; we couldn’t get them to wander or flex despite traversing deep ruts and railing Morzine berms. In essence – a top all-round wheelset.

Check back tomorrow when we’ll bring you details on the new Deemax and Mavic’s new rims.