Last week we gave you a taster of Marzocchi’s ’03 jump and Freeride forks, including the restyled Z1 and the air-assisted DJ series. This week we’re covering the cross-country Marathon forks, the MX series and the downhill Monster range.

Marathon
Launched only last year, the Marathon already gets a major makeover. Aimed at the increasingly popular sector of enduro-style marathon racing, where durability and reliable performance are more important than out-and-out weight. Two Marathon models will make an appearance next year; the air-sprung SL and the coil-sprung S-Coil.

Cosmetic differences for 2003 include a redesign for the forged and CNC’d crown, now sporting a subtle ‘M’ profile to match the brace, and greater overlap with the stanchions. The lower leg assembly also gets new clothes, with a sleek outline to the one-piece magnesium casting. They’ll be a special 29” version of the Marathon SL to keep Mr Fisher happy.

Last year saw a three-position rebound lockout control on the Marathon. For ’03 they’ve increased the tunability by introducing a five-position ECC cartridge on the SL. Fully clicked in and the rebound is completely locked-out. In-between the extremes, the clicker offers degrees of damping ideal for rough climbs or out-of-the-saddle sprints. The coil-sprung Marathon gets the new ETA system with its 30mm of travel even at full-lockout. Travel on the Marathon is 105mm, although there will be a travel adjust kit to bring that down to 85mm. The SL will be priced at £429.95 and the S-Coil at £329.95.

Marzocchi claim a 3.5lb weight for the Marathon SL.

Monster
As freeriding continues to grow in popularity across the world, and riders continue to push the limits, Marzocchi have decided to expand their Monster range to three models. There’s a basic, no-frills, Monster T2, along with two, more sophisticated models; the Monster T and Super Monster T.

Both the Monster T and Super Monster T feature tuneable high and low-speed damping circuits borrowed from Marzocchi’s motocross department. Travel on the Monster T2 and Monster T is 200mm (eight-inches), while the Super Monster T comes Bender-ready, off-the-shelf, with a whopping 300mm (twelve-inches)! Prices on the Monster T and the Super Monster T are £669.95 and £824.95 respectively, while the Monster T2 is not available aftermarket.

MX
The MX series is Marzocchi’s bread-and-butter cross-country fork. UK importer, Windwave, will be bringing in five MX models of varying spec, all based on the MX-Comp. At £174.95, the air-sprung MX-Comp won’t break the bank, yet it still gets a brand new one-piece magnesium lower leg assembly, 105mm of travel and Dual SSV damping. It also gets the crown off last year’s Marathon.

From the basic Comp, a whole host of options are added until you get to the fully-loaded MX Pro ETA at £279.95. External upgrades are limited to an alloy steerer, but internally the fork uses an air-spring in one leg and a coil-spring with ETA lockout in the other. There’s extra adjustability, too, with the addition of an external rebound adjuster. Die-hard luddites can rejoice in Marzocchi’s decision to also offer a version of the MX Comp ETA with a one-inch Aheadset steerer. Price on the MX Comp ETA is £214.95.

Availability on all the new Marzocchis will be from early September, with the more expensive forks arriving towards October.