Shaquille O’Neal’s new 36 inch bicycle was designed in Santa Cruz

Update: After three years of development, your DirtySixer bike for tall riders now available for pre-order on Kickstarter. This project was fully funded within 17 hours of launch!

Shaq had a Cannondale Killer V2000 bike custom built over 20 years ago to fit his 7’1″ frame. Even with the outsize frame geometry, this bike looks like a small wheel folding bike next to Shaq. Compare it against the “DirtySixer” bike he took late in 2015, which features a frame designed for large people on 36 inch wheels.

Shaq's new 36 inch bicycle

Most tall riders make do on bikes with extra long stems and seatposts. DirtySixer designs bikes around 36 inch wheels, to create something that looks remarkably well-proportioned when paired with riders representing the top percentile of human height.

Because taller riders are heavier, DirtySixer bikes are hand fabricated in the USA with bigger tubing diameter all around, wider hubs laced with 36 spokes, wider rims, and big thru axles. Bigger tires allow for safer bottom bracket heights for tall riders, and they spec longer (190 mm to 220 mm) cranks. Large headtubes and headsets create a strong front end to endure the abuse of the tallest and heaviest riders. Sizes range from “XS” (for riders 6′ to 6’4) up to “L” (for riders up to 7’4″ tall).

I saw these bikes at Sea Otter in Monterey last year but didn’t realize that the designer, David Folch, lives in Santa Cruz. We’re meeting for coffee next week and I hope for a few spy shots of the new lines of large 36ers he plans to launch at NAHBS.

I apologize for the vertical orientation of this video showing Shaq on his new DirtySixer 36 inch bicycle, but one must make allowances for retired basketball Hall of Famers.

You can see this bike designed for those over 6’4″ yourself at the North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS) coming up the weekend of February 26, 2016 at the Sacramento Convention Center.

Learn more at DirtySixer.com.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.