Sea Otter - Elka Racer Interview

Posted: May 12, 2009

Patrick and crew from Elka suspension were at this year's Sea Otter Classic showing off their Canadian Made suspension offerings. We are lucky enough to have one of our own Elka shocks here at Pinkbike, but I was able to meet a racer that just got his Elka and talk to him about how it changed his ride and the overall feeling of his bike. Luis Samayoa got to the Sea Otter and was experiencing issues with his stock rear suspension, lucky for him the folks at Elka were on hand and got him set up for the weekend.

Check out the interview and pics inside:

Fifty-Fifty DH Racing Team rider Luis Alfredo Samayoa tells us about his experience with Elka suspension at the Sea Otter Classic:

Views:2916 Faves:6 Comments:5

Elka Equipped Specialized

Check out our Elka rear shock that we're running on a GT DHi, stay tuned for a performance review:

Whole shock

Compression Adjustments

Machining detail

Made in Canada

Pretty respectable with a Hi-tensile alloy spring

http://www.elkasuspension.com/

www.seaotterclassic.com

Sea Otter Classic Photo Gallery

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39 Comments

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7483

callumm (May 15, 2009 at 0:19)

That is one hell of a nice looking shock.
And bike!

+ 18

gdawg (May 15, 2009 at 1:40)

Well of course it is. It's made in Canada!

the-A-team (May 15, 2009 at 1:47)

i concur!

danny-oli (May 16, 2009 at 4:16)

and to be honest if its made in canada...its worth buying

[Reply]

FreerideStian (May 15, 2009 at 0:51)

Looking good! But does it perform as good as the DHX 5.0?

TyreBurningBiker (May 15, 2009 at 9:20)

hopw it does, its dope Big Grin

dhfreeride3 (May 15, 2009 at 15:12)

its bette than the dhx you gain a lot of speed because it sick on the ground

TyreBurningBiker (May 15, 2009 at 15:25)

how much does it cost?

dhfreeride3 (May 15, 2009 at 18:10)

I don't know exactly but at Bromont we can test them free Smile

drider (May 15, 2009 at 20:01)

yeah!!! next time I go for sure I'll ride one

edd4 (May 15, 2009 at 20:48)

About 500$CAD with Hi-tensile spring !

And yes It's a dope shock, when you have the perfect setting for your bike it rides like a charm (and WAY smoother than a DHX)

TyreBurningBiker (May 16, 2009 at 2:05)

whoa! did i hear 500CAD??????? Big Grin

or did you forget another 0?

edd4 (May 17, 2009 at 6:36)

No! go see prices on the elka website !

[Reply]

JokerMachine (May 15, 2009 at 2:57)

Looks sweet, been wondering when Elka and Ohlins and all those other motorsport companies would hurry up and get into the MTB game.

iamamodel (May 15, 2009 at 9:34)

FMF shocks came on KHS bikes maybe about 12 years ago. Their experience with MTB was not too good and they stopped.

Rennie had an Ohlins on his 'Avanti' (I can't remember who the frame was really made by) when he was a Junior. That shock was HUGE! There's a photo on his website.

Bos too are coming back to MTB from motorsport.

Oh yeah, and then Marzocchi...

iamamodel (May 15, 2009 at 9:35)

And White Brothers.

dualsuspensiondave (May 15, 2009 at 15:28)

Cane Creek double barrel is Ohlins technology...

[Reply]

Cntstpthestnk06 (May 15, 2009 at 3:44)

i have one on my shocker It feels AWESOME!!!

[Reply]

karola (May 15, 2009 at 5:24)

I will test Elka shock soon, can't wait Smile

[Reply]

alfarac (May 15, 2009 at 6:02)

Ohlins already is in the market. They designed the Cane Creek Double Barrel.

[Reply]

fredydh (May 15, 2009 at 6:22)

Double Barrel? BOS? ELKA? DHX? REVOX? or ROCCO?!

dabomb666 (May 15, 2009 at 7:37)

finally having some market choice is a good thing, gone are the days of just fox and fith elephant!

mitchdog1 (May 15, 2009 at 10:35)

Double barrel is made by ohlins

[Reply]

timex255 (May 15, 2009 at 6:46)

Im buying one for my bike these are nice.

[Reply]

seraph (May 15, 2009 at 10:00)

Looks like the bastard stepchild of a DHX 5.0 and a Roco.

[Reply]

d-bax (May 15, 2009 at 10:03)

looks sick! now, how does it compare to a DHX 5? i guess ill have to wait for a review Frown

[Reply]

kmilosanchez (May 15, 2009 at 10:10)

Buena samayou!! muy PRO!

bimbodh (Aug 13, 2009 at 16:55)

yeah!! el visito este ano El Salvador para darnos una clinica de DH, muy PRO !! congrats Samayoa Wink

[Reply]

richflow (May 15, 2009 at 10:27)

i hope ohlins make a shock coz they are the best with out a doubt and i will be 1st inline to buy 1 lol...this shock looks amazing though the spring looks massive

brule (May 15, 2009 at 10:32)

If you read the comments above, you'll learn that Cane Creek is using Ohlins technology in their shocks.

[Reply]

Horsentier (May 15, 2009 at 11:00)

I just bought an Elka shock. The ride is amazing!

So stiff for pedaling and so smooth in rock sections.

Far better than my last Fox shock.

[Reply]

louis2468routier (May 15, 2009 at 13:18)

Riding one on my Giant Faith and it feels AMAZING so far!

Pat gives the best customer service!!

[Reply]

VTODH (May 15, 2009 at 20:55)

EL SALVADOR DH!!!!!!!!!!

SOFME (May 16, 2009 at 3:33)

that makes no seanse...

[Reply]

selebrin (May 15, 2009 at 23:00)

i ride a Vivid 5.1 and it feels much smoother than all DHX setups i've iried!! i want to try Elka too!

[Reply]

marcpoirier (May 16, 2009 at 13:12)

I got an Elka on my Norco Team DH and it fell great, best shock I ever had by far.

[Reply]

flyrider17 (May 16, 2009 at 15:58)

great shox, looks like motocross shox..

[Reply]

whitejeep (May 16, 2009 at 20:33)

elka is the ssh*t i love it i got it on my quad they make amaizing stuff

[Reply]

Harun (May 18, 2009 at 9:49)

how much travle does it have?

[Reply]

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