40TH ANNIVERSARY

Vaea Verbeeck's 2018 Altitude

Vaea Verbeeck's 2018 Altitude

I have special feelings for my 2018 Altitude. It was a new generation of the Altitude and it absolutely blew my mind (not sure how Rocky pulled that hat trick again in 2020 but they did). It was special to me because of the places it took me as well as the new achievements I accomplished onboard that bike. For its first trip, I took it to New Zealand which was my first time in this dreamy country that I now call my home away from home. That added to how special it made this bike for me. It was also part of a shift in my career; veering off of world cup downhill racing and starting to lean towards Crankworx events.

I won my first international event on that bike (before it had even publicly launched)! I blew my expectations winning the air downhill race at Crankworx Rotorua. Rewind 2-3 days prior to that win and I was attempting an EWS race in epic Rotorua mud. This bike lived an eventful beginning. The following Spring, I got to shoot my first product video for Rocky Mountain. Fourtified was an awesome video shared with a few teammates and a big deal for me. That year, I kept rising as a consistent podium contender at Crankworx events aboard the Altitude. The beginning of something special in my career! I was also aboard this Altitude while filming my first feature video, Horizon, for Deity Components in 2018. I got a ton of great feedback for this edit and I was proud of the direction I was going in.

Frame: Altitude | Frame Size: Medium | RIDE-9
Position: Slack
Fork: Rockshox Lyric
Shock: Rockshox Super Deluxe
Stem: Deity Copperhead | 35mm
Handlebars: Deity DC31 Mohawk carbon | 775mm Width | 25mm Rise
Grips: Deity Knuckleduster
Brakes: Hope Tech 3 E4 | Resin Pad | Hope 180mm Floating Front Rotor | Hope 180mm Floating Rear Rotor
Shifter: Sram X01
Derailleur:Sram X01
Crankset:Hope Tech Evo | 170mm | 32T Spiderless Chainring
Cassette: Hope Tech 11 speed | 10-44t Range
Chain: Sram 11-speed
Chainguide: Spirit Guide
Pedals: Crankbrothers Mallet E
Wheels:  Hope Tech 27.5 Enduro Pro 4
Tires:  Front Maxxis DHF 3C 2.5 | Rear Maxxis DHR II ST 2.4
Seatpost:  Rockshox Reverb
Saddle: Deity Speedtrap