At the heart of the new Gambler sits the Floating Link, brainchild of engineer Mathieu Landre

The suspension layout means the Gambler’s weight sits centrally, there’s a good balance of support and traction, and the seat tube helps shield the shock from mud

There’s also very low load on the bearings and minimal DU bushing rotation. This improves small-bump sensitivty and should reduce maintenance

Brendan runs the bike in the raked-out 62° head angle setting so he can hit steep sections with his confidence high

There’s 19mm of chainstay adjustment – Brendan likes a “tight back end” for “a more playful ride and fast cornering”

As for suspension setup, he says: “I like to be able to pump the bike so I like the back end quite hard.”