The Robbie Report is a weekly feature on MTBracenews.com. Robbie Squire is the 2008 Junior National Champion and the newest member of the US National Team. Just two years ago Squire was racing as a Sport. In '08, his first year and only year as a Junior Expert, Robbie won the Junior National Championship. In '09 his first year in the senior ranks, the Utah resident will be racing with the U.S. National Under-23 Team. Each week Robbie will share his experiences with us. Join in as the 19 year-old Junior National Champion and first year Pro travels across the United States and Europe racing his bike and living out a once in a lifetime opportunity. On a lighter note I raced in the Snowbird Hill...

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The front wheel costs £180 and comes in either 15mm thru-axle (tested) or 9mm QR (quick release) versions, however they lack interchangeable axles like some of their competitors’ wheels (notably Hope, Specialized, Mavic and Fulcrum), which is a... Be warned, however, they’re a genuine struggle to get tyres on and off (we snapped four tyre levers trying to fix a trailside puncture) so ensure you use a strong set like Pedro’s fine levers. Once on, the tyres remain secure and as the rims are UST they also seal well with tubeless-ready or full tubeless set-ups. These are the new XT Trail wheels with 15mm thru-axle front hub and 135x9mm axle rear hub. Weighing in at 1820g a pair (800g front, 1020g rear) they’re 228g lighter and £20 cheaper than the outgoing wheels they replace (the 20mm thru-axle XT AMs). Centerlock disc mount only, the rear wheel costs £190 and is also available in a 142x12mm thru-axle option. The rims are strong with solid outer walls and have taken numerous potential rim-denting knocks without so much as a scratch, whatever pressures we ran. The new steel freehub resists cassette scarring and is fast-engaging with pawl engagement every 10-degrees - more than good enough for most riders most of the time.

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