Velo City: Bicycle Culture and City Life

Krutor Hrotor

Krutor Hrotor

I’m not quite sure why Krutor only produced one of their flagship model, the Hrotor, but they were upfront on their (now defunct) website: “This bike is not for sale and we’re not going to produce another piece. Therefore we ignore any questions regarding the price.”

Maybe they used up the Czech Republic’s entire supply of aluminum and carbon fiber in its manufacture. Or maybe there was only enough room in the world for one Hrotor.

Krutor Hrotor
Regardless, it’s one very impressive mountain bike. There’s a 4-speed internal Shimano Nexus rear hub tucked into that swing arm, above the bottom bracket, connected to the rear wheel via a left-hand drive train.

The shock is capable of almost a foot of rear-wheel travel, which is almost excessive by today’s World Cup standards.

Krutor Hrotor
While internal transmissions aren’t new to downhill bikes, Krutor certainly produced a very tidy layout. They specialized in machining most of their own components, and their hubs and stems were nothing short of incredible.

All were created in-house at their factory in Brno, the Czech Republic’s second-largest city.

Krutor Hrotor
Obviously, the mechanical infrastructure is enough to support being dropped from the side of a small building, I’m just hoping Avid mechanical disc brakes are enough to haul this beast up. Because if you applied a musical analogy to this bike, it would be a death metal aria.

Check out the pedals: no hex key sprigs here, grip is maintained by overlapping sawn-off wood screws.

Ouch.

Krutor Hrotor
Krutor Hrotor
Krutor Hrotor
Krutor Hrotor
Krutor HrotorKrutor Hrotor
Krutor Hrotor