Madonna V2.2 "Miami Sunshine" - RAAW of the Month April

We all know it: Mountain bikes bring color into our lives! Sometimes, this can be quite literally, as Carlos shows with his flashy “Miami Sunshine”-build of the Madonna V2.2. Though the RAAW of the Month in April does not only impress with its orange accents but also with the clean AXS powered cockpit.

When Carlos moved to Squamish, he quickly discovered his love for mountain biking - no wonder, since the legendary trails of Canada's North Shore are right on his doorstep. “I especially love steep, technical trails, but it can also be fast and flowy - actually, I enjoy everything!”, he explains his riding style.

When it came to choosing a new bike, the Madonna V2.2 was quickly shortlisted: “I really wanted to support a smaller company that stands by their bikes and has a close relationship with their clients. I also wanted a bullet-proof bike that would be able to handle the rough terrain of the North Shore. I liked the clean look of the frame and the geometry looked like it would fit my riding style perfectly.“

While the RAAW of the Month from February and March have been rather muted in terms of color, Carlos goes absolutely "all in" with the color orange on his Madonna V2.2 in size M. "Originally I come from Miami and so I love bright colors. That's why I wanted to create a bike that would bring some color up here in the north, where it's often dark, foggy and humid in the damp forest." he explains his color choice. The centerpiece is of course the massive Fox 38 suspension fork in the striking "shiny orange" color scheme, which is also found in the spring of the Fox DHX2 shock. Hubs, pedals, grips, stem and - the Turbolito replacement tube on the frame continue to pick up the orange - after all, every detail counts! As a dutchman-in-exile, Ruben's heart is certainly warmed by so much orange!

While we have put a lot of thought into the cable routing on the Madonna frame, Carlos has opted for a completely different approach and simply omitted half of the usual cables. This is made possible by the use of SRAM AXS components for shifting and dropper post. Even if this system has now been on the market for several years, the tidy and clean look of the cockpit inspires us every time anew - this build is no exception!

For the rest of the equipment Carlos relies on proven: cranks and brakes from Shimano, tires from Schwalbe and beautiful wheels from We are one composites.

"My big goal is to spend as much time as possible on the Madonna V2.2 and discover lots of new trails along the way." Carlos tells us about his plans for this season. We're sure that with his unique setup, he'll bring plenty of Miami Sunshine to the Canadian trails.

Does your bike have what it takes to be "RAAW of the Month"?

Since we founded RAAW, one thing has given us a lot of pleasure: seeing where, how and by whom our bikes are ridden all over the world and how you use our frame kits to create different, individually optimized works of bike art. That's why from now on, every month we'll choose a particularly successful and exciting bike build from the community as "RAAW of the Month" and present the bike and its rider in detail on our website. In addition to glory and Insta-fame, a 100 € voucher for our online shop awaits the lucky winner. Does your bike have what it takes to be "RAAW of the Month"? Check out this page to find out how to apply.