In 2022, Neko Mulally went out to not only start his own racing team, but he also had an ambitious goal of designing and building his own race frame. As long-time friends and supporters of Neko, Worldwide Cyclery was on board to support this project which he named Frameworks. Throughout 2022 and 2023, Neko raced his bike at Downhill World Cups, Crankworkx, and National races all while tuning and testing this bike. After facing and overcoming various trials and tribulations while racing, Neko continued to improve his design which led to numerous iterations of his bike and ultimately proved that his design could go head to head with the best downhill race bikes on the World Cup circuit.

In 2023 after an injury took Neko out from racing for 6 months, he mentored a young rider named Asa Vermette. At the time, Asa was only 16 and not eligible to race in Downhill World Cups (17-18 racing age) yet Asa was able to race a handful of top-level races aboard a Frameworks Downhill frame and even a first prototype of a Frameworks Enduro race bike. Asa took second at the US Open in the elite category beating out some of the biggest names in Downhill. He also won Downhill Nationals in the junior category and took the win at Enduro Nationals in the elite category, beating out multi-time world cup overall winner Richie Rude.

For 2024, Frameworks has expanded its team bringing on Asa Vermette to race a full season at the World Cups in the junior category. Neko has also brought on Angel Suarez, a 4-time Spanish national champ and has 6-time World Cup podiums to his name. With the growth of the Frameworks team for 2024, we are stoked to continue supporting this team and their mission. The Frameworks bike has come a long way from its first iteration, now much more refined and ready to race to the point where you can actually buy one of these for yourself! Check out the bike and info on the riders below.

As the Frameworks bike has evolved, it has been refined with cnc parts for better alignment and optimized production along with a carbon rear triangle. Neko has been documenting every step of this journey with a very open and candid look into his process which you can check out on his YouTube channel. The CNC parts are made by 5DEV in San Diego, CA and the rear triangle is made by VIP in Taiwan, known to be one of the best carbon manufacturers in the world who make a ton of the best bikes on the market today.

His current frame features a mid-high pivot suspension design that more specifically utilizes a Horst link 4 bar rocker. Components come from the likes of 5Dev, Continental Tires, Fox Shox, Enve Rims, O-Chain, Kogel, ODI, & Spank. Check out some of the specs below:

• Horst link suspension design

• 63-degree head angle, 52mm fork offset

• 480mm reach with reach adjust headset cups

• 29-inch front wheel, 27.5-inch rear

• 8-inches of frame travel

Neko Mulally is a living legend of MTB. He's raced for prestigious World Cup Downhill teams of the likes of Trek Factory Racing, YT Mob and Intense Factory Racing. With some incredible results like a podium at Crankworx in 2023, multiple wins at the Costa Rican Open, many US National Champ wins, and the famous chainless run to land him 4th at Hafjell Downhill World Championships in 2014.

Neko is still focused on racing but as he grows with the Frameworks program, he is just as dedicated to running a top level team and mentoring his other racers to get great results.

Asa burst onto the downhill race scene and Neko asked him if he wanted to ride one of his frames early on. Asa and Neko hit it off and the rest is history. While Asa hasn't been able to race a Junior World Cup yet as he is just 17 years old at the time of writing this, he already has impressive results on the bike. A few notable examples include getting second to Dakota Norton and beating Jackson Goldstone, Greg Minnar and more at the 2023 US Open, winning pro USA Enduro National Champs in 2023, winning Junior DH National Champs in 2023, and also winning the Pro BME in Durango Colorado in 2023. Having spent some time with Asa this year, Neko couldn’t have found a more humble, talented, and appreciative junior to take under his wing and race for Frameworks in 2024 and 2025.

Angel Suarez is a four time Spanish National DH Champ and has six DH World Cup podiums to his name. Angel has always shown he has the speed for the top spot. While a few injuries have prematurely ended some Worldcup seasons, when he is healthy and on a good program he can go blow for blow with the fastest in the world. Getting on a team like Frameworks might be the perfect combination of professionalism, support, and relaxed atmosphere he needs to have a great 2024 season.

FRAMEWORKS TEAM 2024

When he's not racing, Neko is constantly testing and evaluating components. With his high level of bike knowledge and experience, he's able to dissect the differences in each and every component and geometry tweak, unlike us mere mortals. He's been nice enough to write up some excellent articles and reviews for us, check them out below!