Fibril Bikemap Pro
Fibril is the newest map board to enter the market from Australia. These map boards, designed and made by Elijah Dixon, sport a 3D printed handlebar attachment. Seeking advice from adventure racing forums in creating his design, Dixon has been very responsive to the needs and wants of the athlete community.
Report Card
Side view of the three point attachment system
Installed weight:
At 297 grams, the Fibril is the second lightest board by only 5 grams.
Board material
The board itself is made of a sheet of clear acrylic. It is less rigid than all of the other boards but it has a cool aerodynamic design that holds its shape well.
Top cover type
Clear polyvinyl with 4 large velcro attachment flaps make this a very secure-feeling cover that is made of the same material as nearly every other board.
Bike attachment components (materials, design)
The handlebars attachment from Fibril deserves special mention because it is a completely new design. Made from 3D printed material (lightweight but thick plastic) the board attaches to a bike at three connection points with velcro straps for maximum compatibility and tool-less installation. The one piece design of the handlebar mount is certainly innovative and it looks like it could be removed for packing, but its low profile design may make disassembly unnecessary. The universal mounting design and velcro straps make this one of the easiest boards to install. No tools are needed and the velcro system allows users to easily make slight adjustments to the fit. There is foam rubber padding to protect handlebar paint as well.
Durability
Long term durability information is not yet available for these boards since they’re relatively new but on first look, the materials do feel as though they would stand up well to most adventure racing environments. Velcro attachment straps may wear out though and may need to be replaced.
Cost
79.95 AUD + shipping and handling
Ships from / availability
Made in Australia, order online at fibrildesign.com
Expert trail test:
Front view of the three point attachment system
This board features velcro mounts which enable a relatively quick install with no tools, though I didn’t love the metal clips on the straps being in direct contact with my carbon handlebars.
The mount is designed with 3 points of contact – either side of the bars and the stem - which means that the angle of the board is not adjustable (it depends largely on the angle of your stem). I found this board to be angled back toward the rider more that I like, and there was no way to adjust this.
The board is super floppy - the most floppy one we tested - and it’s bowed out from the center and not flat. This board bounces around a lot on bumpy terrain, making map reading more challenging, and it’s a little bit loud because it’s so floppy.
It features very long velcro strip closures on all 4 sides. These were slightly more challenging to open for map flipping on the go compared to some other models that we tested, though still serviceable. One thing we noted is that the scratchy side of these velcro straps is on the map cover rather than the underside of the base, so sliding your hand in to flip or reposition the map means the back of your hand is either being scratched by the velcro if you’re bare-handed, or you gloves can get caught on the velcro. This is minor, but a little bit annoying.
My biggest concern with this board has to do with its reliance on velcro for mounting - velcro can lose its grip over time as it gets dirty or gets plant debris caught in it. And no adventure racer has ever gotten their bike dirty during a race right?
9. WIld card
Made by a member of the AR community this is a truly home grown design which means you’re directly supporting an adventure racing small business. Fibril also now offers replacement insurance for their map boards for a small cost of $20. This design is also the only one to feature a third connection point to increase security.
10. Overall impressions:
Taking into account lots of feedback from the adventure racing community, this board has been designed specifically for our sport. Unlike most of the other map boards evaluated here, the Fibril is a purpose built Adventure Racing map board, not just for Mountain Bike Orienteering. That’s a small but important distinction since it takes into account things like transportation by volunteers and long continuous use that are less impactful for shorter MTBO races.
Top view
