Long-time bicycle chain brand KMC has just introduced their new React cassettes in 10-speed and 11-speed versions. First spotted at Eurobike 2023, they’re designed for wide-range 1x and 2x applications, with tooth counts good for road, gravel, and mountain bikes.

At just $65, they’re affordable replacement, option for your trainer, or way to try a different tooth count on the cheap. Perfect for upgrading your kids’ bikes, too. And from the looks of it, you won’t be giving up shift quality to save some coin.

The cogs have dual shifting ramps called Flow Control, smoothing upshift and downshifts. These ramped tooth profiles & thicknesses use varied shapes to guide the chain from cog to cog.

Both KMC REACT versions have two gear range options:

• 10-speed: 11-36T, 11-42T
• 11-speed: 11-42T, 11-50T

They’re optimized for KMC chains, but are compatible with other 10- and 11-speed chains. They fit Shimano HG freehub bodies. Fitting it to a bike built around a smaller cassette? They recommend adding the Wolf Tooth Components Goatlink to increase your derailleur’s capacity for larger cogs.

KMCchain.us

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The new Trek Marlin+ takes their all-purpose alloy hardtail and gives it the Bosch Active Line upgrade. The e-bike variant has all the same features as the analog original, giving you a wide range of use options, from trail to town.

Featuring 2.6″ tires, a 120mm suspension fork, and size-specific wheel selections, the Marlin+ scoots all of that along with a 50Nm mid-mount motor.

It’s a Class 1 e-bike, assisting up to 20mph or 25km/h, depending on market. A bolt-on cover on the non-drive side makes motor service easy, and a protective plate under it makes cable routing simple.

That’s paired with a 400Wh CompactTube battery, augmented with an optional 250Wh PowerMore range extender. Expect 2-4 hours of run time on a full charge, and about 50% more than that with the external battery pack. It uses the slim Bosch Purion display/remote for simple mode switches and easy visuals for power, speed, etc. Switch to Auto mode for automatic assist changes based on terrain, cadence, and your output.

Size medium frames and up get 29″ wheels, small & XS get 27.5″ wheels. All frame sizes get rack and fender mounts, letting you set it up for backroad touring and urban commuting. Or shed the cargo and shred the trail.

Trek Marlin+ Specs & Pricing

Two builds are available, both on the affordable end of Trek’s e-bike lineup.

Marlin+ 8
Shimano Deore 12-speed drivetrain, dropper seatpost, Shimano 4 piston hydraulic disc brakes, 120mm RockShox Recon Silver Air fork, Tubeless Ready wheels and Bontrager Gunnison Pro XR 29×2.6” tires. MSRP $3,499. Also available in gray/silver.

Marlin+ 6
Shimano wide range CUES drivetrain, Shimano Linkglide cassette, Tektro hydraulic brakes with 203mm rotors, 120mm SR Suntour XCM 34 fork, Bontrager Montrose 29”x2.4” tires. MSRP $2,699. Also available in black.

Available now globally in most markets. Prefer the standard version? The analog Trek Marlin got a refresh in 2023.

TrekBikes.com

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The new Focus VAM² introduces an entirely new suspension design to their e-bike lineup. A new motor and full carbon frame save weight and give them new kinematics to play with for a poppy short travel platform.

Their current touring-oriented Thron² model uses a VPP design, and the JAM² and SAM² use an alloy Horst Link design. The VAM² SL switches to a carbon fiber rear triangle with no rear pivot and flex seatstays. This combo brings the claimed frame weight as low as 2,172g (4.79lbs) for the top spec, and a complete bike weight under 36 pounds!

Frame details & tech

A smaller battery and Fazua’s tiny Ride 60 motor combine with the sleek rear end for a bike that looks very much like an analog bike.

The 430Wh battery should give you plenty of juice, but you can add their 210Wh range extender and plug it in while riding to extend play time.

An integrated mud flap keeps gunk from wedging between the chainstay yoke and BB shell, and frame protection wrap protects the carbon and finish, too.

You can pair the Fazua system with your cycling computer to display cadence and power (as in, your power output in watts). It also pairs with their own app so you can customize the motor’s output per setting.

The Focus VAM² SL gets 125mm rear wheel travel with a stout main pivot and thick chainstays and yoke to keep it torsionally stiff. Up front are 130mm forks, but it’s compatible with 140mm forks, too.

The seatstays are flattened, allowing them to flex as the suspension compresses. These types of pivot-free rear ends typically provide a snappier feel.

The battery display is flat on the top tube, but the power button is integrated into the mode dial on the handlebar.

All cables run through the headset, entering a port under the stem. Split spacers keep it easy to adjust stack height. The top two models (9.9 & 9.0) get Focus’s new 290g one-piece bar stem.

An integrated chain keeper and removable motor cover (which doubles as impact protection) come standard.

Geometry & pricing

An adjustable head angle lets you tune it for the trails at hand. Swapping to a 140mm fork will slacken the head angle by 0.5º.

Complete bikes top out at €10,999 for the top VAM2 SL 9.0 model with a claimed weight of just 16.2kg (35.75lb). The 9.9 (€8,699, 17.5kg) and 9.8 (€6,899, 18.4kg) sit below that. (UPDATED: The weight for the top model was originally written as 31.75lbs, which has been corrected)

The 8.9 (€5,799) model uses a lower level carbon for a 2,545g (5.61lb) frame weight and 19.1kg complete bike weight. Full specs for all models on their website.

Ride.Focus.Bike

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Iconic supplier of MTB-specific parts, tires, and accessories, Wilderness Trail Bikes (WTB) releases four new grips for 2024. The new models include the Trace, Wavelength, CZ Control, and the Burr. These new grips are also divided into three major categories of cushiness:

Cushion – which focuses on the damping qualities, in hopes of helping smooth out the bumps and trail chatter.

Minimal – which maximizes bar feel and control, in hopes of giving the rider a more direct connection to the bike.

Balanced – these grips will blend the features of both the Cushion and Minimal grips.

WTB built on “35 years of grip expertise with one of the top cycling biomechanics experts to define an entirely innovative approach to grips.” The results were the development of four grips for four different types of riders. They rigorously tested and fine-tuned using feedback from athletes worldwide.

All four of the grips feature soft, anti-slip rubber, a single inward clamp with an easy-to-access 3mm hex key adjustment, and a tapered inner sleeve. The tapered inner sleeve will help to eliminate rotation or twisting at the outward end of the grip.

Grip Types

Cushion Category:

For the riders that are looking for comfy softness and good vibration-damping.

The Trace grip has a plush and soft feel while you shralp the rough and choppy terrain due to the unique pattern that’s on top. This is accomplished by the ample space between the trapezoidal blocks giving them room to squish and conform to your hand.

The Trace’s soft compound has a slow rebound to provide additional damping and increased comfort between the rider and their handlebar. These grips are good for those riders who like soft grips that absorb the trail chatter and reduce numbness.

Features

• Tall and flexible cushioning blocks over 3/4 of the grip surface
• Light fingertip knurling and large ribs on the underside increase bar feel.
• 32mm diameter offers more rubber to absorb vibration

Balanced Category:

For riders looking for a blend of comfort, vibration damping, and control.

The Wavelength features multi-directional fins that not only improve handlebar control but also provide comfort on rough trails. Utilizing pressure mapping technology, WTB could precisely angle the direction of the fins to counter the forces acting on them.

There is a waffle pattern located underneath the grip to increase bite where the fingers naturally wrap around the bar. The tapered 30/32mm grip diameter will help increase control in technical terrain.

Features

• The Fins style design provides both cushioning and grip
• Fingertip waffles for an increased bar feel
• Tapered 30/32mm diameter improves handling response

The CZ Control is a unique grip with a semi-ergonomic shape. Again, WTB used pressure mapping to determine where pressure is distributed on the grips. They increased support in those areas to improve comfort and reduce numbness while still conforming to the hand’s natural shape.

The result is a grip that provides greater control over your bike, in turn giving you more confidence in technical terrain. Plus it will reduce hand numbness.

Features

• Semi-ergonomic shape that enhances while distributing pressure.

Minimal Category:

For riders who are looking to maximize bar feel and control with a more direct connection to the bike.

The Burr is a low-profile grip that will provide the most direct connection to the riders’s handlebar. The bi-directional texture provides the grip you need to keep the situation under control, whether it’s hanging on under full compression, or pulling upward to clear a root.

Features:

• Low profile burr grinder style teeth pointing bi-directionally to provide grip for either pushing or pulling.
• A thin 30mm diameter enhances trail feedback.

All of the below grips are available in two colors, Black or Tan, will retail for $29.99, and are available at your local WTB Dealer or online at the link below.

WTB.com

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From Gunnison, Utah, comes the news from the sustainable carbon fiber manufacturer, Forge+Bond. Their new Shift Series line of more affordable carbon fiber wheelsets are meant for enduro, all-mountain, and XC. These new wheels use the brand’s FusionFiber technology and come in at a comparatively low $1250 per wheelset.

“We’re passionate about making high-performance cycling accessible to everyone,” says Brett Stahl, VP of Brand and Marketing at Forge+Bond. “The Shift Series of wheels within the Forge+Bond portfolio shatters the barrier to entry for riders who want the advantages of carbon fiber, the tangible benefits of FusionFiber, and all at a price point that doesn’t break the bank.”

What makes them more affordable?

What makes the Shift Series possible is the hub. The Forge+Bond Core Series wheels provided riders an option of hubs, between the American-made i9 Hydra, and 1/1 hubs, or the DT Swiss 240 hubs.

The Forge+Bond (F+B) Shift Series features a new proprietary hub they produced with Bitex. These new hubs are designed with a 6-bolt brake rotor interface, utilize a J-bend spoke system, and feature an aluminum body.

The Shift Series rims, like all of the rims manufactured by F+B, are made of FusionFiber. The material “uses long chain nylon polymers as the bonding agent instead of the brittle epoxies found on traditional carbon fiber products.”

This process, according to F+B, makes for a stronger, more durable product by utilizing the microscopic flex within the actual composition of the FusionFiber product. In theory, this “flex” allows the wheels to radically dissipate vibration and shock, resulting in a smoother ride with a much higher resistance to impact.

Recyclability

Forge+Bond take sustainability seriously as well, as all of their wheels can “truly be recycled”. This is made possible by their ability to reform and remold the nylon polymer bonding agent within the carbon fiber material.

For example, if a wheelset breaks or there is a manufacturing defect, F+B seeks to reclaim that wheel so it can feed it back to its Utah-based manufacturing facility. Once it arrives, the hubs and spokes are removed, and the rim simply gets chopped into a short fiber material that can then be used to manufacture any number of thermo-forged products.

F+B is currently making tire levers out of this reclaimed material with more products in development now. F+B likes to think that their commitment to shifting the cycling industry toward sustainability and accessibility shows up in the new Shift Series wheelsets. The new series says that premium performance doesn’t always have to carry a premium price tag.

Forge+Bond Shift Series Features

• Proven FusionFiber technology
• Performance-driven design
• Tubeless-ready
• Forge+Bond Shift 6B Hub by Bitex.
• FusionFiber is fully recyclable
• Made in the USA

Shift Series Retail & Options

The Shift 25 XC 29″ – $1250

• Lightweight and responsive design.
• Hub: F+B Shift 6B – Boost Spacing
• Brake Mount: 6-Bolt
• Tire Size Range: 2.1” – 2.4”
• Max Tire Pressure: 40 psi max
• ERD: 592mm
• Rim Outer Width: 31.4mm
• Rim Inner Width: 25mm
• Bead Wall Thickness: 3.2mm
• Spoke Count: 28h
• Spoke Type: Sapim CX-Ray
• Rim Weight: 380g
• Wheelset Weight (F+B Shift 6B Hub): 1600g

Shift 30 AM 29″ – $1250

• Balance of stiffness and compliance.
• Hub: F+B Shift 6B – Boost Spacing
• Brake Mount: 6-Bolt
• Tire Size Range: 2.3” – 2.6”
• Max Tire Pressure: 40 psi max
• ERD: 594mm
• Rim Outer Width: 38mm
• Rim Inner Width: 30mm
• Bead Wall Thickness: 4mm
• Spoke Count: 28h
• Spoke Type: Sapim CX-Ray
• Rim Weight: 480g front | 530g rear
• Wheelset Weight (F+B Shift 6B Hub): 1832g

Shift 30 EM 29″ – $1250

• Wide rim profile and bombproof construction.
• Hub: F+B Shift 6B – Boost Spacing
• Brake Mount: 6-Bolt
• Tire Size Range: 2.3” – 2.6”
• Max Tire Pressure: 40 psi max
• ERD: 594mm
• Rim Outer Width: 38mm
• Rim Inner Width: 30mm
• Beadwall Thickness: 4mm
• Spoke Count: 28h or 32h
• Spoke Type: Sapim D-Lite
• Rim Weight: 530g
• Wheelset Weight (F+B Shift 6B Hub): 1920g

Check out the carbon fiber goodness at the link below.

ForgeAndBond.com

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35 years ago, Chris Cocalis planted the seeds that would eventually give rise to Pivot Cycles. Only back then, it was with a fledgling bike company started by Alan Vaughn called Sun Eagle Bicycle Works. It was here that Cocalis would learn how to build frames with help from Vaughn, which yielded the Sun Eagle Talon.

At the time, the frame was (and still is) a wild design with elevated chainstays that essentially connected to the head tube, and a top tube that didn’t actually reach the head tube. The pink frame shown above is production frame #2 according to MOMBAT, and was built by Alan Vaughn and Chris Cocalis.

After taking in the neon pink tubes, you notice the whimsical mountain bikers painted all over the frame. As the story goes, Chris had the frame powder-coated pink and then handed it off to Dino at Zooloo Graphics (who also did some of the finish work for Fat Chance at the time). Chris didn’t have any idea what to expect, and Dino surprised him with the cyclist cartoon characters.

Built in 1989, this particular bike has been down the waterfall at South Mountain more than 100 times according to Chris, who rode it daily before school (the thought of riding this bike down the Waterfall is frankly terrifying). This same bike has also been hit by a Camaro, leading Chris to angrily shout, “Where’s my Oakleys!?,” before realizing that his ankle was severely broken. We’ve all been there, right?

Somehow, the bike is still in one piece though it was just a frame and fork until recently. After deciding to create a special edition Switchblade, Cocalis decided it was time to rebuild the frame into a complete bike. Fortunately, they found a brand new 1989 Fuji that had just been traded in at Absolute Bikes in Salida, CO. The Talon is still running the original Fat Chance fork, but most of the build kit was sourced from that Fuji.

35th Anniversary Talon (Switchblade)

But we can’t all have our own Sun Eagle Talon, so to pay homage to the original bike, Pivot is offering 300 limited-edition Switchblades.

Available in Team and Pro Builds in both SRAM or Shimano and all with carbon wheels, the Talon 35th Anniversary bikes carry a $200 premium over the standard build which works out to retail prices of $9,199 to $11,599.

If you miss out on one of those 300 bikes, or don’t want to spend the $10k, you can still get your Talon fix with a limited-edition hat and water bottle. If you want the matching hip pack and shades, you’ll have to get those straight from Wave or Pit Viper.

For more on the history of Pivot Cycles, this piece written by Richard Cunningham is a must-read.

pivotcycles.com

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The more time you spend with Pivot’s founder Chris Cocalis, the more you realize that ‘good’ will never be good enough. Nowhere is that on display better than the latest Pivot Switchblade. By most accounts, the previous version was more than just good enough. It was great. 

Yet in typical Pivot fashion, it could be better. It has to be better. That relentless pursuit of perfection is what makes a Pivot a Pivot, and it has yet again taken one of their already-impressive bikes and made it even better. 

At first glance, the new Switchblade doesn’t look all that new. In fact, during testing Pivot had painted the new bike the same colors as the current bike and they were able to test it right out in the open without anyone catching on. 

That isn’t to say that there’s not much to talk about though. Quite the contrary. To get a better understanding of the new bike, first, you have to take a look at the new Pivot headquarters in Tempe, Arizona. 

Pivot’s New Building

When we last saw the building at the launch of the previous Switchblade generation, it was a shell that Chris jokingly refers to as “four good walls.” It took 18 months to build out the 70k+ sq foot building and they moved in just in time for the height of the pandemic. 

The takeaway for me was just how well the finished building seemed to be laid out to improve every workflow from design and prototyping, to building the completed bikes and shipping them out the door. Like the bikes themselves, the new building was clearly obsessed over before Pivot made it into reality. 

Part of that building design is a larger space for their engineers and industrial designers. With that, Pivot is now able to do both prototyping and production modeling in parallel which helps speed up the process. Specifically, it allows for faster last-minute design changes (something that they tend to do often, it seems). 

And if the new Switchblade is what we can expect as a result, it seems that Pivot has truly set itself up for success. 

8 years of Switchblade

First launched in 2016, the Switchblade was what Pivot envisioned as a “big travel 29er.” The definition of a long-travel 29er has changed since then (see: Pivot Firebird), but the original Switchblade was an important bike in Pivot’s history. Not only was it one of the models that Cocalis says “really made a big leap in the size of the company,” but it also ushered in the era of Super Boost Plus. 

At the time, the idea of another new hub standard was borderline sacrilege as the industry had just transitioned to Boost 148 spacing. But Pivot had their reasons. Perennially at the forefront of technical innovations, Cocalis has been instrumental in several new standards over the years (even though he admits that he hates the word, ‘standard’). 

Super Boost Plus is still here

When it came to Boost spacing, both Cocalis, and Pivot’s Director of Engineering, Kevin Tisue have always felt like it was a half-step, stating “Boost got us somewhere, but didn’t get us where it needed to be.” If you ask them, the industry should have skipped right over Boost and gone straight to Super Boost Plus as it provides the needed space for tire, chainring, and suspension clearance along with creating a stronger rear wheel that matches the front. 

Now, eight years later, Super Boost Plus is still here and more brands are slowly super-sizing their Boost bikes especially as modern drivetrains push chainlines out to 55mm. 

That’s a long way of saying the new Switchblade is still built around a 157mm rear hub with a 56.5mm chainline – don’t expect that to change any time soon. In terms of what’s new, Cocalis says that it has “A lot of small changes that add up to big differences, without changing what the bike does really well.”

Suspension Improvements

Specifically, Pivot wanted to push the Switchblade farther into Firebird descending territory to make it easier to ride aggressively. Along those lines, the travel numbers haven’t changed with the bike still offering 142mm of dw-link suspension travel that is paired with a 160mm travel suspension fork. 

However, there have been advancements in the dw-link suspension design that have improved how it rides. While the Mach 4 SL, Shadow Cat, and Mach 429 all share the same eye-to-eye measurement on the lower link, the Switchblade now has a longer lower link that is closer to the Firebird. 

That change has resulted in a more rearward axle path to improve square edge impact performance and results in the rear wheel digging in harder while climbing. 

This is the second generation Switchblade with a vertical shock layout which gets everything low on the frame, allows for better standover, shorter eye-to-eye length with trunnion shocks, while still fitting full-size water bottles and room for the Pivot Tool Dock System, and allows for XS frames. 

In terms of weight, Pivot says that the new frame is essentially the same weight as the previous model. But considering every size is longer, the fact that it’s the same weight is worth noting.

Geometry

Speaking of frame sizes and geometry, there are a number of small tweaks to the geometry of the Switchblade that are noticeable on the trail. The bike now has a ~10mm longer reach, slacker HTA, steeper STA, size-specific chainstay lengths, longer insertion depths for longer travel dropper posts, and a 2mm lower BB height. The Switchblade is still offered in XS-XL sizes, and will fit riders from 4’11” to 6’5”. As usual for Pivot, those different sizes are built with custom-tuned carbon layups and thicknesses with scaled tubing size to offer consistent ride quality for all riders. 

Geometry Flip Chip

If you find the stock bottom bracket setting a little too low, you can swap the Pivot Flip Chip to the high setting. This also allows for you to run a mixed wheel setup or plus wheels, though both are not offered as stock options. Pivot will still offer a taller lower head tube cup if you want to run plus tires front and rear as well. Tire clearance is listed as 29 x 2.5” or 27.5” x 2.8”.

Builds, Pricing, Colors & Availability

The Switchblade is offered in three build levels, and two colors – Blue Neptune or Stealth Mojave. Note that all three build levels include the same level of carbon frame. When asked about it, Cocalis said, “we spend so much time on that carbon ride quality and performance, it’s not worth it to add 300g to the frame just to make a cheaper option.”

Ride builds will use Fox Performance suspension while the Pro and Team builds both get Fox Factory units. At the Team level, you’ll have a choice between SRAM’s new XX transmission with SRAM Code Ultimate Stealth Brakes, and carbon wheels, or a Team XTR build with Shimano XTR drivetrain, brakes, and carbon wheels.

Pricing starts at $6,399 for the Ride SLX/XT build, and tops out at $11,399 for the standard Team XX AXS Transmission build. There’s also a limited 35th Talon Anniversary Edition with a Neon pink paint job paying homage to the original Sun Eagle Talon that Cocalis designed and built, offered in Pro and Team builds from $9,199 to $11,599.

The new Switchblade is available at online retailers and your local dealer starting today.

pivotcycles.com

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The second generation ARC8 Extra enduro mountain bike introduces a unique sliding linkage, giving it a highly controlled leverage ratio with a very linear coil spring. It also gets the usual geometry refinements, but its the suspension that has us staring.

To understand why their slider is useful, it’ helps to understand where they were coming from with the Extra V1. They say with a traditional linkage system, you have a rocker arm rotating around a pivot as it pushes the shock into compression.

The longer the travel, the more extreme the link’s rotation has to be. Which makes it difficult to achieve a “falling rate” leverage ratio, which means the suspension needs less force to move it deeper into its travel. A falling rate design is useful with air springs because they require progressively more effort to compress as they’re, well, compressed.

Confusing terminology aside, basically a falling rate leverage ratio pushes harder on the shock as it goes deeper into its travel. Which makes it challenging to design a good linkage system on a long-travel bike when you want to use an air-sprung shock.

And it won’t work at all if you wanted to use a coil shock, which compresses in a perfectly linear fashion, since a falling-rate design would blow through that travel faster and faster as it gets deeper and deeper into its travel. But people like coil springs, so ARC8 needed a design that would create progression when paired with a linear coil shock.

And that design is the Extra V2’s Dual Pivot Slider Suspension System, which is adjustable to also work with air shocks.

Basically, the slider acts like an infinitely long rocker arm, which wouldn’t lose its leverage over the shock as it rotates…it just pushes straight forward inline with the shock. The design is somewhat modular…change the shock stroke and you change the travel and the progression. A grease port makes it easy to service without disassembly.

There’s also a flip chip that lets you offset the main pivot to adjust anti-squat, ranging from 102% to 140% at 30% or 35% sag when switching between 27.5″ and 29er rear wheels. This accentuates the more playful nature of a mixed-wheel build, or increases pedaling efficiency in 29er race mode.

They offer three builds, two with the coil shock and MX wheel setup, set at 170mm travel front and rear. The other uses an air shock, 29er wheels, and has 160mm travel. But, you can run it in either travel with either suspension type if you want, these are just the stock build offerings.

Overall, the bike is a bit longer and lower, and now come with size-specific chainstays. The reach is slightly longer, but stack is much higher to keep you looking forward and help you lift the front wheel off the ground. Seat angle is 2º steeper at 78º, which helps center you on the bike and provide a more powerful pedaling position.

They also set the bottom bracket 8mm lower to take advantage of more riders running shorter cranks (and, thus, they recommend running shorter cranks!).

There’s an internal downtube storage box with a sealed cover holding bottle cage mounts. Two pockets are included to hold a tube, tire levers, and mini pump (and keep them from rattling about).

Other features include:

• BSA threaded bottom bracket
• 4-piston post-mount brake mounts for 203mm rotors
• Standard Boost rear axle spacing
• UDH derailleur mount
• 31.6mm seatpost diameter
• 2.5″ max tire size recommended (2.6″ depending on tire)

The new design has a straighter seat tube, too, so you can run longer travel dropper seatposts.

In a refreshing backpedal, they moved away from the prior model’s integrated cable routing through the headset. Now, cables run into the headtube through traditional ports, and the opening for the storage box makes them easy to route through the frame and BB, too.

It comes with an adjustable chainguide, plus thick rubber protection on the chainstay and downtube. It may look slim and light (frame weight is just 1,545g raw), but it’s rated for use on the toughest courses and bike parks. Total frame weight painted with all hardware and a Fox Float X Factory rear shock is 2,550g.

ARC8bicycles.com

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Yesterday, I wrote a long breakdown of Scott’s all-new carbon Ransom enduro bike, but now I want to dive deeper into my experience riding the top-spec Scott Ransom 900 RC. Scott developed the new bike to take enduro up a notch. And with an all-new 6-bar suspension design and unique rear suspension remote, they created what I see as a freeride bike for the downhills and an all-mountain trail bike for the climbs. With almost no compromises at either end of the spectrum.

Riding the new Scott Ransom 900 RC carbon enduro bike

I spent three long days back in mid-November riding the new bike on steep, rocky & loose natural trails in Santa Coloma de Farners, just outside of Girona, Spain. And I came away wanting to ride the bike more and more. And then I left. Wishing that my home bikepark wasn’t already deep in snowy skiing season for the next several months.

All-new 6-bar suspension design

There’s plenty that’s unique about the new bike. Like its relatively complicated 6-bar suspension design. Or the Integrated Suspension Technology design that hides the rear shock inside the bulbous downtube. Or internal frame storage, internal cable routing, adjustable geometry, and more.

Read my full 2024 Scott Ransom launch story for all the nerdy details.

But what really struck me about the bike was that it was just super composed and playful to ride. With three distinct personalities.

It could be a full gas freeride bike that wanted to fly down rough tracks at high speed. It could be a progressive enduro bike that dove into technical sections and popped off every lip on the trail. Or it was a upright trail bike, that clawed its way up steep and tight climbs.

How it does all three comes down to Trac-Loc

This is genuinely the single most important feature of the new Ransom. And it is what makes you really able to enjoy the 170mm of plush 6-bar rear suspension.

You can’t actually see the tech that makes this work. Because it happens inside the custom Fox Float X Nude EVOL rear shock. And you can’t even see that because Scott hides it inside the frame. So, instead we look at the 3-position Twin-Loc 2 remote. The two upper levers cycle you through 3 rear shock modes – Climb, Ramp Control & Descend. And the lower lever is your dropper post remote.

It’s not a lockout, but rather three different shock tunes accessible at the push of a button.

Climb, Ramp Control, or Descend

The fully open Descend mode is built to fly. Here you get unrestricted access to the best that the 6-bar can deliver. A rearward axle path and progressive linkage rate that east up big hits for breakfast. Go down as fast as you can hold on, like you are riding a few years old DH bike, but upgrade with 29er wheels to roll over everything.

The middle Ramp Control mode is the most interesting. By closing an air chamber in the rear shock, you effectively get volume spacers that you drop in at the push of a button. No change to the full 170mm of travel or your compression damping settings. The bike just becomes instantly more progressive.

Changing volume spacers to adjust your shock progression for different riding conditions isn’t really feasible for the average mountain biker. But being able to do the same thing at the flick of a switch is game-changing.

Interestingly, the middle Ramp Control mode is a lot of fun on descents that aren’t too technical – think flowy berms and jump lines. But it’s also good for climbs that aren’t as smooth or steep.

Lastly, Climb mode increases compression damping, reduces rear travel down to 130mm, and lowers the air volume for more progression. Together, it makes you sit up higher in the stiffened suspension, and makes pedaling uphill a breeze. Perfect for when you really need to stomp up some steep climbs that demand your attention.

Riding the new Scott Ransom 900 RC out on the trail

The first thing I did on the new Ransom was pedaling up steep, rocky, sandy fire road climbs. And alternating between Ramp Control & Climb let me adjust the bike to how my legs were feeling at the time.

Then as the big rock slab descents got steeper and rougher, I would transition from the playful Ramp Control mode into full-on Descend to let the bike soak up the big and sometimes unexpected hits. And as I got up to full-send speeds, I could let the gravity-shredding magic of the new 6-bar really do its thing.

How much does it really weigh?

Looking back at it now, it’s no big surprise that my sub 16kg ready-to-ride test bike climbed well in 130mm travel mode. (Size Large at 15.96kg with 480g of Mallet DH pedals, a bottle cage, set up tubeless, and with a spare tube, levers & chaintool inside the matchbox internal storage.)

Of course, that’s not superlight for a trail bike, but with a gravity-ready burly build it’s really not that heavy. My steel enduro hardtail weighs almost that with everything I carry on regular rides. And my carbon fatbike with 130mm fork, a frame pack to carry extra warm clothes, and light studded tires weighs the same at the moment. And I’m happy to pedal those slowly up endless climbs, too.

Weight is really the only compromise in Climb mode. And there don’t really feel like there are any in Ramp Control or Descend modes.

Transforming from Trail to Enduro to Freeride, and back again

The transformation seems like a much bigger attitude shift than I’m used to in bikes with remote lockouts or adaptable geometry. Singling out one, I feel like the shift is significantly more that the experience I’ve had with Canyon’s innovative ShapeShifter on their Strive enduro bike. Plus, I appreciate that the Ransom achieves the same concept entirely inside the shock, which feels less complicated, and less likely to deteriorate in performance over time.

I pedaled up a lot on this bike. It undoubtedly is totally a reasonable climber. But internally, we got to talking about ebikes after riding this new bike, because at this price & weight-level, there are some solid e-Trail eMTB options, too. For those that are itching for the assist to cram more ascents/descents in, there is a use-case for eMTB in some locales.

But the Ransom is simply so much more fun descending on really rough trails, that I’m happy to take a few extra minutes and sweat out a bit more on the climbs to get to my downhills.

And really it would/will be a blast in the bikepark. It feels way more like a DH bike going down than most of the enduro bikes that I regularly ride at my local uplift. And way better at climbing than the other big bikes, more on par going uphill with lighter all-mountain or trail bikes. The 2024 Scott Ransom is now officially a gravity bike, but it manages to vastly improve pedal-ability at the same time thanks to Trac-Loc and user adjustable geometry.

2024 Scott Ransom 900 RC build spec

The 2024 Scott Ransom 900 RC reviewed here is the top-tier 10,000€ build, with the full HMX carbon frameset, Fox Factory suspension, and a SRAM X0 Eagle AXS Transmission. While, there’s not a lot more you could ask for, even with money as no object. Perhaps a gravity-ready carbon wheelset could save a few grams. But for a bike built to smash bikepark laps and race blindly through rock gardens, the aluminum RaceFace R30 wheels are at least something to not worry about.

Now do I really need all those fancy components to enjoy an enduro bike? I think there are plenty of compromises I could make to save a few bucks, and still be happy.

It’s really hard to ignore the 10,000€ pricetag of the bike, no matter how good it rides. Sure, there are a lot of more expensive bikes out there. But this is clearly far out of many riders’ budgets. There is a silver lining though…. All of the unique tech that makes this bike great, is also available at lower pricepoints. Not exactly cheap. But the 6000€ 920 & 5200€ 930 have the same 3-mode rear shock function, a slightly heavier carbon & alloy frame, and more affordable mechanical drivetrains. At just 1-1.5kg weight penalty.

Final Thoughts on the new Ransom

I can’t think of a bike I’ve ridden in recent memory that was more composed and confident on the downhills than this new Scott Ransom.

And I kinda fell in love with its Trac-Loc remote. Especially, riding even downhills with the rear shock in the middle Ramp Control mode was a playful blast. And I really wish this was an option on almost every big travel bike I ride – from all-mountain to DH. Then, of course, popping it into Climb mode transformed the bike completely. It didn’t drop 2kg which would have been nice, but it did make it climb much better than I anticipated.

If I were looking to buy a new bike for enduro racing and riding bikepark laps, this is the first bike that I would think of. But realistically, I would consider those more affordable models first.

Scott-Sports.com

The post Scott Ransom 900 RC Review: Go Big on a DH-Ready Enduro Bike I Can Pedal Uphill, Too! appeared first on Bikerumor.

Matt Jones says the new Marin Alpine Trail Fun² is the hottest bike he’s ever ridden… and he has the amusing video to back it up.

You can also get your hands on the bright new colorway, if you act fast. According to Matt, Marin is making just 300 of the Alpine Trail Fun², which includes a 160mm RockShox Yari RC fork and a RS Delux Select+ shock with a TranzX dropper post and lever, FSA sealed cartridge bearing headset, seat clamp, front and rear thru axles, and custom downtube and seatstay protectors. You’ll also get your hands on an matching autographed Helfare x Marin hat.

The whole kit is priced at $1,999, and is available now on Marin’s website below while supplies last.

marinbikes.com

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