I got a chance to take it out for a few rides on varied terrain that included climbing and descending a 2412' fire road, high and low speed single track, and mild to very steep climbs. This is my early ride report.
I want to give some background on me as a rider. I used to road race motorcycles (and still ride motocross). There is so much chatter about riding techniques and bike setup that it makes you dizzy. I definitely weigh an opinion higher if the rider finished in front of me. With that said, I am not a bicycle racer. I ride often and consider myself a very good descender. I am a motivated rider but suffer with a high heart rate and low power...
The bike is efficient with no sign of pedal bob. Handles and climbs well. On the trails I rode, I did not have any problems with the low 12.6" bottom bracket height (same as Spark). I usually ride a 22lb FS 26" (geometry similar to a 2012 Scott Spark) bike and was apprehensive about the agility of this bike due to it's larger wheel size. I did have to compensate a little to get the bike to turn by putting a little more weight on the front and using more handlebar pressure (than on the 26). I am surprised that the maneuverability difference between the bikes is so small. This has probably been said a billion times, but the 29 wheels roll better and keep momentum better. It seems that you don't lose as much speed (and need less effort) on the upward slope of undulating terrain than on the 26. It is a fast bike.
The bike has a SRAM XX1 Eagle crank/chainring, Shimano M9100 chain, M9100 SGS (long cage) derailleur and M9100 shifter. This combination works great and shifts flawlessly. You can up shift up to three gears at a time. Down shifting is one gear at a time. I used a 30T front 10/51T cassette. The low gear 30/51 combination on the 29 is roughly the same as 22/34 on the 26. The M9100 chain uses a master link that requires a master link tool for installation and removal. Gone are the days of tool-less master links.
I like to set my bike up firm/light rebound so the suspension does not sack down on high speed bumps. The shock is Fox Factory Float set up with 6mm of sag and run in the mid compression setting. The fork is Fox 32 Factory Step Cast set up with 9mm of sag and 10 clicks rebound. The fork settings are still a work in progress. The medium compression lever setting is very stiff for small to medium bumps, but good for drop offs. Open mode with almost no compression 18 clicks (22 none, 0 stiffest) is good for small/medium bumps but compresses too much for drop offs. I say this with great conviction after going over a drop off , compressing the fork too much, and endoing it. Next time I am going to try Open mode with higher compression settings.
I really like this bike for cross country riding. It is light, efficient, and turns well. There is nothing negative that stands out to me. After all, this frame is OEM'ed by a few companies that have hopefully done more testing than myself. Also the frame was raced at and made the podium at the U23 World Cup level. Now that is something I would pay attention to.
