After being "leaked" by various online retailers in the US recently, Trek have finally officially announced the new Gen 4 Roscoe.
No 6 or 9 in the range now, and they've increased the fork travel to 150mm with a few slight sizing/geo changes to accommodate. They've also removed the seat tube bottle mounts to allow for longer droppers to be fully inserted (with longer droppers now fitted to the larger sizes), and added some extra mounts for their new frame bag.
Prices seem a little bit high for the spec on each model, but then who pays full RRP for a Trek?
I've also heard the new model will be available as a frame only in September (US).
Not sure on UK availability though, and the guy I spoke to in Evans yesterday said he wasn't sure either.
They look good, but I certainly won't be in any rush to sell my '24 R9 to get one.
I was looking at the geometry thinking "this seems familiar", it's almost identical to my 2014 Remedy 29. Not very progressive! Probably rides very nicely, though.
I was looking at the geometry thinking "this seems familiar", it's almost identical to my 2014 Remedy 29. Not very progressive! Probably rides very nicely, though.
But 'progressive' hints at ever slacker/lower/longer towards a Grim Doughnut.
For the last few years I have happily chosen 'mid field' geometry bikes - so more stable and better handling, but nippy enough when I am not slaying the gnar on enduro trails with my goggles on while writing my MBR column on how every one needs LLS*.
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* i have never worn goggles, and as far as I know never slayed any gnar, just ridden trails, and i have never been a journalist.
I'm pretty sure there's not much further you can go re a hardtail, sensible length chainstay (I'm looking at my size) seat tubes always a little slacker than than a full sus, sensible head angle for a 150mm forked hardtail. Any slacker or longer and you end up making a one trick pony of a hardtail IMHO. Looks like a nice enough frame, nicer looking than the curved downtube of the previous model.
That link is broken but roscoes always seem well liked by riders and sensibly priced when not at rrp.
only thing that looks a little off is the very short head tube, have they addressed this? As someone 6.3 often not long enough!
I don't think the Roscoe needs to be any more progressive to be honest. It's a great burly trail HT that climbs well and descends even better.
As such I think Trek only tweaked the numbers to account for the slight increase in fork travel and the fact you can now run longer droppers (well, you could with the Gen 3 but it had to be a OneUp due to their short insertion length, otherwise it would hit the bottle bosses).
I'm not sure it was marketed as a Hardcore Hard Tail so I think going anymore LLS may alienate it's target audience.
Anyway, it's good to seem them continuing the model as there were rumours they were killing it off completely, but it seems it's just the 6 and the 9 that have been shelved.
Is it really a bike to get excited about?
I mean Treks aren’t supposed to set your heart all a’flutter are they?
more interesting that the head angles is the fact that they appear to have “cheated” some reach by steepening the seat angle a smidge as the sizing goes up. And the BB heights are a little higher than is currently fashionable.
On paper it looks like a ‘sensible’ all rounder HT these days, which is probably what lots of people actually need, if a bit of gentle mis-labelling is all it takes to sell it then so be it.
Lost me at the price, and the bag is a gimmick.
Is it really a bike to get excited about?
I mean Treks aren’t supposed to set your heart all a’flutter are they?
more interesting that the head angles is the fact that they appear to have “cheated” some reach by steepening the seat angle a smidge as the sizing goes up. And the BB heights are a little higher than is currently fashionable.
On paper it looks like a ‘sensible’ all rounder HT these days, which is probably what lots of people actually need, if a bit of gentle mis-labelling is all it takes to sell it then so be it.
Not particularly, but the Roscoe has a little bit of of cult following... although perhaps not on STW.
Lost me at the price, and the bag is a gimmick.
Yup, silly prices but I expect it wont take long for them to fall. I only paid £1350 for my R9.
The bag did make me chuckle when I first saw it. Don't think it comes with bike though, you have to buy it separately.
FWIW I didn't mean "this needs to be more progressive", it looks like a perfectly sensible bike, it's just that they specifically claim it's progressive and it's not really, it's just pretty normal. The irony of it being so nearly identical in geo to a trail bike they made a decade ago got me a bit though.
I'm pretty sure there's not much further you can go re a hardtail, sensible length chainstay (I'm looking at my size) seat tubes always a little slacker than than a full sus, sensible head angle for a 150mm forked hardtail. Any slacker or longer and you end up making a one trick pony of a hardtail IMHO. Looks like a nice enough frame, nicer looking than the curved downtube of the previous model.
IME other than the difference with sag, what works for a full suss pretty much works for a hardtail, it's just hardtails are a bit behind the curve and hardtail owners in general are more conservative, and probably in general not riding as hard stuff. But over time they do still keep progressing, just slower and more erratically
Me, I have a Titus Loco Moto and tbf it looks ridiculous both on paper and in the metal but it just works. 62 degree head angle, coil fork, 480 reach and 1295 wheelbase in the medium. Now that's progressive 🙂 Bigger and slacker than my full suss, but honestly it's just a bike, it doesn't really do anything weird other than absolutely kill it on the descents. If anything, being more "extreme" than my full suss helps it, since it can't keep up in other ways.
I felt exactly the same when I got my Ragley Ti back in 2011 or whenever, it was apparently "radical" and "extreme" for a hardtail, with its 67.5 degree head angle...
FWIW I didn't mean "this needs to be more progressive", it looks like a perfectly sensible bike, it's just that they specifically claim it's progressive and it's not really, it's just pretty normal
👍
That link is broken but roscoes always seem well liked by riders and sensibly priced when not at rrp.
only thing that looks a little off is the very short head tube, have they addressed this? As someone 6.3 often not long enough!
Looks for taller folk in XL - Reach of 500mm, but big Stack of 684mm (though assume that is unsagged), so will loose a bit.
