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what do you think/where do you ride/what has it replaced?
I had one on loan for 6 weeks from Alf Jones Cycles in Wrexham while we were waiting for my bike to arrive.
By far the best bike I've ever ridden/raced. Cheap and cheerful spec on the base model but it absolutely flies in all conditions. A race win on it's first outing was better than I'd expected but the fact it descends like a 200mm DH bike just blew my mind. Stable, smooth and grippy (even on crossmarks).
Picking one up from Alf's next week! 🙂
DanEvs sitting on the fence there...
I've only demo'd one and was a bit less blown-away than Dave :p It was a good bike for sure and DH was more like a 140mm 26" trail bike whilst every where else it was more like a short-travel XC bike. Once it got some speed up it rolled a load better than my 26". I didn't end up buying one though as it wasn't that much lighter than my existing 140mm 26" FS and it felt too similar to warrant both. If I didn't already have the 140mm FS though I'd probably have gone for one.
Have you seen Whyte's new 20er FS offering?
[url= http://questadventure.wordpress.com/2012/09/09/whyte-t-129-929-m-109-reviews-and-a-local-trail/ ]M-109 S, and T-129[/url]
Both Whyte's have CS lengths the same, if not shorter than most 26 FS bikes. Well spec'd and good on the money too.
Giant's Maestro suspension is nice tbf... I owned a 26" Trance once and it was a fun bike. The shock is ill placed for mud collection, and the CS's are mighty long - Whyte's by comparison are a full inch less 🙂
Yup, I picked up one of the new 2013 ones about a month back. Great value for money like all Giants, quality build, good spec with the new Fox CTD suspension setup, but questionalble taste in frame colours!
It flies on fire trails/rail trails and flowy singletrack, and I've been beating all my best times on it. Looking forward to racing it in a four day stage race next week - it should be in its element.
Not so good on close technical stuff, jumps, and winding my way through the trees - find it a bit unwieldy, and still prefer my 26" Trance in those situations.
It replaced my 26" XTC hardtail, and I think the combination of 26" Trance and 29er Anthem gives me everything I need to tackle my usual trials - don't miss the hardtail at all!
The 'long' CS's will give those handling characteristics of stable when fast, handful in the twisties
It replaced my 26" XTC hardtail, and I think the combination of 26" Trance and 29er Anthem gives me everything I need to tackle my usual trials - don't miss the hardtail at all!
would the 29er Trance cover all that?
Picked up an Anthem 29er frame with RP23 from Wiggle for a little over £700. Not built yet though.
Love mine. I ride it all over: Chilterns, peaks & Wales. Fast bike, but happy doing the techy stuff. Replaced my epic, but it is definitely better on the rougher stuff than the epic was.
DanEvs sitting on the fence there...
Lol, but it really is that good, gonna get a X2 on order his week 🙂
Anyone know the weight of a large?
Looks good, Alpine at Glentress had a 29er ex demo and it looked perfect. I'll stick with 26 for now but one day may try 🙂
would the 29er Trance cover all that?
Maybe, but I haven't had a chance to try one. My guess is there isn't a do-it-all bike out there, and you need to have at least a couple to cover a range of riding situations. At least that's my argument to the wife, and I'm sticking to it 😉
Anyone know the weight of a large?
According to my woefully inaccurate bathroom scales, my ally XL is 13kg with full XT groupset but original heavy Giant wheels (tho' my XT 29er wheels were ordered last night 😀 )