Yeah, you could drop to to -2 bias for training… or you could even program it to never lock out or use it in manual as well. Lots of cool options.
Can’t explain it really. I just like prefer the feel of the no battery bike for training.
Curious, why did you move from a Blur TR to this? What made it worth the change?
Asking because I have a Blur TR 
…
Not much to be honest, I really like the Blur TR and Santa Cruz in general. But got a great deal on the Epic, and decided it was worth to check what all the hype is about!
1 Like
Specialized is faster than the Blur…didn’t you see how hard it was for Keegan to keep up with Matt Beers at Cape Epic?
10 Likes
New mechanical sram transmission! I’m pretty impressed with what SRAM has done here, seems like a step up from mech gx and is at a pretty reasonable price point. I like that it’s cheap and sturdy, probably a good choice for trail and enduro bikes.
IS anyone looking to upgrade to the new Motive brakes? Wondering if they will have the same reported issues as the Maven. I’m a bit skeptical to jump into it right now
I actually moved from a Blur TR to a Epic 8 as well.
The geo is so much less twitchy especially on high speed rocky descents, 400g lighter frame (C version vs 11m), the shock tune is way better and less bobby, internal storage is a game changer for 3 hour races and I can throw on the Evo suspension and have a fun trail bike for the offseason.
Easiest way to explain it is I never really wanted to ride the Blur TR, I only want to ride my Epic 8.
4 Likes
I caught this podcast yesterday while driving, pretty interesting stuff with Gwendalyn Gibson. Reason I’m posting in the XC equipment thread is that she talked about Trek comparing multiple bikes on course at similar pace but looking at differences in lactate levels on bike 1 vs bike2 (specifically talked about testing after descending). I assume they are comparing the physiological load of a lap on supercal vs top fuel (since we’re seeing more team riders swapping between those bikes). I don’t expect any of that data will make it out for public consumption, but cool to see Trek doing the analysis. Anyways, worth a listen IMO, I’ll be pulling for Gibson this year, she seems like a great person.
9 Likes
I’d really like to find a way to fit Flight Attendant to my 2021 Scott Spark in a 130F/120R travel configuration.
1 Like
I just heard that Trickstuff is updating the Piccola brakes in late April. From what I have heard they are the best XC brakes made already albeit super expensive.
1 Like
they just need to improve availability. looks like being acquired by dtswiss didn’t help much like promised
Reading between the lines of what I heard, the reason that they have had issues with availability is because they were building up a supply of the updated model prior to release. Either that or they are using scarcity principle to increase the apparent desire and justify the high price.
still I’m curious to see what they have in stock, also wondering if it’s upgrade of the lever only since they also share a caliper with the diretissima for the 4 piston HD option. I’d definitely splurge on one of those if support and parts availability was easier in the US
I heard that Podcast as well and came to the same conclusion.
Im considering it but am hesitant one a first cycle new product. I currently have G2 Ultimates on my EE7 and really like the stealth brakes routing/cleanliness and would love a little added power.
I‘ve had my 2 pot piccolas for the past 5 years and they are the bees knees. The HDs with the 4-pot seem like overkill for XC to me since the 2 pot are already that powerful. Modulation is super nice and of course they are super light and good looking. I lucked out on a pair that didn’t clear the QC for the anodizing and got them for 200 off msrp - called stealth version. Don’t know if they still sell those as Trickstuff has moved away from D2C but worth checking their sites. They usually sell within the hour of posting, so need to act fast…
1 Like
I got G2 ultimates and the biggest issue stopping me is the tires. We have a lot of super steep and loose trails here. Hit the brakes and they lock up so easily but the tires can’t grip. I know having code strength would be awesome but with tire grip i don’t know if it would actually brake much faster. Im 100% convinced in 10 years or so we will be racing trail bikes because that seems to be the trend.
1 Like
I had the G2 Ultimates and thought they were mediocre. I switched to the XTRs and for me they feel more powerful but also better modulation.
1 Like
I’m not sure as well if the 140lbs xc racers need more power with added weight for the exact reason you mentioned