Head For The Hills

27/11/08: Trek Dealer Ride Camp

Having seen the bikes in shiny but untouchable mode at Milton Keynes, Trek put on a day for us to get some scratches on the machines, which we took full advantage of. The boys set up stall at the fantastic Glyncorrig Mountain Bike Centre in South Wales, and invited us to do our worst with the best of their produce. An invite that did not need to be repeated. After being greeted with a complementary breakfast at the enormously generous Drop In Café, the bikes were ours to play with.

	I began the day by pure luck, rather than judgement, on Trek’s flagship race hardtail, the Elite 9.9. Never in my wildest nightmares did I think I’d ever be seduced to the Lycra side, but this is a bike designed to win races, and I felt like the man to do it. Incredibly light and stiff, the Elite flew up the hill. Those that know the climb from Glyncorrig will know it as steep and techy. This bike loved it! And it didn’t disappoint on the way back down. The RockShox SID fork was sure footed and the whole bike glided over the rocks and roots. I think I achieved my fastest lap time of the short loop Trek had waymarked for us.
Next up, the Trek Top Fuel 9.9. More carbon loveliness just begging to go faster. I obliged. Although not as fast up the hill, the same surefooted fork and some compliance in the back end allowed a much faster descent. Possibly the reason for my first pinch flat of the day (or better riding skills required).
	To keep the progression going, I moved to Gary Fisher’s Superfly. Carbon fibre again, this time on 29” wheels. Those that haven’t tried 29er’s, believe the hype! They really do smooth out the trail. You may not notice as much while riding, but at the bottom, you’ll realise that you climbed faster and descended almost like you were riding a full-sus. The Superfly was accurate and confidence inspiring. It allowed you to lay off the brakes, even over the rockier sections, maintaining speed for the next assault. A big thumbs up.
The last of the carbon bikes for the day, The Trek Fuel EX 9.9. A 5” trail bike that is so well suited to UK riding. This bike will get you to the top of the hill with the minimum exertion, then open up and allow you to come back down with barely a brush of brake pad on rotor. The Full Floater platform and Active Brake Pivot, both Trek patents, that feature on all of Trek’s full suspension bikes, works like a charm. No pedal feedback when braking and a bottomless feel to the suspension just inspires confidence. A little too much confidence in my case as this was the only bike I managed to crash (don’t tell Wayne).
	Then we moved to the burlier end of the scale.Gary Fisher’s Roscoe, I predict, will be one of the stand out bikes of 2009! A bold claim maybe, but one I’m willing to make. The custom Fox DRCV shock allows the Roscoe to climb like a short travel bike, and descend as the long travel bike that it is. Effectively, when peddling, you’re confined to using only 40% of the shock’s capacity, literally making it a short travel shock. Hit anything of substance though, and a valve will open, supplying you with the full 100% of the large air volume. The marketing spiel will tell you that this is more in tune with the progression of a coil shock, without the weight penalty. I can only agree. Probably the plushest ride of the day, easy up and compliant down.
The Roscoe’s challenger though, is equally capable of the ups and downs. The much talked about Trek Remedy. 6” of rear and front wheel travel should be ample for most of us, and Trek have made this bike so light that all day XC epic’s are easily achievable, whilst allowing for the distractions of jumps, drops and any shore work you may come across while on the journey. In these 2 bikes, all needs are met within the light freeride, travel to the Alps/Wales/Scotland crowd, without being out of place riding XC in the Surrey Hills. It will be interesting to see what other brands can do to try and keep up as Trek and Gary Fisher have really raised the bar in terms of all day trail riding.
	Finally, a chance to swing a leg over the awesome Trek Session 88 DH. A bike I’ve been desperate to test ever since I first heard mention. 8” travel front and rear, this bike tells you to get out and ride! It’s not designed to go up the hill, so let’s not get too carried away. But when you point it down again, hold on tight. How Trek have managed to design such a light yet strong frame and complete package is anyone’s guess, but expect to see this bike on UCI World Cup Downhill podiums throughout the 09 season. The bike has already placed first under young Whistler local Brendan Semenuk in the Red Bull Rampage: Evolution.

It’s worth noting, as I mentioned before, that all the Trek full suspension bikes work around the same system. From the 100mm travel Top Fuel range to the Session DH with over 200mm travel. Proof that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

It was a great day out, and I’d like to thank everyone at Trek for the full support they gave with spannering and supplies on possibly the worst day, weather wise, of the year. Also, the Drop In Café for hospitality, warmth and huge portions, and Lucozade for liquid fuel between rides.

And if you fancy trying these bikes yourself, we've got our very own demo day where all these bikes will be available on Sunday 18th January - details on the website soon. Or if you can't wait until then, we've got Fuel EX, Remedy, HiFi and Roscoe demo bikes in the shop all year round. Details of all our shop demo bikes here.

Roger