A guest review by Adrian Nash
|
Bike Wars – Episode 1 – Arise the Dark Lord
After my trusty steed gave in after a couple of years freeriding in Northern Italy it was straight on the phone for the new Reign X1.
Unfortunately due to demand the bike wasn’t available (huge demand) whilst I was in Italy and had to wait a few more weeks, and the magic phone call came on Friday that the dark sith lord had arrived…yay!
Saturday afternoon I was in the shop and there was menace in the air as I was greeted by “Darth Reign”, an all black mean mother that will make all Luke Skywalker wannabies piss in their cloaks.
A change of underpants later it was time for the inspection. Giant now have two models of reign’s, the standard all mountain 6inch travel version and the new beefier X range… 6.7 inches of travel from fox dhx and 36van coil sprung squidgyness,. race face cranks, Easton bits, SRAM X9 gearing and avid juicy brakes. The frame is a work of art , there isn’t a single round tube in sight, its all hydroformed loveliness and with a black anodized finish and very subtle graphics. Extra features include an ISCG mount , a shock guard and integrated headset. There are no bottle cage mounts, however with this bike intended purpose the bottle wont stay in long anyway.
The angles are just right too, not too slack as to make it unwieldy for the climbs but not too steep as to deter it from its true nature….freeriding with a bit of XC! This frame is a medium and the fitting is true freeride (short) however it fitted me just right (I am 5foot 11) however taller riders may want to consider the large size.
The reign is not the lightest machine at 34lb but for its intended purpose its just right and comes with a satisfying “thud” when you drop it onto the floor…the chain didn’t even rattle as the suspension took the shock….so what’s it like to ride?
The First Ride
After setting up the sag and rebound characteristics of the dhx3 coil shock I was ready to go. The reign is no tie fighter up the hills but it certainly doesn’t feel like you are lugging a 34lb bike. The maestro suspension does an excellent job at minimizing trail bob to virtually zero. Riding hard out of the pedal the frame stays firm and its very direct, the same couldn’t be said for the Fox Van 36R upfront though as it undulates through its travel, the RC2 model would probably eliminate some of this with its compression control but to be fair this is a bike designed to go along with gravity not against it.
The first test was the jumps at Captain Underpants, a selection of jumps and some little bits of north shore. I started off with the easy ones, my approach speed was good (the reign accelerates surprisingly quickly) and I launched. The reign felt right in the air, it wasn’t front or rear heavy and was easy to maneuver. On landing , it was silky smooth, I must confess that I am no big jumper but this bike definitely gives me the confidence to grab bigger air as it will forgive your mistakes. The other jumps were no exception and I even did the skinny north shore one for the first time, again stable, direct and off the edge….no problemo amico!
Planted is a term often overused by bike mags when describing the ride of a bike… a bit like the tabloids calling Beckham et al “heroes”. I have ridden many 6 inch travel bikes whilst they were good in their own right, they definitely weren’t as “planted” as the reign. This bike is very easy to maneuver around, it is very fast on the tight berms of golden birdies and summer lightning as the low centre of gravity gives it excellent handling.
The steep, rooty and techy widow maker was where it really became apparent of the capabilities of this bike. The reign plowed through, the 36’s here also showed their true purpose…no bouncing around, no wheel deflection and pin point accuracy.
The low centre of gravity also made steep roll ins a breeze, at no point do you feel elevated, the low CoG didn’t give any problems of chain ring strikes (it has a 24/36 and bash guard set up) or any pedal strikes that is common with some bikes (i.e specialized). This also had the added benefit that I could leave the saddle in a single position.
The Lowdown
There is very little I can criticize but like all off the shelf bikes there is room for upgrading. The Hutchinson tyres, although with a good 2.3 size and grip have a singly ply sidewall and therefore pinch flat easily, this bike goes fast over big rocks therefore I would recommend some heavier duty tubes. The wheels are also a minor niggle, they are unbranded cone and loose bearing types, so longetivity in Uk conditions may be an issue.
Other than that the spec is great all quality branded stuff, the avid juicy 5 brakes took a while to bed in but now offer masses of power and modulation even in 180/160mm disk set up, although I am surprised Giant didn’t spec 200/180mm disk set up given its intended use/capability.
This you have gathered this is not a bike sloely for XC and you may feel over biked in a lot of scenarios ……for this go for the X0, the same bike but with lighter kit and the new dhx and float 36 air shock….the perfect compromise.
The reign looks expensive and turns heads (pose value is important!!!) and you wouldn’t be the first to mistake the reign X1 for a £3k+ machine when in fact it costs 50 beer tokens under £2k, bargain for this much evilness.
This reign however will spend it’s life in its true habitat, long technical and unforgiving alpine trails…..watch out for a follow up review….
Nasher
www.rivierabike.co.uk
Tech details
6.7" travel
Fox 36 Van R front fork
Fox DHX 3.0 coil rear shock
RRP £1950
Posts
