05/11/2008

Words and photos by Stuart Kernaghan

2006 marks the second year that Giant's Maestro suspension platform has been available to the public. It also heralds the introduction of two new models to compliment the three that made up the

For those of you who haven't heard of it, Maestro is Giant's proprietary floating pivot suspension design. It's similar in principle to the Virtual Pivot Point design used by Santa Cruz and Intense, or the DW Link used by Iron Horse, in that each of these designs feature a rear triangle that moves as a single unit. The path of the rear triangle is determined by multiple links that attach it, top and bottom, to the front triangle of the bike, rather than pivots on the rear triangle, as is the case on Horst link bikes from Specialized or Norco, or multiple-pivot bikes from Kona, Banshee, or Trek.

Maestro bikes differ from VPP or DW-link bikes, however, in suspension execution. That gets expressed in things like shape and position of the links, pivot position, and shock position.

Giant says that the Maestro platform creates a floating axis to achieve a near-vertical axle path that doesn't pull or push on the rear wheel. That in turn isolates pedalling input to give you rear wheel traction while at the same time keeping the rear suspension active, regardless of where it is in its travel. The floating pivot point gives the bikes a linear spring curve, rather than a progressive one that ramps up at the end of the stroke. That results in a suspension design that rides smoothly over bumps as well as counteracts the pedalling forces that create bob.

According to Giant, Maestro has been optimized when it comes to bump compliance, pedalling efficiency, and braking independence. They've even created an interesting chart that compares the major suspension designs used today.

Giant believes very strongly in the Maestro platform - so much so that they're now using it in every full-suspension category from downhill to cross country, and are actually phasing out other suspension designs that have been in use for years.

But enough tech speak. Let's get to the 2006 bikes.

The Glory - downhill
The latest addition to the Maestro line is the Glory, Giant's all-new downhill bike. The Glory was designed with input from team racer Jared Rando, and is built for one thing and one thing only: going downhill, fast.

The bike gets 8.8" (223mm) of rear travel and is spec'd with premium downhill gear. Word is that it will be pretty much as you see it below - Fox 40 fork and DHX 5.0 shock, Hayes brakes, e13 single-ring guide, Race Face Diabolous components, Mavic hoops with Kenda rubber, and a SRAM drivetrain.

The Giant Glory - built for downhill speed and efficiency with zero compromises

There will be three sizes to choose from - small, medium, and large - with this medium floor model reportedly weighing in at 41lbs. Some other things to note: the Glory is not front-derailleur compatible, there are no adjustments for any of the angles or BB height, and there will only be one model available.

A close-up of the Maestro linkage and the low shock position on the Glory

According to Giant Canada, the Glory will retail for CDN$5,279, which should put the U.S. version on the low side of US$5,000. The Glory will be available at dealers in early spring 2006.

The Faith - freeride
Back for another year at the bike park or your favourite big-bike trail is the Faith freeride bike. The Faith line has shrunk down to two models in the U.S. instead of the three in '05 (there will be three in Canada), but other than that there aren't any significant changes to the bike for 2006.

The Faith gets 8" (203mm) of rear travel and the spec has been refined a little bit this year. The polished Faith 1 comes with a Fox DHX 4.0 coil shock, a Marzocchi 66RC2X fork with 170mm of travel, Hayes HFX-9s with 8" rotors, SRAM X.7 shifters and an X.9 rear derailleur, Race Face Evolve cranks, and Race Face cockpit parts.

The polished Faith 1 - the perfect park bike? || Photo: © Giant Canada

The olive green Faith 2 takes a step down the component ladder, with a 170mm Junior T fork and DHX 3.0 shock, but it still gets the Evolve crankset. Cockpit parts are from Easton. Both bikes are available in 16.5", 18", and 20" sizes, and the Faith 1 can be purchased as a frame-only if you want to build your own ride.

The Reign - all-mountain
One of the fastest-growing categories in the mountain bike industry these days is all-mountain. People want a bike that can rip on the way down but still be pedalled up, over, and across without killing them. Giant's 6" (150mm) Reign bikes are the quintessential all-mountain bike, built light enough to climb but sturdy enough to hit the drops, rather than go around them. Through-axles on the top two bikes in the line will go a long way towards that.

This bike is another carry-over from 2005, but it did receive a few tweaks for this year. The bottom bracket height was dropped slightly, and the head angle increased. One other change that has been made to this bike - as well as the 4" Trance bike - is new top tube and down tube configurations.

The top tube is now bent up towards the seat collar on the seat tube and the support strut comes in from below, rather than being straight and having the strut come in from the top as it did on the '05 model. Giant says this change was done to increase the strength of this junction, as well as enhance the aesthetics. The down tube was also changed to stiffen the bottom bracket and incorporate a different shock mount configuration. All of the bikes with this new configuration get a carbon protector plate to keep trail crap off the shock.

The Reign 1, with 6" front and rear to take the hits and a through-axle for extra stiffness || Photo: © Giant Canada

Like last year, there are three different Reigns to choose from. Each of them use air shocks and forks to keep the weigh down. The top-of-the-line coffee-coloured Reign 1 comes with a Fox 36 Talas R fork with 20mm through-axle, a Fox Float RP3 rear shock, Race Face Evolve XC components across the board, Hayes HFX-9 composite brakes with 6" rotors, SRAM X.9 shifters and an X.O rear derailleur, and a WTB wheelset.

The battleship grey Reign 2 sports the same rear shock but gets a Manitou Nixon Super Air fork with 20mm through-axle, a healthy dose of Race Face Evolve XC components, Hayes HFX-9 XC brakes, SRAM X.7 shifters and an X.9 derailleur.

The Reign 3 has a Fox Float R rear shock and RockShox's new Tora air fork with 130mm of travel. Brakes are Hayes Sole XC, drivetrain is SRAM X.7, and components are a mix of Race Face Ride XC and Easton.

Reigns are available in 15", 16", 18", 20", and 21" sizes as a frameset or complete bike.

The Trance - XC / back-country / trail
Although short-travel bikes aren't really our thing at nsmb, there are a lot of people here on the site who also enjoy heading out into the back-country or riding XC trails - and don't want to do it on a 45lb. bike. The Trance is Giant's 4.2" (107mm) multi-category bike that can go just about anywhere.

The Trance got the same top tube and down tube refinements as the Reign for '06, and has been limited to three models instead of last year's four, but remains basically unchanged other than that.

The Trance 1, decked out with light-weight components

Sitting atop the line is the Trance 1. The white frame sports a Fox FRL 100mm fork in the front and an RP3 rear shock, Race Face Deus components, Hayes HFX-9 XC brakes with carbon levers, a Shimano XT drivetrain, and the oh-so-sexy Mavic CrossMax SL wheelset.

The burnt-orange Trance 2 gets a RockShox Reba SL 100mm fork, the RP3 rear shock, Race Face Evolve XC components with a SRAM X.9 drivetrain. The blue Trance 3 gets the RockShox Recon fork and the Float R rear shock, and a mix of Easton and Race Face components. Trances are available in 14.5", 16", 18", 20", and 22" sizes, and as with the other bikes, the 1 is available as a frame only as well as a complete bike. This past summer, I exercised the frame-only option and picked myself up a Trance 1 with the thought of building a relatively light back-country / XC / all-around bike. I like heading off the beaten path on my bike, but my big bike is too heavy for five- or six-hour epics. Light weight was a priority when I was looking for a new ride, but I also didn't want a bike that would hold me back when the terrain got technical. Everything I'd read about the Trance suggested that it would fit the bill, and after spending the last three months on this bike, I know I made the right choice.

The carbon protector plate on the Trance 1

Part of the reason I bought a frame was because I had an idea in my head of the type of bike I wanted. It was kind of a Trance-plus, rather than the stock version. I started with a Trance 1 frame, added a Manitou Minute 3:00 air fork with 130mm of travel, 2.3" tires, platform SPDs, and a dual-ring plus bashguard set-up, and ended up creating a bike that's damn near perfect for my needs.

I spent a bit of time riding my Trance around Squamish and Whistler this summer before heading off to Arizona and Utah for a post-Interbike holiday, and that was where I really learned what the Trance was capable of doing.

The author and his Trance, launching off a ledge in Sedona, AZ || Photo: Denny-Lynn Byrne

Over the course of 10 days, I rode quite a variety of trails, ranging from Sedona's red rock loops with drops, swooping singletrack, and rocky terrain; the rolling, tumbleweed-covered hills of central Arizona, Flagstaff's high-alpine singletrack climbs and technical downhills, and the undulating slickrock and sand mesa that is Gooseberry. In other words, a lot of rough, rocky terrain that was a million miles away from B.C., in more ways than one.

The Trance shone on the hills, digging in on rough sections and allowing me to make it to the top of even the most technical uphill grunts. Seated pedalling through rock gardens and rooty stretches of trail were smoother than I would have thought possible. Downhills were fast and fluid, which was a pleasant surprise considering this bike only has 4.2" of travel. Set the rear shock a little soft, and you'll find yourself travelling at near-freeride speeds on what is basically a beefed-up XC bike.

Hitting drops on the Trance doesn't feel the same as it does on a big bike with coil-sprung forks and shock, but if you're relatively smooth, 3' or 4' won't be a problem, especially if you're running larger tires. Handling on the Trance is nicely balanced - crisp at slower speeds without being twitchy when you get going faster. And if things get seriously steep, you can lower the seat way down; I'm running a 400mm post and can drop the saddle almost all the way down to the collar.

The other thing I like about the Trance is that I'll also be able to use it for a 24 Hour race or the Test of Metal, if I'm crazy enough to do either of those races again. Switching out the 2.3" tires for some 2.1s with a Kevlar bead, lightweight tubes, XC pedals, and a big ring instead of a bashguard would drop between 2 and 3lbs. from the bike and bring it down to something around 27lbs.

If you're interested in Maestro but want to go even lighter than the Trance, the 3.5"-travel Anthem is a pure XC race bike. It was designed with input from Giant XC racers Adam Craig and Rune Hoydahl, and steep angles combine with race-oriented parts to make one very fast no-nonsense rig.

So there you have it - five different bikes built for at least that many applications, all using the same suspension design. I refuse to buy into the notion that there is any such thing as the Holy Grail of suspension, but Giant has done a highly commendable job of creating a platform that gives everything else out there a hell of a run for its money, regardless of where you ride or how rough your trail may be. And for that reason, it's worth checking out one of the Maestro bikes when it's time to upgrade your ride.

Or, if you're like me, add one more arrow to the quiver.

For more information on the 2006 Giant line-up, go to your regional Giant Web site or head on over to your nearest Giant dealer.

Stuart Kernaghan