![]() ![]() ![]() Up front, the 140mm RockShox Pike Select Plus proved more than capable for most tasks, and after fine tuning pressure, settings, and tokens, it became a distinct asset in rowdy terrain. Up front you’ll find a Schwalbe Magic Mary Super TLE, 29 “x 2.35”, Addix Soft compound with a Hans Dampf out back, this impeccable tire combo wraps the Stans Flow S1 rims that are laced to worry free DT Swiss 350 hubs. The Fizik Taiga saddle has a sleek look to it, comfortable contour, yet had a bit stiffer and thinner foam material than we prefer. Simple yet sturdy frame gussets allow for plenty of tire clearance, the stock tire pictured is a 2.35 Hans Dampf. With 180mm rotors front and rear, the brake set did work impressively well though.Ī seemingly lesser talked about brand, the X-Fusion Manic, 150mm dropper was extremely smooth, and the lever paddle and action was comfortable and smooth respectively. The Shimano Deore tier brakes were a bit of a surprise, we’d expect to see SLX on a bike of this caliber. We swapped the stock Ergon grips, as the rubber was much too stiff, and lacked the comfort we were looking for. When not riding he can be found at the climbing wall, in his garden or cooking up culinary delights.The Optic C2 comes with ‘TranzX’ bars at a 780mm width, and a house brand stem that’s 45mm long with a 35mm diameter clamp. He’s also worked out that shaving your legs saves 8 watts, while testing aerodynamics in a wind tunnel. Outside of testing bikes, Tom competes in a wide range of mountain bike races, from multi-day enduros through to 24-hour races in the depths of the Scottish winter – pushing bikes, components and his legs to their limits. With more than twenty years of mountain biking experience, and nearly a decade of testing mountain and gravel bikes, Tom has ridden and tested thousands of bikes and products, from super-light XC race bikes through to the most powerful brakes on the market. He is also a regular presenter on BikeRadar’s YouTube channel and the BikeRadar podcast. ![]() Tom has written for BikeRadar, MBUK and Cycling Plus, and was previously technical editor of What Mountain Bike magazine. He has a particular focus on mountain bikes, but spends plenty of time on gravel bikes, too. Tom Marvin is a technical editor at and MBUK magazine. The 45mm stem and stiff bars help give the Optic snappy, accurate handling, and the bottom bracket is low enough to give good long-corner stability and handling – as such, it absolutely rips through manicured berms. It’s also very good at dealing with turns that come in quick succession. This certainly encourages you to approach more technical or steeper and rougher sections of trail faster than you otherwise might. The Hans Dampf, while in its soft compound, doesn’t feel too draggy, and so there’s definitely a bit of zip about the bike. On flatter, flowy, more mellow terrain the Optic pedals well, allowing you to put the power down and push on a bit. As such, there’s a bit of a balancing act to be found between pedalling prowess and descending comfort. When I dropped shock pressure to improve rear end comfort, I lost some of that climbing stability, though, leaving the bike wallowing a touch more than I’d like. The low-slung geometry makes for great cornering. ![]()
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