May 23rd, 2014 11:49am
GT came out of the gate swinging hard this year winning early season downhill races and Enduro Downhill’s thanks to one of mountain biking’s royal family's – the Athertons. A great launch for the brand and showing the world that GT is the real deal. So when I got a chance to sling a leg over the GT Force Carbon Pro 650B I smiled broadly and said yes sir and thank you. Here is what I found - Video and Pictures follow...
The GT Force is a good looking Weapon
Let’s face it, bike looks play a bigger role in the purchase decision for most people than they would let us believe. The first thing I noticed about the bike is how damn fast it looks sitting there begging for a ride.
From the subtle winged graphics to the carbon black and white paint scheme on a rocking frame shape. GT nailed it in the eye candy department.
But good looks only goes so far, so I dug deeper to see what her personality was like.
Sling a leg over the frame and you feel you are in for a ride. Maybe a bit unsure of what kind of ride, but a ride none the less. It has all the makings of shredder as you notice a very downhill capable feel with its wide bars, 30mm stem and dropper seat-post and massive 2.4 Continental Trail kings completing the set up. But a kind of strange feeling comes across when you start to pedal the bike. First of all the cockpit feels like a properly fit cross country rig and it feels like a 29er. It’s super comfortable but a new strange feeling. Now I am more interested in seeing what this machine is going to be like.
The total bike spec has some more interesting tid bits. The wheel duties are handled by large E-thirteen hubs and carbon all mountain wheels while the brake are Formulas with a 203 rotor up front and a 180 in the rear. Shimano XT drive train rounded out the major components. Some people have squawked about the triple chain ring specified on the bike, I have no problem with it. If you plan on doing some climbing to earn your turns you’ll be happy they did.
The bike test weight was 31.5 lbs.
This is probably the first question you need to ask anyone when looking for a bike or in my case – reviewing one. And the GT Force is aimed firmly at the Enduro / all-mountain crowd. GT touts the bike as the one Dan Atherton pilots to the podium so frequently so it only makes sense.
Out of the test garage on the way to the trail I feel more rolling resistance than I am used to. The suspension sets up high in the travel with no bobbing so it can only be either geometry, slow wheels or the massive tires wheels I’m pushing or a combination there of. And I was willing to take the trade off if the downhill smile factor was there. But before I talk descending let’s talk climbing.
Any all mountain enduro bike has to be able to be pedaled up the hill also to make it a real ALL mountain bike. My First climb was on a piece of trail known as cardiac hill. It’s a 2-3 minute climb literally covered in rock. Unfortunately the night before we received a downpour of rain putting the trail in the roughest conditions I have seen in years. This is Arizona so mud is not an issue, but overturned rocks are and any semblance of a line was gone, replaced with small to medium rocks. So setting my expectations low, I climbed the trail and did so with a consistent cadence while the GT rolled over all the rocks surprisingly well benefitting from the 650B wheel size and triple chain.
Because the GT didn’t squat when under power we found it really handles a standing pedal position pretty well. I want to be clear, the Force is a capable climber but it is not going to help you win any races in the climbing department and it is probably not your first choice for an all-day saddle excursion.
With the Force having a longer wheel base than 26” wheeled bike and feeling line a 29” rig, the cornering is one of the bikes weaker points. It still corners fine and can carve sweepers and berms with the best of them. It just lacks the snap of a 26” or maybe even a lighter AM offering and is noticeable in tight single track or where the bike need to be flicked around. Instead of snapping turns and accelerating away on smaller wheels, we learned to use the great front end and stability to rider over obstacles on the exits of tighter turns when possible.
Setting the fork to a lighter air pressure than recommended helped handling quite a bit also.
The solid front can handle rough play
This is where the bike really shines. It is clear they made the Force Pro for serious Enduro riding. Point the bike down and the solid front end will gladly fulfill you every command. The 1.5” tapered head tube and Fox 34, married to the E13 hubs and wheels are about as solid as you could ask for.
Setting up the suspension is always key to any bike and the Force’s manner changed dramatically when we got into it. Riding the bike as supplied by GT, the bike was far from plush. So after riding it a couple of times with their setting suggestion, we lowered the air pressure on both ends of the bike to properly dial in the sag and the world was good again. Maybe they think all riders ride like Dan Atherton, but the fix is easy and should be the first thing done by any new rider anyway to get the most out of their ride.
It would be easy to call this bike a mini DH rig because its build spec was clearly designed to take punishment. You may be riding a bit heavier bike, but you know it will take the pounding.
With a price point of just a hair over $7000 the Force doesn’t cut any corners. It comes with all the cool aftermarket stuff showing the company put some real thought into this bike. Complete with a remotely actuated dropper seat, carbon wheels and oversized hubs, proper DH width bars and Formula brakes, the GT leaves nothing to upgrade. Even the cable routing –which runs under the down tube had REAL clips that fasten with allen bolts to make sure nothing can come loose at a critical moment but access to them is not a chore.
The GT Carbon is not going to be the average Joes all day bike. The GT’s target is for the serious all-mountain rider period. If that rider is you, then this bike is one to consider.
Attention to detail - the cable routing clamps are REAL clamps, not some plastic thing.
May the Force be with you...
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