Among the four new exciting bikes launched by Transition for 2015 is the Scout. This short (ish) travel, 650b-wheeled offering boasts some extremely promising numbers and a solid, well considered spec that helps sit it firmly amid the burgeoning and exciting ‘short travel aggro trail bike’ category, something we touched on back in issue 171’s bike test.
How deep?
Don’t be fooled by the fact that the Scout has just 125mm (4.9in) of rear wheel travel. Drop into a tricky, technical descent and you’ll be surprised just how hard you’ll have to push the bike before you’re even close to getting out of its depth. The balance between the supple yet supportive GiddyUp Link suspension system – essentially a four-bar Horst Link design that Transition uses across its latest models – and the well-considered geometry helps to boost confidence and really let you get away with a lot, even in demanding terrain.
It’s not necessarily this hard riding ability that stands out early on, it’s how much bloody fun it is to ride. The short, 425mm chainstays, 66.9-degree head angle and the low, corner craving 324mm bottom bracket height make for a ridiculously playful feel on the trail. Pick it up, plonk it down and just let the speed pick up as you work the Scout through each and every undulation.
Naturally, it can never be all about the downs. Fortunately the 585mm effective toptube (size M) pared with the 45mm stem never felt particularly cramped for our 5ft 8in tester when it came to pedalling back up hill seated. Okay, it’s not the rangiest cockpit, but felt roomy enough in the seated position, even on long drags. The steep 75.4-degree seat angle bolsters climbing prowess, especially when tackling loose, steep, slippery slopes, letting you put the power down without the front wheel wandering and lifting, while still maintaining traction out back. With the sag on our test bike set to 30% and the shock fully open, traction was impressive on rocky and rooty ascents thanks to the supple initial suspension stroke, though on smoother trails or slower high-torque efforts, we did experience some unwanted suspension bob, which was easily tamed with a flick of the RockShox Monarch shock’s three-position low speed compression lever.
As the trail evens out, it doesn’t take much to get the Scout back up to attacking speed. Though our medium sample weighed 13.27kg, that playful feel goes a long way to make the bike feel far lighter and more dynamic on the trail than the scales might suggest. Maintaining speed on long, rough flat sections does mean you’ll experience the odd pedal strike courtesy of that low bottom bracket, but it doesn’t take long to adapt to.
It’s when you get the Scout pointed downhill that it really comes to life. There’s cohesion between the geometry and the spec sheet that just seems to add up. It’s great to see a sturdy, 140mm Pike in place up front, soaking up the hits in a controlled, consistent and predictable way while ensuring there’s plenty of steering precision on tap should you wish to take the rougher, lesser ridden off-piste route. At the rear, get that shock opened up and you’re instantly rewarded with an active back end that tracks the terrain well. Though you’ll use each and every one of the 125 mm of travel, there’s enough support and progression to let you really load the bike through turns at speed and should the situation arise, the Scout will shrug off the odd flat landing without any trouble. Where you might just point, shoot and hold on for dear life on some other bikes with similar travel, you’ll simply want to launch the Scout over and into whatever lies ahead. That’s simply what this bike encourages from the minute you roll into the start of the trail. Did we already mention how much fun it is?
Tools for the job
Back to cohesion and that well considered spec. The Scout 1 build isn’t cheap, but it does have you covered for the majority of situations you’re likely to encounter on the trail. SRAM’s X01 11-speed transmission offers a wide enough range to let you ride up the dirtiest of climbs and gives you enough options to help save your legs on longer, all day stints in the saddle. It’s worth noting that for 1650$ less you can get the Scout 2, which uses a 1x10 Shimano SLX transmission, the slightly cheaper Pike RC fork and doesn’t get a dropper post included. The Scout 2 is a good option if you're fit enough to handle the 10-speed setup but you’d need to add a dropper post into the mix to really get the most out of the bike.
Transition has done a nice job with the finishing kit aboard the Scout 1. While the ANVL saddle is plenty comfy enough for lengthy rides, it’s the Reverb Stealth post from RockShox that ensures more fluidity and less faffing between the ups and downs on the trail. The wide Kore Mega 760mm bars and short Race Face Respond 45mm stem marry up nicely with the low bottom bracket and short chainstays to help make for a real smile inducing experience as you carve from turn to turn with plenty of control. The more aggressive tread pattern on the new Schwalbe Nobby Nic tyres copes well in a variety of conditions – certainly more so than their predecessors – and have more than enough bite when it’s soggy under tyre. Hit wet rock or root though and the PaceStar compound can feel a little nervous.
Look a little closer at the frame and there’s more to like. A roomy enough front triangle means you can fit a water bottle, there’s an integrated chainstay protector to help silence any chain clatter and Transition’s opted to use the people’s favourite threaded – rather than press-fit - bottom bracket.
Summary
Take the Scout 1 to just about any trail and you’ll have a blast. The dialled geometry and sorted spec mean it’ll cope with hammering runs on your local downhill track or putting in the miles in search of the ultimate off-piste trail, sticking two ingers up to some longer travel trail bikes in the process.
FRAME Scout Alloy, 125mm
FORK RockShox Pike RCT3, 140mm
SHOCK RockShox Monarch RT3 DebonAir
WHEELS WTB Frequency i23 rims, SRAM MTH 716 hub (F), DT Swiss 370 hub (R)
TYRES Schwalbe Nobby Nic PaceStar 650bx2.35in (F), 650bx2.25in (R)
CRANKS Race Face Turbine Cinch, 32T ring
GEARS SRAM X01 rear mech, X1 shifter and SRAM XG-1180 10-42T cassette
BRAKES Shimano XT, 180/160mm rotors
SIZES S, M (tested), L, XL
WEIGHT 13.27kg (29.25lb)