![]() Much of this comes from the frame at 3,218g it is 200-300g heavier than other alloy 100mm travel alloy cross-country frames-this figure is more inline with a trail or all-mountain offering.Īvanti have played it pretty safe with their frame geometry. Sub-$3,000 dual suspension 29ers tend to be on the weighty side, but the total build weight of 14.1kg made the Ridgeline around half a kilo heavier than comparably priced bikes that we’ve reviewed. The flipside to the robust build is some added heft. If the longer travel Coppermine rides in a similar manner it will be quite a trail weapon! It may only have 100mm of travel on tap but the Ridgeline rides like a confident and self-assured trail bike, not an XC whippet. This ensures the suspension spends its time moving up and down as intended rather than twisting from side-to-side and binding.įront-end stiffness is provided via a big downtube, extra gusseting around the tapered headtube and a 15mm thru-axle fork. The fat diameter stays, oversized pivots and one-piece rocker all add up to make a really tight rear triangle. With the Ridgeline, it was so easy that I’m sure that I drank more frequently whilst riding this bike.ĭespite the lack of a thru-axle the Ridgeline is more than adequate in terms of stiffness-it feels very stout for a 100mm-travel cross-country bike. Dropped top tubes can make it a real hassle to get a bottle in and out, especially with a larger bottle. One clear benefit of the straight top tube is that it creates a very open front triangle. The straight top tube is out of kilter with the rest of Avanti’s dually range-it may look sharp but the extra standover clearance of a dipped top tube (as found on the Coppermine and Vapour) would be appreciated. I often found myself staring at chickens and experiencing debilitating episodes of leg-jealously and it’s likely that keg-calved riders will spend their time polishing the seat stays whilst aboard the Ridgeline. In use the wide stance of the seat stays rubbed the inside of my calves when pedalling. The cumulative result is a very stiff frame that is finished beautifully with clean and consistent welds. They’ve also used every last millimetre between the cranks to make chainstay pivot as wide as possible. The one-piece seat tube mounted rocker is gigantic and the seat stay pivots are spaced generously apart. Made from custom drawn 6061 alloy, the frame uses high quality Enduro Max bearings with oversized alloy axles throughout. The Ridgeline shares many features with their existing suspension bikes, and that’s a very good thing. This however is set to change for 2014 when the range expands to include a more up-market carbon model, but for the moment the Ridgeline is more of a bang for your buck XC trail bike. That’s not to criticise the Ridgeline it’s just better to make it known from the outset that this bike is designed for cross-country riding, but it’s not an XCO race bike. Avanti makes some nice carbon hardtails (called ‘Competitor’ no less) and this is where the racer-boy will find satisfaction. It may be pegged as part of Avanti’s ‘XC Race’ line but it only takes one heft on the hand-scale to know that the Ridgeline is not a race bike in the competitive sense of the word. Suspension wise it is fitted out with a RockShox Reba RL fork and a matching Monarch on the rear. Still quite an affordable option at $2,799, it comes with Shimano SLX 2x10 gearing, an XT rear derailleur and Deore brakes. It comes with a mix of Shimano Deore nine-speed and SLX parts with Tektro hydraulic disc brakes and a RockShox Recon Silver fork. They start with the Ridgeline 1 at $2,299. Now for 2013 the longer travel Vapour has been replaced by the Coppermine (a dedicated 120mm travel 29er trail bike) and Avanti once again has a cross-country dually in their line-up the 100mm travel Ridgeline 29er.Īt the moment there are two models in the Ridgeline range. A year later Avanti debuted a big-wheeled dually – the Vapour 29 – but it was no longer an XC race bike like the original it had bulked up and sprouted 120mm of travel, morphing into a trail bike not unlike the Torrent. Despite its excellent ride qualities and execution, the shorter travel Vapour was just about born out-of-date (or possibly out of fashion). Both were designed from the ground up by Avanti and garnered rave reviews.Just as Avanti’s new bikes arrived, the 26-inch wheeled cross-country MTB was simultaneously limbering up for a sprint towards the door. After a noteworthy absence the New Zealand based brand stepped back into the bouncy game in 2011 with the 135mm travel trail-oriented Torrent and 100mm travel Vapour cross-country bike. Avanti have been in and out of the dual suspension bike game a few times over the years.
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