Is it worth forgoing rear suspension to get better components? That's a harder question to answer. Mike Levy: "I had my sixth fastest loop time out of the 8 bikes, but I actually had my fastest climbing time on this thing." My climbing time was 6th out of 8, and my slowest downhill time was aboard the Torrent." ![]() Mike Kazimer: "I had my slowest overall time on the Torrent. Nothing too rowdy, but representative of the terrain these trails bikes were intended to see.ĭon't forget that timing is just one of many ways to judge a bike, and fast doesn't always mean it's the best for everyone. After that, we dropped into a fast descent that began with rough, suspension-testing corners before some fast berms, flat corners, and a few fun-sized jumps. First, a smooth, twisty singletrack climb topped out along a technical traverse that tested the bike's slow-speed handling and traction. Our timed lap for the trail bikes was around 11 minutes long and split into three distinct sectors. That RockShox Lyrik fork and the Code brakes were the standout components on the Torrent, and they delivered the best performances out of all of the bikes we had in for testing. It's a big and solid bike, and for riders that are looking for a hardtail that can handle technical trails, including laps in the bike park, this one fits the bill. It'll get off the ground when necessary, but it really wants to stay planted and carve its way down the trail. Is it possible to have a ground-hugging hardtail? The Torrent sure presents a strong case. When things get spicy it is nice to have that 150mm of travel up front – more than once, I wrangled my way out of an extra-sporty section by shifting my weight towards the front wheel and basically riding the fork until the chaos subsided. Sure, there's no rear suspension, but that excuse only goes so far – with the right technique the Torrent is capable of tackling just about any trail. With excellent geometry, a great fork, and powerful brakes, the Torrent possesses all of the ingredients required for a good time on the descents. The longer front end combined with the shorter chainstays can feel a little unbalanced at first in Levy's words, “it almost felt like it was pivoting on that short rear end, swinging over like a big cruise ship,” but overall it didn't feel like it was any more difficult to navigate it around tighter turns and up chunky steps than it was on the full suspension bikes. There's plenty of stability – the Torrent is the opposite of twitchy – which means there's extra time to set up, pick a line, and then pedal right on through. On more technical climbs the Torrent's length and slack head angle gave it more subdued handling than the Kona Honzo, the other hardtail we had on hand, but I was still able to get through several sections that have forced my to put a foot down numerous times in the past. ![]() There's no denying that this an efficient bike, but that extra feedback from the lack of rear suspension is noticeable, and can take more out of you on a long day. It's a slightly different story if that dirt road happens to have sections that look like a bomb went off, full of jutting babyhead rocks – in that case, things can get a bit jarring. On smoother fire roads it'll spin out the miles without much fuss, with a comfortable climbing position that's reminiscent of a modern enduro bike. ![]() What's it like to climb on a not-that-light, long and slack hardtail? Well, it all depends on where and how you're riding.
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