ED’S MARIN ALPINE TRAIL 7 £2,200
Half the price doesn’t have to mean half the fun
The Santa Cruz Nomad was always going to be a hard act to follow – I’ve got some great memories of my year of testing that bike. Marin’s new 150mm-travel, 29in-wheeled Alpine Trail has some big shoes to fill, and with a price that’s not much over half that of the Santa Cruz, this could be considered a tall order. But I can safely say, after only a few rides, that I’m seriously impressed. It’s taken me a little while to readjust to bigger wheels after a year on 650b hoops, but the ride position on the Marin is so perfectly suited to me that it hasn’t taken long to get into the swing of things.
Because of the price, there are some spec compromises, with some components being worthy of praise, but others not so much. Starting with the positives, the RockShox Yari RC fork feels great, despite only having the Motion Control damper, as opposed to the Charger unit found on pricier forks. The Shimano SLX drivetrain provides flawless shifting, and the X-Fusion Manic dropper post has been reliable so far.
I expected a little more from the Tektro Orion brakes though. Despite having four pistons, the absence of a cam in the lever means you have to squeeze hard for full power. The exact point this happens at is hard to feel, making it easy to end up
either under-braking or skidding into corners. Combined with some very wet winter trails and the hardcompound Vee Flow Snap tyres, this has resulted in a few lairy moments. The closeness of the brake pads to the rotors means they make an annoying rattle too – I’m thinking that an upgrade might be on the cards. Although Vee Tire specify durometers of 48 and 52a for their ‘Tackee’ compound, on the trail the tyres feel rather firm and are skittish on rocky ground. I’ve already taken the liberty of switching to a Schwalbe Magic Mary on the front.
Other upgrades have included adding a bottle cage (essential!) and a chain guide, and transfering over the OneUp EDC tool I was running in my old bike. This meant tapping the fork steerer, which voids the warranty, but the tool is so handy that I’m willing to forgo that. The bike now weighs close to 16kg, so I’ll be looking for ways to shed some pounds over the coming months. www.marinbikes.com