We give the updated Santa Cruz Nomad a hammering to see if it’s still just as fun and check out the new Scott Ransom eRIDE long-travel e-bike
£7,799 Is the revamped Nomad the US brand’s best big-hitter yet?
COMMIT TO A SECTION, LET OFF THE BRAKES AND YOU’ LL BE REWARDED WITH PIN POINT ACCURACY AND
Santa Cruz last overhauled the Nomad back in 2017, and it was a bike we quickly fell in love with thanks to its playful ride. It was a real plus how well it pedalled uphill, too. Fast-forward to 2021 and the bike gets another makeover, although the di erences aren’t quite so easy to spot as last time around.
The frame
The fifth-generation Nomad continues to roll on 650b wheels, with no 29in (for that, look to the Megatower) or mixed-wheel-size ‘mullet’ option (as found on Santa Cruz’s e-bikes) available. As with pretty much every other full-sus bike in their range, the lower of the Nomad’s two counter-rotating VPP links drives its rear shock. The back end still pumps out 170mm of rear wheel travel, but a lower leverage ratio and longer-stroke shock are claimed to create a more settled, damped feeling. There’s also a little extra progression at the end of the travel. As before, the Nomad will accept a coil- or air-sprung shock.
There have been significant updates to the geometry. All frame sizes now sport longer reaches and, most importantly, proportionally-sized rear centres (the distance from BB to axle). The medium’s reach, for example, grows from 440mm to 450mm, while the rear centre is 430mm. The extra-large frame has a reach of 500mm and a rear centre of 440mm. Up front, the head angle is now a degree slacker, at 64 degrees (high setting). The seat tube angle has steepened to 78 degrees on the medium frame (it’s slightly slacker on the larger sizes). A flip-chip at the rear shock mount o ers 0.3 degrees of head/ seat angle adjustment and shifts the bottom bracket height by 4mm. At present, Santa Cruz are only o ering the Nomad in their ‘C’ or pricier ‘CC’ carbon fibre, with no alloy option.
The kit
This is the top-tier Nomad, so it comes laden with the flashiest kit around. That includes a Factory-series Fox 38 fork and X2 shock, with high- and low-speed compression and rebound damping adjustment. SRAM provide their X01 Eagle drivetrain, with the new, wider-range 10-52t cassette, and their formidable Code RSC brakes, paired with 200mm rotors front and rear.
You get a Maxxis Assegai 3C Maxx Grip tyre up front and a Minion DHR II Maxx Terra at the rear. Interestingly, Santa Cruz spec EXO+ casings on the air-shock-equipped Nomads, while the coil options get tougher DoubleDown rubber. The brand provide their own Reserve carbon wheels and carbon bar, the latter
paired with a 40mm stem from UK company Burgtec. If you want to save some cash, there’s an almost identical build, minus the carbon wheels, for £1,200 less.
The ride
Despite its burly build and masses of travel, the Nomad pedals well when seated, with little suspension bob. The medium frame’s relatively short 581mm e ective top tube length
– a result, to some extent, of the steeper seat angle – means it doesn’t have the roomiest seated position going, although at 5ft 8in, we never felt overly cramped and remained comfortable even when winching up steep pitches. The tacky front tyre does roll slowly, though, and we found ourselves using the massive 52t cassette sprocket when energy levels were properly drained.
Point the Santa Cruz down steeper natural trails and you’ll be impressed by how it handles. The geometry encourages a confident stance, while the suspension balance provided by the Fox fork and shock helps prevent the bike from pitching back and forth as you weave your way down the hill. These damper units remain impressively sensitive, too, keeping the tyres glued to the trail even in particularly slippery situations. And while the back end of the bike is supple, get into the shock’s midstroke and the Nomad remains nicely supportive and composed, with no shortage of control on tap.
In rougher terrain, there’s a little more feedback through the bar than on some similar bikes, potentially due to the carbon wheels. But commit to a section, let o the brakes and you’ll be rewarded with pinpoint accuracy and masses of momentum. The Nomad really gets your pulse racing when flung from turn to turn. Despite the extra reach, long wheelbase and slacker head angle, the bike remains reactive and agile. Pump it from corner to corner and you can feel the speed building as you push the tyres to their limits. There’s no getting away from just how nimble and easygoing it feels when you start throwing it about over jumps, too. Plus, there’s enough progression at the rear for when you do slap back down to earth.
While the new Nomad feels more capable and controlled at speed, it’s great to see that it retains the fun factor we loved about the previous version. Rob Weaver www.santacruzbikes.co.uk