BEN’S VITUS ESCARPE 29 CRS
MONTH 12: Ben hits the road for a tour of Welsh riding hotspots and discovers that the Escarpe can handle it all...
£2,699.99 / 29in / vitusbikes.com
There’s nothing like the thought of the weather closing in and the days getting shorter to motivate you to get out more. So as my time with the Vitus draws to a close, I’ve made a push to get as much riding in as possible. And in doing so I’ve really come to understand what I like about the Escarpe CRS.
On my Welsh road trip I took in some classic routes, trail centres and bike parks. The bike performed well in all of these settings. Not outstanding in any particular setting, but more than up to all of the tasks. Dyfi Bike Park was enormous fun, although on several occasions I was slightly out of my depth in the really rough stuff, which is to be expected on a 140mm-travel bike. Contrast that with a ride up Cadair Idris, where the old-school fire-road climbs were a bit laborious but the loose, fast descents certainly made up for the effort of the climb. I also took in some trail centres and laps at Bikepark Wales. After all that riding, the pivots were making some pretty loud, moaning noises but my main observation was that the Escarpe can turn its hand to a seriously wide variety of riding, which is exactly what you want from a trail bike.
The riding position ensures that it’s comfortable to climb on, with no real bobbing at the shock.
And while it’s not buttery smooth on the climbs, it still tracks over bumps to retain traction when you’re putting the power down. It doesn’t suffer from excessive pedal strikes either and once you get your feet positioned wider on the pedal, they stop rubbing on the stays.
It’s on the descents where the Vitus really shines though – the solid frame, a seamless mix of carbon and aluminium, guaranteeing that even on extreme terrain it never gets flustered. Sure, it can run out of travel in a heartbeat but the bike stays composed and gently reminds you that it’s had enough rather than protesting vigorously. As a result, you feel confident in its performance, with no scary moments or unpleasant surprises. On really steep terrain that sure-footedness is still present thanks to the modern geometry. Getting the suspension dialled in is critical though, but with enough air pressure in the Pike Select RC fork and a decent handlebar height, the front end stays up in its travel. At the rear, I tended to run the Rockshox Select+ shock softer over the course of the test. Little by little I took more air out and thanks to the progressive nature of the linkage it seemed to ride better deeper into its travel and still didn’t get fazed on bigger hits.
I’ll give my final appraisal of the Escarpe next month but over the past 12 months I’ve been really impressed by the ride quality of this bike given that it’s considerably cheaper than most of its rivals.
WHY IT’S HERE Ben tried going big, then going fast, now he just wants a trail bike
n n n
Took himself off to Bespoked to get fired up over the latest TIG welding techniques. Still coming down after seven brews, 21 sugars and a pipe of Rich Teas
Giddy as a schoolboy over Trail Bike of the Year, can’t decide which bike to ride next… or whether to go for a Dip Dab or a Curly Wurly at breaktime
Prised from his beloved e-bikes for the first time in months for TBOTY. Feeling his great age (72), turns out he doesn’t have 500 watts in those old legs
Emerged from the norovirus family homestead white around the gills, to a full day’s hardtail yomping around the South Downs. #inatthedeepend
MICK KIRKMAN
DANNY MILNER
PAUL BURWELL
JAMIE DARLOW