GT FORCE CARBON PRO LE
GT has never shied away from suspension development. Its early designs employed a high single-pivot design dubbed RTS, before transitioning to LTS, a classic four-bar configuration. In recent times GT hung its suspension hat on idrive, again a high single-pivot design, but this time with a floating drivetrain. When GT introduced the updated Sensor and Force platforms in 2018, it circled back to the glory days of LTS with a popular rocker link configuration.
Fast forward to today and the latest Force is a 29er enduro bike that retains the LTS suspension, but the links have been reconfigured to produce a 160mm travel mid-pivot idler design. It’s referred to as a mid-pivot design, because the pivot point (in this case virtual)
£5,500
HIGHS
Rides like a regular bike
where you least need them. And even if the Charge Scoop isn’t our preferred choice for big days in the saddle, with a 10-52t SRAM Eagle cassette the GT has the gearing for it. Get up into the lower gears however, and it’s noticeable how much noisier the idler gets. This seems to be a result of the idler position being slightly more rearward, which increases the chain angle relative to the cassette and it will be even worse in the short chainstay position.
SRAM’S Code RSC brakes are firm favourites of ours, but in wet conditions we found that the stock brake pads fitted to the GT took longer to dry out, so you have to brake sooner than expected to scrub speed, even with the 220/200mm rotor combination.
PERFORMANCE
Getting the GT Force to feel balanced took us longer than expected. Run more than 27-30% of sag on the shock and the rear suspension lacks the support needed for climbing and railing turns. Go too far the other way and distinct loss in sensitivity makes the bike feel too reactive and harsh. So there’s a relatively small window where the GT Force feels really good. Get it there – we found
27% sag to be optimum – and the Force rewards you with a balanced, stable ride, good small-bump sensitivity with ample grip and support.
In fact, for an idler bike, the Force feels remarkably normal. And that’s intended as a compliment. Even in the long chainstay position it’s super-easy to pop the front up, square off turns or simply boost jumps. We even lowered the stem height to better load the front end on flatter trails, which also makes the cockpit feel a little bigger. No bad thing.
So what’s the advantage of the idler? At Bikepark Wales we noticed how easy it was to pedal over choppy terrain, even with flat pedals. The bike also felt less fatiguing on longer descents like Root Manoeuvres. How much of this is down to the lower anti-squat numbers or reduced pedal kickback is hard to parse out, but the benefits are real.
Would higher anti-squat numbers improve the pedalling response of the Force? Most definitely, but it would also benefit from a wider set-up window so you can use the sag to tweak the dynamic geometry and suspension response without compromising pedalling.