VITUS RAPIDE FS CRX
The Vitus Rapide is a pure XC race bike, just not in the traditional sense. Yes, it’s got 100mm travel and the full carbon frame weighs only 2,080g, but take a closer look at the rest of its vital stats and you’ll instantly see that the Rapide FS is heavily influenced by the progression of modern trail bike geometry.
Most obvious is the whopping 500mm reach on the size L frame, which puts the front wheel in a different time zone compared to most European XC bikes. Granted, the 66.7° head angle isn’t crazy slack, but when combined with the reach and 440mm chainstays, the Rapide FS has a footprint that gives you the confidence to really let the bike run, where the steeper head angle helps keep the front end weighted even on flat, high-speed turns.
Vitus hasn’t gone completely against the XC establishment however. Like most XC race bikes the Rapide FS frame uses a flex-stay suspension design to keep the weight in check. Vitus hasn’t eliminated the seatstay bridge however, as doing so would have meant over building the pivots and carbon rocker link to compensate for the loss in stiffness. It’s also the primary reason why the Vitus has longer chainstays than the Canyon: 440mm v 431mm. When combined with the longer front end however, the Vitus feels very balanced and neutral.
SUSPENSION
There are two distinct versions of the Rockshox SID: one with beefy 35mm upper tubes and the SL version with a lighter 32mm chassis. The SID on the Vitus Rapide is the latter. And it’s not just the slimline chassis that gives it a 210g weight saving, Rockshox has replaced the air-spring cap with a lighter valve cap and uses a 2.5mm Allen key as a rebound adjuster to whittle away precious grams. Once you’ve set your rebound damping on the fork the Allen key can be removed to further save weight. Just don’t do it immediately as you’ll need it to adjust the rebound on the Rockshox SIDLUXE shock, as there’s no rebound dial.
Both the shock and fork are connected to a handlebar remote that gives two suspension settings, open and locked. The Rockshox remote feels plasticky and a little flimsy, compared to the Fox on the Canyon, but you can still thumb easily between both settings with minimal effort.
In the open setting the suspension on the Vitus feels sensitive, so there’s no second guessing which mode you’re in. And while the anti-squat is higher than you’ll find on any of Vitus’s trail bikes, it’s not so high as to cause biopacing when you drop the hammer. It still offers plenty of support though, so hard pedalling efforts don’t get absorbed by the 100mm rear suspension. The upside-down shock layout, pioneered by Scott to great success, gives one of the cleanest routes for a remote lock-out. Also with the slender end of the shock at the top, it makes for a narrow, lighter rocker link, that won’t rub bulging calf muscles. Vitus spec the shock with one volume spacer, and if you’re running around 25% sag, you’ll probably want to remove it if you are hellbent on achieving full travel.
COMPONENTS
Much as we’d all love to have factory race support, Vitus appreciates that most riders buying the Rapide FS are self supported. So while the build kit on the CRX has an eye on weight saving, it’s not blind to durability or budget. As such, the Shimano XT chainset and cassette are great choices, the cassette offering the same 10-51t gear range as the XTR cassette on the Canyon without a massive weight penalty.
The twin-piston XT brakes are also a good choice, because if you’ve been
£3,999.99
LOWS
One bottlecage mount
Rapid up and down
overeating and under-training, you’ll still be able to rein in the Vitus on steep descents. And this is a really important point, because of the three bikes here, the Vitus is the one you’ll be able to attack the hardest on when pointed downhill.