With its somewhat unique silhouette, Specialized’s Epic 8 quickly became one of the most recognisable bikes on the XC circuit. Today, the brand has unveiled the ninth iteration of its racy cross-country bike. It’s claimed to be the fastest, most capable and lightest full suspension cross-country bike ever. Let’s take a deeper look at those claims…
Specialized has enjoyed a lengthy 24-year tenure on the XC circuit, winning world cups and world championships, while testing its riders’ mettle in multiple Olympic events. The new Epic 9 is set to be a culmination of all of that race experience.
Claiming to be the lightest full suspension cross-country race bike ever, the S-Works Ultralite model of the Epic 9’s frame is claimed to weigh 1,589g, with the complete bike tipping the scale at a measly 8.5kg (size medium frame). According to Specialized that’s 129g lighter than the closest competitor’s bike, and not far off some of the lightest road bikes.
This has been achieved by shaving off as much carbon as structurally possible where it’s not needed, and optimising wall thicknesses, all in a bid to maximise watt-to-weight ratios. With that, Specialized says that it’s shed 110g from the front triangle, 17g from the seat tube, 37g from the rear triangle, and 15g from the main pivot thanks to fresh hardware.
Speaking of the frame, the Epic 9 gets the ol’ SWAT treatment. That’s in the form of an external SWAT box which somehow provides no weight penalty…
There have also been tweaks made to the suspension kinematic. As always, modern cross-country is getting pretty darn spicy, so the Epic 9 boasts 120mm of suspension travel at both ends. But the change here is that the rear suspension is said to be more supple thanks to a reduction in overall friction by 11%.
The brand has then lowered the leverage rate at sag to boost pedal efficiency, while keeping it similar to the old bike after sag. The rear suspension then offers three firmness settings, as per usual: Wide Open, Magic Middle and Sprint-On Lock. Wide Open is for the longest and most technical of descents, Magic Middle balances rear-end squish with pedalling efficiency, while Sprint-On Lock is all about maximising watts.
As for the geometry, Specialized has made small adjustments, choosing to build on what was already a pretty progressive platform. Importantly, the bottom bracket has been raised a hair for pedal clearance while the slacker head tube retains composure, says Spesh. However, that BB height is adjustable and can be lowered, thanks to a flip chip on the rocker link. The stack height on large and XL frames has been raised, too. Additionally, the chainstay is proportional to the frame size, with small and medium bikes donning a 435mm measurement, large featuring a 438mm chainstay and XL boasting a 442mm rear end.
Elsewhere, in its low position, there’s a 65.9-degree head tube angle, a 76-degree seat tube angle and a large frame benefits from a 480mm reach.
There are six Epic 9 options coming to the market including a frameset priced at £5,999. Full builds then start at £4,299 and go up to £12,499 for the S-Works model. We’ll be looking to get our hands on one soon for a full review.
