DB Vancouver Broadway
Store Blog
A quick intro to the 2011 Giant Trance X1
Posted: Dec 12 2010 in We Ride
As most of you know by now we have recently added Giant Bicycles to our quiver of brands offered at Different Bikes. From day one, I was excited to have them in the store, but even more so to see how they performed.
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The folks at Giant were kind enough to hook us up with some of their demo bikes for a couple of weeks. As this is a new brand for our store I was anticipating some great riding, and a real opportunity to give some first- hand feedback to anyone interested in finding a new trail bike.
Tom picked up our demo Trance X1’s and we were immediately ready to hit the trails. Upon my first inspection of this 5” rig I noticed just how light it was. The stock demo bike (with 2lb pedals that I threw on!) weighs in at 28lbs. This is largely in part due to Giants use of their own “Aluxx” aluminum. As they produce their own frames, they have been able to come up with an extremely stiff material. This allows for a reduction of material where it’s not needed, reducing the overall frame weight significantly while maintaining strength and durability. The specs are as follows…
As the beginning of our product testing day started with a solid uphill lung-buster, I jacked the saddle to its upper limits, flipped the ProPedal and began spinning away. I was envisioning pain and embarrassment at the end of the climb as I anticipated my lack of fitness (and the previous evening’s pints) would be amplified on such a ride. It didn’t take long to realize however that the Trance was immediately at home on the steep grade. The Maestro suspension platform combined with the Fox RP23 rear shock makes this bike climb easily. Props for keeping my fellow riders from having to wait for me - I’m sure Tom wouldn’t let me hear the end of it if he had to wait more than a few minutes!
The RP23 and Maestro suspension are a winning combo
As the ride continued over all kinds of terrain, it was evident that this bike was glued to the trail. The stability in the front end can be attributed to Giants “Overdrive” head tube technology. A 1.5” tapered head tube is wrapped by the down tube and top tube for stiffness. This is matched with a 15qr and voila! A bike that always goes in the direction I wanted to go. It was a noticeable difference from the 1-1/8” head tube on my current bike. 
'Overdrive' tapered headtube makes a big difference!
By the end of the ride I felt I had a good handle on what the Trance was all about. The only upgrade I would look for might be to lose the big ring and install a bash guard – this of course would be dependent on your riding style and location. Big climbs (not something I’m used to) lots of cross country, and steep tight descents were well handled well by the Trance. As promised by Colby, the Maestro platform delivered smooth travel and heaps of pedaling efficiency on the climbs. If you’re looking for a bike that will take you on some epic all mountain or back country rides, I would say this would be a good bet. Give us a call (604-737-2344) for current pricing or if you have any questions about this bike. We’ll have the demo’s in the Vancouver location (1421 West Broadway) through January so feel free to stop by and throw your leg over one.
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