- When off-road bike brand Niner first teased
this full-suspension gravel bike,
much of the world was in shock basically.
But yet here we are two years later
and the Niner MCR is ready for release.
A genuine full suspension gravel bike
with 50 millimeters of suspension in the back
and 40 millimeters of suspension up front.
Is the world ready for for it?
Well, Niner invited us out to show you
the tech and also to see how it actually compares,
on the trail, against their also new
but more traditional RLT gravel bike.
(finger snap)
To find out we are going to put them head-to-head in
an epic gravel time trial showdown.
(intense music)
As importantly as that though,
I will also explain how bike suspension actually works.
Cause I suspect many of us have never had reason
to know before, unless you're a mountain biker,
in which case you've got a head start.
You might already have of heard of
a short duel length four bar suspension system before.
Even if, be completely honest with yourself,
you might not actually know what it is.
(car beeping)
(keys jingle)
Now, I don't know if when Niner asked us to make
a video about their new bike they actually expected us
to turn up on their doorstep in Fort Collins, Colorado,
but that's exactly what's happened.
Here we are.
(laughs) Ya
(knocking on door)
(encouraging orchestral music)
Before we head out on the trails,
let's get one thing straight,
some of you might be looking at this bike and thinking,
well that's clearly just a mountain bike,
but no that's not a mountain bike.
This, is a mountain bike.
Now and yes they share similarities,
they can both fit wide knobbly tires although
the MCR is limited to 50 millimeters
where as this can go much, much bigger.
And they both, of course, have excellent suspension between
the front and back wheels, and the main frame.
They share the same suspension platform,
but to say that the bikes are therefore the same
is a little bit like saying that a monster truck
and a rally car are the same, when clearly they're not.
This one can do this.
(relaxing county music)
But it excels at this.
(rock music)
Where as the MCR can definitely do this.
(relaxing county music)
But it excels at this.
(relaxing county music)
And it probably can't do this.
(rock music)
So is this a gravel bike then?
Yes, and to prove it here is another gravel bike
that Niner have just released.
This is the RLT, an unsuspended gravel bike.
Now the important bits that really define a bike
are the position and the geometry of it.
And in this case both share the same DNA
that has evolved from road bikes.
So you can see they have drop handle bars,
they've got drop handle bar shifters,
the position allows you if you wish to get long and low
so you can ride fast and comfortably
for long periods of time.
And the geometry, the all important geometry is
also similar so they feel kind of the same they're lively,
they're agile and they're responsive.
So with that amazing logic
not to mention an amazing catching,
hopefully we are all on the same page
and ready to answer that question.
What, if anything does that bike do as well as this,
and vice versa?
To put them to the test, we're going to take them
on a little loop that Niner put together for us.
It's got road and it's got plenty of gravel.
Climbing, descending, quite a bit of flat
and a cheeky bit of single track thrown in for good measure.
(upbeat techno music)
Ya, this feels a little bit like the 1990's all over again,
where a whole bunch of cross country mountain bikers
had to convinced of the merits of full suspension.
I don't need it, I'm fine as I am!
Hard to argue that one.
It's heavier, can't argue that either.
This bike is about a kilo and a half heavier
than the very svelte RLT.
And that on a climb like this, will probably leave
you going about two seconds per kilometer slower.
So it kind of means that this is unlikely to be ridden
in the Tour de France, but doesn't concern
people like you or me all that much.
Then there's also the fact that if you fancy yourself
as a little bit of a Marco Pantani
and you like climbing at the saddle,
the bike is going to feel a bit different.
And that's cause the suspension moves
whether it's reacting to a force coming from
the ground up, i.e. a bump
or from the top down, i.e. your body weight.
To get around this fact mountain bike manufacturers
put considerable time and effort
into refining their suspension platforms.
And Niner felt like they cracked it
right back in 2008 after they patented their CVA design
or Constantly Varying Arc.
And it's really clever, basically it holds the suspension
under a little bit of tension as you pedals
in order to minimize bobbing.
But when you hit a bump it overcomes that tension,
or anti-squat to give it its proper name,
then the suspension moves normally.
But to minimize feedback to the pedals
that Constantly Varying Arc means that the pivot location
or virtual pivot location has moved.
So effectively, in layman's terms,
it keeps the suspension active
without leaving you feeling like you're riding a sponge.
If though, you are on tarmac like this
you can flip the lockout levers
and that all renders the suspension inactive,
meaning you're effectively riding a rigid bike.
And let's face it, tarmac is just a means
to get to our gravel.
The reasons why you might want suspension on a bike
are various but in this case I think there are three
that really stand out.
Firstly, comfort and clearly when you have
50 millimeters of air sprung oiled down suspension
between your bum and the trail
it will be more isolated from bumps.
Now 50 mil night not sounds like that much
but Niner's say that this shock has been tuned
specifically for the purpose of riding on gravel.
I believe it has a,
more subtle mid stroke.
- On the MCR we've actually tuned our CVA suspension
characteristics to be suitable for the demands
of gravel riding, which we envision riders sitting
in the saddle, peddling and mostly hitting smaller bumps.
What we would say, low amplitude but high frequency
types of bumps.
And so the suspension will definitely hold the rider
in the midstroke, but it will be very responsive,
very supple to, high frequency bumps.
- Now that alone can make it more efficient,
but when you couple it with the third reason
then that's even more so.
And that is their vibration is reduced
when you have suspensions.
You might be familiar with talk about reducing vibration
when we talk about why running low on tire pressures on
the road can be more efficient.
And the same is true in this case as well.
Vibration of the bike and body really slows you down
and so when you reduce it you go a lot faster,
you move more efficiently.
Reason number two, is that you get more traction
cause your tires are in contact with the ground
for more of the time.
You notice particularly when climbing,
but also when cornering or breaking as well.
To the extent that it can actually influence
your tire choice.
You're in to run much slicker, faster rolling tires
and still have the same amount if not more grip
but you get the benefit of that
considerably reduced rolling distance.
I'm not sure anyone would question
why you want it on descent.
Woohoo!
Or here!
In the short time that gravel riding has been a thing,
or at least a thing with a name, it's changed a lot.
From riding gravel roads on road bikes
and riding cyclocross, to taking drop off bikes
on almost mountain bike trails.
Hence, why we're including this one on our loop.
A short section, a very fun, plus a simple single tap.
(slow bass music)
Alright then, run number one on
the more conventional of the two bikes.
Now this one of course doesn't have suspension,
it's the RLT RDO, which is actually the
carbon fiber Race Day Optimize model.
Now Niner were one of the first brands to the gravel party
so they've had plenty of time to get the feel of their bikes
just how they want.
On the gravel spectrum it's still more toward
the adventurous end in that you can fit big tires,
clearance for 50 millimeters wide even larger
if you drop down that smaller diameter 650b.
It's got a slightly more upright and shorter position
than you'd find on a road bike,
but conversely the wheel base is longer, for more stability.
So even though it's fully rigid
it should be happy getting rowdy.
Or here's hoping anyway.
Beep, beep, beep, beeep.
(tires crunching on gravel)
(energetic rock music)
(heavy breathing)
We're on number two on the MCR or Magic Carpet Ride.
Let's go.
(tires crunching on gravel)
(intense drum music)
(peaceful music)
After a much needed shower and a much needed beer
I'm now able to hit you up with some results.
Taking first place in the epic head to head
gravel time trail show down with a time
of 11 minutes and nine seconds was the RLT.
Three seconds back was the full suspension MCR.
Closer than I was expecting I'll be completely honest
but more interesting than that is when you drilled down
into the results and you'll see that actually
the MCR was faster over the twistier,
bumpier sections of the course.
Where the RLT was faster on the smoother,
faster sections of the course.
Perhaps unsurprising I guess,
given that while both are gravel bikes,
they do excel in different areas of the course
seeing as they are very different bikes, nevertheless.
There's a certain degree of simplicity to the RLT,
yes the bearings in the full suspension MCR
are Enduro Max Black Oxide bearings.
Which I'm reliably informed they're basically
the most durable ones you can get,
they will still will need servicing from time to time
as will the shocks.
Something the mountain biker are perfectly comfortable
doing these days, but it's something that is
alien at the moment to roadies and gravel riders.
And so if you're off adventuring then
simplicity probably gets the thumbs up,
and it's for that reason as well I guess
that Niner festooned the RLT with no less
than 26 individual mounting points.
You can find them,
here,
here.
These, you'd probably be familiar with.
Here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
For maximum adventure proof ness you could choose
the steal framed option as oppose to
the less expensive aluminum
or the super light carbon option.
And finally there's absolutely nothing wrong
with wanting a traditional bike
because whilst fast is fun, fun bikes don't have to be fast.
Where does then that leave the MCR?
You might be wondering whether or not actually
a 29er mountian bike would be better given that,
that excels in twisty, bumpy stuff surly
a 29er would be better still.
And yet definitely a mountain bike is going to
be faster on mountain bike trails,
but then I also think it's probably going to be
less exhilarating when the trails are simpler.
More importantly for me though,
is actually the position that you adopt on the bike.
Mountain bikes can feel very big,
they have generally quite upright positions,
very wide handle bars.
So if I was going to choose to spend a day on a bike
I would definitely want one where
I was closer to my road position.
I think that's just generally a little bit more comfortable.
And a little bit more efficient,
at that end of the spectrum.
Anyway, I'll be very very interested to know
your thoughts on this subject.
Are you ready for the next step in gravel bike technology?
Or are you something of a traditionalist?
Make sure you get involved
in the comment section down below.
I'm sure you won't disappoint.
Also please give this video a big thumbs up.
And if you want to watch another one, a gravel video,
then why not check out the one, on screen right now.