2023 Scott Genius ST - First Ride Review #mtb #loamwolf

First Ride Report on the new Scott Genius ST. Learn more about the bike by visiting the site to check out the full written first ride along with the press release here:
https://theloamwolf.com/2022/11/03/first-ride-and-release-the-new-scott-genius/

For the launch of the new Genius, Scott invited us to join them in Aosta, Italy, to spend some time on the bike and learn about its development. As part of this we had two decent days riding on the bike, with a good mix of climbing and descending that allowed for a good initial impression to be formed. The setup of the Genius ST 900 Tuned I was testing proved to be fairly simple, helped by the lack of bar roll adjustment possible and the comfortable position that the Syncros Hixon integrated cockpit mercifully provided me with. I was on an XL Genius, which is larger than I’d normally ride with its 515mm reach compared with the 475-495mm range I’d typically aim for. Things were of course more stretched out, but thankfully it was within the realms of comfortable for my 6’2″ (189cm) stature. Setting sag was made simple thanks to the seatstay indicator, and accessing the shock adjustments through the hatch was as easy as on most single pivot bikes, never mind bikes with shock tunnels or complex multi-links, though it’s easiest to flip the bike upside down to do so. Once everything was aired up and feeling about right in the carpark, it was time to hit the Aosta Valley trails.

The initial ride consisted of a shuttle followed by a solid 800m climb, before we descended 1800m back down to Aosta. The climb was certainly a good chance to get familiar with the pedaling performance of the Genius ST, play with the Tracloc system and warm up the brain before the huge descent ahead. Out the gate it was clear that the low system weight, especially with the Syncros carbon wheels, produced a bike that was keen to get going off the line with minimal resistance. With the wide 2.6” but thin EXO carcass tires; carbon rims and unfamiliar trails, tire pressures began on the cautious side at 26PSI front and 30 out back, which gave very little compliance to the terrain below and made for a relatively uncomfortable ride. Once I learned to trust that lowering the pressure a few PSI wouldn’t lead to immediate self destruction, things improved both in terms of rolling speed and comfort on the slightly rough sections of fireroad.

The Tracloc’s middle “Ramp Control” setting made limited difference to the climbing feel, but a further flick into the “Climb” mode instantly firmed things up in a dynamic scenario and lifted the bottom bracket. That said, on the fireroad climb it didn’t offer much improvement in terms of the feeling of efficiency – there’s plenty of anti squat on the Genius to handle that, so I’d have to wait until a technical climb to figure out the useful scenario for the Tracloc system.

As it turns out, I found the Ramp Control setting’s calling before I reached a technical climb. Riding a section of trail flat out, I noticed Brendan Fairclough hitting some compressions hard ahead, and figured it would be the perfect moment to flick it into ramp control and feel the increased progression. Sure enough, it did exactly as claimed, keeping the bike more composed and preventing it from finding its way fully towards the bottom out bumper. However, the setup of the bike with a hair under 30% sag likely didn’t demand this increased progression for the typical riding I’d expect to undertake on the Genius. There wasn’t the most incredibly plush ride on offer, instead remaining composed and planted but letting you know a lot of what was going on below, so perhaps a slightly more sag-rich approach could do some favors.

It was only in retrospect that I realized exactly how descending on board the Tracloc-equipped Genius ST could potentially be improved. By running more sag (I’m guessing towards the 35% setting) the Genius could be made to be more compliant and comfortable for the standard trail riding, with that Ramp Control mode on tap to dial up the capability for the rowdiest terrain and biggest hits, and the Climb mode to regain the efficiency for ascending. I wasn’t able to test this theory during the media camp, so I’m eager to get my long term test rig to find out if my theory is correct, and will be sure to report back in the full review. With the standard setup, there was never the demand for such a system, as both the pedaling and descending performance was stiff enough in the Descend mode. Through flowier, smoother sections of singletrack the Genius was an absolute delight, with the stout feeling and support in the rear end making it easy to keep the trail speed high by working the trail at every opportunity.

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:45 - Tech Talk
04:07 - Shock Talk with Fox
06:15 - Tracloc Overview
06:56 - On Trail CLIMBING
08:41 - On Trail DESCENDING
10:36 - Riding Impressions

#scottsports #scottgenius #29er #scottbikes #mountainbike #enduromtb #mountainbiking