The term XC mountain bike has recently become synonymous with 29er carbon hardtail mountain bike. We want you to see that it doesn’t always have to be that way. You can now buy XC mountain bikes that can handle trail centres as well as push you for glory during XC races.

XC was always about pain, Lycra, pain, inverted stems, pain, Strava, power meters, pain, hardtails, and some pain. Did I say pain enough? What I am trying today here is that XC resembled road racing more closely than it resembled enduros.

XC goes enduro

You can now see dropper posts and frames with full suspension in the UCI XC upper echelons. There are still more hardtails than full sus frames in the pro ranks, but that doesn’t mean you have to ride a hardtail. There are now very capable full suspension XC mountain bikes. Who would not want that, or indeed who would not like one?

The reason for this is that courses are getting more fun, I mean technical. Going technical is to try and help organisers bring in spectators. No one wants to see people ride carbon 29ers around a smooth trail with a few trees getting in the way. If people are mountain biking, we want drops, roots, and rock gardens. All the fun stuff. The stuff that has let enduro riding pedal off into the distance and leave XC in the dust.

The new race courses mean that bikes have been getting more capable. They are slowly moving away from the road roots of mountain biking and chasing modern trail and enduro bikes. This means you get bikes that are more fun and lightweight. We do not all need a 160mm travel monster just to go out and ride. In fact for most of us that might just be overkill.

These 160mm travel monsters though are having a drip down effect on XC bikes. We are seeing that bikes can be slacker, we don’t need the old 72° head angle. We can have suspension designs that work. With a good suspension tune, we don’t need to accept that having squish will mean more effort. We can now have comfort and speed.

We are going to have a quick look through a few new XC frames that have caught our eye, and that will have you itching to get out and ride.

FRM Anakin Cape Cobra

Roadies love a hand-built Italian bike. It evokes for them many memories buried into the history of bike racing. You can get everything from Coppi to Pantani in one frame. What though does this have to do with mountain biking?

The answer is simple the FRM is made by Italians, in the same small scale that those road frames were. A small team of artisan builders working to deliver to you their very best work. They have put a lot of work in at FRM to bring you the best product they could deliver. It also has a price tag to match.

It takes FRM all day to make just one frame. They are lovingly created with a mix of carbon fibre and a material called Zylon. Zylon is super tough and damage resistant, it is used in Formula One to keep wheels attached during crashes. It also gives their raw frame that golden paint look. It really is not an intricate paint design but just the way the bike frame is constructed.

FRM is bringing back Italian craftsmanship.

Nicolai Saturn 11

The Saturn 11 is Nicolai’s entry in the 100mm travel full suspension mountain bike game. It has 105mm travel though. The Nicolai comes hewn from aluminum and with a Horst suspension linkage. They have linked this with a more trail-friendly geometry.

This geometry gives you a frame that means you can go race XC, marathons, or just hot the trail centre with your buddies. A veritable Swiss Army knife of a frameset. An interesting feature is that the frame comes with stealth routing for a dropper post, but all the other cables and hoses will be pretty much external. Great, if you are a home mechanic.

Nicolai might be famous for their big travel bikes, but with the Saturn 11, they will soon be famous in XC circles as well.

Triaero Altay

We have so far looked at two European brands, what about one from the Far East? Even the Altay moniker is a reminder of where Triaero is based. With a golden name, we were fully expecting a bike that can guide you to the top of the podium.

The Triaero Altay is without a doubt the cheapest of the three models we have picked but that in no way means it is missing the quality of the other two. The Triaero comes with all the bells and whistles you would expect. Toray carbon fibre, 100mm travel, press-fit bottom bracket, stiff frame, great looks.

Triaero is bringing us the best Far East carbon knowledge and getting it to you at a price you can afford.

The Three Amigos

Like the Nicolai, the Altay comes designed to take Boost sized wheels. Boost means that with both frames you can run stiff wheels that will help make climbing that little bit easier. Matched to a wider rear end, is wider suspension pivots. The wider pivots will mean you will be changing fewer bearings during the year. Something we can all rejoice about, happy days.

Here we see three bike frames, all designed to let you race but at the same time realising that racing might not be the most important of your riding. These frames can dominate races but can also let you go for a day riding with your buddies in the real world. None of them is going to make you shave your legs and don Lycra. Unless you want to, who are we to judge you and your life choices.

So if you want metal, go with the Nicolai. If you wish for your friend's jaw to hit the ground when they see how much you spent, get the FRM. If you want the great value in a great package, go get yourself the Triaero.