So, I’m in the market for a new xc race bike. Current ride an upgraded 09 anthem x1. Races are mostly gorricks with the highlight of the season being pairs at torq12.

I have test ridden several times the Scott scale 910 and have almost bought, only things holding me back are £2.5k on a hard tail is a lot to stump up, plus I’m not sure how comfy it would be some hours into an endurance race,

so went hunting about and I’ve come across new 2012 Scott spark frame and specialised epic frames for £1k which means a similar build to the scale 910 would come in cheaper and I would spec / reuse some of my own kit. Saving me a chunk of cash.

Which would you recommend? I’m leaning towards the spark as I am expecting it to ride similar to the scale which I really liked. Anything else out there in a similar price range

From my calcs for roughly the same price as the scale, I could get spark/epic, Sid xx, full xt and sram rise 60 wheels….reusing my contact points and xtr brakes….

I 24hr on a steel hardtail. I find it comfy enough bare in mine my other bike is a Trance x2 so I’m used to having a sofa 😀

I’d probably get the Spark/Epic and build. Wouldn’t use SRAM wheels though. Just build.

Merlin are selling the rises for £900 I haven’t seen any bad reviews yet?

What do you think about the spark vs epic. It seems to hinge on the manual lockout on the spark or a set and forget spec brain shock. Quite a lot of negative reviews about the dt Swiss shock

But they’re £900… Get some DT240s and some Light Bicycle carbon rims. They’ll be lighter and more versatile. Put the money towards better finishing kit or sommat.

Spend the rest on race entries and ride the hell out of it!

I used to race on a Spark with a load of very light parts, excellent race bike – the DT Swiss shock is poo though, an RP23 is a far better choice.

My only problem with the Spark, apart from the fragility, was the very low BB height, I would constantly batter the pedals on anything a little rocky.

I went from an Anthem to a Spark, the Spark tracks better, as it’s lower, but isn’t as quick responding as it felt like it had longer stays. It’s better, far better, with a 120mm fork, which raises the BB height a little too.

Agree totally with Njee, don’t spend £900 on a set of wheels, that’s stupid. Really stupid. I’d spend £300 at most now, but if you’re racing, £400 – are you a pro? they’ll get the wheels at cost, less or free – so only numpties will be paying the £900 price tag.

Use the left over money for a trip to the Alps, or Scotland, or if you’re interested in Racing – gels, or races, or a trip to see Jedi to actually get faster 😉

I had a spark 09 model carbon with nude shock really hated it shock was a mare, went from 100 to 120 front fork improved it slightly but climbing wise never impressed, descending never impressed always seemed out of its depth and I was 93 kilos and in solid shape so the frame did not cope with my size twisting and flexing. Really disappointing.

Wheels agree above save yer cash.

Moved to 29er……………….oh dear

Canyon – Grand Canyon 29 CF SLX. You’ll need to be wanting a large frame though cos they rs already sold their whole years allocation of the s and m sized lower spec bikes (lower spec is still utterly sensational for the money though.)

The one I was after was £1700 but sold out a couple of months back – some in sales forecasting needs a good kicking IMO. New version out in October.

I’ve looked at that canyon many times, but not being able to test ride puts me off. I’m told it is pretty unforgiving whereas the scale definitely has some give in the back when I test rode it.

I don’t like the sound of fragile or buggering about with the shock. My anthem has pretty much become my everything bike, the nomad only gets a visit to the alps the hardtail used for muddy local rides. I was hoping to use this bike at trail centres and the like as well.

I know 900 is alot for wheels. I have looked at light cycles, Im tempted. My a2z / olympics have held up well on the anthem, but I can feel them flex. I rode the whyte 29c and was really impressed with the wheels

So, either the epic or sod it, buy the scale for racing and then in 12 months buy a full sus 29er for enduro/trail riding…

Current spark is anything but fragile. Its my do everything Squamish trail bike right now and gets ridden hard through everything id normally be on the genius for.
Agree the old nude was poop.I went through 3 in the BC bike race, however the new nude2 is far more robust and has been faultless so far.
Super versatile xc race bike, and pushed hard even in 95mm tc mode feels like a trail bike.

You say you rode a Whyte 29C… Have you not considered one? If not, why not?

Believe they can be bought as a frame only too now. Having ridden one would be my first choice for the riding you describe, but probably a custom build rather than off the shelf, cos I’m not so hot on SRAM or some of the finishing kit. Great frame though!

a2z / olympics

Yes, cause they’re QR! Get some QR15 decent wheels, less flex = better tracking = more fun.

Do you need more than Hope Pro3 QR15 on Alpine or Podiums?

I disagree, I’d expect QR hubs on carbon rims to be stiffer than QR15 hubs with Podiums!

So, not many opinions on the epic? Both frames I am looking at are 2012 but the epic is the alloy comp version whereas spark is carbon.

Re whyte, the bike felt awesome especially downhill it flew. But, I test rode the scale, whyte and cannondale equivalent back to back on the same course kepping my hr the same and I was quicker on the scale, by quite a bit. And the whyte was 3200!

On wheel flex it is at the rims I feel it. Very noticable the othe day at the new track at swinley when I was really tanking through the berms. The carbon wheelset on the whyte felt so much stiffer. So I want a qe15 and carbon for my next bike now.

I had 3 Epics previously (2007, 2008 and 2009) and really liked them, great bike if (like me) you just want to pedal. The thing I disliked about the Spark was that you have to use the TracLoc constantly to make it work properly.

For my money I’d definitely buy the Epic frame, still wouldn’t put the SRAM wheels on it though!