Mountain Bike Rider — March 2018

£3,449

N

ever one to shy away from

innovation, Giant has been

playing with the identity of its

long-standing XC race bike

for several seasons now — its

evolution reading like a timeline of

recent mountain bike trends.

Cycling through a range of iterations,

the ‘new’ Anthem has come full-circle

and gets 29in wheels, allied to 90mm

of rear suspension travel, and a massive

780mm handlebar handed across from

its trail stablemates.

In terms of frame design, the

Advanced carbon Anthem has borrowed

tech from Giant’s road division. And in

that respect, the horizontal top tube and

more open front triangle make it look

the least like a modern trail bike. Great

for fitting water bottles or shouldering

the bike, but standover clearance is

reduced in turn. Also, it is the only

bike on test with handlebar-mounted

controls that will smash into the frame

in a crash.

Out back, this entry-level Advanced

version is the only bike in test with an

aluminium rear triangle. Whilst this might

lose out a little in the weight department,

it helps to make the Anthem the lowest

priced bike on test, and frees up enough

budget for carbon wheels.

SUSPENSION

Like most high-end Giants, the Anthem

sports the Maestro rear suspension

system. And despite only having 90mm

of travel, the twin-link design helps give

the Anthem a very active and engaging

ride character with stacks of traction.

But with only a shock mounted on/off

lockout, the bipolar settings mean it’s

either a little too playful or a touch too

firm. So for racing efficiency, this means

it’s best to run more air pressure to

tighten up the rear end, and just keep

the shock in the open setting.

Married to the frame is a Charger-

damped, 100mm-travel, RockShox SID

fork. And it’s a key reason the Anthem

rides so well. Combined with the carbon

wheels it provides a level of stiffness

that belies its 32mm upper tubes.

Coupled with the more upright riding

position and relaxed geometry of the

frame, it made the Anthem the bike to

beat on every descent.

COMPONENTS

The XC/trail bike crossover carries

through to Giant’s choice of finishing kit.

Jump on the bike and the first thing you

notice is the super-wide 780mm Contact

SL Trail handlebar, that provides

confident handling far removed from

XC expectations. The wide bar seems

somewhat at odds with the 80mm

Contact SL stem though, but on the plus

side, there’s nothing to stop you cutting

the bar to your preferred width.

Easier to miss is Giant’s understated

carbon-rimmed XCR wheelset. The

relatively wide hookless rims are set

up tubeless from the factory and raise

the appeal of the Anthem a couple of

notches. Running Maxxis Ikon tyres,

they proved to be super-fast rolling and

provided stiff, accurate tracking.

PERFORMANCE

It took us a few rides to tune into the

essence of the Anthem. While almost

all of the other bikes have a pure race

focus, the Anthem has a slight XC/

GIANT ANTHEM ADVANCED 29ER 1

SPECIFICATION

FrameAdvanced-

Grade Composite/

Aluxx SL aluminium,

90mm travel

ShockRockShox

Deluxe RT

ForkRockShox

SIDRLSoloAir,

100mm travel

WheelsGiant XCR

Boost hubs, Giant

XCR1Carbon29rims,

Maxxis Ikon EXO TR

29x2.2in tyres

DrivetrainShimano

SLX chainset 32t,

Shimano SLX 11-speed

r-mech and shifter

BrakesShimano

M6001, 180/160mm

ComponentsGiant

Contact SL 780mm

Trail bar, Giant Contact

SL 80mm stem, Giant

Contact Composite

seatpost, Giant

ContactSLsaddle

SizesM, L, XL

Weight11.58kg

(25.53lb)

Contactgiant-

bicycles.com

GEOMETRY

Size testedLarge

Head angle69.1°

Seat angle68.3°

BB height323mm

Chainstay434mm

Front centre718mm

Wheelbase1,152mm

Down tube699mm

Top tube604mm

Reach454mm

A slender 27.2mm carbon

seatpost is used to

increase comfort, but is

it really necessary on a

full-suspension bike?

Acompositeupperlink boosts

stiffness, while sealed bearings

in the Trunnion-mounted

RockShox Deluxe RT shock help

reduce breakaway friction

The 100mm-travel

RockShox SID fork has a

cable-operated lockout

on the handlebar for

rapid adjustment

Shimano’s workhorse

SLX 11-speed

drivetrain provides

fast, reliable shifting

VERDICT

The Giant Anthem Advanced 29 is

the most accessible of all the bikes

in this test.

There are no super-steep angles

or quirky handling traits, and it

proved time and time again that

it’s hands down the most capable

when the course gets technical or

challenging — thanks mainly to the

impeccable performance of Giant’s

Maestro suspension design. Its

versatility is also its

downfall however;

as a true race bike,

the Anthem lacks

the urgency to

reach the

top step of

the podium.

trail dissonance stemming from the

wide cockpit and more upright riding

position. Combined with the Maestro

suspension, the Anthem feels a little too

laid back and relaxed, and more like a

trail bike. On one hand this makes it very

versatile and enjoyable to ride when not

between the tape. On the other hand

it feels almost a little too soft and less

urgent when the time comes to stamp

on the pedals.

Compared to the competition, the

Anthem was the bike that induced

the most grins. You can really attack

the descents on it, and in this respect

you’ll be down the hills faster than your

competitors, and with enough energy

left in the tank to ease it back to the top

without losing too much ground.

BIKE TEST

96 mbr MARCH 2018