Giant Trance - Why so slow?

grony

I've just returned to MTB after an absence of 15 years. My last bike was a 1990 Stumpjumper (no suspension), I've now bought myself a Giant Trance X5. Problem is, it is just so slow, almost impossible to get any any momentum on the flat and dies straight away on any incline. Is this because I am fundamentally unfit and have a romanticised view of how easily I used to fly up hills? Or have a bought a slow bike? BTW, shocks are set up fine, feel spongy to me but I've never ridden with shocks before.

cooldad

It's you.

supersonic

The Stumpy is lighter and has no suspension - more efficient for some riding. No bob, no wasted energy.

sandy771

I had the x4 for a while and hated the pring shocks so much so that I upgraded to an x3

As for being slow, it seems faster that my Talon 29er on anything that is slightly wet and grippy, but slower on the road and decent tracks

grony

cooldad wrote:

It's you.

I was hoping that was the case.

Stu Coops

I got a Trance X1 and it's awesome so yeh definately you

benpinnick

Change the tyres, add more air to anything that has a valve.

cat_with_no_tail

How freely do the wheels spin? If you lift the front/back wheel off the ground and spin it by hand, how long does it sping for?

delcol

try letting go of the brakes as you pedal.. :P :P :P :P


is the bike new ?

as mentioned make sure the wheels spin freely.. also some tyres roll better than others.. also tyre presure a few psi can make a hell of a difference...

and it's surprising how unfit you become when you been off the bike a short time.... not to mention a few years...
keep at it you will get quicker.

Darkstalker420

Disk brakes rubbing maybe? spin each of the wheels and see how long they go for/listen for any rubbing sounds. If so adjust the pads (if you feel confident enough to do it).

Thanks.

grony

Thanks for the suggestions, I have spun the wheels, there certainly isn't any brake rub but it does sound as though there is some gunk within the hub, although not enough to cause snail like progress on the flat.

cooldad

Just plug away. It gets easier. But full sus does feel a bit harder to ride and vaguer than rigid.

386ka

cooldad wrote:

But full sus does feel a bit harder to ride and vaguer than rigid.

Yes, this is true. When I first rode the Trance x3, it felt slower to accelerate (chainstay lenght? also nevegals are bit slow on the asphalt), with more slack angles, and also more stable than my previous Giant Terrago 3. I was sitting more upright, and the shocks were under pressurized. Though, you will get used to it, and you will find that it handles differently, not bad at all.

LordSplodge

I went out to Cannock on my full-bounce for the first time this yearr yesterday and it feels so slow compared to my hardtail. It doesn't help that the KHS weighs more than the planet and my GT is quite light.

If you've come from a light hardtail a full suspension bike is going to seem slow and if everything on the bike is in order then it must be you. Just get fitter and pedal harder!

Northwind

What tyres has it got on it? Big sticky tyres make a huge difference (I was trying out some new tyres a few weeks back, and found myself chasing a mate down a trail- he was freewheeling while I was pedalling, and braking for sections when I didn't have to, but I was still just the same speed because of my stupid tyre choice )

sanchez89

LordSplodge wrote:

I went out to Cannock on my full-bounce for the first time this yearr yesterday and it feels so slow compared to my hardtail. It doesn't help that the KHS weighs more than the planet and my GT is quite light.

If you've come from a light hardtail a full suspension bike is going to seem slow and if everything on the bike is in order then it must be you. Just get fitter and pedal harder!

My KHS weighs less than my old hardtail! and its got 40mm more travel at the front and 140mm more at the rear!!!

id try setting up the shock and fork abit firmer, not much, just abit, or using a pro-pedal/floodgate setting if you have 1.

the max floodgate on my monarch shocks makes hard pedalling much easier.

rockmonkeysc

It's you. I had a 2010 Trance X3 and it was great. Could be your tyres, pressure could be too low and some just roll really slowly.
I ride a much heavier Giant Reign X now with 2.5" mud tyres & it's not as bad as you describe your Trance.

grony

Thanks for the replies, decided in the end to buy a hardtail. Couple of months of chugging along on the Trance has helped the fitness though, absolutely flying along on my new Boardman HT Pro.

andy_welch

Good to hear that you are enjoying the Boardman. They do make some great bikes.

Funny thing is that I did a few back to back tests of a Trance against a (rigid) Rockhopper over a few trails and couldn't really separate them on speed. However, despite being obsessed by the speed when testing it, now that I've got it I find that I don't really care. It just feels such fun to ride. Last time out I didn't even bother with pro-pedal or even locking out the front forks and just enjoyed the ride.

Cheers,

Andy