Juliana

Roubion Carbon CC X01 Complete Mountain Bike - 2016

Juliana built the 2016 Roubion Carbon CC X01 Complete Mountain Bike for riders who rail berms and charge into the gnarliest terrain with abandon. This six-inch travel trail shredder may live for big airs and rough trails, but its neutral geometry and lightweight frame make it no slouch on the ups, which isn’t surprising given that its original goal was to be the ultimate enduro race bike. Paired with a Monarch rear shock, a Pike RCT3 Solo Air fork, SRAM's X01 drive kit, and Shimano's XT brakes, this bike is ready to live up to that lofty goal.

It’s no secret that we love the Roubion, and it’s fairly easy to see why. First, the responsive handling and fast rolling speed of 27.5in wheels have quickly made them the defacto wheel size for riders who push the ragged edge. Second, there’s the 150mm of rear travel, which is primed to smooth out harsh trails, while the Virtual Pivot Point (VPP) suspension platform lends efficient pedaling on the climbs. Third and most importantly, there's the geometry. The Roubion occupies the slack end of neutral, so it descends with aplomb and generally rips whether up or down. The head angle sits at 67 degrees, which provides plenty of high-speed stability without being cumbersome at lower speeds. At 17.3in, the chainstays are long enough to keep you centered in the bike, yet short enough to allow the Roubion to carve up turns with ease.

Both the front and rear triangles are constructed as a whole, rather than bonding them together from sub-assemblies. In addition to saving weight, this ensures that the Roubion is as strong as possible. That's because the fibers are uninterrupted by the fragile seams of frames bonded together from different sub-assemblages. The construction technique also compacts the carbon from inside and out, so if you were to cut it in half, you'd find that the inside of the tubes have the same perfectly smooth finish as the outside. The benefit is that it's lighter, because any excess epoxy is squeezed from the frame prior to curing to optimize frame strength. Finally, strength and stiffness are further enhanced with the mechanic-friendly, oversized 15mm collet-style hardware and a 12x142mm thru-axle out back.