Santa Cruz Megatower CC X01 29 Review
In the hope of favourable reviews, Santa Cruz flew a small bunch of tan-deficient northern-hemisphere journalists to the fiercely dusty trails of South Africa. Being the hottest month of the year the mercury was certainly boiling over.
Our 180 cm tester found the size Large Megatower the perfect match, with more reach than the Hightower LT, and the low-standover height gave our hobbit legged tester easily enough room for a 170 mm dropper post.
Climbing on the Santa Cruz Megatower
While time on the bike was relatively short, we did have the opportunity for some full-day pedals in ferocious heat, climbing some epic fire-road climbs that required equal measures of stamina and mental fortitude. These are the situations where small inefficiencies would become infuriating. Weighing in at 13.86kg, and running real-world Maxxis Minion DHR II / DHF 3C MaxxPRO EXO tires, the new Megatower is never going to ‘out-nimble’ the Hightower LT, however the far steeper seat tube angle puts you higher over the BB, increasing the climbing prowess on steeper slopes and pulling back the weight deficit. Standing sprints will not match a lighter bike, but in the seated position the Megatower winches itself uphill with minimal fuss, far faster than its reserves of travel would suggest. We did not even bother adding the platform damping to the RockShox Super Deluxe shock as the Anti Squat seems very stable in the 40 – 50t cassette sprocket range with minimal bobbing. The contact points are all familiar, comfortable and well thought out without any gremlins, the Santa Cruz Megatower is a very comfortable bike indeed.
Descending on the Santa Cruz Megatower
It’s time for a bold statement, we think Santa Cruz’s new rear suspension platform used by the Nomad, Bronson and now the Santa Cruz Megatower is one of the best on the market, offering lashings of grip, control and most importantly support. Combining this superb kinematic with 160 mm of travel and accurate 29” Santa Cruz RESERVE wheels means you can ride the Megatower like a total idiot, take the worst lines, challenge the gnarliest rocks – the Megatower will simply smash through, silently finding grip everywhere. Mid-stroke support and progression feel very good indeed, dosing out travel when needed but still being effortless to pump and pop. The tune on the Rockshox Super Deluxe shock is sublime, firm when needed, sensitive and plush when called upon in a crisis. The Santa Cruz RESERVE wheels are excellent performers, hitting the sweet spot between compliance and accuracy and with 200 / 200 mm rotors the SRAM Code RSC brakes haul down the speed effortlessly. It’s a great feeling bike to ride new trails, requiring minimal concentration to ride really fast, freeing up focus to read the trail. The ride feel is not extreme in any way, sitting in the ‘new-school’ middle ground, it’s easy to weight both wheels and corner from the middle of the bike, everything feels familiar, intuitive and balanced. It’s a very potent package indeed, and versatile too, it’s a bike that would be just as happy chewing through a ‘grit your teeth’ 70 km epic as it would be lining up on the start-line of the toughest EWS.
A great bike for adventure seeking travellers, the Megatower is the sort of bike that you could roll into any trail, anywhere, and know that you would not be outgunned.
To be honest, as much as we tried to find them, there are no real negatives to the performance of the bike, the Santa Cruz lower-link VPP platform is so evolved now that even minor issues with the Megatower would be unforgivable. Sitting at the ‘gravity end’ of the Santa Cruz lineup, the Megatower is clearly aimed more at bike-park shredders, gravity enthusiasts and enduro racers, with enough versatility for globe-trotting adventures. If you have been hovering over the ‘buy now’ button on a Nomad but wished it had bigger wheels, then the Megatower is the bike for you.
The only negative is that the Santa Cruz Megatower is undeniably expensive, but even then, unlike some brands, you really do feel like your money is buying something a little higher quality. Like many of the best long-travel, hard-hitting bikes on the current market, as efficiency, geometry and kinematics improve we are seeing these once highly specialised bikes grow increasingly versatile, blurring the lines. Yes, the Megatower is a big bike, happy to crush terrain once thought reserved only for the V10, but it’s also efficient enough to pedal all day if you don’t mind carrying an additional kilogram.
Conclusion
The Santa Cruz Megatower is a phenomenal bike, adding more travel, more composure and a more aggressive geometry to their 29er platform – without losing that easy-going Santa Cruz ride feel that has always defined their bikes. It’s a big bike, true, and thrives in big terrain, but is also efficient enough to put in some time in on the pedals if required. However, trail riders will be better sticking with the more direct Bronson or Hightower LT, but for those who like to stick a lift-pass or race-chip in their shorts every now and again the Megatower is a beast.
Tops
- Fantastic build quality
- Huge capability
- Incredible suspension
Flops
- Too much bike for trail riding (but that's not what it's for)
More information at santacruzbicycles.com
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