Mileage: 2,870 km / 35,230 metres in altitude
I knew that with the Remedy I would be riding a tried and tested and highly praised all-mountain bike. The 140 mm travel in combination with the 27.5-inch wheels felt absolutely confident and safe on the downhill. The bike has more of an enduro feel downhill and has reserves that never let me down in any situation. The Remedy behaved all the more surprisingly on the climbs. Thanks to the switchable shock platform, you can also climb long, steep peaks without any major problems. Trek have managed this combination well: downhill calm and secure and uphill stiff and propulsion-orientated.
However, the exciting question was whether the 1x11 drivetrain from Sram would be able to cope with the plan to ride a lot of very different terrain. My home laps are a constant up and down with many trails in the terminal moraines west of Munich. Although the individual sections are not particularly long, they are very steep. The single drive and I coped surprisingly well with these demands. However, the tide turned in the Alps. Whether in the Wetterstein, Karwendel or the Dolomites - I always had the feeling that I was missing a gear or two. Regardless of whether I was travelling privately, such as in Livigno and Finale Ligure, or on assignment as a bike photographer, such as in Slovenia (Spotguide) and Switzerland (Lake Epic), the available range of gears was not sufficient. Even the supposedly quick change of the chainring to adjust the gear ratio came to a quick end with a Torx screw turned round.
Brakes (Shimano XT) and gears (Sram) were always reliable despite a good 2800 kilometres on the bike, which cannot be said of the other components. The rear shock went to its knees after around 500 kilometres and spit oil relatively soon after the bike park visit in Livigno. The RockShox Reverb seatpost also needed servicing after around 1500 kilometres. However, the centrepiece, the frame of the Remedy 9, is absolutely unimpressed and confident.
Test summary: really fun except for the limitation of the 1x11 drivetrain. The only weak points were the components.
DEFECTS / MAINTENANCE
- 500 km - Damper loses oil: The Fox DRCV shock was very oily and had to be serviced.
- 1500 km - telescopic support sagged: First it got play, then the Rock Shox Reverb always sagged a little. A service provided a remedy.
TUNING
- 80 km - tyre change: The Bontrager XR3 tyres offered too little tread for all-round use and quickly became uncomfortable in wet and muddy conditions.
- 340 km - bottle cage replaced: The frame triangle is relatively compact, making it difficult to thread in a large bottle. A holder with side access worked.
- 580, 1430 km - chainring change: I changed the chainring from 32 to 28 teeth and back several times, not because of wear, but for gear ratio reasons.
WHAT THE READERS SAY
"I'm totally satisfied. But I've also heard from colleagues that the paint doesn't hold up so well on the new frames and gets scratched quickly. Would buy Trek again though. It's a great bike at a good price!" Christoph Woller, Facebook
"I still have one from 2008, which runs great. And the Slash 9 from 2012, also tip-top. Would buy Trek again and again."
Heiko Dittjen, Facebook
RELATIONSHIP HIGHLIGHTS
Bernina Pass
The Remedy accompanied me on various tours. The coolest, however, was the tour with the Rhaetian Railway. Up from Switzerland and down to Italy and back again by bike.
THE TESTER
Robert Niedring, photographer
44 years / 1.79 m / 75 kg
Rider profile: Long uphills and flowing nature trails are very popular with Robert.
Favourite areas: Karwendel, Monte Grappa and Slovenia
