Big bikes: Downhill trail robbers - 3 top models for park & race in comparison

The 3 big bikes in the comparison

• Rose Scrub DC 2
• Santa Cruz V10
• Scott Gambler 900 Tuned

Surprises

1. The Scott is brutally light.
2. The rose is quite heavy.
3. The Santa Cruz is hardly surprising. But first things first.

Scott Gambler vs. Santa Cruz V10 vs. mail-order Rose & a big comparison test of big bikes follows

Originally, we had planned a big group test with all the glorious brands, but somehow the worm got in the way. Some manufacturers were unable to deliver at the beginning of the year, either because big bikes slipped down the priority list (#NicheStattImage-Produkt), bikes were stuck in customs or bikes were sent to Bielefeld instead of us - which, as we all know, doesn't even exist.

Never mind, we'll make up for the big comparison with this interesting 3-way battle: Scott Gambler vs Santa Cruz V10 vs Rose - World Cup-proven global player vs underdog.

Rose Scrub DC

Rose had done without a big bike in its portfolio for several years, but is now serving the gravity faction again with the new Scrub, a robust aluminium construction that can be set up both as a single crown freerider and as a big bike with a double bridge fork. We had ordered the top models for a fair comparison. However, Rose sent us the more affordable Scrub DC 2 model.

Santa Cruz V10

When Margot Robbie stands in the lift queue, the reactions are probably no different to those we get with the red V10 from Santa Cruz. The bike is an eye-catcher. The World Cup speedster has been reworked and fine-tuned since Greg Minnaar's 2021 world championship run. Now it is set to carry Jackson Goldstone from victory to victory. Feature and trend: Adjustment options in every nook and cranny to adapt the bike to individual wishes and different tracks.

Scott Gambler

The same applies to the Scott Gambler. Here, too, the engineers have "only" fine-tuned and squeezed a few more grams out of the already damn light All-29 bike so that it weighs a sensational 15 kilos.

I liked the Scott best straight away: light, manoeuvrable, playful, with good handling. The suspension generates control and still gives feedback instead of sinking into the suspension travel - that's good for jumps. - Michael Eder (27), spontaneous tester

Realisation after many test runs

We would have preferred to test on the World Cup track in Schladming. It's steep, angry and has everything to challenge a big bike. But in Schladming, the skiers were still wagging down into the valley when we wanted to test it. Alternative: The renovated downhill trail on the Geißkopf offers a good mix of rock fields and jumps at the top, tighter turns and bumps in the middle section and a firework of jumps in the lower section.

We also chased the bikes over the varied freeride track. We were not only interested in the pure speed potential, but also the park shred qualities. When setting up the suspension, we stuck to the manufacturer's specifications and then made modifications to get the best out of the bikes.

First realisation after many test runs: the bikes are a lot of fun. Second realisation: The differences are not as big as expected - the Rose can keep up well. Realisation number three: As expected, the V10 is a thoroughbred racer, but the big wow effect didn't materialise. At least on the test tracks we rode. We preferred the more manageable Scott and the Rose didn't have to hide from the large calibre from California either.

Conclusion on the bigbikes

It's always amazing how much fun big bikes are to ride. The test bikes were closer together than we would have expected. The inexpensive Rose in particular performed valiantly in a direct comparison.

>> Downcountry bike: Is this bike category dead?

>> Pinion MGU reader test: The end of derailleur gears?

Further information about the bigbikes

Field of application

Weights in comparison

Ranking, overall scores & placement of the bigbikes

Park

1. Scott
2. Rose
3. Santa Cruz

Race

1. Santa Cruz
2. Rose
3. Scott

Overall ranking

1. Santa Cruz V1 (9.5 points)
2. Scott Gambler 900 Tune (9.0 points)
3. Rose Scrub DC 2 (8.5 points)

To the FREERIDE ranking

The number (maximum 10 points) reflects the overall impression of the testers and is not an addition of the performance points.

• 10 points: Test winner, it couldn't be better
• 9 points: Very good. Purchase recommendation
• 8 points: Good. Solid performance
• 7 points: Below average. The product has weaknesses.
• 6 and less points: We can only warn against this!