The "Gambler" attracts attention like Katie Price's XXL breasts, because the Scott has a lot of wood under the saddle. Or in this case: aluminium under the saddle. Extra striking: the massive top tube and the massive rear triangle. The 1 1/8-inch steerer tube in the martial 1.5-inch head tube looks particularly thin. Obviously, robustness was at the top of the Scott engineers' task list. With all that metal, it's not surprising that the scale pointer is over 20 kilos. With the "Gambler", Scott wanted to create a big-bike platform similar to Rocky Mountain, which can then be converted into either a downhiller or a freerider. The heavyweight in the test conveyed a lot of confidence and could also be dropped from two metres into the flat - without the rider having to blink. Ideal for bike park novices who want a forgiving chassis. The Scott feels sluggish on natural trails. Small off-road jumps require a lot of power and you have to get used to the slight rear-heaviness on longer sets. The kinematics work because the rear suspension works well without sagging. Optional and easy to adjust up to 230 mm travel. The bike would have fitted us better in size L.
CONCLUSIONThe Scott is better described as a big bike than a freerider. The large calibre is at home in the bike park. Only Hercules takes it for a trail ride.
RemarkEye-catcher: No other bike in the test field was marvelled at as much as the "Gambler" - no wonder with its shape!
