BIKE CHECK: Santa Cruz Tallboy 4

January 29, 2020

BIKE CHECK: SANTA CRUZ TALLBOY

More down, less country. That's always been my motto. When I saw the reviews for the new Santa Cruz Tallboy, it immediately caught my attention. I've been in the market for a short travel, XC, down country bike for a while and decided I'd give this bike a shot. I demoed it a week after it's initial release, and fell in love with it. I can officially put my stamp of approval that the new Tallboy is the downhiller's XC bike!

I've been able to put 200ish miles on it before the MTB season was cut short by the early snowfall. I've been heading down to Southern Utah quite a bit this winter training for a 50-mile MTB race called True Grit. This bike eats up the trails. I feel like I can really push this bike to its limits and still get that short travel bike response I was looking for. I've never been the strongest climber, but this bike helps me push myself up mountains faster than I ever thought I could.

winter ride - 30 miles - santa cruz tallboy

There are so many unique features with this bike. From the adjustable chainstay to the flip switch on the bottom bracket that can either steepen or slack the head angle, this bike has something for everyone. I almost always leave it in the lower setting because the slacker the better right?

Overall, I'm very happy with this bike. It checks all the boxes for me. Lightweight, playful, comfortable climbing position, quick descender, and poppy. If you're looking for a short travel playful XC bike you should definitely give the new Tallboy a ride!

Bike Build:

Frame - Santa Cruz Tallboy CC size Large⠀
Fork - RockShockx Pike Select+ 130mm⠀
Shock - FOX Float Performance Elite DPS 120mm⠀
Derailleur/Shifters - SRAM X01 Eagle⠀
Brakes - SRAM G2 RSC⠀
Rims - Race Face ARC Offset 27⠀
Hubs - DT Swiss 350 28H XD ⠀
Wheels - Maxxis Minion DHF & DHR2 29"x2.3"⠀
Crankset - SRAM X1 Eagle Carbon⠀
Pedals - Crankbrothers Mallets ⠀
Seat Post - Rockshox Reverb Stealth

Check out Santa Cruz's Website for More Details -

https://www.santacruzbicycles.com/en-US/tallboy

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