The Specialized Epic has put a ton of racers of all levels on podiums around the world. It is a fairly dedicated XC race weapon. But Specialized figured they could tune up an Epic Evo build of the bike with a more aggressive build spec to add more marathon, stage racing & general trail riding versatility.
Specialized Epic EVO aggressive XC & marathon bike
The new Epic Evo becomes more capable thanks to a modern racing build, well suited for longer days racing in the saddle, aggressive race courses, and more trail riding time. To do that Specialized let the successful 100mm travel flex, pivot Epic frame & rear shock remain unchanged, but added a new longer travel 120mm fork, wider 2.3″ tires, and a dropper seatpost.
Tech Details
Specialized says it’s still a race bike. And with the identical carbon or alloy frames and the Brain 2.0 rear shock that has won XC World Cups, it will still pedal up like an XC race weapon. The longer travel fork promises both added bump absorption, and slightly slackened geometry for better control over technical terrain.
Evo handlebars get 3cm wider to 750mm for a bit more trail confidence, but remain lightweight and easy to thread through technical, high-speed singletrack. 125mm dropper post travel (100mm on the Small) gets your butt behind the saddle for the puckering descents, and doesn’t add much weight. Then new 2.3″ Ground Control & Fast Trak tires deliver improved grip, and the ability to run lower pressure.
The new Epic Evo comes in two models – the carbon framed Epic Expert Evo for $5800 with a GX Eagle group and the $3200 aluminum Epic Comp Evo with NX Eagle. The carbon bike will be available later this month, July 2018, with the alloy model coming a bit later in August.
By popular demand (it wasn’t yet available when we heard about the longer travel builds.)
