Riding a prototype bike is always fun, but when it boasts a never-before-seen suspension linkage, a gearbox, and Gates belt drive, it really piques your curiosity! In September, I got the chance to ride a prototype Priority Vanth in the Whistler Bike Park. I was impressed by the bike’s ability to handle rough terrain and its stability in the corners.
Given my limited time on the bike and the fact that the prototype had some non-production components, I focused mainly on the Vanth’s suspension qualities. I’ll definitely say that for a 165mm travel bike, it handled the park’s rough runs with ease. I also found it felt very well-balanced front-to-back, and I didn’t notice anything negative about the belt drive system.
Prototype Priority Vanth:
Before we get into how the bike rode, I should note that the prototype Vanth I tested was not built with its production component spec. The main difference was that the prototype featured a Pinion 12-speed gearbox, but Priority switched to a 9-speed Pinion C1.9i Smart.Shift model for the finished bikes.
Sharp eyes might notice the prototype’s rear shock is a previous year model of the Fox Float X2. Production bikes will come with the Float X2 (Performance Elite or Factory, depending on the build) in the current year model.
The prototype bike did not say ‘Priority Bicycles’ or ‘Vanth’ anywhere on it, but they left one clue as to its origins. The Project 174 stickers on the frame refer to Priority Bicycles’ address at 174 Hudson St. in New York.
Ride Impressions:
I am 5’10”, so luckily, the size S2 frame Priority had built up was suitable for me to ride. The S2 frame has a 475mm reach and a 448mm rear center. The head tube is 64°, and the seat tube angle is 78.5°.
The Vanth’s 64° steering angle is slack enough to shred a bike park comfortably, and a great all-around number for an enduro bike. The longer 448mm rear end gives the bike a nice, stable feel. The front end is a bit longer than I prefer for a bike I’d pedal around on, but it felt pretty good in the bike park.
I only got to spend one afternoon in the Whistler Bike Park riding the Vanth prototype. I didn’t go crazy trying to dial everything in to perfection, but I definitely got an impression of the bike’s ride qualities. Since I rode in the bike park (and the cable was too short on the prototype’s dropper post!), I didn’t really do any climbing on the bike. However, the bike park offered a great chance to test its suspension qualities.
The prototype’s Fox Float X2 rear shock was set up to my body weight in psi. This pressure seemed perfect, as every lap left me at 98-100% travel. Right away, I noticed the Vanth offers very good small bump absorption. The bike buttered through high speed chattery trails and smaller brake bumps quite smoothly, with the rear wheel maintaining solid traction.
Generally, the rear end took the harshness out of all impact sizes quite well. Only big, square-edged rocks really challenged it, and that only happened a few times throughout all my laps in the park. I recall several times when I was approaching a big rock or root and preparing for a hard impact, yet the Vanth rounded off those hits better than expected. This is all the more impressive when you remember it has a 27.5” rear wheel and 165 mm of rear travel… at no point did I think the Vanth needed more squish.
Despite the impressive bump eating capabilities, the Vanth did not lack support in corners. Between having good mid-stroke support and the suspension’s rearward travel, the bike felt great in the berms. It bounced through tight turns quite well, but it feels especially stable when you’re speeding through a big berm. With the wheelbase growing under compression, I felt well centered over the bike, and both wheels stay firmly planted as you hook around corners.
After riding a trail filled with tight, quick turns, I noticed the rearward axle path still offers those advantages in sharper corners. I never thought the bike felt too long or sluggish to maneuver, even in berms you almost bounce off.
With the Pinion gearbox at the BB, the Vanth’s centered weight distribution did seem to increase the feeling of stability in corners, too. It felt pleasantly easy and natural to steer the bike into my chosen line and hold it through big swoopy berms.
One weakness of the high pivot linkage is pop – I did notice the Vanth doesn’t pop off jumps the way many other bikes do. With a decent lip or rise to lift off, it wasn’t hard to get airborne, but it doesn’t have the poppy feel other linkages can offer. As a quick reminder, I might have been able to improve on this by playing with suspension settings, but I only had a short time to ride the bike.
Pulling up the front wheel wasn’t particularly easy on this bike either – The reach is a tad long for me at 475mm. Given that the rear end is lengthy at 448 mm, and gets longer under compression, it makes sense that the front end doesn’t pull up as easily as a bike that has a more traditional axle path.
It was easy to forget that the Vanth runs a Gates belt drive system. The belt runs very smoothly and quietly, but you don’t think about it while riding. There’s no noticeable difference in acceleration or power transfer; I’m not a professional racer, but I didn’t feel any lack of stiffness or flex from the belt while cranking hard. The belts are supposed to shed mud well, too, but I didn’t get to test that since I rode in dry conditions.
The Pinion gearbox shifted perfectly every time, but it’s different when you’ve never ridden one! It is nifty to be able to shift gears while you’re stopped at a trailhead. With this gearbox/shifter, there is nothing to indicate what gear you’re in, and you can’t glance back at your cassette to double-check.
Priority did impress me in several ways with their first full suspension MTB. The linkage does what you’d want a high pivot bike to do; It gobbles up bumps very well, carries speed through rough terrain, and produces a highly stable ride on chattery trails and in the corners. The Vanth is much more of a plowy bike than a poppy, lively trail skipper, but that’s exactly what it was built to do.
For all the specs and details on the new Priority Vanth, check out my launch article.
