If you’ve ever tried a cross-country MTB race you’ll know all about how crazy they are. Wild straight from the gun with constant fighting for position, maximum effort climbs and technical descents, they’re fun, frantic and most of all demand a heck of a lot from your bike. With their new lightweight XtC Advanced, Giant might just have produced the ultimate XC 29er, the bike that can take your riding and racing to the next level.
Giant have been making kick-ass bikes for a long, long time. Even before their first branded bikes hit the shelves in the early 1980s they’d been manufacturing frames for many of the world’s top cycling companies. If you rode a bike in the late 70s, the chances are it was a Giant frame, even if it wasn’t marked as such.
Since then they’ve become one of the biggest names in the game. With the new XtC Advanced they’ve hit the jackpot once again, a superlight carbon hardtail that provides just the kick you need to move up through the pack. It’s not a brand new bike, instead it’s an update on the one that’s been at the front of races for a few years. And, wow, what an update.
Lightweight, strong and fast
This new carbon-fibre whip is available in Advanced SL and Advanced models, with frame weights of 920g and 995g respectively. The Advanced SL frame is the lightest off-road rig Giant has ever produced, offering serious XC racers advantages all around the course.
Each frame is custom tuned for compliance based on its size. The carbon lay-up is individually tweaked to optimise the ride and provide the same race-winning acceleration and maximum control whatever size you need.
The difference between the Advanced and Advanced SL models can be found in the carbon technology employed in the build. The Advanced SL uses what Giant call ‘continuous fibre technology’ to reduce weight. It also features a resin treatment on the frame to improve impact resistance and keep your shiny new machine gleaming. The regular Advanced layup is slightly simpler which leads to that minor weight difference.
Taking a closer look at the bike (and falling a little bit in love with it at the same time) you’ll notice tweaks to the seatstays and chainstays compared to the previous XtC model. This acts to increase tyre clearance, and improve stiffness and comfort. Internal cable routing keeps things tidy – this is one clean looking machine – and the 29er 1X set up screams out “I wanna race!†at top volume!
A winning start
Giant have already demonstrated just how good this bike is. On its very first outing, at the 2019 Grinduro in California, Stephan Davoust rode his XtC Advanced 29 to take the win from a field stacked with serious talent. If you need more convincing that this is one winning machine, here it is.
There are two models in each of the Advanced SL and Advanced range. Sitting pretty at the summit is the top-end SRAM Eagle AXS-equipped XtC Advanced SL 29 0 – a pro-level race machine that will leave your rivals eating dust.
It’s the lightest off-road hardtail that Giant have ever built, offering exceptional climbing ability, smooth compliance through the rough stuff and absolutely uncompromising performance. If you crave top spot on the podium, this is the bike to take you there.
The Advanced SL 29 1 is built around the same superlight frame using a Shimano XT groupset to give the same amazing performance but without the eye-popping price tag attached. It’s still rapid, beautiful to look at and even better to ride.
The Advanced 29 1 and Advanced 29 2 use that slightly less NASA-level carbon tech but the ride is still out of this world. The 29†wheels and 100mm fork eat up XC terrain, whether that’s on your weekly race or burning up your local trails.
We’ll have this amazing new bike in store soon. Drop by and check it out – one look and, like us, you’ll be in love.
