Three years of development, multiple prototypes and something special called IsoStrut, yes, this was the birth of the first gen Trek Supercaliber. The “OG” Supercaliber was designed to not only supersede Trek’s beloved Top Fuel in the very competitive XC/marathon arena, but to bring racers the ultimate master of all trades. The idea behind the frame and IsoStrut was to eliminate the inherent problem that comes with a full suspension, and that’s flex in the rear end from all of the pivots. So to help eliminate the rear flex, Trek engineers took their time to refine their design and bring racers a bike that almost acts as a hardtail and a full-suspension bike all in one, better known as an anti-squat system.
A few years down the line, Trek has brought out their new generation of Supercaliber, but the question is: Can they improve on the already very impressive package? To find out Trek South Africa made their Supercaliber SLR 9.9 XX AXS Gen 2 available for us to test over a few weeks.
So what’s new on the second-generation champ? Well, Trek seem to have crossed over some trail bike character traits onto this year’s bike with an increase in front and rear suspension travel now up 20 mm at the rear to 80 mm and 10 mm up front to 110 mm (compatible with 120 mm fork), we see a 10 mm longer reach and lastly a slacker headtube at 67.5° opposed to 65°. What these changes essentially mean is that the Supercaliber is also going to be more suited to shorter and faster XC riding than ever before.
Now Trek has got four different Supercalibers in the form of their 9.6, 9.7, 9.8 and 9.9 model range and within this range, we see two different carbon lay-ups, so you can roll light on the Supercaliber SL or ride even lighter with the World Cup-ready featherweight Supercaliber SLR. The 9.6 and 9.7 run the SL frame and we see the 9.8 and 9.9 run the SLR frame with some very high-end components that benefit the lightweight ideology of the SLR.
With Trek’s vast range of Supercalibers, you can easily choose your ideal bike depending on your skill or budget. You can get into the Supercaliber family for as little as 75k on the SL 9.6 Gen 2 and spend upwards of 300k for the state-of-the-art SLR 9.9 Flight Attendant Gen 2. As mentioned, we are on the runner-up to the Flight Attendant and the only real forfeit was the electronic suspension and in turn this brings the price down to R265,000.
The SLR 9.9 XX AXS is a mouthful and almost sounds like something that would be classified intel and hidden in some military air hanger and only ever brought out for secret missions. Nontheless this particular model is dripping in carbon components, it runs a RockShox SID SL Ultimate fork, a RockShox SIDLuxe shock, fully wireless SRAM XX SL AXS 12-speed electronic transmission, SRAM Level Ultimate 4-piston hydraulic disc brakes and we see lightweight Bontrager parts join the party in the form of Kovee RSL carbon wheels and carbon RSL integrated bar/stem combo.
Specs and spoils aside, the Gen 2 Supercaliber is a sexy looking bike. The cleared carbon on our test bike’s livery blends into the grey paint and gives the SLR frame an exotic factory racer look. I also love the look that has naturally evolved due to the new slacker headtube. It gives the Supercaliber a more attractive rounded-off side profile as opposed to the conventional triangular top tube we’ve seen on bicycles for the last 200 years. Our test bike came in the stealthy grey, carbon and black livery, and although I love the stealthy look, boy would I have loved some red forks, but hey, I’m a 90s kid.
Practicalities, if there is such a thing on a race bike, it would be the full suspension grip shift lockout on the left side of the handlebar, the dropper post for some faster descents, the internal trunking and in the case of our test bike the fully wireless SRAM XX SL AXS—such a smooth and flawless system to use.
How does it handle the trails? ‘Cleating’ up, I decided to plan three different rides to get a feel of how the Supercaliber would handle typical marathon riding, fast and technical XC, and why not throw in a bit of free-ride into the equation, especially because there’s a dropper post and we all know what that means. So we visited Hennops for a good 42 km of ebbing and flowing trails, Klapperkop nature reserve for the technical rocky climbs and Wolwespruit for a free ride and shakedown before comparing notes.
One of my best mates Marco Leibrandt (bit of a Specialized fanatic), joined to form a second opinion and since I’m the camera guy too, room to do my job. We both have very different riding styles, myself being more of a technical rider and sprinter and Marco being more of a climber and endurance rider.
As mentioned above, the Supercaliber has gained more trail bike characteristics, and what we found out is that this doesn’t make it any less of a marathoner than before, but it broadens its already race-winning XC capabilities. At Hennops, I could feel that the bike was very responsive whether it was attacking a climb or acceleration out of tight corners, those initial pedal strides made it a breeze to leave a few riders in the dust.
Adding to the fast rolling character of the IsoStrut and how the Supercaliber puts its power down is the TwistLoc remote, this instantly turns the shock and fork solidly shut. Although this is probably never going to get used outside of racing for that extra 1% push to cross a line seconds quicker or to win a sprint, it does make those longer flat sections a breeze with zero movement.
Rocky terrain is less of a challenge for the Supercaliber now because of its increased travel. Climbing some seriously silly technical hiking trails at Klapperkop was almost too easy, almost equivalent to riding Trek’s EXe, jip I’m talking about Trek’s gnarly sending machine. I rode a similar trail not too long ago on the EXe, which is an e-bike with almost double the suspension travel and has wider and grippier tyres, yet the Supercaliber was seconds slower.
The first generation Supercaliber had to be properly set up for a rider, due to having such little suspension travel, making a badly setup Supercaliber either a really jarring ride or one that would bottom out regularly. The second gen is more refined in that sense, both in its damping quality and with its increased travel allowing for more tunability.
How does it feel to ride with the IsoStrut or the anti-squat setup compared to a normal bike? Is it more similar to a hardtail or softtail? Similarly to a hardtail, the Supercaliber is a fast roller. It can feel a bit slippery when pushed hard on loose terrain or on tree routes, but it feels progressive in its action, which translates to a smoother and more connected ride than a hardtail. In a nutshell, it rides more like a softtail, but with more feedback, faster rolling speed and less fatigue as you can put the hammer down more often on different kinds of terrain.
Coming from a BMX and enduro background, I enjoy my free rides and my fast XC riding these days. For me, the Supercaliber was a massive surprise even at Wolwespruit, where the dropper was down, and the cranks were level. I won’t call it a Unicorn, but rather a Rhino. It handles all XC and Marathon riding at the top with the big boys and girls. Marc from Trek Bicycle Wolwespruit did an amazing job setting up the suspension, seeing us really push the Supercaliber on the jumps, berms and rocky sections. Even with Marco onboard, the front forks didn’t bottom out, and the rear shock never felt lacking. Obviously, if we were planning on riding the Supercaliber on more Enduro-like routes, we would put more suitable rubber for grip and possibly wider tyres. For this kind of riding, other Trek bikes would suit ‘Wolwe’ much better, but it’s surprising to see and to know that a lower travel bike like the Supercaliber can get the job done.
At the end of the trail, I think Trek have made a very good and attractive option available in the form of the generation 2 Supercaliber and, in turn, a very tough choice for those who are racers and also not racers. The thing is, Trek know racers are going to jump onto a Supercaliber singing its praise and winning races, but I think there will be a crossbreed of Top Fuel and Procaliber riders or hardtail and softtail XC riders jumping ship because the Supercaliber is just that good.
If not from me, visit your local Trek Store and take a Supercaliber for a Demo ride here.
