I loved the first iteration, but the new frame in an XL with 10mm more travel front and back made it even more suitable for the way I like to ride on the Shore: it is more stable at speed, more confidence-inspiring in the steeps, and it pedals as well as its predecessor. I wish we didn't need labels, but they're useful, so I'll play along and maybe write well enough one day to find the words without relying on labels so much.Īt the beginning of this little experiment, the Transition Sentinel was intended to be a test bed for a bunch of SRAM products: AXS Eagle shifting, AXS Reverb Dropper post, and Zipp 3Moto carbon wheels. First, because the Sentinel easily fulfills both of those categories, and second, because there is a disturbing lack of creativity in the language used to communicate all things about mountain bikes, and we can do better than describing everything as being 'fire' or using the phrase 'send it' every time we drop in (damnit). That aborted rant was probably rooted in the fact that the Transition Sentinel is either a trail bike or an enduro bike, depending on who you ask, and I think that either label is insufficient. I almost started this article off with a rant about shitty bike category labels but I trashed it because I don't think I can handle more cynicism this week. I know this, because I went from the last generation Sentinel to this one, and even though I sized up from a Large to an XL, they're both clearly cut from the same cloth, and I have to say I'm a fan of the tailor. The 2021 Sentinel is no exception, but in this case the trend indicates that trail bike geometry is stabilizing. Since it was launched, the Transition Sentinel has been a bellwether for progressive trail bike geometry.
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