It is the ideal bike for high mileage adventure ride.

It is the ideal bike for high mileage adventure ride (click to enlarge). Photos provided by Santa Cruz Bicycles and Gary Perkin​

A big bike for big rides

The Santa Cruz Hightower is a big bike for big rides. It has 135mm of rear travel and a 67 degree head angle ready to tackle challenging terrain and long days in the saddle. It is a bike that can handle an Enduro race, a bike park or a quick fast spin on the local terrain. It is long, low and slack but also an efficient pedaler with a 74.3 seat angle. It is an agile and playful bike with 17.1 inch stays and a 150mm dropper post.

The two configurations are shown here with the 27.5 Plus on the left and 29er on the right.

The two configurations are shown here with the 27.5 Plus on the left and 29er on the right (click to enlarge).​

A Plus bike or a 29er first?

But wait, it has a trick up its sleeve. It is a 27.5 Plus bike as well with three bike configurations that can be purchased with 2.8 inch 27.5 wheels out of the box. The key to all this is it's not retrofitted with Plus tires or 29er tires compromised at either setup. It truly is optimized for both configurations. This is accomplished by a Flip Chip rear shock mount that raises the bottom bracket when the bike use 27.5+ wheels. The fork is also converted from 140mm to 150mm to maintain the bottom bracket height of 13.27 inches in either configuration. Head angle is 67 degrees in 29er mode and 66.8 in 27.5 Plus mode. Since the wheels are Boost front and rear, it's able to fit 29er tires and 27.5 Plus tires with ease.

A massive sweet spot

What we arrive at here is a bike with a massive sweet spot. It is a long and slack 29er that is capable and playful in one form. It's ready to take big, fast, epic rides were speed and precision are coveted. Then the owner can have an extra set of wheels and convert the bike over to a 27.5 Plus wheels to maximize traction on loose conditions. Shock absorption on extremely rocky and rooty terrain can be tackled too with very low tire pressures on 2.8 tires mounted on 40mm internal Easton Arc wheels.

Mtbr's FC jumping a log in the Patagonia forest.

Mtbr's FC jumping a log in the Patagonia forest (click to enlarge).​

Joining the Santa Cruz hit parade

This bike joins the Santa Cruz Bicycles hit parade that has been propelled by the recent wave of the Nomad, Bronson and 5010. This bike follows the same gene pool which is the characterized by long, low, slack bikes with incredible VPP suspension performance. Gone are the days of stiff suspension under pedaling as it's replaced by bikes with supple suspension and excellent traction.

Santa Cruz Hightower looks very chunky with 3.0 tires.

Santa Cruz Hightower looks very chunky when we test fitted it with 3.0 tires (click to enlarge).​

If you've ridden the latest Nomad and Bronson, then you'll have a good idea about how this bike feels. It is supple with it's smooth and responsive suspension and it is a carving machine with its short stays, low bb and stiff wheels. The 150mm dropper post is perched on a steep seat angle for excellent climbing performance and the seat gets out of the way for aggressive descending. Reach is long and stack is low as it's optimized for wide 800mm bars and a 50mm stem.

Continue to page 2 for more on the Santa Cruz Hightower and full photo gallery »

Santa Cruz Hightower has good seat stay clearance with shaped carbon tubes.

Santa Cruz Hightower has good seat stay clearance with shaped carbon tubes (click to enlarge).​

Why a 2.8 tire?

Plus bikes are typically defined with 3.0 sized tires but Santa Cruz designed the Hightower with 2.8 tires. "We just liked how the bike rode with 2.8 tires better." Product manager Josh Kissner succinctly put it. Plus bikes with 3.0 tires feel big and although they provide good flotation, they slow down the agility, responsiveness and precision on the bike. Santa Cruz felt that 2.8 tires were a lot more fun to ride on this full suspension platform as the bike still felt quick and lively.

The challenge with choosing a 2.8 tire is the outside diameter is quite a bit smaller than a 29er. The diameter of a 29er 2.2 tire is actually the same as a 27.5 3.1 inch tire so that difference could drop the bottom bracket of the bike by almost half an inch when using a 2.8. Since the Hightower is perfectly perched with a 13.27 inch bb height with 29er wheels, Santa Cruz devised a Flip Chip rear suspension mount to raise the rear of a 27.5 Plus bike. For the front, they reconfigure the same Rockshox Pike fork to 150mm of travel instead of 140mm.

Santa Cruz Hightower flip chip adjusts the height of the bike.

Santa Cruz Hightower Flip Chip adjusts the height of the bike (click to enlarge).​

A bit of good news is we tested the bike with 3.0 tires. We put on Maxxis Chronicle 3.0 tires and the frame handled it with decent mud clearance. And because of the height options with the suspension chip and the fork travel, the bike can maintain or achieve the perfect bb height.

Can you Enduro race it?

Riding the bike for four days in Patagonia, we explored the idea of using this bike as an Enduro bike where the bike needs to be pedaled up hills but only the downhills are timed. The answer is a resounding 'yes' as this is indeed a trail eating machine. Santa Cruz told us that we will see this bike at some Enudro World Series races this year.

The Bell Super2R came in handy for the Rally.

The Bell Super2R came in handy for the Rally (click to enlarge).​

Very similar in abilities to the Bronson, this bike can take on almost any descent. With its stiff 29er Boost wheels, it can hold a line and gobble up terrain in foreign, uncharted forests. And going full-speed down unknown terrain for the first time, this is indeed a great tool like the Bronson. But this bike has the edge in climbing prowess and configurability.

1x gearing only?

One highly controversial revelation during the Hightower product launch was that the bike was available in 1x drivetrain configuration only. There are no provisions for handling a front derailleur on this bike. The reason is that requirement was dropped in favor of handling Plus tires and the shortest stays possible at 17.1 inches.

The Hightower is available in two color schemes.

The Hightower is available in two color schemes, Sriracha Red shown here and Matte Carbon & Mint (click to enlarge).​

1x11 gearing is indeed one of the greatest developments in mountain biking. The 10-42 rear cassette coupled with a 32 front chainring has unleashed performance gains that has surpassed the expectations of many. But it's not for everyone as the gear range is not as wide as 2x or 3x drivetrains. Folks who are not as fit or riders in very mountainous terrain are left longing for a lower gear.

Resourceful riders optimize their front chainrings to match their local terrain, going down to a 30 tooth or even a 28 tooth front chainring. But this game has limitations as going as low as a 28 tooth ring has compromises as very small front rings loose pedaling efficiency and compromise pedaling feel.

Indeed as we did four days of hard riding in the Rally of Patagonia, we were often left on our lowest gear of 30 front and 42 at the bottom of massive climbs! We longed for a lower gear in mountains such as these.

Santa Cruz Hightower cable exit.

Santa Cruz Hightower cable exit (click to enlarge).​

Not being able to use a 2x10 or 2x11 drivetrain is a downer indeed specially with the development of fascinating systems such as the Shimano XTR Di2 system (with no front shifter). But the silver lining is 1x drivetrains with a much wider range are quickly becoming available such as the e*thirteen 9-44 cassette.

We are confident that more 1x systems with wider gearing will be introduced in the near future as manufacturers scramble to address the demand from consumers.

Continue to page 3 for more on the Santa Cruz Hightower and full photo gallery »

No aluminum version?

There is no aluminum version of this frame as it's only available in carbon called 'C' and high end carbon designated as 'CC'. Consequently, the lowest price point for the Hightower is $4599. This is a little bit unfortunate for those on a tight budget but Santa Cruz just doesn't sell enough aluminum bikes to justify the research and development required to meet their standards for stiffness and weight.

In the same vein, as their volumes on aluminum decline, they're not able to command the buying power that drive the costs down and the pricing for the consumer. That's why they developed the 'C' model carbon frame in most of their lines. this frame is only 200 grams heavier than the higher end 'CC' model but the pricing is only about $400 than aluminum version (in lines where this option existed.)

Configuration and pricing for the 29er. The pricing for a Plus version is the same.

Configuration and pricing for the 29er. The pricing for a Plus version is the same (click to enlarge).​

The bad

  • The $4599 price of entry for the GX1 Carbon 'C' model is a non-starter for some.
  • The $9799 XX1 price with ENVE wheels is difficult for most
  • The Easton ARC 27 wheels are good with 27mm internal wheels but we would have been much happier with 30mm internal wheels
  • 1x11 is a tough pill to swallow for some at least until wider range 1x gearing options become available

The Santa Cruz Hightower geometry is a radical departure from the Tallboy LT.

The Santa Cruz Hightower geometry is a radical departure from the Tallboy LT.​

The good

  • It is amazing as a 29er Trail and All Mountain bike
  • Very stable with long wheelbase and 67 degree head angle but quick and agile with short stays
  • Stock 150mm dropper fits with room to spare for a 5'8" rider
  • Boost front and rear wheels are stiff
  • 27.5 Plus bike no-compromise versatility is best in class
  • Cockpit is dialed with long reach, low stack and great bar and stem
  • Stunning graphic options in both colors
  • Dropping the Tallboy LT name in favor of this Hightower moniker gives it great identity

The bottom line

What we have here is a bike with a massive sweet spot. It is a no-compromise long travel 29er and a fun and adventurous 27.5 Plus bike. In either set of shoes, this bike can take on all comers and not appear to be a pretender in either weight class.

Santa Cruz Hightower against the sun.

Santa Cruz Hightower against the sun (click to enlarge).​

With the new PON Holdings owner, we were wondering if Santa Cruz Bicycles could continue to hit homer after homer. Well, they hit one out of the park again. Actually, two.