2021 Guerrilla Gravity Gnarvana Rally Like Barelli Signature Bike

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Guerrilla Gravity is a Colorado-based outfit that is manufacturing its frames in-house. They use a material called Revved Carbon and a proprietary method to form the front ends. GG also takes a modular approach to frames. Riders can swap out the rear of their bikes to achieve more travel or alter the wheel size. As of right now, the Gnarvana is only available as a full 29er.

Highlights

• 29-inch wheels
• 160mm (6.3-inches) rear travel // 170mm (6.7-inches) fork travel
• Revved Carbon front triangle with 6061 aluminum rear triangle
• Modular Frame Platform
• Freedom Linkage suspension
• GeoAdjust headset with 10mm of reach and wheelbase adjustment
• Integrated-External cable routing
• Frame Storage System with mounting bracket for tools and a tube
• Water bottle mount
• 73mm BSA threaded bottom bracket with removable ISCG05 chainguide mount
• 12x148mm Boost rear hub
• SRAM Universal Derailleur Hanger
• Designed and manufactured in the USA
• Price: $5,905 as tested

The Gnarvana is GG's biggest bike, boasting 160mm of rear travel to accompany the 170mm travel fork. Vital had a First Look with the Gnarvana shortly after its launch and found it to be an absolute monster on the trails. Guerrilla Gravity uses an adjustable headset cup that alters the frame's reach. During our initial test, we rode a larger frame in the long setting for maximum send. For Test Sessions, we wanted to take a different approach and see if there was more to the Gnarvana. With two of our testers firmly in the Size 2 category and two of our testers just on the cusp of Size 3, we opted for the 2.

Here are the numbers as they shook out for our Size 2 test bike - Being only 1mm smaller than the Banshee (and the same as one bike that did not make the test in time) meant the Gnarvana had the smallest reach in this test a 444mm. This is offset by a longer 450mm chainstay length. With a 63.7-degree (the second most-slack in test) the Gnarvana ends up with a 1239mm wheelbase. This put the Gnarvana as the same length as the Pivot Firebird, despite having a 24mm shorter reach. A 76-degree seat tube angle made for a comfortable ride when seated and helped to propel the Gnarvana up the hills.

Our particular build is Yoann Barelli's signature build. Like all Guerrilla Gravity bikes, you can still customized the parts to your heart's desire. Ours is the default build. Keeping sponsor correct, the bike starts with RockShox suspension in the form of a Zeb Select+ fork and Super Deluxe Select+ rear shock. The drivetrain stays SRAM with a GX Eagle 12-speed build and Code R brakes with a 200mm front rotor and 180mm rear. Nice touches like a PNW bar and grip combo along with a custom SDG saddle help make a custom feel. Industry Nine supplies the wheels and hubs with the Enduro 305 and some flashy gold spokes to help you find the valve stem. Only our Maxxis Assegai 3C EXO+ tires broke from the stock build, which would have given us Hutchinson Griffus RLab tires. This resulted in a $10 upcharge when replicated through the site.

Rider Setup

Our testing team fussed with their settings during testing. The numbers below represent where they settled in the end.Compression clicks all started at the factory recommended settings and moved on from there. For simplicity sake, here are the highlight numbers that each tester used.

On the Trail

There are bikes upon which riders get a quick and easy read, knowing very soon where the limits are. Then there are bikes like the Gnarvana. It takes time to figure out what to expect here but once you do, there is a world of wild riding waiting to be tamed. The Gnarvana is particularly interesting because it is a handful at low speeds but really comes alive when other bikes start to show the limits of their ability.

On the whole, it felt like a big bike, much bigger than its numbers on a chart. This could, in part, be explained by the long chainstay. At 450mm, the back end of this bike was the second longest in our test. Testers noted having to use much more steering input to make the Gnarvana move through the corners. It was described as a bike that takes a heavy hand and aggressive rider to make it perform. Smaller testers did find the Gnarvana to deliver confidence and sent a message of whatever happens, it will have their back.

Rear suspension performance could almost be described as a tad harsh off the top. Once into the mid-stroke however, the Gnarvana is butter-smooth and puts on a master class in making softball to small bowling ball sized rocks disappear. Despite constantly blowing the fun-o-meter (sag ring) off the shock, we didn't get much in the way of harsh bottom-out from the Gnarvana. That said, a little more ramp out of the rear end would have lent more pop and could have diversified some of the Gnarvana's trail manners. It is worth noting that Barelli runs aRockShox MegNegcan on his personal rig. Perhaps he is looking for the same thing?

Enduro bikes need to climb, it is what separates them from downhill bikes. The Gnarvana is a bike that puts riders in an upright and comfortable stance on the uphills. Testers did note the pedaling platform was solid and lent to an efficient ride. This may not be a mountain biker's first choice for an all-day epic though. The longer nature and bold inputs that make this bike perform downhill can be somewhat tiring on the climbs.

Build Kit

On the parts spec side, we were quite impressed with the RockShox Select+ performance from both ends of the bike. We found the damping simple and effective to tune. Most of the magic came from adding two (for a total of three) volume reducers to the Zeb fork to assist with ride height in the steeps. Our Zeb did a fantastic job of taking on the rowdiest sections of trail and kept the Gnarvana on line.

If we were to make use of Guerrilla Gravity's customization tool on the site, it would absolutely be to upgrade the brakes to at least Code RSC models. The Code R that come on the bike had a terribly long lever throw. Despite bleeding them, we still wound up pulling the wheels and squeezing the levers to adjust the pads in. We got a touch of rub but it was better that than not being able to control this beast.

Our other complaint would be the 150mm dropper. The SDG Tellis works just fine, there just wasn't enough drop for our crew's preference. Again, riders can customize this when ordering a bike. SDG does offer the Tellis in a 170mm drop but Gurrilla Gravity has offerings from other brands too.

If high-speed chunk are routine in your rides, the Gnarvana is ready to eat.

Vital Test Session Take

It seems the Gnarvana is a specialist in the arena of tackling the more extreme terrain out there. Whether you decide to go with a larger frame or not will only affect the magnitude by which these traits are leveraged. To us, that is just fine. Guerrilla Gravity do not bill this bike as an all-rounder and they're making no apologies. If high-speed chunk are routine in your rides, the Gnarvana is ready to eat. For this particular bike, we'd suggest an upgrade to the brake levers and possibly looking at the RockShox MegNeg can to squeeze a little more out of this awesome platform.

Head here to catch the full 2021 Enduro Test Session Feature

Learn more about the Guerrilla Gravity Gnarva at ridegg.com