2019 Marin Alpine Trail 8

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The phrase “Made for Fun” is written somewhere on all of Marin’s bikes, their steadfast mantra. It is an ideology emphasized in the brand’s catalog, as there are no “filler” bikes or wonky in-betweeners, just fun shred-ready bikes that stack the ratio of smiles per mile. The ethos of the re-birthed Marin keeps the focus tight and on track, which is paramount when reshaping a 32-year-old company with roots firmly planted in the humble beginnings of mountain biking. Fresh and progressive, but sensible and smart would be a good way to describe the designs. For 2019, Marin has gone ahead and doubled down on these concepts and created the Alpine Trail, a 29er trail bike designed to cover riders from ripping around the local singletrack to blasting down high alpine ridge lines.

On the last day of Crankworx in Les Gets I met up with the Marin folks, John Oldale (International Marketing), Chris Holmes (Brand Director), and Matt Cipes (MTB Product Manager), as well as two Marin athletes, Veronique Sandler and Nikki Whiles. John, Vero, Nikki, Roo Fowler (photographer) and I all went out for a group ride on one of the local tracks in Les Gets to give the big wheeled shred sled a proper shakedown. Click play to learn a bit about Marin's current direction, the bike's development, and key details that stand out:

2019 Marin Alpine Trail Highlights

• 29-inch wheels
• 150mm (5.9-inches) rear travel // 160mm (6.3-inches) front travel
• Series 4 aluminum frame
• MultiTrac suspension platform with one-piece rocker link
• Bridgeless seatstay
• Coil shock compatible
• Full internal cable routing
• Deep seatpost insertion across all sizes
• Chainstay mounted post mount disc brake
• 148x12mm Boost thru-axle
• 73mm threaded bottom bracket with ISCG05 tabs

Geometry

Suspension Kinematics

On The Trail

I was rocking the size large Alpine Trail 8 with my personal flat pedals bolted on, everything else was “as is” regarding how the bike would be sold. Vero was also on the Alpine Trail 8, with John and Nikki sporting the Rift Zone and Attack Trail, respectively. As we journeyed across the hill to the trailhead, I anticipated having to get used to the fresh steed… which I’m glad I didn’t stress about, as I was immediately comfortable on the bike. The Alpine Trail 8 easily passed both the wheelie and manual test – which isn't always the case with long-travel 29ers.

I didn’t have any expectations going into the ride, but I certainly wouldn’t have predicted that I’d be so in tune with the bike that I might as well have been aboard my personal ride. The planted feeling from geometry and playfulness from the suspension struck that magic balance of handling.

Going up was just as easy, the neutral seated position, overall wheelbase, and balance of the bike kept the traction on high and the front wheel down. Two of the steepest climbs in the valley happened to be on this ride, and both were cleaned with ease – one standing, one seated. It was impressive.

After taking a requisite admiration-of-the-view-at-the-top stop for Instagram, we dove right into the fun part of the ride. Taking off down the trail, I had the goal in mind of just riding the bike and seeing what would happen – I didn’t ask about the Alpine at all before we headed out, as I didn’t want to color my first impressions of the bike. After a little bit of descending, we pulled up to wait for Roo who had stopped for some shots and John asked, “So what do you think?” to which I said, “I don’t have to think, this bike just does!” That is to say, the characteristics of the bike are so well combined, the level of predictability and feel of the bike are incredibly intuitive. I didn’t have any expectations going into the ride, but I certainly wouldn’t have predicted that I’d be so in tune with the bike that I might as well have been aboard my personal ride. The planted feeling from geometry and playfulness from the suspension struck that magic balance of handling.

The remainder of the ride continued to be inspired and fast, with the big wheels and dialed suspension tune eating all the root chatter and paving the holes. Pulling for little gaps and monster-trucking were frequent, as were my shouts of stoke from behind the bars as we continued to fly through the big pine forest. The appeal of a quiver-killer became immediately apparent for me on this outing, as there is little on which the Alpine wouldn’t be fun to ride.Though a size large, the bike never felt sluggish or lazy. Being relatively lightweight likely helped with this, and the 800mm bars were actually an asset as it gave an extra degree of control and assertion when hanging on through the rough.

It is clear the bike was designed and tested by riders with degrees, not people with degrees who ride. I couldn’t stop smiling during and after the ride, and I can say with confidence that the end-user/consumer of this bike will have just as much fun as I did – the Alpine Trail 8, it just does!

2019 Alpine Trail Build Kits and Pricing

Alpine Trail 7 - $2749 //2699€ //£2200

Alpine Trail 8 - $3699 //3599€ //£3000

Visit www.marinbikes.com for more details.

About The Tester

Zach Faulkner - Age: 27 // Years Riding: 17 // Height: 5'10" (1.78m) // Weight: 205-pounds (93.0kg)

Also known as #MTBJesus, Zach looks like a circus bear on a bicycle. His riding style has been compared to a landslide, replete with sounds of destruction and debris chasing his rear wheel down the hill. He rides flat pedals because they win medals, and he’s fond of quad-piston brakes on all of his bikes. His zeal for riding is life-long, having been astride a bike since before he was forming memories. Bikes kept him in the woods and out of trouble through his teenage years, and after more than a decade of racing DH, can now be found lying in the dirt next to race courses around the World behind a camera, writing at his computer late into the night, or out on the trail thundering through the woods.

Photos by Roo Fowler and Zach Faulkner