Readers Rides - Commencal Meta 4x

Finding the right trail bike for a downhiller is always one of the best definitions of the word 'compromise' that one can find. There are few  of us out there that want to go superlight and twitchy of an xc machine, as after the grind of the ups come the downs which intuitively will be ridden hard and fast. Faith in componentry and a solid frame are key. Unfortunately the word 'solid' also means 'heavier' and if you then throw into the mixing bowl the desire to take such a machine to somewhere like Chicksands for a thrash then there will be many out there who think that finding the right bike will be a quest. Well maybe for some of us, the holy grail may have been found in the mountains of Andorra. After a proclamation of such, it is worth noting that any bike is going to be a compromise but if you are currently riding a 5/6 inch beast weighing in at more than 34lbs then you maybe should look a bit closer. The compromise comes in the form of pedalling. The linkage on the meta actually does a pretty good job of removing pedal feedback (compared to a Kona four bar system) and the pro pedal on the shock helps too so you end up with a pretty stable platform for going up. The compromise comes with the frame as it is designed for a bit more down than up. This probably makes for about 10-15 % more effort required compared to an xc bike but it is a compromise worth taking. Added to that was the conversion to single ring up front thus saving weight but to be honest there have been the odd moment when a granny ring would have been less pain. After a good month though and the legs have just got used to it and it is no slouch on the ups. It’ll never be a champion climber but if you go up mostly for the downs then you wont be disappointed here. This thing climbs better than a lot of 5-6 triple ring bikes with pro-pedal!! The frame is pretty overbuilt as it is designed for slamming and the sizes come up pretty small and a 5'10 rider will need the large so this isn’t a bike for the larger rider. At first the pedalling position feels a bit weird on the ups as the small frame makes you feel like your knees may hit the bars but actually you get used to this over time. The advantage of all this compromise is that the thing flies downhill with all the confidence of a mini DH bike but with only 100mm of travel. It has often been commented that it's the quality of the travel rather than how much that matters and the 4X is a case in point. 100mm front and back here feels enough for hammering and feels more stable and manageable than some bikes with twice as much. The fox 32's were re-tuned by Mojo to be a lot stiffer and more like the new Fox 4X offerings and this helps the bike perform the way it should. All said, the bike is no pig to ride up at all, its just a matter of it being a bit different but on the flat and the downs the payback is instant and you find yourself pushing your own boundaries and being far more playful. Weighing in at 32lbs it certainly isn't an XC ride but it feels lighter than it is. Hit a root or a whoop at speed and all of a sudden you aren't hauling the bike in the air, you are floating. It's stable in the turns and tracks the ground well. The fact that when you are riding it, you know the frame has been overbuilt in key areas means you ride with added confidence. The paint job divides opinion but if you are one of those people who wants something uncommon and you don't mind standing out then it shouldn’t be an issue. Actually with white parts it looks sweet but really looks are secondary to performance So all good on the trail but, the bike park? Chicksands and its mixture of mini DH and 4x offered a great opportunity to test the bike pedigree. The seat post (while lovely) wont go down far enough for this type of riding so a second cut down seat post for these kind of duties is probably best. In short, the thing just flies; fast through the berms and it simply wants to get airborne if you let it. The frame is small and it does feel like you are pitched over the jumps a bit more than on a DH bike but that triple will be mine at some point on this bike for sure. I cannot get away from the grin this bike puts on my face. Riding this bike is like a permanent injection of 'trail buzz'.  It's like one of those things that shouldn't actually happen; the laws of mountain biking say so. You shouldn't be able to get a bike that rips down, eats up the hills but it does exist. I'm then left with the fact of wondering how light this bike could be built. If you aren't a heavy rider, then you could get away without the chain device and spec lighter tubeless wheels…then you really would be clocking up your air miles or munching the hills. Not just '4x' but 'trail' and 'mini DH' too - this bike is something special… Spec Meta 4x VIP frame Fox RP23 rear shock Fox Float 32R (2005, swapped lowers for 15mm version, retuned) Mavic 521 rims on Halo hubs Maxxis High roller 2.35 Shimano XT brakes Thomson Elite X2 50mm stem Sunline V1 handlebar Lizard skin – Peaty – White grips E13 LG1+ chain guide Thomson seat post XT shifter and rear derailleur XT crank with 32 tooth chain ring Crank bros pedals www.commencal.co.uk Article: jimbo22