Bike Review: Specialized S-Works Stumpjumper 29er HT

In 2010, Specialized is challenging to be king of the, "Ultra-fast XC Race machine" title. The S-Works Stumpjumper 29er HT (hardtail). Built from their top-notch, "10M FACT" carbon fiber, the frame weighs in at a svelt 2.4 lbs! An out-of-the box 17.5-inch version weighs in just over 21 lbs, but if you're willing to use a little creativity, a sub-20 pound geared version can be had without sacrificing durability or performance (see below).

Specialized uses innovations like, pressed-in XTR bottom bracket bearings, a tapered head-tube, and compatibility with the Specialized carbon cranks, to maximize performance and weight savings. They also seem to be embracing a more progressive / aggressive geometry (lower / slacker / shorter). The head angle is a relatively slack 71.5-degrees, with a 12-inch bottom bracket, 17.2-inch chainstays, a 73.5-degree seat tube.

Taking advantage of SRAM's XX 2x10 potential, this build has a 39x26 chainring setup with an 11x36 10-speed cassette. There is a minimal loss of gearing from a traditional 3x10, but a great savings in weight and better chainlines.

In order to shed additional weight over the stock version, this build did the following:

1. Replace stock wheels - Stans Crest Rims / DT Swiss 240 hubs / supercomp spokes (and bolt-on skewers)


2. Replace stem / bar - Ritchey WCS 4-Axis stem and Salsa 8-degree flat bar (oh yeah, and foam grips).


3. Replaced brakes - Formula Oro Puro brakes (this actually adds about 40 grams to the total weight of the bike)


4. Replaced rotors - 6-inch / 4-inch Hope two-piece rotors with titanium bolts


5. Pedals - Speedplay Ti-Frogs


6. Saddle - Bontrager XXX-lite 27.2 carbon post with alloy shim and Specialized Phenom cromoly saddle (just 5-10 grams heavier than the ti-version at a fraction of the cost).

These changes managed to get the total weight down to 19.9-lbs! With water bottle cages, the total weight is still under 20-lbs at 19.99-lbs (see pictures).

Some of the other component highlights include: Specialized Fastrak 2-bliss tires, an XO grip-shift front shifter, XX rear shift pod, XX derailleurs, and Rockshox Reba w/ tapered carbon steerer tube and crown.

Over the past few months this bike has been ridden through the Santa Ana mountains, as well as local wilderness parks such as Santiago Oaks and Laguna Wilderness. Trails range from long fire road climbs to sweeping singletrack, and some chunky high speed sections thrown in for fun.

The slack head angle helps when the trails starts to get steep, yet still keeps the handling crisp enough to avoid the dreaded, "tractor-trailer handling." Where this bike really shines is when you start racking up the mileage and the elevation gains don't stop. The 29-inch wheels help smooth out the miles. This, combined with the 90-mm of travel on the fork and carbon fiber frame, the bike actually feels like it's got a bit of rear suspension as well.

One thing that really stands out is the, "get-up-and-go" attitude the bike has when you start hammering: laterally super stiff with no feeling of lost energy.

If you're looking for a serious XC-racing machine or long distance marathon ride, look no further. As a side note, if $6,100 retail isn't your cup of tea, check out the Expert Carbon or Comp editions: great values and performance at a more reasonable price.

from contributing writer Eric Akiyoshi, The Path Bike Shop race team member