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BIKE TESTS: TREK XO2
Road Bike Action
January 29, 2009
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THE STORY
Trek has become an icon of American cycling with countless road and mountain bike victories. One area of racing where Trek has not routinely stepped atop the podium is cyclocross. The Trek X02 aims to change that. The XO bikes have been in Trek’s line since 2000, but were mainly used by members of the Trek/VW for off-season training. With the increase popularity of cyclocross, Trek has refocused their efforts on the XO line and looks to make a name for itself in the cyclocross scene.
The X02 is Trek’s top of the line cross bike. The frame is oversized aluminum mated to a Bontrager Satellite Plus carbon fork. A Bontrager Race Lite CX 46/38 Crankset breaks up what would be a complete SRAM Rival drivetrain, while a set of Avid Shorty 4 cantilever brakes handles the stopping duties. Bontrager supplies the remainder of the components with a Race X Lite stem. Race Lite VR, handlebars, a Race X Lite ACC carbon seatpost Race X Lite wheels and Jones CXR, 700x34c tires. A Bontrager RL saddle rounds out the package. The red and white paint scheme give the appearance of a race ready machine, while the white spoke, red nippled Race X Lite wheels, white accented stem, saddle and bar tape add to the clean pro-bike appearance.
THE FRAME
The XO2 uses Trek’s Alpha Black aluminum frame. The frame is designed to be light and fast. To this end, each tube has been butted or shaped with the purpose of adding stiffness, or reducing weight. The frame does away with any fancy CNC machining or crazy tube profiles. Looking at the XO2 one gets the impression that the bike is a straightforward, back-to-basics race machine. The frame has a slightly sloping top tube design that features down and top tubes that use bi-axial profiles to stiffen the bottom bracket and front triangle. Combined with the 1-1/8-inch externally butted headtube, the XO2 stays goes in the intended direction. The chainstays use a conventional tube shape, and combined with a lack of gussets at the bottom bracket create a tremendous amount of rear tire clearance.
THE PARTS
Trek did an impressive job when choosing parts for the XO2. The XO2 comes equipped with a SRAM Rival drivetrain with a 12-28-cog set. The SRAM Rival Shifters and derailleurs worked well, as we have come to expect, while the new carbon shift levers are a nice upgrade. The Avid Shorty 4 cantilever brakes offer good modulation and stopping power. The Bontrager Race X Lite wheels are smooth and reasonably light at 1490-grams. The Bontrager stem and bars work well and add to the high-end feel of the bike. The Bontrager carbon seatpost is a welcome addition due to its low weight and shock absorbing properties. The Bontrager RL saddle was comfortable and held up well throughout the test. The Bontrager Jones CXR tires provide good traction in dry conditions and showed little wear.
THE NUMBERS
The 56-centimeter XO2 came with a 72.3-degree head tube and a 73.6-degree seat tube angle, connected by a 55.8-centimeter top tube. Chainstay length and bottom bracket height were both cyclocross standards at 43-centimeters for the chainstays and 27.6-centimeters for the bottom bracket. The wheelbase measured out to a race standard of 102.3-centimeters. The Trek XO2 weighs 18.4-pounds.
THE RIDE
The Trek XO2 is a capable race bike. The frame is laterally stiff, with spot on geometry that inspires confidence on rough twisty courses. Out of the saddle sprints are done without a hint of flex from the bottom bracket. Despite the stiff bottom bracket the XO2 is quite comfortable and absorbs a great deal of trail shock. We attribute a lot of the XO2’s comfort to the Bontrager ACC carbon seatpost and the frames slightly sloping stop tube design. The XO2 cornered and descended well and rarely went off track. The Bontrager Race X Lite wheels are a perfect addition to the bike. They are reasonably light, laterally stiff and accelerate well out of corners.
We liked the slightly sloping top tube design of the frame as it added stand over height, increased stiffness and aided in comfort. However, we would have liked to see a flatter tube profile on the bottom of the top tube to make running with the bike more comfortable. While SRAM components and Avid brakes worked well, several test riders had a problem with the rear Avid brakes hitting their claves during out of saddle efforts. A lower profile brake would help solve this, but the sloping top tube design also plays a role by decreasing the angle and lowering the seatstays. The Bontrager Jones CXR tires worked well in sand and on hard packed surfaces but clogged up with mud easily and seemed a bit slick in wet conditions.
THE VERDICT
The Trek XO2 is a winner with solid handling, great components and exceptional mud clearance. While not the first name in cyclocross, it is clear that Trek did their homework when developing the XO2. Expect to see a lot more Trek XO2s on the podium in 2009.
Price: $2,859.95
Weight: 18.4-pounds
Info: www.trekbikes.com
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