Tested: Marin Alpine Trail XR Enduro Bike

Marin’s new Alpine Trail XR cuts a classic silhouette. It’s big, beefy, and the AXS build features a beautiful two-tone pink and blue splatter paint job. On paper it’s pretty simple: a 160/170 mm bike for doing “more than trail, less than DH things.” And yes, it does those “enduro” or “freeride” things very well, but it’s also got a few aces up its sleeve in the form of in-frame storage, and a bunch of flip chips and adjustments to help switch up the frame.

So since I never learned good self-control, let’s get to dessert before we even start dinner. If I was in the market for an affordable long-travel, do-it-all rig, I’d have a hard time looking past the Alpine Trail XR. This rig is awesome, and I keep finding myself recommending it to friends or anyone who asks about it out on the trail. So here’s my perspective - and then, in a few weeks, Deven will check in with his take after thrashing it in the Whistler Bike Park.

Marin Alpine Trail XR in a Nutshell

• Travel: 160 mm (rear) 170 (front)
• Wheel Size: 29” or Mixed 29”/27.5”
• Size Tested: Large
• Head Tube Angle: 63.5°
• Bike Weight: 39.37 lbs (17.86 kg)
• Partial build weight (complete bike without wheels, tires, rotors, or cassette): 26.03 lbs (11.81 kg)

The Alpine Trail XR is (for now) the longest-travel bike in Marin’s lineup. There’s rumblings of a link kit that will convert it to the DH bike that we’ve seen some of their athletes on, but for now, its 160 mm is as much as you’re going to get from a Marin.

As I mentioned above, the Alpine Trail cuts a pretty classic silhouette. It’s a Horst Link, long travel bike with a vertical shock that looks awfully similar to a bunch of other bikes with similar intentions. But Marin really nailed the details on this frame, which is even more impressive given that the frame only retails for $1,849.

Up front, there’s an angle-adjust headset with a swappable upper cup that allows riders to adjust the head tube angle +/- .75°. There’s an internal storage compartment in the downtube, beefy molded rubber protection on the downtube, and chainstay, and two flip chips: one on the seat stays and another on the chainstays. These chips allow you to set up the Alpine Trail for 29” or 27.5” rear wheels, as well choose between two BB height/chainstay length positions.

While there are affordable aluminum bikes on the market that have similar numbers to the Alpine Trail (the Transition Spire and Patrol come to mind) the Alpine Trail manages to include another level of modularity and adjustability, at a lower price.

Frame Details

This does not feel like a “budget” frame. All of the flip chips are well-marked and easy to work with. There’s oodles of rubber frame protection and all of it is subtly Marin branded. The downtube storage is not quite as refined as current options from Specialized and Trek, but it’s absolutely adequate. The 34.9 mm seat post is a nice touch, as is the classy Marin head badge. There’s an integrated fender for the main pivot, a threaded BB, UDH, and all the other niceties that you’d expect.

All-in, you could tell me that this bike cost a lot more than it does, and I’d believe you.

Geometry and Adjustability

There are a lot of geometry adjustment choices here. As more and more bikes become highly modular thanks to flip chips and headset cups, it seems like some brands are struggling to communicate what each setting looks like coherently. Marin is not one of those brands. They provide this awesome chart detailing recommended settings, and on their website you can very easily plug in your configuration to see how geometry changes. I wish every other brand that offers this sort of modularity would design tools as good as Marin’s. As far as I’m concerned, this is the gold standard right now.

I rode the size Large Alpine Trail which, in its default Low BB/long Chainstay setting, has a reach of 484.52 mm, a seat tube angle of 78.3°, and a head tube angle of 63°, along with 442 mm chainstays. Flip that chip around, and you get a 490 mm reach, 435 mm chainstays, 63.5° head tube, and 78.8° seat tube.

From either position you can swap the headset cup to make the bike slacker (lowest you can go is 62.4°) or steeper (steepest you can go is 64°). That means you’ve got a total of 6 geometry positions available in the stock mullet configuration, and another, identical six available if you flip the seatstay chip, and install a 29” rear wheel.

That’s a lot of options. But, just like the Garden of Eden, there are a couple of off-limits combinations. Marin says you can’t run a 27.5” wheel with the chips in the 29” position - it’ll result in a problematically low bike, and, similarly, a big wheel in the small-wheeled position will have issues with frame interference.

All in, the Alpine Trail has pretty standard geometry numbers for this class of bike, with plenty of room to push in either a more radical, or more conservative direction. I got along nicely with the 642 mm stack height, although I wouldn’t have minded it being a little higher, and my weak back appreciated the steeper seat tube angle.

Spec Choices and Value

Marin offers the new Alpine Trail in two complete builds, or as a frame only. The more affordable, $4,599 XR build I rode is pretty dialed with two exceptions. First the good (bordering on great): Rockshox Ultimate level suspension on the GX build is much appreciated! The Zeb and Super Deluxe coil are quite nice on a bike this price. The mechanical GX drivetrain also does the job admirably. Marin handles the touchpoints and wheels, and does so impressively well. Nothing felt cheap or sub-par, and the Marin branding on it all is clean and cohesive.

The stock wheels aren’t terribly light, but have held up well to a bunch of poor decision making on my part. The stock tires are awesome for mean trails, but probably overkill for plenty of folks. The EXO+ MaxxGrip Assagai is a wonderful front tire, and the DoubleDown MaxxTerra Assagai is a great rear tire, if I’m not pedaling to the top. It offers noticeably more grip and control than a DHR II, but it also feels a lot slower on smooth climbs and pavement sections. On the sort of trails I found myself seeking out on the Alpine Trail, it was great, but if I was pedaling this bike more, and logging longer days, I would swap it out for something faster.

The vast majority of the build is great, and “cooler” than I’d expect for a bike at this price range. The two exceptions are the dropper — this bike deserves more than 170 mm of drop in the Large size, so I swapped on a 213 mm option – and the brakes.

To their credit, I think Marin did their best here. They specced SRAM’s 200 mm HS2 rotors with the stock DB8 brakes, which make a big difference. But for a bike like this, the DB8 just doesn’t cut it. I’m sure these spec decisions were all made a long time ago, but this is a bike that begs for SRAM’s Maven Bronze. On the sort of big, steep, sustained descents and techy moves that the Alpine Trail shines on, the brakes were consistently the limiting factor for me. They just don’t bite with the power and consistency that I’m looking for on a bike like this.

For $800 more ($5,399), you can upgrade to the AXS build, which comes with GX Transmission and Code Bronze brakes. For my money though, I’d buy the XR and upgrade the brakes, or just grab the $1,849 frame and shock and build it up.

Compared to the alloy Transition Patrol, at non-sale prices, the Marin frame costs $550 less, and includes more adjustability, the option to run a 29” rear wheel, and in-frame storage, although you do lose the Patrol’s external rear brake routing. Similarly, a full-price GX build alloy Patrol with a similar build to the XR costs you $900 more than the Alpine Trail.

Where does the Marin Alpine Trail XR shine?

The Alpine Trail is an absolute blast exactly where you’d expect it to shine. It’s so much fun on fast, rough trails, steep, technical trails, and trails with big jumps and features. For PNW “big bike” riding—winch-and-plummet pedaling, shuttling, or bike park laps, the Alpine Trail is an absolute hoot. I’ll dive into how the different geo settings affect the bike lower down, but consistently, regardless of setting, it provided a really intuitive, easy-to-love platform. I found myself not thinking about the bike at all, and instead focusing on the trail.

The Alpine Trail is shockingly quiet, it’s the quietest bike I’ve been on this spring by a fair margin. No chain slap, no weird creaking or frame noises, just freehub buzz and tires on dirt. I tend to associate budget bikes with loud, loose bikes, and the Marin has been the exact opposite. I wish the much more expensive bikes I’ve been on lately were this quiet.

I found myself shuttling on the Alpine Trail a fair bit, this is a rad bike for fast shuttle trails with jumps, drops, and chutes. It stays really composed and delivers great traction, even while riding in greasy conditions blind. It’s not that it’s exceptionally planted or exceptionally poppy; instead it’s really predictable. The bike never feels weird or squirrely, or dead. That makes for a confidence-inspiring experience.

No, the Alpine Trail doesn’t have the same “conjure traction out of thin air” sensation as something like the Trek Slash , but it’s close enough to not matter much of the time.

Where does the Marin Alpine Trail XR make some compromises?

This is not a bike that I would want to pedal up to the alpine to ride the sort of trails that generally exist above treeline. It’s a bit of a chore on long climbs, thanks to its weight, and that rear Assagai. It pedals fairly efficiently, but there's still a lot working against you, especially on more rolling singletrack climbs. And it feels sort of wasted on mellow descents. It’s not as “bull-in-a-china-shop” out of place like some enduro bikes (the Privateer 161 comes to mind) on those mellower trails, but it’s easy to tell that the bike would rather be going faster, bigger, steeper.

Finally, those brakes. They’d probably be fine for a lighter rider, or someone with flatter terrain, but the physics of my 200 lb body, and this 40 lb bike that wants to go fast and take chances just didn’t jive with the DB8.

Permutations

I tried the Alpine Trail in several different configurations, and if I owned this bike, I think I’d switch between a few of them regularly. For my uses, if I could only have one setting, I’d default to the neutral head tube angle, and the higher, shorter rear end. It’s a nice combination that works well for me on most trails. It’s overkill on flat trails, and not as confidence-inspiring as it could be on steeper ones, but most of the time, it’s great.

In full DH mode (slacker head tube angle, long chainstay) this thing is a hoss, in the best way possible: go fast, take chances, and plow through obstacles. I love this setup for bike parks and faster shuttle trails. However, I did find that longer rear end to be a bit cumbersome, so I ended up running it in the slightly shorter and steeper setting for most shuttle days. It made the bike noticeably easier to muscle through tighter moves, while giving up a little bit of that “be a passenger and just let the bike do the work” sensation.

On pedal trails/for more day-to-day riding I tried a few different layouts, and settled on the high, steep, short setting for most meat-powered riding. It’s still plenty capable, but feels less cumbersome on mellower trails.

All-in, the Alpine Trail is a great use-case for flip chips. They don’t radically change the character of the bike, but they give it a very usable range that allows riders to dial in exactly what they’re looking for.

Comparisons

The most obvious comparisons to the Alpine Trail are the Transition Spire and Patrol. With the right flip chip setup, the Alpine Trail can get pretty close to the geometry numbers of either. I’ve owned both a Spire and a Patrol, and while I got along well with both, I’d take the Alpine Trail over either. It’s just more versatile. Sure, you can adjust the head tube angle of the Transitions, but it requires a new headset, whereas the Alpine Trail is a quick swap. And I found that the Alpine Trail is a much quieter frame, and I appreciate its in-frame storage.

Compared to the Rocky Mountain Altitude , I found the Alpine Trail to be more intuitive, and easy-going at lower speeds. On the Altitude I felt like I had to really turn up my riding ability to get the most out of the bike. And while I think the Altitude performs better when you’re really pushing hard, for the vast majority of my riding, the Alpine Trail is just mellower, and easier to get along with. It’s also much quieter.

It’s much more similar to the Privateer 161 . The Privateer delivered a slightly more sensitive, traction-heavy sensation in the rear suspension, and just generally feels more progressive - you can tell very easily where in the suspension travel you are by feel alone. Whereas the Alpine Trail felt less sensitive off the top and also less supportive in the bottom of the travel. I understand the appeal of super progressive designs like the Privateer, and think that in the right situation, or with the right rider, they make a ton of sense, but the Alpine Trail’s rear end just felt more predictable. It’s also much quieter, has more adjustments, and has internal storage.

For Now

Marin has a winner on their hands with the Alpine Trail. This bike is a great blueprint for a full-value, but affordable gravity-focused ride. I’d happily ride the Alpine Trail as my one bike, as long as I lived somewhere with descents to justify it. The value is there, the adjustability is there, and most importantly, so is the performance.