At just over 100 miles long and starting 10,000 feet above sea level, the Leadville Trail 100 is one of the toughest and most prestigious XC mountain bike races in America. I’m racing Leadville this year along with our Consumables Coordinator, Chase Robertson.
When Chase and I got selected through the lottery to race Leadville, we frantically started shopping for mountain bikes to take on this new challenge. Coincidentally, we both chose the same bike — the previous generation Specialized Epic EVO! (Maybe we were inspired by our co-worker Craig’s Leadville Epic EVO.) We decided to get our bikes side-by-side so we can check out how our rigs stack up.
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Bruce’s Specialized Epic EVO
Year: 2021
Size: Medium
Fork: Fox 34 Step-Cast Factory, 120mm
Shock: Fox Float DPS Factory
Crankset: SRAM XX1 Eagle, 34t, 170mm
Power Meter: Power2Max NGeco MTB
Rear Derailleur: SRAM X01 Eagle AXS
Cassette: SRAM XX1 Eagle, 10-52t
Chain: SRAM XX1 Eagle
Shifter: SRAM Eagle AXS
Handlebar: FSA KFX Flat - 720mm
Stem: FSA KFX - 100mm
Grips: Ergon GE1 Factory
Saddle: Specialized Power Pro Mirror
Seatpost: Fox Transfer SL Factory, 100mm
Pedals: Crank Brothers Candy 7
Wheels: FSA KFX i25 Carbon
Tires: Vittoria Peyote XC, 2.4” + Vittoria Air-Liner Light inserts
Weight: 24 lbs 7 oz
I originally had 760mm handlebars with an 80mm stem, but after a few long test rides I felt a bit cramped and uncomfortable, with too much pressure on the outside edges of my palms, especially on climbs. Since filming the above video, I’ve tweaked the cockpit to make it longer and narrower by cutting the bars to 720mm and swapping to a 100mm stem. Before Leadville, I’m also planning to swap to a smaller 32t chainring because I will likely need an easier climbing gear.
I also made a video where I upgraded this bike to get it race-ready, so check that out if you’re interested:
Chase’s Specialized Epic EVO
Year: 2023
Size: Large
Fork: RockShox SID Select+, 120mm
Shock: RockShox SIDLuxe Select+
Crankset: SRAM XX1 Eagle, 32t, 165mm
Power Meter: Quarq DZero
Rear Derailleur: SRAM X01 Eagle
Cassette: SRAM X01 Eagle, 10-52t
Chain: SRAM GX Eagle
Shifter: SRAM X01 Eagle
Handlebar: Whiskey No. 9 Carbon Flat - 760mm
Stem: Whiskey No. 7 - 80mm
Grips: ESI Chunky
Saddle: Specialized Power Comp
Seatpost: X-Fusion Manic, 150mm
Pedals: Shimano XTR PD-M9100 Race
Wheels: Roval Control Carbon
Tires: Specialized Renegade T5, 2.35”
Weight: 25 lbs 3 oz
Chase originally planned to run SQLab Innerbarends on his handlebars to provide an additional riding position. Unfortunately, they’ve been banned in the Leadville race series “in the interest of safety.” Strangely, traditional bar ends located outside of the grip are still permitted. Personally, I disagree with this, but it’s the rules, so Chase had to remove them.
Chase said if he could change one thing about his setup, it’d be his dropper seatpost. He wants to run a dropper post at Leadville, but he’d love to have a lighter option like the Fox Transfer SL to shed a few grams and get his bike under the 25-pound mark.
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