2023 Rocky Mountain

Slayer Carbon 90

This summer, I had the pleasure of testing the Rocky Mountain Slayer Carbon 50, a beast of a bike designed for tackling especially challenging terrain. Despite riding a few new trails in dry and loose conditions, the Slayer felt like the perfect bike to push limits and gave me the courage to hit features I might have previously shied away from. The Slayer C50 features Rocky Mountain Bicycles' RIDE-4 geometry adjustment system, which allows riders to adjust the bike's geometry in slacker and steeper settings to suit the terrain they are slaying. I've been enjoying the front-end control and climbing comfort of slightly steeper bikes in recent months, so I set the geometry in the number-four position—the steepest setting—during my test rides. While throwing around a generous 180 millimeters of suspension travel in the front and rear, the Slayer surprised me with its remarkable climbing prowess. The medium size tested came equipped with a mixed-wheel setup. Featuring a 29-inch wheel in the front and a 27.5-inch wheel out back, the bike delivered excellent power transfer and traction. Even with the rear tire sporting a Double Down casing and Cush Core tire insert, it retained an efficient feeling. The steep seat tube angle of nearly 78 degrees ensures an efficient pedaling position, pushing the rider’s weight forward to keep weight distribution centered while cranking up steep climbs. The active Fox DHX2 Performance Elite rear coil is a welcome addition too as it generated extra grip over roots and rocks.

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According to Rocky, the Slayer is aimed riders looking for an “aggressive, big mountain bike that can smash bike park laps all day long, and still be pedaled to, from, up, and down their local trails.

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Dubbed the ultimate big-mountain bike, the latest iteration of the Rocky Mountain Slayer is an ultra-capable long-travel trail tamer—as long as that trail is sufficiently steep and technical.

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