Head out for an all-day epic aboard the all-new Santa Cruz Blur TRc Bike. Santa Cruz's proprietary carbon fiber layup features continuous fibers around the joint areas, which allows the tube to be thinner while maintaining strength and stiffness. Five inches of travel won't kill you on long climbs, and it makes getting down a hell of a lot more fun.
Weaknesses: Rear derailleur doesn't shift as smooth as other XT products I have owned
Bottom Line:
I just recently bought this as a used 2009 leftover and got a pretty good deal on it at $2,000. They said the original price was $4,000, but I would compare it at probably $3,000. Either way, I got a great deal. At 28.5 lbs, it is not the lightest bike, but another lb. or two doesn't make a difference if I'm not racing.
So far I am really impressed with the performance of the bike as a package, except for the rear XT derailleur which in my opinion does not shift as smoothly as others I have owned.
For me, this bike performs better than both my previous Santa Cruz Superlight and my Ellsworth Truth. I am 50 years old and 10 years older than when I bought the Superlight and 8 years older than the Ellsworth. I feel I am able to easily do as much on this bike now as I could on those bikes back then.
The place it really shines is on technical uphills. The rear suspension helps keep the wheel firmly planted and gripping the terrain. On downhills, it is equally competent. Overall, just point and shoot where you want to go.
Similar Products Used: Santa Cruz Superlight, Ellsworth Truth
Bike Setup: Stock - Juicys, XT, LX
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Submitted by
Accend
a Cross Country Rider
from Boise, ID U.S.
Date Reviewed: October 25, 2010
Strengths: Good climber, light.
Weaknesses: The pivots are junk. They squeak all the time. No greased pivot points. Limited rear tire clearence, Watch out who you purchase your bike from. Read reviews BEFORE you buy.
Bottom Line:
I would not buy another Santa Cruz period. Their unwillingness to address the pivot issue was the last straw.
Similar Products Used: S.C. superlight Titus racer x
Bike Setup: XTR build kit.
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Submitted by
Old Friend Jim
a Cross Country Rider
from Littleton, CO
Date Reviewed: July 27, 2010
Strengths: Active suspension - great during pedaling and braking, light for a FS XC bike
Weaknesses: Creaky pivots
Bottom Line:
The Santa Cruz Blur XC is a great XC bike. It is light enough and fast enough to race, while the geometry and suspension make it great for long, rough trail rides. I have placed in short XC races as well as riden overnight on this bike in long endurance events. The bike has always performed well. The Blur XC is equally at home on shorter more technical rides as well as on longer, epic, all-day rides.
Similar Products Used: Pivot Mach 4, Giant Anthem X, Specialized Epic, Specialized Stumpjumper FSR, Gary Fisher Cake, Titus Racer X, Kona Dawg, Yeti 575, Yeti ASR, Specialized Enduro SL
Bike Setup: XTR Drivetrain and brakes.
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Submitted by
TomsMadness
a Cross Country Rider
from Mountainville, NY
Date Reviewed: July 25, 2010
Strengths: Strong climber, confident decender, "point n' shoot," as others say.
Weaknesses: LOW BB!!
Bottom Line:
My first FS bike to replace/supplement my 8 year old Cannondale Hardtail, and I was hesitant. BUT What a great bike. The forward geometry is excellent, suspension is awesome, this bike can just keep climbing. However, I now have to adjust my riding style and keep the cranks around 9/3 O'Clock when going over logs, rocks, etc...very common where I ride; already taken two headers in my first 100 miles gettin the cranks jammed up...get used to it I guess. Spending about 20 hours a week riding in the warmer months I couldn't think of a better FS frame and components for the prices I found. Once I was able to get her dialed in right, the speed and nimbleness is actually better than my hardtail.
Favorite Trail: Buffer Zone, Blue Mt., Schunemunk Mt.
Duration Product Used: Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$3000.00
Purchased At: Custom Build
Similar Products Used: None! Cannondale Hard Tails!
Bike Setup: SRAM X0 Drivetrain minus XTR Front, Fox F Series, DT Swiss, Thompson, Avid Juicy Ultimates
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Submitted by
Buck8154
a Cross Country Rider
from Gardnerville, NV
Date Reviewed: June 19, 2010
Strengths: Light (21.5 lbs), excellent climber, great handling, No bob!
Weaknesses: BB a little low, scrape bottoms of cranks on sections I would normally pedal through.
Bottom Line:
Love this bike, I came from a more dh/fr background, and am able to keep up, and out climb my buddies that are in better shape than me on long cc rides. Frame is good quality...No regrets. If you want more of an all mtn/light fr bike go with the blur lt though.
Bike Setup: Rock Shox sid team w/remote lockout
Rock Shox monarch 4.2 rear shock with lockout
Truvativ Noir Carbon GXP Team crankset
Truvativ Team seat post and stem
Truvativ Team carbon bars
Avid Juicy Ultimate Carbon brakes front and rear (white)
Sram XO rear derailler w/carbon cage, SRAM X9 front
SRAM XO carbon shifters
Mavic Crossmax SLR wheelset (Tubeless Capable, but I am running tubes right now)
Kenda Nevegal 2.1 Stick-e tires
SDG Titanium Fly seat (white)
ODI lock on grips
Shimano M540 spd pedals
SRAM PG990 powerglide 9 speed cassette
Cane Creek S8 headset
Bike Setup: spinergy rims, Hayes stroker trial brakes, Sram and Shimano drive train.
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Submitted by
BikeSwan
a Weekend Warrior
from Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Date Reviewed: April 29, 2010
Strengths: VPP suspension is unbeliebly smooth. I have been riding my 2004 Blur XC for 6 years now and Ihave yet to replace the bearihgs. The geometry is spot on, and is very controllable. In my mind this is the best Xc bike in the biz.
Weaknesses: Now that the carbon Blur is out I want that :-)
Bottom Line:
To put it simply, this is the best bike I have ever used. I would trust this bike to the end the the world. I strongly recommend you buy it.
Similar Products Used: Giant Anthem 1 / Ellsworth Truth
Bike Setup: Pace RC4l Forks / RaceFace Next SL bars & stem / XTR Drivetrain / Mavic X317 rims / Hope Pro 2 Hubs / Panaracer Cinder tires
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Submitted by
LethalJD
a Cross Country Rider
from Pittsburgh, PA
Date Reviewed: April 13, 2010
Strengths: Pretty well spec'd for a factory setup. Plush suspension when you need it, but still very tight for when you don't. Climbs like a beast because of VPP.
Weaknesses: Stock Kenda Nevegals were the worst tires I've ever used. Like dragging an anchor. Cornered like crap with those on. Switched to WTB Velociraptors and it was amazing. Would like to see FOX Float RP23 on it, but for what I paid, it's fine.
Bottom Line:
I bought this bike to replace my Rush, which replaced my Prophet. The prophet was more bike than I needed and the blur just didn't fit me quite right. The blur fits me like a dream and it truly point and shoot. Climbs like a beast, descends like a dream, and handles everything in between with confidence. What the others have said about chainslap on the shortened chainstay is true, and it's annoying, but if you know about it in advance you can place some protective tape/guards there. It's not the lightest Full Susp. XC bike in the stable, but it's a hell of a lot of fun to ride. Overall, I've been impressed with the build quality. Beware, things will not stick to the matte finished anodized aluminum frame (chainstay protectors, stickers, decals, etc.!)
I'm giving it a 5 for value since I got it for a great price
I'm giving it a 5 for overall since it's super fun to ride and I haven't had a single problem
Similar Products Used: Canondale Rush, Canondale Prophet
Bike Setup: Reba SL front, Fox Float R rear, XTR cranks and pedals
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Submitted by
marker parker
a Racer
from Gainesville, Florida, USA
Date Reviewed: January 2, 2010
Strengths: weight, geometry
Weaknesses: a tad pricey
Bottom Line:
The bottom line is that the bike is light, and because of this it is a good climber. Also, the geometry is such that the steering is very responsive. It begs you to fling it into turns. I've seen other reviews that said the bike climbs like a goat. I don't know about that, but I did notice when I cleaned it after a couple of hard single-track rides, the small chainring had not been used. Normally I have to drop to the small chainring for the steep parts of this trail. With the Blur XC I never had to.
A word of advice: if you get this bike, spend a couple of extra bucks and get some good tires. You will not be able to resist throwing it into corners, and it will rail through the turns if shod with good rubber.
Submitted by
jwhitaker
a Cross Country Rider
from Indianapolis, IN
Date Reviewed: November 14, 2009
Strengths: Fast fast fast! Very lightweight, handles like a hard tail and maneuverability is unreal. I have had no squeaks, creaks or any other nasty sounds. Climbing is very easy on this bike, and downhill is just the same. The handling is that of a hard tail.
Weaknesses: None I have found so far.
Bottom Line:
This bike is smoking fast. I ride with 3 other people primarily and they ride a Santa Cruz Superlight, Giant Trace X1, and a Specialized FSR XC. I can turn tighter corners, accelerate faster, climb hills, and race around in trails faster. I have rode a little longer than they have, but the Specialized riding is much more conditioned in cardio than I am. I do a lot of stairs, walls and gaps as well, and this bike handles it perfectly. All and all, I would highly recommend this bike to anyone.
Similar Products Used: Santa Cruz Superlight, and Iron Horse Scotch.
Bike Setup: Forks: Fox 32F100rlc
Rear: Fox RP23
Breaks: Avid Juicy 7
Shimano XTR Derailleur
Race Face bars
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Submitted by
Hinkle
a Weekend Warrior
from Colorado Springs, CO, USA
Date Reviewed: September 21, 2009
Strengths: lightweight, easy to pedal, plenty of travel for intense cross country riding. The Specialized I usually ride weighs 31 pounds, the blur is so much lighter
Weaknesses: I wish the one I demoed had better components.
Submitted by
DrDanBatchelor
a Cross Country Rider
from Roswell Georgia USA
Date Reviewed: September 1, 2009
Strengths: The bike is amazing. Very versatile. Great for both training and racing. Fox shocks rock!!. I have it for sale now because I am stepping up to the the new Santa Cruz XC Carbon, so make an offer on my Santa Cruz Blur XC aluminum. DrBatch@aol.com
Strengths: Responsive, Efficient, Strong, VPP, XC Race Bike
Weaknesses: NONE
Bottom Line:
This is an absolutely amazing bike, super fast, strong in all situations...the quintessential XC race bike. I have loved this bike from the beginning and it excels in all types of riding. It feels like it has more suspension than 4", super plush, fast pedaling bike.
Similar Products Used: Specialized, Cannondale Scaple, Trek
Bike Setup: Full XTR, FOX 32 Float, Formula R1, WTB XC Team Kit, Thomson 90mm Stem, Crank Brothers 4ti Pedals, Easton Monkeylite XC
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Submitted by
Adam
a Cross Country Rider
from Coeur d' Alene, ID, USA
Date Reviewed: May 29, 2009
Strengths: Ok I bought the original Blur frame in 2002. That is what I am reviewing here for you. The VPP is awesome. Very durable frame, stiff enough and not too heavy. Climbs great for a full suspension bike. Strong, I have ridden this frame hard and it has taken it all. I am 200 pounds so I am not a little guy.
Weaknesses: Originally the upper linkage was horrible,,,very noisy and I broke the one piece linkage that it came with. Once I updated it to the newer style, absolutely no problems and not a sound. Bottom bracket is a little low, but once I got used to it not a problem.
Bottom Line:
This bike really is awesome. For a Xcountry frame it sure does smooth out the bumps on the up and down hill. Once I took care of the upper linkage problem I have had NO problems. I know they changed some things on the newer frames that are supposed to make it even better. I just wanted to give some imput from somebody that has ridden a Blur since its inception. I like it so much I just picked up a Blur XC carbon frame that I will review after a few rides. I have very high expectation as the original is a great frame.
Bike Setup: XT cranks and front derailleur, XTR rear derailleur, Hayes hydraulic brakes, Thompson seat post, RP23 shock, Marzocci Marathon SL, Monkey lite bars.
Strengths: A screaming deal on chainlove. Rides very nice, no noticable pedal feedback in 2nd and 3rd chainrings. Sucks up the bumps very well. Snappy geometry while retaining a comfortable XC riding position.
Weaknesses: A bit heavy in the D-build kit @27.25 w/o pedals. Noticable pedal feedback in the granny ring, but is easily controlled by proper pedaling form (i.e. spinning). The Float R is not a platform shock, so if you're worried about pedal bob you should step up to the RP23 or similar platform type shock. Not a fan of the crossride wheels; 24 spoke wheels are gimmicky at best.
Bottom Line:
IMO the bike is heavily underspec'ed at the $3200 MSRP; but at $1600 this bike is a great deal. I'm very happy with it, and plan to do 24 hours of big bear on it this year. I'll be swapping out the stock nevegal tires (@800gm each) for Conti mountain or race kings (@~600gms each), which will knock a pound off the bike immediately... Definitely the kind of swap I'd recommend to anybody racing.
