The Specialized Crosstrail Range

If you’re looking for a lightweight street-wise and trail-friendly bike the 2012 Specialized Crosstrail range could well be towards the top of your list.

: Crosstrail Sport

In contrast to their Specialized Sirrus cousins, the Crosstrail collection is intended more for those who like to venture more off the beaten track, rather than concentrating on speed on the tarmac. All models feature suspension forks and fat 45c tyres which will aid riding over rough or looser ground. Having said that, they are equally well suited for commuting to work or college, and many users of the Crosstrail enjoy the fast, comfortable ride they get around town.

While a kilo or so heavier than the corresponding Sirrus, they are still lightweight and fast, yet robust enough to take the bumps and ruts you might meet on the towpath or on some of our less than perfectly maintained urban thoroughfares!

The 2012 range consists of four models, which show a fairly logical progression of quality of components. All are built around the same A1 Premium aluminium frame though. The sleek lines of the bikes, enhanced by stunning colour finishes are really eye-catching and distinctive. Practicality has obviously been important for the designers, as the frame has clearance for mudguards and has brazed-on fittings for a rack and kickstand mounting.

: Crosstrail Comp

Forks

Suntour suspension forks are featured throughout the range, increasing in quality and reducing in weight on the higher models. All have a lockout function, so you can lock the suspension when not needed. This is mechanically-operated on the Sport model – just a cam which stops the piston moving. The hydraulic lockout on the other models works by stopping the fluid moving past the piston, resulting in a ‘softer’ lock.

Any lockout saves you a lot of energy, as the fork movement absorbs some of the work you put into actually moving the bike forwards. So if you don’t need the shock facility, why waste effort?

Brakes

All the 2012 Crosstrail models feature disc brakes – and not only discs, but hydraulic discs at that. The smooth operation you get from the hydraulic operation of a powerful disc system is a real pleasure to use. There’s a bit of a downside however, in that maintenance of hydraulics can be a bit involved. Having said that, modern components are getting better all the time, so that shouldn’t really be an issue.

Discs of course have the advantage of keeping the braking surfaces out of the wet and mud, so maintaining efficiency and reducing wear and tear if you do a lot of wet running.

: Crosstrail Pro

Gears

The other main variation across the range is the gears. All have triple chainrings, which will give you plenty of ratio choices, especially the all-important (for most of us!) low gear for hills. Chain guards keep bits of you out of the oil and the teeth.

All the models in the new range now have 27 gears, the quality of components increasing as you move up the range. The M-390/Acera combination on the basic Sport is a good robust mid-range choice, while the increase in spec up to the very nice Deore/Deore XT Shadow of the top-of-the-range LTD is a fairly logical progression.

On all the models, Specialized have put more resources into the rear derailleur, which is as it should be as that will be doing most of the work after all. RapidFire gear shifters are famously easy to use – just click up and down the gears with finger and thumb.

: Crosstrail LTD

Wheels

As already mentioned, the 45mm tyres are ideal for trips onto the grass and gravel, having plenty of tread on the side for grip. But being semi-slicks the face of the tyre is much smoother, so keeping the rolling resistance low when on the road. Coupled with the 700mm (road- rather than mountain-bike size) rims, you will have plenty of speed if you use the Crosstrail for commuting.

There’s just one point worth mentioning – a number of buyers have reported that the tyres supplied are rather prone to punctures. It could be that a bit more tyre pressure might have helped. Otherwise upgrading to a more puncture-resistant tyre such as the Specialized Crossroads Armadillo Elite could be the answer if you experience similar problems.

Bars & Pedals

The riser handlebars make for a very comfortable riding position, while comfort is enhanced by the Specialized Body Geometry saddle, which uses CrMo alloy rails in the two highest-spec models. All come with flat pedals fitted – fine for 90% of users I’m sure, who want to ride in everyday shoes or trainers. You could always upgrade to cleated pedals if you intend to do more strenuous riding at a later date. The Crosstrail is certainly up for it if you are.

In Conclusion

So within the Specialized Crosstrail range there’s quite a choice. All the models obviously conform to the same design philosophy – performance bikes that will suit the commuter, but will also allow for more off-road riding than the average road-oriented hybrid.

At £530, the Crosstrail Sport looks great value for money – solid mid-range components, with suspension fork and hydraulic disc brakes. It could be all you need.

There are about £200-300 steps between models – so the choice of which to go for probably comes down to budget in the end. I don’t think that any money spent in choosing the best you can afford would be wasted – the upgrades you pay for in each case are real. Specialized don’t specify any weights for the new range, although the magnesium forks on the Comp, Pro and LTD would make a slight difference. So I don’t foresee that spending more will buy you a significantly lighter bike, just progressively better bits and pieces.

I’ve detailed all the techie stuff in the table below. Specialized offer help with sizing advice here.

Anyway, click through to Evans site to see what they have to say and get their up-to-date prices:-

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Why not browse their superb website – but be warned, you’ll probably be in there for hours……….

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	Specialized Crosstrail Sport	Specialized Crosstrail Comp	Specialized Crosstrail Pro	Specialized Crosstrail LTD
Frame	Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium with smooth welding, fender and rack braze-ons, forged drop outs and kickstand mount	Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium with smooth welding, fender and rack braze-ons, forged drop outs and kickstand mount	Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium with smooth welding, fender and rack braze-ons, forged drop outs and kickstand mount	Specialized A1 Premium Aluminium with smooth welding, fender and rack braze-ons, forged drop outs and kickstand mount
Fork	SR Suntour SF11-NVX-DS-MLO, alloy lower, 28mm stanchions, coil spring, mechanical lockout	SR SunTour SF11-NRX-D-LO, magnesium lower, Cr-Mo stanchions, hydraulic lockout	SR SunTour SF11-NRX-D-LO, magnesium lower, Cr-Mo stanchions, hydraulic lockout	SR Suntour SF11-NRX-E-LO, magnesium lower, Cr-Mo steerer, hydraulic lockout, coil spring, 75mm travel
Front Derailleur	Shimano M-390	Shimano Alivio	Shimano Deore	Shimano Deore
Rear Derailleur	Shimano Acera, 9-speed	Shimano Deore Shadow, 9-speed	Shimano Deore XT Shadow	Shimano Deore XT Shadow
No of Gears	27	27	27	27
Shifters	Shimano, SL-M390, 9-speed RapidFire	Shimano Alivio, 9-speed RapidFire	Shimano Deore, 9-speed RapidFire	Shimano Deore, 9-speed rapid fire
Chainrings	48x35x26T	48x 36x 26T	48 x 36 x 26T	48 x 36 x 26T
Cassette	Shimano 9-speed, 11-32	Shimano 9-speed, 11-32	Shimano Deore Hollowtech	Shimano 9-speed, 11-32
Pedals	Composite plastic body, loose ball bearings with reflectors	Super light alloy, loose ball, with reflectors	Super light alloy, LSL sealed bearings with reflectors	Super light alloy, LSL sealed bearings with reflectors
Brakes	Tektro Draco hydraulic disc brake, dual piston	Shimano BR M-446 hydraulic disc brake, 160mm rotors	Shimano BL-M505 hydraulic disc brake, dual piston with 160mm rotor	Shimano BL-575 hydraulic disc brake, alloy backed brake pads, 160mm G2 Cleansweep Rotor
Handlebars	Alloy riser bar, 25.4mm, 25mm rise	Butted alloy riser bar, 31.8mm, 25mm rise	Butted alloy riser bar, 31.8mm, 25mm rise	Butted alloy riser bar, 31.8mm, 25mm rise
Grips	BG XCT dual compound, Kraton rubber, closed end	BG XCT dual compound, Kraton rubber, closed end	BG XCT dual compound, Kraton rubber, closed end	BG XCT dual compound, Kraton rubber, closed end
Rims	Alex Disc alloy 700c, double-wall, 32 hole	Alex Disc alloy 700c, double-wall, 32 hole	Alex Disc alloy 700c, double-wall, 32 hole	DT Swiss 485 disc, double wall, pinned with eyelets, 32 hole
Tyres	Specialized Borough XC Sport, 700x45c, 60TPI, wire bead	Specialized Borough XC Sport, 700x45c, 60TPI, wire bead	Specialized Borough XC Sport, 700x45c, 60TPI, wire bead	Specialized Borough XC Pro, 700x45c, 120TPI, aramid bead
Saddle	Specialized BG Crosstrail, 143mm, steel rails	Specialized BG Crosstrail, 143mm, steel rails	Specialized BG Crosstrail, 143mm, CrMo rails	Specialized BG Crosstrail, 143mm, CrMo rails
Colour	Black/Charcoal	Red/Black	Black/Silver	Black
Sizes	S, M, L, XL, XXL	S, M, L, XL, XXL	S, M, L, XL, XXL	S, M, L, XL, XXL
Price	£530	£700	£900 - Due Apr 2012	£1200

Tern Cycling Reviews UK

The Specialized Crosstrail Range