Field Trip: Rocky Mountain's $1,669 Growler Doesn't Hold Back on the Descents
PINKBIKE FIELD TRIP
ROCKY MOUNTAIN GROWLER
Doesn't hold back on the descents.
Words by Sarah Moore, Photography by Tom Richards
ROCKY MOUNTAIN GROWLER
Doesn't hold back on the descents.
Words by Sarah Moore, Photography by Tom Richards
Next up is the Rocky Mountain Growler 40, the final hardtail in our Field Trip value bike series. It's an aluminum 29er that comes with a 140mm fork and retails for $1,669 USD. Rocky Mountain bills it as “an incredibly capable hardtail” and with its 64 degree head tube angle, it's the slackest of all the bikes we rode on the Sunshine Coast.
Rocky did include some of the features you’d hope to see on pricier bikes, with all the cables running inside the frame through rubber grommets, including the dropper post line, a threaded bottom bracket, and a Boost thru-axle rear end. Our Growler 40 is the middle child of the bunch, with the most expensive Growler 50 model retailing for $2,099 USD Growler 50 and the Growler 20 priced at $1,039 USD.
Rocky did include some of the features you’d hope to see on pricier bikes, with all the cables running inside the frame through rubber grommets, including the dropper post line, a threaded bottom bracket, and a Boost thru-axle rear end. Our Growler 40 is the middle child of the bunch, with the most expensive Growler 50 model retailing for $2,099 USD Growler 50 and the Growler 20 priced at $1,039 USD.
Rocky Mountain Growler 40
Fork travel: 140mm
Wheel size: 29"
Frame construction: aluminum
Head angle: 64 degrees
Chainstay length: 435mm
Reach: 440mm (medium)
Sizes: S-XL
Weight: 31.2 lbs / 14.2 kg
Price: $1,699 USD
More info: www.bikes.com
Fork travel: 140mm
Wheel size: 29"
Frame construction: aluminum
Head angle: 64 degrees
Chainstay length: 435mm
Reach: 440mm (medium)
Sizes: S-XL
Weight: 31.2 lbs / 14.2 kg
Price: $1,699 USD
More info: www.bikes.com
Let's talk about that 64-degree head angle for a second. When you sit on a full-suspension bike, the rear end sags just like the front, meaning that the bike gets a bit lower to the ground and maybe a nip slacker, but when you sit on a hardtail it’s only the fork that sags, obviously. That means that hardtails get a little steeper when you’re riding them. Their dynamic geo is steeper than the static geo, to sound all official. The seat tube gets a 75-degree angle and, again, this will actually get a tiny bit steeper rather than slacker as it does on a full-suspension bike.
All sizes come with a 435mm rear-end, with the reach running from 425mm on the size small to 500mm on the XL. Our medium sits at 450mm.
Climbing
The Growler’s focus is clearly about having as much fun as possible, and I think we all know where that usually happens: on the descents. So the thing we were curious about before riding the bike was how much that would take away from its climbing abilities. Our climb trail snakes up through a few tight spots here and there and definitely had some slippery roots to trip you up, but the Growler went through it all just as well as the steeper bikes.
That being said, the steering isn't as quick and precise and it's not going to be quite as adept at the really tricky stuff. It’s also not a bike that’s going to encourage you to chase a fast time up anything. Of course it’s efficient, but the WTB rubber makes you feel like you're chained to one spot whenever the trail was rolling slow. We were grateful for the wide-range Deore gearing in those moments.
The Growler is best suited to a rider that's going to pedal it up the mountain at whatever pace is comfortable, with the ride being about fun instead of fitness. It’s not a climber’s bike, but I doubt that’s what a potential Growler owner will be interested in.
Descending
You know what a Growler owner probably is interested in? What happens on the way back down. That's where the Growler is leaps ahead of the other hardtails we had for the Value Field Test. Actually, it’s ahead of some of the full-suspension bikes as well. It all comes down to that progressive geometry and spec choices made to suit aggressive riding.
The position with the 800mm wide handlebar, low slung frame, and how the relatively slack head angle puts the front wheel a bit farther out in front of you all combine to instantly make the Rocky feel more ready for anything than the other bikes. One of our test trails was a high-speed descent covered in embedded round rocks and slippery roots, exactly the kind of place that can surprise you quickly, but the Growler was much more stable and relaxed about things than the Norco or Canyon. Instead of reacting to what the front-end was doing and constantly being on the edge of control, the bike’s calmness gives you more time to prepare and think ahead about what’s coming.
The Growler's composure gives you time to actually look at the trail more, and so you can find better (or just more fun!) lines. As Mike Levy said, "It’s the only hardtail on test that I rode like a full-suspension bike - similar lines, similar moves, similar commitment." If you're going to continue to push the limits on this bike, do yourself a favour and upgrade the brakes since the 2-piston Shimano brakes that come on the bike don't have enough initial bite and lack power.
Pros
+ Incredible on rough, fast descents
+ Spec well-suited to aggressive riding
Cons
- Handling not as quick and responsive as traditional hardtails
- Can feel sluggish on mellower trails
The 2021 Pinkbike Field Test was made possible with support from Toyota.
Video: Jason Lucas, Max Barron
Editing: Devan Francis
Author Info:
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Although I do agree that most people should be able to see a head angle and understand that it has a wider turning radius without hearing it from levy.
...and bikes can’t be playful, either!
People say stuff to have said stuff, whether it lines up with the last stuff they said is only a bonus. Bike people are among the least consistent with their claims. People.
I love the the Growler bike and actually tried to buy one last year and had one of the last few lined up, in my region, for purchase when a shipping issue to the shop from the manufacturer scuttled the deal. I ended up getting a Fuse (similar to growler, bit steeper HTA) and it has been awesome... super playful bike on descents and climbs just fine as long as I am up to it.
I wish the growler could be purchased as frame only.
Honestly if you're climbs are constantly so technical HA makes a difference it must be a PITA to get to the descent bit as you'd spend your life doing slow awkward bits and not quickly ascending.
If you want a better climbing bike, put lighter, faster rolling tyres on it and adjust your suspension, if you want a better descending bike, well, geometry is the limiting factor if you don't already have the right tyres and brakes on.
Short version, buy a bike that descends well, trade off tiny bits of descending to make it climb much better if you want to.
Every company should consult urbandictionary before naming their products...
“I’ve got to get off the phone now, that five pound carne asada burrito I had last night has produced a giant growler in my intestine that is about to crown”
might get me in big trouble
or maybe not, depending on who I say it to
UK: un-kempt
Would you be more enthusiastic if it were called Twat? Since Rocky Mountain Oyster is taken
Peeler (stripper)
Shocker (two in the pink, one in the stink)
GSpot (don't bother bro, you'll never find it and she's faking anyways)
STD (you put your peter where you shouldn't have)
Hooker (just add blow)
Stiffee (we all get them)
Handjob (something you do to yourself)
Hummer (the dreams)
Sanchez and Dirty Sanchez (nsfw)
Hustler (many wasted teenage fantasies)
Foreplay (something yall need practice in)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=X73BNKS04xw
Giant has the XTC (Ectasy) since 1999 and the Trance since the early 2000's. Maybe they're not so out-of-the-loop either.
That was the EA-6 Prowler
For example, with cars, the Mustang is an iconic name with cache, whereas an “X7” may be better at denoting where a vehicle falls in a product lineup, but it’s far more sterile and forgettable.
With bikes, just about every review of the Stumpjumper starts with the reviewer talking about how far back the name goes, and how by attaching that name to this bike, it shows how important that particular bike is to the company.
Whereas something like a SB115 is a company playing it safe. The designation works fine for sales purposes, as it serves a function of telling people something like how much travel it has, but it’s frankly pretty boring as far as names go. It’s kind of like naming your kids FW1 and FW2 (kid by first wife number 1, and kid with first wife number 2).
Too slack on the susser really annoys me but I haven’t really found the limit on the hardtail. And I do a lot of DJ/trials messing about on that bike too.
I don’t feel it’s necessarily a confidence thing (tho for sure will help with new riders). It just think the bike feels nicer on the trail, more predictable.
Associated issues of bushing bind and stuff don’t really seem to be an issue either, in my experience.
For the earlier part of my life I was a snow sports instructor. I was so anal about how people should learn, I’d scoff at riders doing flips off a tiny lip “yeah but look at his technique” that’s how far I’d disappeared up my own ass... These days it’s all about fun for me, whatever gives the biggest grins is what’s good in my book. The best way to get better (if that’s what is fun) is to do whatever it is more, and keep having fun doing it. People will get better at things they enjoy without even thinking about it and perhaps we shouldn’t think about it so much. Just go out and play!
Please forgive the way I’ve explained that, I get the angle about learning on a hardtail. Part of me kinda agrees.
With a long front end and slack HTA you can keep your weight more forward on the descents which can give you a ton of control. You can ride steep and fast terrain on older geo just fine, but your weight is going to have to be farther back and sometimes you're just holding on.
Modern "aggressive" geo really moves the riders weight forward on the bike by making the front end longer. With your weight forward I feel you can ride much more aggressively and with more stability.
This was my mantra for years as a bike shop rat, mechanic, manager, etc.
I’ve changed my tune a bit in the last 6 or so years. Bikes have changed, trails have changed, the skill level is through the roof, and its all happened quite quickly when I look back.
I’m not sure there’s a “need” to learn basic skills on a hard tail, or if there ever really was. Maybe it was more of a “This is how I learned, so it must be right” mentality. I have riding buddies that never threw a leg over a hard tail, and I certainly cant find fault in their handling skills as they blow by both up and down on the techy bits.
You know whats fun, mountain biking, in all forms really.
Without fear = confidence.
In this context:
- you can get stand in a strong position and feel the fun/thrill of having more freedom to creatively control the bike
- less urge to drag brakes. Braking tends to have you get back in a weak position in anticipation of brake dive, and it also lowers traction/control. Feels more fun/thrilling to let go more, perhaps letting you experience a level of riding you thought was reserved for the top athletes. Need stronger brakes to scrub speed at the last second for corners
Well, 90%,
Hard tails are a tonne of fun, I’ve had my fair share,
Le Toy 3,and 4
DMR trail star LT
.243, (running a 24” rear wheel, and 170mm Marzo 66 fork, man I miss that bike)
Love them.
I find myself lusting after something steel, and highly adjustable.
Toying with bikeCadd, and messaging Marino about a highly adjustable hard tail that can be run 27 or 29, with adjustable blah blah blah.
Turns out, I like bikes, they’re a tonne of fun, and realize I’ve spent way too much time telling others what I think they should ride, only to find out, I’m a bit of a twat.
Be good to one another, and have fun out there!
I bought this bike last october to be a winter/shoulder season bike. It hasn't disappointed in the least, and it brings a huge smile to my face when I take it out.
Last night, took it on some of Canmore's best trails. Mix of ice, mud, loam, rocks, roots, snow, etc. 15km and 500m of climbing later, i was suprised how well this thing rode. This was my biggest ride on this bike since i bought it, and definitely the most varried terrain.
Sure, you have to pick your lines, but you can plow through a lot. This bike climbs really well, and descends really well too. The low standover height is fantastic. WTB tires are a highlight.
The growler does get rattled on high-speed chunky rooty stuff. Or maybe its just my skills.
I'd love to put a better fork on this bike and see how it opens it up.
Love my growler.
yes i know it is a beer container across the pond but my god that's funny or is it fanny....
Next let's see ~$2K USD hardtails (in the $1700-2300 range):
$1849 Devinci Kobain SLX 12S hardtail w/Marzocchi Z2 fork & Shimano 12s drivetrain;
$1999 Canyon Stoic 4;
$2099 Rocky Mountain Growler 50 hardtail;
$2239 Marin San Quentin 3 hardtail.
The sagged head angle thus becomes roughly 65.5 to 66 degrees same as many trail dual suspension bikes.
Bikes.com says 150mm RS 35 and Alivio 4-pot brakes.
But why would you call it a Growler? It conjures up all sorts of unpleasant images!