First Look: Trek's New 2019 Remedy

There are five Remedy models to pick from, with the top-tier 9.9 model shown here going for $6,999 USD. The other two carbon models, the 9.8 and 9.7, cost $5,499 and $3,999. If aluminum is in your future, you can choose between the $3,799 Remedy 8 or the Remedy 7 for $3,299 USD.




Trek has long used their Active Braking Pivot, four-bar layout, and it's what you'll find employed on all of their high-end full-suspension bikes from the Session downhill sled to their Top Fuel cross-country racer. It's also what you'll find on the back of the 2019 Remedy but with a twist. Gone is the Full Floater design that saw the shock's lower mount sit on an extension of the chainstays rather than the front triangle.

Instead, Trek has gone back to a more traditional solid lower mount for the 2019 Remedy after many years of extolling the virtues of the Full Floater setup.




So, what gives with ditching the Full Floater? Shock technology, apparently, which has gotten much better over the years, especially when it comes to air springs. ''More responsive dampers, along with more refined air springs like DebonAir, offer the tuning ability and performance benefits our engineers originally sought to achieve with Full Floater,'' Trek said of their move away from the floating shock layout.

Their reasoning comes down to rigidity: ''The fixed mount opens up the lower frame area, giving us more opportunity to design a stronger, stiffer frame and chainstays. This also gives us more flexibility to accommodate larger, more capable shocks. All of these effects are experienced most dramatically on long travel bikes, like Remedy and Slash.'' Does it make a difference? I've got a 2019 Remedy 9.9 in my stable right now, and have years of experience on previous iterations of the bike, so I'll be able to find out soon.




Trek is also employing the RE:aktiv valve, as well as a thru-shaft shock design that ditches the internal floating piston to lower friction. I won't add extra words about either, but Mike Kazimer covered the thru-shaft design, albeit on a Fox shock, awhile back. Check that out to learn more.




A bike can't be new if it's not stiffer and lighter, so the new Remedy is stiffer and lighter, of course. Trek isn't making any wild claims, however, with a 5-percent gain in rigidity and 100-grams shaved from the frame compared to the 2017 version. Small beans, really, but all the beans add up over time, and let's not forget that the beans have been adding up since 2008 when the Remedy was first introduced as a 150mm, 26'' wheeled, alloy-framed all-mountain bike. I smell an article idea: 2008 Remedy versus the 2019 Remedy - What do the beans do?

With the wheel size and travel staying the same for 2019, The biggest change has to be geometry, and Trek had revised it yet again to keep the Remedy in-line with what we expect from a 150mm-travel bike. In 2017, the Remedy was rocking a 66-degree front end (in the slackest setting) and it had a reach of 447mm to 458mm for the 19.5'' frame. The new Remedy goes even slacker, with a 65.5-degree head angle, a 1-degree steeper seat angle, and the reach stays basically the same.




Riders can also tinker with the geo by flipping the Mino Link pivot hardware around (they hold the rocker arm to the seatstays) to steepen the bike by 0.5-degree and lift the bottom bracket from 349mm to 356mm.

Other things... You can go as big as a 36-tooth 'ring, and as small as a 180mm rotor out back via a post mount. There are a few threaded holes on the underside of the top tube that are designed to work with Wolf Tooth's B-Rad tool kit system, too, so you won't need to stuff your pockets or wear a backpack if you're not into that.




There is something else to note as well, with Trek not doing any women-specific models of the Remedy. I'll give the floor to them on that one: ''Market research and rider feedback has indicated that aggressive female riders want the same geometry and performance as the main line. We’ve also found that, while many female riders love our “women’s” colorways, just as many prefer the main line paint colors. Rather than offering separate “women’s” colorways, we’re giving ALL riders more selection by offering every model in two colors to suit a variety of tastes, regardless of gender. We’ve also improved the fit of the smallest 15.5” size so it works for more riders.''