Transition Blindside Review
Review by Mike Kazimer
Intro
The latest version of the Transition Blindside is difficult to categorize. Every time a new bike is released the internet forums buzz with speculation on whether it is best suited for slopestyle, downhill, downhill with some uphill, uphill only, etc… If forced to categorize the latest version of the Blindside I would call it a “modern” freeride bike. Burlier than an all-mountain rig, yet light enough (36-38lbs) to pedal up to the top of any epic descent, the new Blindside is for those riders who are still into earning their turns. Out here in the Pacific Northwest, the birthplace of the Blindside, there are a number of long downhill trails filled with steep rock faces and big jumps, trails accessible only by a long uphill logging road grind. The Blindside is designed to access these goods, while allowing the rider to still have plenty of energy left to enjoy the downhill.
Frame and Components
This latest version of the Blindside loses over a pound from the previous edition, while gaining an uninterrupted seat tube and a tapered head tube. It also has internal cable routing at the rear chainstay for a cleaner look. I found that 4mm derailleur housing works best with the internal routing – 5mm is harder to feed through the forward exit hole of the chainstay. The Blindside’s simplicity adds to its appeal. There are no fancy linkages, just a simple machined rocker link which pushes the shock through its 2.75” stroke. The linkage has Transition’s “chip,” a pill shaped piece which can be flipped, allowing the rider to choose between 6.5 and 7.5 inches of travel.
The fact the all of the employees at Transition ride shows in the build kit put together for the Blindside. The handlebars are wide, the stem is short, and the seat can be raised high enough for efficient pedaling due to the uninterrupted seat tube. Avid Elixir CR brakes paired with 8” rotors provide ample stopping power, while Truvativ Holzfeller cranks combined with an E13 SRS chainguide system work with a SRAM X-9 rear derailleur to keep things moving forward. The Blindside rolls on a Transition Revolution 32 wheelset with a 10mm QR. I’ve been running a bolt on rear wheel for the past few seasons, but I didn’t encounter any problems with the QR setup on this wheelset, and quickly came to appreciate the ease with which the rear wheel could be removed for tire changes or truing. Traction is taken care of by a pair of Maxxis Minion DHF tires, both in 2.5” width.
Suspension is handled by Fox, with a DHX RC4 in the rear and the latest iteration of the 36, which now has 180mm of travel and updated internals, in the front. I chose the VAN version due to my personal preference for the feel of coil sprung suspension, but an air sprung Float is a viable option as well. Both front and rear suspension components are incredibly tunable according to the rider’s preference. High and low speed compression damping are individually adjustable on both, while the rear shock also has adjustable bottom out force and progressiveness. The compression settings for the rear shock are not really adjustable on the fly. The high speed compression damping knob requires a 2.5mm hex to adjust, while the low speed is adjustable without tools, but is a fairly small knob to spin, particularly if you have big hands. I did find myself using the low speed compression adjustment before any extended climbs – I’d increase the damping to firm up the ride, diminishing the amount of unwanted suspension movement.
After a few rides I notices that the spring in the VAN 36 fork was quite loud, rattling against the inside of the stanchions. It wasn’t anything that was affecting the performance, but it was affecting my peace of mind. I pulled the spring and heat shrink wrapped it, the fix suggested by the techs at Fox. This fixed the rattling, and the fork worked well for the rest of the test.
Riding
It’s fun to drool over the shiny frame and colorful parts on a new bike, but how it rides is what really counts. Luckily, the Blindside doesn’t disappoint. My first ride was at Galbraith Mountain, in Bellingham, Washington. This local riding area is littered with jumps and berms, the perfect area to dial in a new bike. A gravel road leads to the top, which is where I noticed the lighter weight of the bike – it felt more like a shorter travel XC bike than a bike with 7.5” of travel. The climbing position was comfortable; upright, yet balanced with enough weight over the wheels to prevent traction loss. I’m nearly 6’ and was able to get enough leg extension with a medium frame.
Point the Blindside downhill and its true strength emerges: jumping.I’ve never been on a bike that wanted to jump more than this one. Whether it’s the light weight or the short chainstays, the Blindside sprang off of lips or hopped over roots with minimal effort. Once in the air it felt extremely nimble, and I had no trouble pointing it into safe landing zones. The suspension was balanced and smooth, absorbing everything I could throw at it. I took the bike to Whistler to see how it handled higher speeds, a test it passed with aplomb. It was stable at speed, with impressive suspension performance. The washboard brake bumps at Whistler are punishing on any bike, but this one turned a blind eye and kept on going.
The Blindside is not a DH sled. This doesn’t mean it cannot handle steep, technical terrain, it just means that the rider needs to exhibit a bit more finesse – more like an F1 driver, and less like a monster truck driver. It took me some time to find the sweet spot of the Blindside on extremely steep descents. I’m used to a longer, heavier bike, so for the first few rides I found myself grabbing too much brake, or using too much body language to steer through corners. Once I realized what I was doing wrong, and lightened my touch on the brakes, it all came together. I took the Blindside deep into the gnar of the Pacific Northwest and it performed without complaint. Tight trails through towering cedar trees, jumps over creeks, ladder bridge drops onto small, steep, landings, long rock faces, loose, dusty fall-line descents – the Blindside did it all, and still wanted more.
I remaining hesitant to categorize this bike. An all-mountain bike for areas where there are real mountains? A freeslope bike? I’m not really sure – I think I’ll just stick with calling it a mountain bike, albeit one that rips on the downhill, and doesn’t take too much effort to get to the top.
Bike As Tested: $3944 USD
