This one has been bubbling away for a long time! We’ve been expecting a composite version of the Glory for yonks – given that there’s a carbon ‘Advanced’ version of almost every bike series in the Giant lineup, it was only a mater of time till this one emerged.
The Glory underwent significant revision just a couple of seasons ago, scoring lower, longer geometry, and even back then there was some talk that carbon version would be released to coincide with the new frame geometry. But Giant were on a different timeline, bringing out a 27.5″ wheeled Glory first, and perfecting that iteration, before making the leap to carbon.
An even lower frame weight is going to be the obvious benefit of the carbon construction, along with improved stiffness and ride quality. Otherwise the frame features look largely unchanged, which can only be a positive. It would appear that two spec levels of Glory will be available too, and we’ll bring you pricing as soon as it’s available. Read below for the official word from Giant.
Giant, the world leader in cycling technology, unveiled a new addition to its extensive line of 27.5 off-road bikes, the Glory Advanced 27.5 downhill bike. Engineered and developed with Giant Factory Off-Road Team World Cup racers, the newest evolution of the world championship winning Glory platform represents the most-advanced and lightest DH bike (3,008 grams w/o shock)ever produced by Giant.
“This is a project that we’ve been working on for over two years now,” said Giant Global Off-Road Category Manager Kevin Dana. “We went into the project with clearly defined goals and some specific demands from the pros who race these bikes week in and week out. What we came up with is a bike that is one of the lightest on the pro circuit without sacrificing frame strength, pedaling stiffness or ride quality.”
Giant first brought its 27.5 technology to downhill bikes last year when it rolled out the Glory 27.5 model featuring an ALUXX SL aluminum frame. Marcelo Guttierez, a 5-time downhill national champion in Colombia, helped develop that bike and went on to score some of the best results of his career last season.
Among Gutierrez’s achievements was a win at the Garbanzo DH race in Whistler, British Columbia. Part of the Crankworx Whistler festival, the Garbanzo challenges pro DH racers with one of the most demanding tracks in the world, renowned for its unusually long distance (7km), vertical drop (over 3,400 feet) and extremely aggressive terrain.
“Making the move to 27.5 wheels totally opened up the capabilities of the Glory,” Gutierrez said. “And now we’re taking another huge step forward with this new composite frame. It’s lightweight, stiff, super smooth and has the perfect geometry to make the most of this wheel size. It’s everything I need on the aggressive tracks and terrain that I race on.”
The Glory Advanced 27.5 frame is built around an Advanced-grade composite mainframe that’s combined with an ALUXX SL aluminum rear swingarm. It’s the lightest DH frame ever produced by Giant (242 grams of weight savings over the 3,250-gram Glory 27.5 aluminum frame, size medium) with supreme front-end stiffness and improved vibration damping, plus race-proven strength and durability in the rear area of the frame.
The frame is engineered with a co-pivot shock mount and 8 inches (203mm) of smooth, fully active Maestro rear suspension travel. It shares the same longer and lower geometry first developed on the Glory 27.5 for added stability and speed on aggressive terrain. Its 63-degree headtube angle and longer wheelbase is a result of extensive ride and race testing with Gutierrez and his Factory Off-Road teammates.
Other frame technologies on the new Glory Advanced 27.5 include its OverDrive steerer tube design for maximum front-end stiffness and steering precision, along with a newly shaped MegaDrive downtube. Combined with the PowerCore bottom bracket, the new design adds frame and pedaling stiffness for better efficiency and control. It also features new integrated cable guides that double as fork bumpers.
The all-new Glory Advanced 27.5 will be available in select markets initially, with a worldwide release later this summer. To learn more, go to giant-bicycles.com