Since returning to the Tweeks range for 2016, Transition bikes have gone from strength to strength. Rugged and durable, the bikes are built to take all the hammering you dare through at them, while offering an exceptional ride. Even the base models often run rings round supposedly “better” bikes..
For 2020 the range has seen some minor changes. If it isn’t broken, don’t fix as the saying goes! If you’re not familiar with the range, we’ve put together a quick guide to help you find the perfect Transition bike for you. From the ever-popular Patrol to the World Cup winning TR11, there’s a host of bikes from Transition that are just begging for your attention!
Transition Patrol
The Transition Patrol is the brand’s most popular bike for good reason: it’s just so damn versatile! On paper it looks like many other longer travel bikes, but that would be doing it an injustice. The Patrol is an incredible all-rounder, perfectly happy climbing all day on epic cross-country rides as well as spending a day sending the biggest jumps and drops in the bark park. Our very own Jurgen has even been bike packing on his Patrol!
Key to the versatility is Transition’s Speed Balanced Geometry (SBG) and the efficient GiddyUp suspension. SBG places the rider in the perfect position for climbing and descending, giving you a comfortable place to sit and spin on the climbs while offering all the space you’ll need to throw some shapes on the descents. The frame really is the beating heart of the Patrol. For 2020, the Patrol gets even better with addition of coil shocks across the range, offering amazingly supple suspension without compromising it’s climbing ability.
All bikes get brilliant wide-range SRAM Eagle 12-speed drivetrains and powerful Code brakes, while Wide Trail Maxxis tyres will keep you glued to the trail. If you want a fast, fun bike that really can do anything, the Transition Patrol should be at the top of your shopping list!
Transition Sentinel
Want the same fun-loving character as the Patrol but with the extra rollover and speed of bigger wheels? The Transition Sentinel is just for you! Based around 29-inch wheels and aggressive SBG geometry, the Sentinel takes the misconceptions about big wheels and throws them out of the window! With 140mm travel out back teamed with a 160mm fork, the Sentinel is built to charge hard yet still climb with the best of them.
The Sentinel is one of the very best long-travel 29ers around, giving riders a fast, efficient bike that loves to take the biggest hits in its stride. The builds are chosen to offer a great blend of performance and value, with all bikes getting powerful 4-piston SRAM brakes and wide-range 12-speed Eagle drivetrains, so you can descend and climb with confidence that you’ll all the tools you need at your disposal. Wide 780mm handlebars are teamed with short 40mm stems and long-travel dropper posts to work in conjunction with the SBG geometry to offer the perfect ride position at all times.
If the standard builds aren’t for you, why not choose a frame only and build the Sentinel just how you want. The Sentinel is a superb all-rounder and one by which all other long travel 29ers are judged!
Transition TR11
Proven at the very highest level with multiple UCI Downhill Mountain Bike World Cup wins with Tahnee Seagrave on board, the Transition TR11 certainly lives up to the hype! Completely redesigned for 2020, the TR11 gets updated geometry, a longer stroke shock and improved suspension kinematics to keep it ahead of the game. Whether you’re racing against the clock or just having a blast styling it up in the Bike Park, the TR11 has got your back.
The TR11 is ready to race and rag right out of the box; you won’t find any corners cut here. A bike of this calibre deserves quality components and the TR11 has been decked out with the best to ensure it requires nothing to get it going at warp speed. Both builds feature high quality suspension from Fox and Rockshox, while DH specific SRAM 7-speed drivetrains and ultra-powerful Code brakes power you along and slow you to halt with ease.
Massively durable Stans NoTubes wheels and grippy Maxxis Minion 3C tyres laugh in the face of cased jumps and blown out corners, and the updated geometry gives you all the confidence you need to push yourself to the limits. We’re willing to bet you’ll reach them well before you find the limits of the TR11!
Transition Smuggler
The Transition Smuggler is the sleeper bike of the new range. Sitting in the shadow of the burlier Patrol and Sentinel it’s easy to discount the Smuggler as just another short-travel trail bike. Do so at your peril, as the Smuggler is very much a wolf in sheep’s clothing. With SBG geometry and aggressive builds, the Smuggler can cash cheques you’d be questioning it could within a few pedal strokes! It may only have 120mm of travel, but it rides like a whole lot more out on the trail!
For 2020 the Smuggler goes carbon only, giving you a lightweight but solid frame to build around. Available as a frameset or a complete bike, you can be sure to find a spec that works for you. The heart of the Smuggler is Transition’s SBG geometry and GiddyUp suspension, with a steep seat angle and efficient pedalling performance the Smuggler can climb anything your legs can keep spinning on; this Smuggler is a technical climbing dream!
It’s not all about the climbs though. With a 140m fork, and the same wide bar & short stem as used on the rest of the range, Smuggler can charge the descents, and you’ll be grinning from ear to ear every time you nose into a flowing section of singletrack.
Transition Scout
The Transition Scout has long been a favourite of riders who love to play around on the trail. Now riders can finally enjoy the Scout in a carbon flavour, with an all-new frame that takes everything we love about the Scout and turns it up a notch!
Transition have really sweated the details with the Scout Carbon and the next-gen carbon frame is the neatest yet. The suspension kinematics have been revised to work cohesively with air or coil shocks. The tried and tested SBG geometry has been refined further too, with a shorter seat tube and lower standover to provide extra clearance for the latest long-travel dropper posts.
With a dialled spec on all models, the bikes come with 4-piston brakes, super grippy Maxxis Assegai and Minion DHR II EXO+ tyres, 12-speed SRAM Eagle drivetrains and OneUp Components dropper posts, the new Scout is ready for anything!
Check out our range of 2020 Transition bikes here.