We’ve all but given up on trying to understand the whys and wherefores of the bicycle industry’s product release cycles. On the one hand Giant’s UK dealer launch looks quite late compared to many. On the other hand, certain other major brands appear to have sold out of key models (which seems rather careless) which will be music to the ears of Giant dealers across the land.

We’ve seen most of this stuff at international trade shows already, but UK specs, prices and colours are determined by Giant UK and often differ from US or European ones. So these here are the actual UK bikes that, in many cases, are already in a shop near you…

Maestro

With the introduction of the Anthem XC and Glory DH bikes, all of Giant’s FS offerings now use its Maestro suspension design. Whatever the perceived performance benefits (or lack thereof) of particular designs, there’s no denying that it makes good marketing sense to use essentially the same system across all your bikes – Specialized FSR, Marin Quad-Link and so on. That’s what Giant was aiming for with Maestro and it’s now there – the 3.5in travel Anthem and 8.8in travel Glory use the same fundamental design.

There’s three Anthem models, from the £1,300 Anthem 3 (Manitou R7 Comp fork, Hayes Sole XC brakes, Race Face Ride XC cranks, Deore shifters and mechs) to the £2,999 Anthem 1 (Manitou R7 Super, Hayes HFX9 XC Composite brakes, Mavic CrossMax SL wheels and SRAM X.0 transmission). The 1 weighs in at a claimed 10.15kg (23.6lb), which isn’t at all shabby. The Anthem 2 weighs a pound more but costs £1,300 less, which looks like a fair exchange.

The Trance 4.2in travel “trail bike” range has had a slight frame redesign for 2006. The forged shock “basket” is no more, which is a real pity – it was a fantastic bit of manufacturing. Apparently the buying public didn’t think it “looked strong enough”, though, and the new pierced down tube design is a bit lighter too. Optional carbon fibre shock guards are available on Trance and Reign bikes to protect the shock shafts from possible stone damage. There are four Trance models, kicking off with the Trance 4 at £950. You only get rim brakes with that one, though. The Trance 3 packs a RockShox Recon fork and Hayes Sole brakes at £1,350, the 2 gets a Reba, HFX9 brakes and SRAM X.9 transmission for £1,750 and the very smart-looking Trance 1 gets under the 25lb mark thanks to a Fox FRL100 fork, Hayes HFX9 XC Composite brakes and Mavic CrossMax SL wheels. It is £2,650, though.

Women’s versions of the Anthem and Trance are available, in different (but fairly non-girly) colours – the Anthem W is a pale blue, the Trance W a minty green – and, in the case of the Anthem, a smaller 14.5in size. According to the catalogue, Trances go down to 14.5in anyway, and there doesn’t appear to be any difference in geometry between the men’s and women’s version. The women’s one has essentially the same spec as the men’s Trance 2 for £100 less, though, which can’t be bad.

We tested the all-mountain 6in travel Reign last year and found it to be an excellent frame that exceeded (or felt like it could easily exceed) the capabilities of some of the components and indeed its own geometry. For 2006 the Reign has become slightly more relaxed and features a slightly beefier spec – the £2,650 Reign 1 has a Fox 36 TALAS fork, X.9/X.0 transmission and Kenda Blue Groove/Nevegal tyres. The Reign 2 still has a Manitou Nixon Super fork but this year in its 20mm through-axle incarnation, and again has decent Kenda tyres on for £1,850. The £1,350 Reign 3 makes do with a 130mm travel RockShox Tora fork and X.7 transmission.

There’s only two Faith freeride bikes in ’06, with the entry-level Faith 3 being dropped because Giant couldn’t spec one at the target price without over-compromising components – not something that you want to be happening on any bike, but particularly not at one aimed at the more hazardous end of the riding spectrum. The Faith 1 and 2 both have 8in of travel from a Fox DHX coil shock (a 4.0 on the 1 and a 3.0 on the 2). The 2 has a 170mm travel Marzocchi Jr T fork, Hayes HFX9 HD brakes and SRAM X.7 drivetrain for £1,999, while the 1 has a 170mm travel Marzocchi 66RC2X fork, X.7/X.9 transmission, a nicer wheel package, cranks and finishing kit and costs £2,650.

We’ve already had a prod around the Glory DH bike, so we won’t tell you all about it again. We were right about its imminent ubiquity, though – we were at a fairly small DH race at the weekend and there were already several of them there.

Hardtails

Maestro might be where all the hype is, but Giant continues to push out a big range of good-value, high-performing hardtails. The XtC bikes form the “competition hardtail” range, topping out with two carbon fibre models – the XtC C at £1,250 with Giant MPH disc brakes, Manitou Splice fork and LX/XT transmission and the XtC C Zero at £1,750 with an R7 Super fork, Avid SD7 rim brakes and SRAM X.9 transmission. The C Zero weighs a claimed 10kg (22lb).

Below those are four aluminium XtC bikes, all sharing the same frame and starting with the XtC SE. With a RockShox J2 fork, Giant MPH disc brakes and a Deore/LX transmission it looks like amazing value for the £500 asking price.

Then you’ve got the “Sport Mountain” hardtails at price points between £165 and £425. You get a tidy-looking hydroformed aluminium frame from the £200 Boulder up. If those bikes are a bit too “straight” looking then Giant has introduced a new line of hardtails called the Sport Enduro models. They have the same spec as the Sport Mountain models but hung on a new, swoopy frame that’s styled to resemble the Reign FS bikes. You pay a £25 premium for the added funkiness.

Giant also has a massive range of other sorts of bikes. There’s the STP (Street/Trails/Park) ickle jumpy hardtails, various road bikes, kids bike and lots of others. We’re quite taken by the Escape N7 city bike – it’s a mountain bike frame kitted out with a rigid fork, slick tyres, Shimano Nexus 7 speed hub and Nexus roller brakes for a clean-looking, low maintenance package. Neat.

We’ll be testing various Giants over the coming months – stay tuned…