Whether you’re a trail rider, XC racer or prefer freeriding in the Alps the new line-up from Specialized for 2009 will get your taste buds a-tingling, well it did ours anyway!

There are new frames in the Epic, Big Hit and SX ranges and a stunning new Stumpjumper hardtail too. Highlights from the components and gear camp include new FACT Carbon Mountain Crank, Tactic helmet, Strafe optics and Roval Controle SL and Traversee wheels.

S-Works Epic

Especially with a competition-biased XC bike we love to hear the words ‘even lighter for this year’, and the S-Works Epic has smashed the scales up by dropping its already petite 2008 weight of approx 23lbs down to 21.5lb. This figure is actually on the conservative side, as we saw a size medium on the scales at 21.27lb (both the quoted and actual weights are without pedals).

The S-Works Epic frame is of course carbon fibre with a uni-directional top layer, and now with carbon seat- and chainstays as well as a carbon drive-side dropout, not previously seen on the 2008 Epic. The bottom bracket housing is oversized to say the least. It’s 84.5mm wide and packs substantial bearings inside each end for Specialized’s own FACT Mountain crank, of which more later. With a wide BB shell there’s scope for an almost equally enormous girth of down tube here too, giving plenty of extra stiffness. Also in this region is the Direct Mount front derailleur.

More new features for 2009 include new Brain suspension front and rear. The Future Shock E100 is the third of Specialized’s own forks to appear, offering 100mm of travel at (a suspiciously just-under-3lb) 2.99lbs (1,356g) on the front. At the back is the dinky new FlowControl Mini Brain shock, 100g lighter than previous Specialized shocks. With the shock repositioned to a more conventional location for 2009, the Brain inertia valve is now a remote unit down by the rear axle like that found on the Stumpjumper FSR.

The E100 is a new fork for 2009, featuring a tapered 1.5/1.125in carbon steerer/crown assembly. The air spring and oil damper are both situated in the right leg, with the left leg remaining empty. According to Specialized, packing everything into one leg has saved 100g on the fork weight. With a custom-designed oversized hub-dropout interface and larger end-caps, improvements to torsion stiffness are noticeable when riding. The fork claims 20% increased stiffness over its competition and is claimed to be stiffer at the hub than forks with 15mm axles.

Components are all top of the range as we’d expect on this flagship model including the new S-Works FACT Mountain Crank with spline and centre bolt, oversized axle and bearings and not forgetting that 84.5mm bottom bracket housing width. Reworked D-shaped carbon fibre crank arms bring the weight of the crankset to 684g, and feature an interchangeable 2×9 spider option as used by the pros. The S-Works oversized BB shell houses large diameter set of bearings directly in the frame. You’re not totally locked in to the proprietary crank system, either – a Shimano BB adapter is available and features on the Marathon series Epic bikes.

Stumpjumper HT

With all the focus on full suspension these days it takes quite a bit to turn our heads to a hardtail frame, but we nearly snapped our necks checking out the new S-Works Stumpy. Weighing in at just under 20lbs this FACT 10M carbon beauty looks and feels the part. The sweeping lines give it an air of a Tarmac for the dirt. For 2009 the S-Works HT features a carbon drive-side dropout, S-Works FACT Mountain Crank and Future Shock S90 fork.

SX Trail

The SX Trail has been around for a few years now, originally being a pumped-up Enduro for doing big stuff on (but not stuff as big as a Big Hit or a DH bike). It’s been a popular bike, and proved itself to be pretty versatile too – SX Trails have been used successfully as heavy-duty trail bikes, slopestyle weapons and DH racers. The new model packs 170mm of travel at both ends, has 3in more standover height and greater seatpost adjustment range.

The main pivot has moved towards the back of the bike and extends behind the all-straight seat tube with an eccentric pivot that prevents any side rotation and enhances stiffness. This new arrangement allows a tiny standover height and lots of adjustment on the seatpost height too, a nice departure from older designs where the shock passed through the seat tube. Specialized has opted for bearings at the shock mounts rather than the standard DU bushings to reduce wear and maintenance. Linkages, BB shell and head tube are all cold-forged parts. A 100mm 4X version of the SX is available too.

Big Hit

Always a firm favourite from its initial introduction, the re-designed Big Hit looks set to be even more popular thanks to the lower standover height. The straight seat tube and lower top tube give a much better cockpit area, beneath which sits the new downward shock position. Again, the shock is mounted on ball bearings rather than DU bushings.

The new frame is designed around 180mm single crown forks and has the same travel at the back. There’s a 1.5/1.125in headtube, plus it comes with a Direct Mount front derailleur. The Big Hit comes in three adult models and a 24in-wheel junior version too.

We haven’t had any confirmations on prices or delivery dates yet but we’ll keep you posted as news breaks. www.specialized.com