6-14-07 // Online Exclusive: GT Unveils 2008 Bikes

Engelberg, a town of 5,000 people, rests in the distance

The hills are alive, but the only music is the sound of chains slapping, tires rolling and brakes squealing. Dozens of GT’s latest bikes are being thrashed around the tiny resort town of Engelberg, Switzerland. About 20 or so trails lace the mountains here—some accessed by a network of gondolas strung from town—and these steep, rocky, muddy trails, resting beneath 10,000-foot-high glacier-capped peaks, are filled with riders testing everything from cross-country to downhill bikes.

This is a big year for GT. While the venerable I-Drive suspension remains, many popular bikes, like the I-Drive 5, are gone, new models have taken their place and some others receive comprehensive overhauls.

Built with an XT drivetrain, Fox RP23 shock and Float RLC fork, the highest end of the three-model Force line weighs 30.2 pounds. With a 69-degree head angle and 73-degree seat angle, this I-Drive 5 replacement costs about $3,000.

Of the new bikes, the most noteworthy are the Force and Sanction. Both bikes sport 6 inches of travel, but go about it in different ways. The Force weighs about 30 pounds and falls into the long-travel XC/all-mountain category, while the Sanction features a few more gussets and heavier parts. Weighing about 33 pounds, it is designed for the freeride/light-downhill/all-mountain crowd.

Both bikes use GT’s I-Drive suspension platform, although the company is now referring to it by its full name—independent drivetrain—and doing away with the I-Drive model names.

A bit stouter than its Force brethren, the Sanction was designed from the ground up to please the heavier hitters who still want to pedal. The monocoque frame weighs 7.7 pounds with a Fox DHX Air shock. Built with a RockShox Lyric fork, Saint dual-ring crank and XT drivetrain and brakes, the Sanction costs $3,199. Two lower price versions sell for $1,799 and $2,799, respectively.