Updated Stigmata is designed to tackle the whole spectrum of gravel riding

By Paul Norman

Published: Tuesday, 01 August 2023 at 07:01 AM

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Santa Cruz has updated its Stigmata gravel bike, with a new, more progressive geometry borrowed from its mountain bike range.

That means a slacker head tube with a 69.5-degree angle across the full S to XXL size range, down from the previous bike’s 71 to 72 degrees.

Reach has increased by a substantial 30mm over the previous model too, with Santa Cruz speccing shorter 70mm-long stems to compensate. That has led to an increase in wheelbase, up from the previous bike’s 1,009mm to 1,053mm, to between 1,043mm and 1,130mm across the size range.

Another change is a shorter head tube paired to a rigid fork with a higher crown, so that it can be swapped out for a 40mm-travel suspension fork without affecting the geometry. That will be music to the ears of some of our off-road riding colleagues.

All of this is designed to make the Stigmata more capable off-road.