Long-running suspension tech dropped for electronic control and custom-tuned suspension <\/p>
Four years on from the previous-generation launch, Specialized has rebuilt its Epic and Epic EVO bikes from the ground up, ready for top-end XC racing and lightweight trail applications respectively. <\/p>
The new bikes are called the Epic 8 to reflect this generational shift.<\/p>
Though the Epic name has been in the Specialized range<\/a> since the early 1990s, it\u2019s best known for its full-suspension form, dating back to the early 2000s with the brand’s Brain shock technology.<\/p> In 2024, we\u2019re waving goodbye to the Brain.<\/p> Instead, the Epic 8 gets custom-tuned shocks and, at the S-Works level, SRAM\u2019s latest iteration of Flight Attendant<\/a> to replace the mechanical auto-lockout feature of the Brain. It results in what Specialized claims is “the fastest XC race bike in the world”.<\/p> Tom Marvin rode the bike at its launch in Chile and spent some more time putting it through its paces back in the UK. You can read his review here<\/a>.<\/p>