2016 Giant Reign 2

When Giant brought back the Reign for 2015, it was very well received. Completely redesigned to be long and low, slack and aggressive, the 160mm travel Reign absolutely blasts downhill. I had a proper ride on one in Queenstown and it was excellent.

The colours are more lively across the entire range, continuing the trend of aggressive enduro bikes in easy-going pastel Easter colours. I'm not criticising it, it's actually quite nice to get away from the standard blacks, reds and blues. The Reign 2 comes in a nice matte lime green and bright blue. You have to see it in person.

As far as the spec, it's got the same great spec as last year. The Rockshox Pike is always a winner and this Solo Air RC variation is actually the plushest one of them all. The Monarch R Debonair is great. Shimano brakes and SLX 2x10 drivetrain with MRP 2x guide keep the chain on well. The Giant dropper post is nice.

A popular upgrade is to ditch the front derailleur for a narrow-wide chainring and cassette extender cog for an inexpensive, but effective, 1x drivetrain for just a couple hundred bucks.

The Reign 2 really is the best buy in the enduro market. For under $4,000, you can't beat it.

Related Tag: Giant Reign 2