2001 was a good year for Santa Cruz Bicycles and will be remembered as a turning point for them with the introduction of the Virtual Pivot Point (VPP) revolution. Prior to that, every full-suspension bike in the line was a single-pivot design. While they still build single-pivot bikes, since that time the focus has been on the VPP design.
But, like any suspension design, technology will continue to evolve and refinements will happen. For this year, Santa Cruz completely overhauled the Blur LT. As a result of this complete overhaul, many are calling it the Blur LT2 since it actually shares very little with the original LT other than the VPP. I’ve had my eye on the new Blur LT since it was introduced in the Spring, but didn’t get my hands on one until August of this year. Since then, I’ve been flogging the all-new Blur LT up and down the Wasatch Mountains. How does it ride? You’ll want to read on, my friend.
About the 2009 Santa Cruz Blur LT
The original Blur LT was introduced at Interbike 2006. I took it out for a few laps and liked it overall, but the new LT2 is a completely different beast. With the growing number of 140mm trailbikes on the market (arguably the sweet-spot), the original LT design was quick to show its age. For some reason, the linkages developed more creaks than my grandma’s house and the frame wasn’t as stout as it should be for this type of travel.
So, Santa Cruz engineers went back to the drawing board to re-design not only the Blur LT, but the VPP suspension characteristics and linkages as well. The end result is the all-new Blur LT with increased travel, completely re-designed frameset with greatly-increased lateral stiffness, new pivot linkages (carbon upper/aluminum lower), built-in grease ports and revised suspension rates to give the bike an even better pedaling platform and a more bottomless feel throughout. This new VPP design is also now used on the new Santa Cruz Nomad for 2009 and will likely be added throughout the VPP lineup soon.
Here are a few more specs of the Blur LT:
- 100% new frameset for increased standover and lateral stiffness
- Revised VPP design with 140mm travel (up from 135mm)
- Carbon fiber upper linkage
- Aluminum lower linkage with built-in grease ports (gun included)
- Built for a 140-160mm fork (140mm Fox Vanilla RLC 15QR as tested)
- Built-in cable routing for adjustable seatpost
- Bottle opener on rear dropout
- Replaceable rear derailleur hanger
- Tire clearance up to 2.5, but 2.35 recommended
- Sizes: Small, Medium, Large (tested) and XL
- Frameset MSRP: $1850 (powdercoat) or $2050 (anodized)
- Complete Bikes MSRP: Starts at $3014
Santa Cruz Blur LT Review
The anticipation has paid off as the Blur LT has delivered in spades. Lets dig into some particulars on how well this bike performed in all conditions.
The setup was the R-AM factory build-kit with the exception of a Chris King headset, ODI Oury grips, Syncros AM stem, WTB Mutano Raptor 2.4 tires and a 2009 Fox Vanilla 32 RLC with 15QR thru-axle. Being on the front of the 15QR curve wasn’t easy though. I had the fork in my hands mid-June, but it took a good 6 weeks before both the bike and 6-bolt Shimano XT hub arrived to be re-laced to the Mavic 321 hoop. A quick trip to Go-Ride.com and the crew had my front wheel laced up and ready to ride.
The all-white frame with the black Fox fork looks sweet. Plenty of compliments all around as people have gawked at it. It’s only the 2nd Blur LT2 I’ve seen in the wild, so they are still fairly scarce. Overall, the R-AM build kit is workman-like. The only drawback is a little bit of a weight penalty (still only 31 lbs.) but it’s far from tanky and comes with a reasonable price. Like most good bikes, the extra 1-2 lbs. is only noticeable on a scale. Once you hit the dirt with your game-face on, you’ll never know the wiser.
I did have a small issue with the Race Face Evolve AM stem. It arrived with one of the four faceplate bolts bent and unusable. I have yet to locate a replacement and Race Face has been reluctant to send one. It appears they have one on the way, so we’ll see. It seems a small part like that should be readily available, but I’ve checked my LBS and Home Depot to no avail. Instead, I just slapped on a Syncros AM stem (thank you Rosy at Ritchey!). This stem was also 90mm, like the Race Face, but with a 12-degree rise, so it provided a little more upright cockpit.
Onto the ride… Climbing, the Blur LT absolutely sticks to the trail like glue. The negative travel provided by the VPP design, extends into ruts while otherwise maintaining a nice platform for efficient climbing power. Long, sustained singletrack ascents of 1000 vertical ft. or more (American Fork Canyon, Utah) were easily tackled in the middle ring with only a few drops into the granny when things got steep or loose. I did notice that the front-end wandered just a tad more than I’d like, but it wasn’t unbearable and only really showed its face in the granny at slower climbing speeds.
I varied from the stock tires by swapping the Kenda Nevegals out for some WTB Mutano Raptor 2.4’s front and rear. Though they are 2.4’s, the width is very narrow, however, traction remained consistent in all conditions and are well-suited to this bike.
The Blur LT is very efficient–propelling me to the top of a local time trial climb in my typical 14-minute times. It’s definitely a solid climber.
Descending on the Blur was great fun. The rear suspension soaks up everything and makes any trail a playground. With the Vanilla 32 RLC and 15mm thru axle, the front-end tracked straight and solid in all terrain. This fork is a perfect match for the LT2. Hopefully it will be offered as a standard build option soon.
I loved playing with the rollers and berms on the trail and floating down tight, twisty singletrack with complete confidence. High-speed assaults are also stable and fun. The only “less than perfect” terrain for the LT are small, stutter bumps. It soaks up large hits well, but I found it a tad bouncy on stutters. With the adjustments on the optional Fox DHX Air shock, performance could be fine-tuned, but I was OK with how it handled.
The Large-sized frame fits me perfectly (5′ 11″ - 170 lbs) with a nice-feeling cockpit that put me in a great position for both climbing and descending. I really had a ton of fun on every downhill I descended–from fast, rolling singletrack to tight, technical descents.
Good Blur LT
- One of the top trailbikes on the market
- Can be had for a decent price (starting at $3100)
- New VPP is a huge improvement in reliability and smoothness
- Great climber… rear wheel extends into terrain anomalies
- Fun and flickable on the descents
- Chris King headset is worth the upgrade
- Fox Vanilla 32 RLC with 15QR is perfect on this bike
- With 140mm fork, there’s no need for travel adjustments to climb well
- 185mm front rotor adds needed stopping power
Bad Blur LT
- Small, stutter bumps aren’t as smooth as could be
- Wanders a titch on slow-speed climbs
- A little chain slap on vertical cross piece near dropout
- Arrived with a bent stem bolt that I’ve been unable to replace
- Mavic 321 rear wheel seemed a little flexy
The Bottom Line on the new Santa Cruz Blur LT
Hooting and hollering comes standard with the LT. Your riding buddies may get annoyed, but you’ll surely have a smile on your face at the bottom of every descent. It’s also an excellent climber that pedals you efficiently to the top of any climb. The new Blur LT2 is a great example of what a trailbike should be. As tested, it wasn’t svelte, but on the trail, you’ll never notice it. If you can get your hands on one, you won’t regret it.
Buy Now: Visit SantaCruzBikes.com or a Local Dealer
The first flakes are falling in the Wasatch. Finally. From new
Jason,
Excellent review. I have thrown out the Yeti as an option and am now seriously considering the BLT2 and the new Intense Tracer VP, both of which are amazing bikes. As far as sizing goes on the BLT2, you mentioned that you are 5′11″ and rode a size large. I am 6′1″ and prefer to run a 90-100mm stem. Would you suggest that I look at an XL as far as sizing goes with the BLT2?
Thanks again
Hey Guapo
In my opinion, the most important metric is the Top-tube length. I prefer a 23-23.75 inch top tube for my height. Sometimes that’s a Medium and other times it’s a Large. Do you know what top-tube length you have typically ridden in the past?
For reference, the Large Blur LT2 has a 23.5 and the XL is 24.5.
I just purchased an ‘09 Blur LT and absolutly love it! I had the same issues with my ‘04 Blur, with the creaks and no way to maintain the pivot points. The new one is quite as hec, has zerks for lubing the joints-especially the lower- and the 140mm travel shows! It also lost a few pounds. I was really suprised how well it climbs for a full-susp. bike. Out of the box it is the best ride I have purchased and the most versatile.
I’m glad you’ve got extensive experience with the original Blur LT and can now compare it to the new LT2. A huge improvement eh? I got limited saddle-time on the original, so I never experienced the squeak-squeak. But, the new design is quiet and smooth. Get out there and enjoy it!
How does this bike stack up against the new Yeti 575 or the Giant Trance X? I am looking to buy only the frame of either one of these bikes. I am putting Mavic Crosstrail rims on it and a XT group. Right now I am riding a xl Commencal Meta 4.0 and I find it a little big, would you recommend the Lrg of those mentioned bike frames? I am 6ft. Cheers!
Hey Chris
Fit is very personal and hard to judge based on height alone. I’ve found that I prefer a bike with a 23.5″ top tube (give or take .25″) and that’s what I typically go by. I’m a little shorter than you, so you may need an XL, but could easily ride the L Blur LT if you wanted to–it depends on your fit and riding style.
I prefer a smaller frame so it’s more flickable and fun as opposed to stretched out and unfun.
The Santa Cruz Blur LT2 and the new Yeti 575 are two of the best trailbikes on the market and you can’t go wrong with either. The Giant Trance X should also be a great bike, but I haven’t ridden that one. I did review the 2005 Giant Reign 1 and loved that bike overall.
You’re on the right track with those three bikes. I can’t make that decision for you, but just know that you won’t go wrong with any of them.
Hi Jason,
I used to ride 12 years ago as a kid in a fashion similar to what is popularly defined as dirt jumping today. As such, my current ride is also 12 years old but remains to be a hardtail. I recently picked up riding again with a couple of friends. While we have covered mostly trail riding, i still enjoy a good wheelie and bunny hop whenever the conditions suit. I think my dirt jump days are firmly behind me mostly due to age and i am out in the market for a full suspension bike which could be either a 575 or a blur lt2. However, i cant help but be disappointed that would have to give up one aspect of riding which i enjoy the most. What are your thoughts?
There are no big downhills where i live, however, it seems like the current train of thought is to go for a long travel suspension bike a the disadvantages are now seemingly less noticable.
So, the one aspect of riding you think you may need give up with your new steed is dirt jumping? I’m not sure I follow what you feel you’ll have to give up.
If you want to get a bike that’s both trail capable and downhill-capable (with potentially some dirt jumps mixed in), there are some frames that are overbuilt just for that purpose. Some that come to mind:
Transition Preston
http://transitionbikes.com/2007/PrestonFR.cfm
Ventana El Terremoto
http://ventanausa.com/frame_elterremoto.html
Banshee Rampant 4X (may not be great on trails… more dirt jumping)
http://www.bansheebikes.com/bikes/rampant.html
I’ll keep an eye out for other options, but clarify what you’d like the bike to do aside from rip the local trails. Thanks!
Hi Jason,
Thanks for your prompt reply and congratulations on a great website that you have.
I will clarify what i am specifically looking for in a bike:
I am looking for a full suspension bike would work well in cross country conditions. At the moment, it seems that the industry is leaning towards all mountain bikes even for cross country conditions as the weight disadvantage between the 2 seems to be narrowing.
However, i would like this bike to perform bunny hops reasonably well. So far, my brief, short and possibly inconclusive test rides of full suspension bikes such as the Santa Cruz Superlight, or the Yeti 575 seem to indicate that i would have little chance of getting decent heights on my bunny hops (greater than a foot or so, i can typically do 2 to 3 feet on a hardtail).
I once rode a Gary Fisher Joshua 12 years ago that was a little light on the rebound damping. The bike was brilliant in bunny hops because one could actually feel the bike propelling itself into the air. While i would think that the rebound damping would have contributed to this, i cant help but think that the suspension design and geometry of the bike must also have contributed to this. If this is so, are there any bikes u could recommend that could possibly have the same sort(or close) of performance that could still perform reasonable well in cross country conditions?
Many thanks again and Merry Christmas
Gotcha… so VPP designs and suspension dampening has got you down (literally)? I know what you mean about not being able to hop so well on many modern bike designs–especially Virtual Pivot designs, which suck up the “spring” initiated by the rider prior to doing a bunny hop.
If you want the most hopping ability, a hard tail would be your best bet, of course. I would also say to stay clear of any virtual pivot designs.
While I haven’t really tested bikes for their “hop-ability” as of late (sounds like I may want to now), I can’t really give you much direction other than virtual pivot designs will suck up more of your energy than others.
My 2002 Turner RFX (Horst with Ellsworth ICT) hopped like a dream, so if I were you, I’d look towards Ellsworth’s ICT design since it has a rather stout initial platform, yet still provides a cushy ride. Iron Horse will be licensing the ICT next year, so you may not have to shell out the $$ for a true Ellsworth.
Thanks Jason. Sounds like i should go out and try to land myself a test ride on an Ellsworth. I am surprised that i rarely read about this issue though (the need to bunny hop) as it is very useful in clearing unforeseen obstacle such as fallen logs.
Yeah… I’ll keep it more on my radar.
Funny you should mention, I recall an instance on my 2002 Turner RFX that required some quick-thinking and tall hopping to avoid serious injury. I was hauling down a trail at a pretty good clip and I came around a corner to see a huge fallen tree that stood about 2-feet off the trail. I had no choice but to hop like my life depended on it. I remember my rear wheel barely tapping the trunk as I hopped on over it. Adrenalin does a body good, but that was a split-second from being disaster.
I hear your feedback loud and clear.