2022 Pivot Shadowcat Team XTR – Capable trail wonder or lightweight niche product?

The all-new Pivot Shadowcat is a super-light bike offering 160 mm travel up front and 140 mm at the rear, designed to go both up and downhill with ease. With its 650B wheels and frame sizes ranging from XS–L, it accommodates smaller and lighter riders. Will the Shadowcat be a hit, or is it a niche product?

The Pivot Shadowcat is the US bike brand’s latest mountain bike, featuring small 27.5” wheels and the same travel numbers as the Pivot Mach 5.5 with 160 mm travel up front and 140 mm at the rear. The XS–L size range and the geometry suggest that the Shadowcat is predominantly aimed at smaller and lighter riders. Read our review to find out whether the € 9,649 bike can glide along the trail like a cat or if it’s difficult to tame.

The 2022 Pivot Shadowcat Team XTR in detail

The bright pink Shadowcat makes quite an impression just standing there, looking very lively. Matching the frame, the decals on the fork and shock are pink too, complementing the bike’s colour scheme. The brake lines and cables for the dropper and gears are routed internally and clamped securely in place at the inlet ports up front. As such, the bike is both quiet and clean looking – excellent! Pivot’s typical DW-Link rear triangle has generous seat and chainstay protectors, shielding the paintwork and also keeping the bike quiet on the trail. Combined with the quiet hub, the bike slinks down the trail like a cat stalking its prey.

The frame has numerous mounts for bottles and tools. There are 4 bosses for a bottle cage on the down tube, which allows you to adjust the position of the bottle. You can attach a second bottle to the underside of the down tube. There are two mounting options for tools: either on the underside of the top tube or below the bottom bracket. We can’t recommend the latter variant for either a bottle or your tools since everything you put there will get covered in mud – unless you live in the desert.

The components of the 2022 Pivot Shadowcat Team XTR

We got to test the € 9,649 Team XTR build, featuring lightweight components from Shimano’s XTR product line. The 12-speed XTR cassette is paired with an XTR derailleur. The ergonomic shifter is attached to the brake lever clamp via the I-SPEC mount, ensuring a clean cockpit. The Shimano XTR brakes transmit their stopping power to 180 mm ICE-TECH rotors, which is appropriate for lighter riders and underlines the bike’s intentions. Heavier riders or those who want better modulation and reliability might want to consider upgrading to 200 mm rotors on the front wheel. The light NEWMEN ADVANCED carbon wheels are shod with MAXXIS DISSECTOR tires. They have a relatively shallow tread profile, which should allow them to roll fast. They perform well on dry trails. However, If you’re not from the Arizona desert like Pivot and often ride in the wet, we recommend upgrading to a DHF with the MaxxGripp rubber compound, at least at the front. The thin EXO casing and carbon rim combination will only work for light riders. Heavier folks will have to run the tires at high pressures or inevitably damage the rims.

Unlike the other weight and performance optimised components, Pivot focused on looks for the suspension. The FOX 36 Factory fork boasts the gold Kashima coating, but it relies on the lower-end FIT4 damper on the inside. In contrast to the highly adjustable GRIP2 model, it features a simple three-stage lever to adjust the compression, allowing you to choose from Open, Mid and Lock. It might look like a high-performance fork, but it doesn’t offer the kind of tunability that experienced riders demand. The shock follows in the same vein in terms of setup, giving you just three compression settings. Thanks to Pivot’s sag indicator, you can adjust the rear suspension at 30% sag without having to get out the measuring tape. Pivot make it easy for beginners to get the basic setup right, but the suspension offers limited adjustability for advanced riders.

The other builds of the 2022 Pivot Shadowcat

Pivot offer 10 different builds of the Shadowcat. Consisting of 2 race, 4 pro and 4 team builds, the prices start at € 6,199 and end at €13,599. The flagship model comes with electronic Live Valve suspension as well as wireless SRAM AXS components. The different models are available either with SRAM or Shimano components and are named according to their groupsets. So, the model you choose comes down to whether you prefer SRAM or Shimano components and your budget. In addition to the eye-catching “Danger-Fruit” pink, the bike is also available in a subtle blue called “Blue Mirage”.

The geometry of the Pivot Shadowcat – Dirt bike in MTB clothing

The Pivot Shadowcat is available in 4 sizes from XS–L, extending the range of sizes downwards to accommodate smaller and lighter riders, appealing to mountain bikers that are between 147 and 190 cm tall. Looking at it from the side, the strikingly tall front end and short seat tube make the bike look like it’s ready to attack. With a seat tube length of just 394 mm and a reach of 460 mm, there’s nothing to restrict your freedom of movement. The bike doesn’t have a flip chip or other geometry adjustments, keeping things simple and easy to set up. While the chainstays are 430 mm long on all sizes, the handlebars grow from 760 mm on the XS and S to 780 mm on the M and L frames. Likewise, the dropper post travel increases from 125 mm on the XS to 150 mm on the S and 175 mm on sizes M and L.

Size	XS	SM	MD	LG
Seat tube	343 mm	368 mm	394 mm	432 mm
Top tube	569 mm	595 mm	627 mm	650 mm
Head tube	85 mm	110 mm	120 mm	130 mm
Head angle	65.8°	65.8°	65.8°	65.8°
Seat angle	76°	76°	76°	76°
Chainstay	430 mm	430 mm	430 mm	430 mm
BB drop	17 mm	17 mm	17 mm	17 mm
Wheelbase	1142 mm	1172 mm	1206 mm	1230 mm
Reach	410 mm	430 mm	460 mm	480 mm
Stack	582 mm	605 mm	614 mm	623 mm

The Pivot Shadowcat on the trail – Shadow puppet or cat?

The Shadowcat climbs like an all-wheel-drive jeep with a diff-lock. The 140 mm travel offered by Pivot’s trusted DW-Link suspension makes the bike stick to the ground without bobbing as you pedal. You can leave the shock open, which gives you the traction you need when things get technical. On the pedals, you’ll also notice how light the wheels are, allowing the Shadowcat to get up to speed almost effortlessly. The only limiting factor is the rear tire as it lacks grip on very steep and wet terrain.

You’ll quickly reach the top of the climb and when coming back down, the bike shows its lively and playful side. The small wheels love quick direction changes, letting you throw the bike from berm to berm. The short chainstays certainly add to this and the rear suspension offers plenty of support. The bike invites you to pop off even the smallest lips, but you can also launch it off big jumps with ease. Thanks to the low riding position, you feel integrated with the bike and never feel like you might go over the bars. It’s only in open corners that you have to consciously weight the front wheel to generate grip. When the terrain gets very rough and demanding, you’ll notice the bike’s small wheels and low weight. The Shadowcat won’t let you close your eyes and just plough through. Instead, you’ve got to be careful with your line choice and actively weight and unweight the bike if you want to have a good time. Thanks to its weight, it’s easy to manoeuvre and throw around, but it doesn’t iron out the trail.

Conclusion on the Pivot Shadowcat

The Pivot Shadowcat is an agile and playful play bike that’s simply meant to be fun, which it is. Easy trails and shaped tracks with jumps and berms are where the Shadowcat feels at home, allowing it to play to its strengths and put a grin on any rider’s face. When things get rough, the bike requires an active riding style to master the trail, making you work for it. We’re confident that it will be a hit with those that’ve been waiting for a bike that gives conventions the middle finger.

For more information on the bike, visit Manufacturer’s website