BMC Agonist XC race machine first ride
A massive wooden bridge spanning a river gorge was constructed for pedestrians and cyclists. Photo by Stephan Boegli
What is it?
The Agonist, is BMC‘s new XC racing rig aimed at technical courses and endurance events. Aggressive XC rigs with steep head angles and 100mm of front travel are fast but who wants to ride those beyond two hours or everyday outside of racing? We think the Agonist with 110mm of front and rear travel is ideal for the rider who wants to go fast and far. Hit a local XC race or go exploring for six hours on undiscovered terrain with the Agonist. Tackle that 8-hour endurance race, Leadville or even that Downieville XC course with this bike which gives you the best chance to beat your PR’s or personal records.
The bike reveal was done in a venue only the Swiss can pull off, a train en route to the destination. Photo by Stephan Boegli
It sports 29er wheels of course with a head angle of 69.5 and a seat angle of 73.75. Chainstay at 445mm is on the longer side for comfort and stability. Frame weight is 2180 grams or 5.5 lbs. And the bike is fast, fast, fast. It’s comfortable at speed and it gobbles up climbs and flat fire roads like no other. It’s the bike that BMC knows how to build well.
Elegant lines of the Agonist were appreciated as the train sped to the trailhead. Photo by Stephan Boegli
How does it ride?
Our route to check out the Agonist was a 30 mile, 3500 foot climb trek in the Kander Valley of Switzerland. With about 20 journalists that usually enjoy All Mountain rides, the otherwise daunting route was no big deal with this bike. Everyone pedaled up and traversed the flat connecting fire roads efficiently and with little drama. This is the greatest testimonial to this bike as it really is efficient in covering lots of ground. With the APS suspension and Vittoria Barzo 29er tires, miles just ticked away on the odometer. Bike was comfortable and best when propelled forward with the Eagle drivetrain.
We traversed many farms and trails with the BMC Agonist. Photo by Stephan Boegli
Rear suspension was quite progressive and it was a challenge to get the full 110mm of travel even with proper sag. It ramped up quite a bit so we’d be curious to try this rear shock with less volume spacers to make the travel more linear. The coupled front/rear suspension lockout lever was slick. This lever is made by BMC and is decidedly Swiss with its precise action, unlike the sloppy ones common in the market today. It worked well and was handy in the fire road climbs. Our only wish is that this lever should be located on the bottom of the left side handlebar instead of on top.
The view is always big and breathtaking in Switzerland. Photo by Stephan Boegli
On the descents, the bike was smooth, stable and predictable. Singletrack rollers were a breeze. But none of the bikes had a dropper post so it was a bit of a challenge when things got hairy. Some may argue that this type of bike does not need a dropper but we’ll just have to call those folks misguided. We’re firm believers that some riders may not need droppers but some riders do because their riding style adapts when cornering and jumping. In the end, it’s the terrain that demands it and a dropper will give this bike a bigger sweet spot of trail applications.
Traversing many miles is the specialty of the Agonist. Photo by Stephan Boegli
There’s no internal dropper cable routing dedicated to it per se but the front derailleur cable hole is perfectly suited for it. Since we’re huge believers in 1×12 drivetrains as well, this becomes a non-issue.
In the end, a few cockpit changes like wider bars and shorter stem plus dropper post would make this a very versatile bike. Tackle a technical XC race, a burly endurance epic or a multi-day stage race like the BC Bike Race in Canada. Bundle in all the training rides and exploration rides and this could be a key bike in the stable.
Cross Country pedigree but with a persuasion towards endurance is the target of the Agonist. Photo by Stephan Boegli
What didn’t we like?
The lack of the dropper post is a key request from us. And wider bars with the remote lockout under the bar would be a close second.
Looking at the build kits, the top end bike come with Eagle 1×12 but the two more affordable option have a double front chainring. We definitely would want a lower cost 1×12 or 1×11 option.
Geometry is aggressive but with a modern touch.
Pricing
Two of the lower priced models are at $4,900 for an XT/SLX bike or an XT / Deore option for a Swiss bargain price of $3,900. We rode the full carbon X01 1×12 Eagle build priced at $7,500.
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