REVIEW - 2020 Santa Cruz Hightower - It's Not Your Dad’s Bike

[@ben3989]

I’m a dad with the old Hightower get off my lawn!

[@vultussursum165]

Yeah I have two, one *unused* (F.S. $7000) and one well used I keep at the cabin 2018 Medium XX1 Carbon Reserve, Factory 36 Hightower LTs and I rode this new 2020 thinking "Ooh la la, newest, latest, greatest!" but was so disappointed it made me sad that Santa Cruz have left their heritage and followed Specialized "Downhill". Where's the POP, where's the SNAP, where's the CLIMB? Too bad they've left their VPP heritage and gone downhill Geo.

[@dantribby199]

Dont we all!

[@finkelmann]

Finally, a review that's not just a guy rambling on over some GoPro helmet cam footage! Great review and great format - just the right mix of information and on-the-bike action. Totally on point.

[@dadventuretv2538]

Lior Dayan just FYI- a lot of the vids that are just “talking over gopro footage” are just average people who have jobs, family and other obligations taking time to put up a vid about their thoughts on a bike to hopefully help others and don’t have the time or resources to produce a slick vid like this. I don’t think you realize how much time goes into just filming and editing a gopro vid, let alone something like this. Not saying you gotta watch or like the gopro talking vids, but realize that the people putting them up are doing it for free, outta their spare time, for their love of the sport and to help others maybe make a better decision on which bike to buy.

[@finkelmann]

​@@dadventuretv2538 I'm fully aware of that - i'm on of those guys myself:) Been "volunteering" in various biking magazines for over a decade, as a photographer and technical reviewer- always out of pure passion, with no or very little pay, while managing a full time job, family, etc... And, being a photographer myself, i fully appreciate the technical effort as well. So i'm not saying this out of disrespect. However, i've grown a little tired of seeing 15minute unedited helmet footage "reviews" where the guy hops on the bike for the first time, rides a couple of trails, and ends up saying very little about the bike itself. Most of those videos can be a quarter in length, and much more informative, with hardly any added effort. So, while i appreciate their passion to review and share their thoughts, i think some constructive criticism is due.

[@taylorvice1610]

@@finkelmann werd!

[@kiwiboater]

I love watching videos of bikes I can't afford

[@cadecompton7713]

Same

[@KrisCeleste]

I like how he went on about the steeper seat tube angle being better for climbing when the vast majority of the footage shows him out of the saddle.

[@dylan_stucki]

You're right about the footage... haha, but the climbing position is actually really nice. I'm coming from a Trek Slash at the moment, and I can't get the seat far enough forward. The steeper seat tube does allow you get more over the front of the bike, which is especially noticeable on steeper climbs.

[@Cartsp70]

Kris Celeste it probably climbs like you’re in quick sand ! Ridiculously over priced like all SC , I just had my 5010 Xe serviced , cost £400 ! Free bearings is the SC Warranty? Absolute bs , you have to pay for everything , 😤😤😤😤😤

[@bmar560]

@@Cartsp70 bearings are free, labour to replace them is not.

[@chrishuyler3580]

Well, coming from a 2012 Tallboy LT (140f/135r older geometry) I gotta say the new Hightower climbs great whether you are seated or standing and my climbs are not nearly as buff as the ones in this video.

[@johnnimmo4114]

@@Cartsp70 shame you just cannot get everything for free isn't it??? SMH!!!!

[@mtbsavant5414]

My dad loves his Hightower ;)

[@mikaa1202]

Mine too!

[@rachet0708]

Me too

[@TheFullKanani]

You are right. My 80 year old Dad rides a 2018 Hightower. Thank God I can buy one now.

[@rachet0708]

I bought this bike brand new, and 3 years later, I still love it as much as the day I bought it. I can't say anything negative about it. If your the type person that has to find something negative in everything we'll I guess you can knit pick it, but having rode a hardtail for 7 years getting on that bike was like a dream.

[@no11477]

so worth it? I can buy also Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon LT as new fullsus. bike. Not sure yet

[@rachet0708]

@HVPTai Mine is the alloy S build, it was worth every dime. I've never owned a Carbon bike, honestly don't see myself ever owning one, but Santa Cruz has a lifetime warranty on the frame, so make sure you get that transferred into your name, just in case. Yes, if you are getting a deal that you are happy with, go for it. Mine has the Lyric Select plus 150mm fork, 140mm Ultimate Deluxe plus shock, and SRAM Eagle GX drive train, I absolutely love everything about it, it is a freaking beast on the trail, great for XC or downhill.

[@no11477]

@@rachet0708 thank you 😊

[@briggswilson7808]

You've sold me, I'm going to buy that by the end of the year. Wish they had more color options but the desert tan is cool.

[@lux-3001]

Nice review. My girlfriend used to have the "dad's bike" and she was quite happy with it. The only thing I resent is that the seat tube angle gets slacker with increasing frame size. The thing is, us taller riders pay the price of the slacker seat tube angle even more, as the effective angle is even slacker the higher you have your saddle. In reality, the XXL should have an extra degree added, not removed.

[@EDCFitnessLoop]

How tall are you and which size bike were you riding?

[@notbaymax5499]

Me: *watches video* My kidney: bro don’t leave me

[@woodywoody7940]

What size did you ride and how tall are you. The added reach is mentioned which seems to be offset somewhat by the seat tube angle. With the added reach Santa Cruz’s size chart did not effectively change, so what does the added reach do…

[@jtkyber]

How is the aluminum version for climbing? 34lbs is pretty dang heavy

[@bryanfegan]

This dad tears it up on his 2019 matte black Hightower!

[@alexunlv]

HTLT every day all day! Thug life!

[@Stickybutton]

Damnit.. I am a dad. I need one of these.

[@everywherelocal]

So what's a dad bike in first place? Do I need one since I have a kid? Does my riding suck? Please help.

[@Montblanc1986]

Yes,yes and yes

[@everywherelocal]

@@Montblanc1986 thanks, much appreciated.

[@jean-sebastiendesforges985]

Is this more of a downhill bike or more of trail bike ? Im going to be riding more flat land and the occasional hill decent . Thank in advance !

[@nathanhedrick6693]

What size did you ride in the video? What is your height?

[@allenkvextreme]

*now that i saw this video, i'm considering getting this one*

[@Bylopss]

New Bronson vs new Hightower... Thoughts?

[@cajeroautomatico]

Definitely the Hightower. More versatile, 29er wheels are nice, happy to sacrifice 10mm travel for the bigger hoops. I demoed a Bronson yesterday (XL, I'm 6'2") and although the smaller wheels make the steering pretty light, I didn't feel any advantage. Even if you're looking for a bike that handles park days, I think I'd rather go with the Hightower over the Bronson. I'm a tall guy though, things may look different for smaller riders.

[@ronchang9791]

Dadbod describes an overbiked guy on a megatower, on smooth, manicured trails. Low travel bikes are under super athletic people who can put up with the punishment and smaller margin of error.

[@Sdm07120]

Would you choose the new high tower over the Bronson as your primary do it all bike if you could only have one to ride trails and do some bike park? I’m torn on the two I’ve never rode a 29er and I’m in the market for a new ride. Thank you

[@jonathanschwarz3199]

Tallboy or Hightower? Whats your take after reviewing both of them?

[@TheAllEngineering]

Neither Long travel slack hardtail all day long !!!!

[@scassidy8]

I’m on the fence between the HT or 5010... opinions anyone?

[@odd_job_007]

Easy with the Dad stuff. I'm a dad and I ride a Hightower!

[@cosmicheretic8129]

No mention of reduced fork offset? SC probably doesn't want to give props to Transition for starting this trend.

[@vitalmtb]

A trend no doubt. Transition had the spotlight for a long time and people seem to know where things began. It's becoming quite common these days and for good reason!

[@GM-hw7rr]

Thinking of the hightower as my first 29er. Cant decide between hightower and bronsen as i ride enduro trails and do a lot of jumping, i do race enduro now and then but i mostly ride for fun. Any advice on wich one i should choose?

[@jctrails]

Damn it I just bought the Megatower!

[@angelreynoso6723]

If stuck between sizes for an all mountain trail bike, size up or down??

[@TheLeesto]

if you only could choose 1 bike, 2020 hightower or 2020 tallboy which do you go with?

[@John_D2]

Any idea of what the leverage ratio is ? Progressive , regressive , linear ?

[@vitalmtb]

The Hightower is a progressive bike. Slightly less so than the Megatower, but more than in years past.

[@treyblakeandrew]

I’d love to know what the leverage rate is on this one. Starting and ending.

[@geoffkoop]

at 5'9.5", what size would you ride? I currently have a Hightower LT in Large.

[@LiHao8377]

The best of Santa Cruz is the low standover high, it fits all people

[@elliottglynn5055]

Seatbounced a megatower yesterday nearly had my shorts ripped off

[@russc5269]

Nice review. I'm torn between a new bronson or a 29er. How's the HT compare. Thinking carbon rims so thinking about future bike builds with the 29ers... I've tested a bronson and really enjoyed it. Not been able to test anything else though.

[@wero5531]

I have ridden the new Hightower and the new Bronson. The Hightower felt like a Bronson with 29er wheels. It was so playful to ride, really didn't expect that. At the end I had to made the same decision as yours and I went for the new Hightower.

[@russc5269]

@@wero5531 thanks for the reply.. I'm just under 5 9" but test Rode the large bronson... It felt right and didn't know it was a large till after an hours riding. A mate brought it for me to demo.. I really liked it. I really want the rolling speed of 29s and being able to roll over stuff.. Would you say having a little less travel than the bronson is a problem?

[@JB-mw5rg]

Nice review!

[@993mike]

The big downer? It looks like all the models weigh about 10% more than the previous generation. That’s a pretty significant weight penalty.

[@lifeadventure9229]

Looks awsome but they screwed up the cable routing now you can't heat shrink. Hate sloppy cables.

[@peternordstrom3526]

What size were you riding?? 6’4” 34 inseam can’t decide on a XL or XXL?

[@jrc0004]

Im 6'4" 36" inseam, and ride a XL 2018 Hightower., I am also 200 pounds lean.

[@robmeyersjr.2901]

I am just over 6’4 and about to snag a XXL. Weighing both options right now...

[@nathan4432]

forking up to 160, here we come.

[@Antweak83]

Yew hew!!! Us too

[@rogerramirez9400]

I’m a teenager in the Bay Area what is a good way to get money for a bike like this? I have a $1500 trek Gary fisher elite full suspension it works great but it comes with some cons

[@rachet0708]

Work and save. I'm 50, rode cheaper hardtails for years. It took years, but I finally got the money to get one.

[@cooper2119]

How tall are you and which size did you test?

[@dylan_stucki]

I'm 6'5" and I tested the XL. I really would like to also test the XXL, because that size will finally give me the same perspective as someone who is on a medium considering a new bike with almost a size up in the reach. I felt that since I am currently on an XL Trek Slash, the XL would be the most relative comparison. I'm stoked to finally have some XXL options on the market to test. Stay tuned.

[@cooper2119]

Dylan Stucki I am guessing it wasn’t available then. Thanks for the reply!

[@researcher3967]

hot damn what trails are those?

[@petertyliszczak3411]

Treasure Trail - You can tell by the stump with the little penis coming off it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eoq6hmhsZs6qirc

[@researcher3967]

@@petertyliszczak3411 hahaha cheers!

[@sebastianpretorius5952]

Quiver killer?

[@padureancalin8096]

Dylan Stucki left Enve Composites?

[@dylan_stucki]

Yea, in 2016...

[@velvetmidget]

Dylan Stucki hahhahahahhahahahahahahahaha

[@naturaltree7791]

Any chance you could comment on how this new Hightower is vs the RM Instinct(not the bc version)? Currently looking at the instinct but this ride just came up at the local bike shop.

[@jonathanschwarz3199]

Second this question!

[@JTMarlin8]

4:52-4:57 What the hell does this even mean?

[@David-rb3tk]

Good question, Sounds like he is reading off a Santa Cruz marketing script.

[@Kev.in-Bike]

Amazing Bike

[@doughboi007]

I love how each new bike has "better" angles when it's all about speculation and preferences. You can have a bike from 2010 and still be very modern.

[@marcusbevz6500]

Andrew Fallon yea I’m pretty sure head angle and geometry shouldn’t be about the newest modern trends but more about how it personally fits, different geometry for different body shapes and sizes

[@Benj-vb5rc]

Great video keep it op

[@Dhn4002]

I don’t like the thing that santa Cruz is making bikes nearly identical to each other, they all look like the new bronson and the new hightower have almost the same frame of the nomad . Except the 5010 that i love

[@vultussursum165]

3:27 Stick in the rear spokes

[@David-rb3tk]

What is a Dad bike, anyway?

[@NevadaSmith2]

I thought Santa Cruz would make some positive changes to their 2020 colorways after all the complaints on the 2019 colors. Nope! They still went with merlot barf burgundy, baby poo yellow, with burnt sienna smeared into every color 🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️ Not referring to this High Tower specifically, but the line as a whole. And this is coming from a guy who has ridden SC bikes for 13 years.

[@jkamer2168]

Paint it.

[@TeoZMuff313]

Paint it then. They can’t make everyone happy

[@rachet0708]

How freakin lame.

[@thomasli2261]

All mountain rigs are getting too similar to enduro beasts

[@TeoZMuff313]

Fact.

[@th_js]

But they still pedal well and aren't too heavy. I don't see the problem with that.

[@TheLifeofRich]

my dad has a yeti sb5+ so i think it might be like my dads bike

[@mitskoala0380]

sigh... here we go again, who need kidneys anyway, right?

[@cajeroautomatico]

Aluminium 'D' build is less than 3k... ride a season, then get a fork upgrade instead of servicing it ;-)

[@sam-ww1wk]

The fork looks totally overwhelmed. This dad needs a rowdier ride. You're right, not my bike.

[@seanhalperin6469]

Correct, that bike is not my Dad's bike.

[@Atomb]

So the kids need a 65 degree head angle to ride anything pointing down. Give me a fast-handling "Dad bike" any day.

[@meteormedia7021]

Don't kid yourselfs. The Hightower is definitley a dad bike.

[@choosetylernol]

man I remember when I was a young boy and the Bullit was the hot thing, black front triangle, chrome rear for mine. That was..uh..20 years ago? Get off my lawn!

[@mohicanairways]

The new sales tactic is to call bikes a few years old dad bikes now huh? Flow trails for everyone!!!

[@klamauk]

The new Lyrik decals look really ugly

[@JIBBING_1980S]

This bike cost me $44k after converted currency.. T_T why created something that was so expensive when people love this kind of health sport..

[@Timthecommenter]

My dad has this bike.

[@justinh1258]

I like the geometry changes but the colors are not good at all and rockshox across the board isn’t my favorite. Definitely prefer Fox.

[@petite_beat83]

the megatower should be a mini Nomad and the hightower a mini megatower then

[@DnBQemist]

Seems like SC got the memo the SB130 was the hottest bike to ever sell

[@jkamer2168]

Where'd you read that, can I get a copy?

[@mikerotchburns1622]

32lbs for a full carbon trail bike for $4300, ok

[@adanielweaver]

The top of the line alloy build at $4200 is better than I expected. The carbon bikes are breathtakingly expensive for the build you would want.

[@raupenimmersatt6906]

Just buy the AL frame for 1500€ when its on sale. Youll end up with an 12 Speed XT and Lyrik Setup and Newmen wheels setup If you search for deals.

[@brianbuhman8361]

sweet weapon

[@Montblanc1986]

The bike not for dads but only dads can afford one.

[@nathan4432]

actually, they have lots of price points for this

[@dylan_stucki]

Starting at $2,899...

[@thomasli2261]

Dylan Stucki for that price you get Sram SX Eagle, RockShox 35, Sram Guide T etc, all the new but CHEAP Sram product.

[@epicgaming9564]

my dad has a hightower tho

[@g71cey]

Longer, lower, slacker... But I thought this mantra was "over rated" ✌🤪

[@lifeadventure9229]

BB is higher now by 3mm to 340mm

[@chucinchu87]

Looks like my polygon d7

[@jonwright3803]

Got off of being critical of Dads...who the hell you think is paying for a $6k bike for you whipper snappers???

[@scottk3772]

2:00 CUT! I said CUT!!!

[@ethanbenton6676]

It's not your dad's bike but it seems to be everyone elses.

[@RATBURL]

Price? Components? Details 😒

[@dylan_stucki]

All of that info is tied to the article: www.vitalmtb.com/product/guide/Bikes,3/Santa-Cruz/Hightower-CC-X01-29-Rerserve,26704#product-reviews/3577

[@J2016-u8l]

But it is my dads bike

[@richardconway8024]

So basically a Bronson

[@fmb7719]

My dad has a better bike than me

[@MichaelStugart]

I don't get what the means about the old version being more of a dad bike than the new one and to add more he was like the new one is bigger than the older one. I have seen Tony Hawk do more amazing things on a skate board than most kids will ever be able to do such as a 900 in competition and a few years ago he did one at like 48 years of age ( kzbin.info/www/bejne/ip_ZgaeVlpychbM) and Tony Hawk is a dad. Seriously some individuals are awesome and shouldn't be put in categories as if the are such less quality individuals such as show respect where it is deserved. Ride on awesome individuals because being awesome is more of a inner thing and not a kid or parent thing how i mean. 😁

[@lux-3001]

Welcome to 2020, a year when mainstream bike brands are starting to catch up on the Nicolai/Geometron Geolution from 2016. BTW, at that time, this type of geometry was deemed unusable and too extreme by most of the MTB "journalists" that rave about it today.

[@beatsHero]

TF is a dad bike?!

[@trilltron2885]

Informative review! But, no offense, such a drone like delivery, nearly put me to sleep