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Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon CC XTR

Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon CC XTR
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Details

Our greatest hits compiled into one bike—just hit play.

If ever a bike resembled your most cherished mix tape compilation, the Hightower is it. Featuring our lower-link mounted shock design, updated, adjustable geometry, this “Engineering Best Of...” assembles some of our biggest design pleasers into one belter of a road-trip companion.

The Hightower has been a does-it-all-well trail bike since its inception. More maneuverable than its longer-travel sibling, the Megatower, and more at home in the steep-and-chunky than its snappy cousin Tallboy, Hightower excels when the route covers ‘all points in between,’ and descents come courtesy of some big-ass climbs. The VPP suspension’s lower-link-mounted shock creates a nearly linear leverage curve, meaning it mops up bumps of all sizes and maintains the kind of progressivity normally reserved for our V10 DH bike!

140mm of rear travel complemented by a 150mm front end gives Hightower just a bit more front and rear travel over the first generation model. Combined with a slacker 65-degree head tube angle, the Hightower still sits squarely in the Goldilocks zone, but with a touch more “Get me out of here!” capability when the porridge gets too hot!

Balancing stiffness and weight savings in all the right places is a hallmark of all Santa Cruz carbon frames and the Hightower flies the flag yet higher. The advanced composite chassis tracks well across all trail surfaces, holds a line, and is reactive to rider directions while isolating pedal-influenced inputs.

The Hightower also has a bonus disc to heighten the experience—the flip chip. In the High setting, the BB height is a little higher for those tricky tech trails and/or when Plus sized tires are required. In the Low position the shock rate is more progressive, to provide additional bottom-out resistance. Whatever mood you’re in, the tone of the Hightower can be adapted to meet your individual taste.

And speaking of taste, there’s a room for a water bottle inside the main frame and a threaded BB for convenience. There’s refined cable routing for better shifting performance, simpler installation, and no cable rub. On top of that, there’s a tailgate shuttle guard, downtube protector, shock fender, and noise-canceling chainstay protector keeping things quiet.

The lifetime frame warranty, lifetime pivot bearing replacement policy, and lifetime guarantee on the optional Reserve carbon wheels assures you that the Hightower will keep delivering the hits for years to come.

This Hightower CC XTR verges on superbike connotations. Built around Shimano's new XTR 12-speed drivetrain and XTR brakes, it certainly has the pedigree to make any rider better. A RockShox Lyrik Ultimate fork, complemented by a Super Deluxe Select Ultimate shock keep you firmly planted through the rough stuff while handling big hits with nary a flinch. Santa Cruz's Reserve 30 Carbon rims come standard on this build, backed by i9 Hydra hubs and venerable Maxxis Minion DHR2 rubber. A Reverb Stealth dropper, i9 A35 stem and Santa Cruz AM Carbon 800 x 35mm bar complete this elite package.

A dropper seatpost allows you to quickly lower and raise your seat to give you an ideal riding position. Dropping your seat creates a lower center of gravity for better control and maneuverability on steep descents, while raising it puts you at normal riding height for efficient pedaling.

Construction can include either hydraulic- or cable-actuated systems and the post’s travel can either be infinitely adjustable or stopped at set intervals, depending on the model.

Dropper seatposts come in standard lengths and diameters and vary by the amount of travel.

Specs

Frame Hightower CC
Fork RockShox Lyrik Ultimate 150mm 29"
Headset Chris King DropSet 3 Black
Rear Shock RockShox Super Deluxe Select Ultimate
Axles Front: 110 x 15mm
Rear: 148 x 12mm
Rims/Wheels Santa Cruz Reserve 30 Carbon Rim - 29"
Hubs Front: i9 Hydra, Torque Cap, Centerlock, 28h
Rear: i9 Hydra, MicroSpline, Centerlock, 28h
Spokes DT Competition Race
Tires Maxxis Minion DHR2 29 x2.40 3C EXO TR
Crankset E13 TRSr, Boost, 170mm (S-L), 175mm (XL-XXL)
Chainrings 30T
Bottom Bracket E13 BSA BB
Chain Shimano XTR, 12spd, w/Quick Link
Rear Derailleur Shimano XTR M9100 SGS, 11/12spd
Cassette/Rear Cogs Shimano XTR, 12spd, 10-51T
Shifters Shimano XTR M9100 SL, 12spd, I-Spec
Handlebars Santa Cruz Bicycles AM Carbon Bar 35x800mm
Tape/Grips Santa Cruz Palmdale Grips
Stem i9 A35
Brakes Shimano XTR M9120, Shimano XTR Center Lock Ice Tech Rotors, 180mm
Saddle WTB Silverado Team Saddle
Seat Post RockShox Reverb Stealth 31.6mm
Accessories & Extras Stans Sealant 2oz

* Subject to change without notice.

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