Is 130 mm travel enough?
Santa Cruz Tallboy in comparison

Santa Cruz is renowned for its descent-focused mountain bikes. With 130 mm of travel, the Tallboy aims to do one thing above all: cover distance. Can the Americans meet the needs of touring riders?

Between a downhill rig and a cross-country speed machine, there’s merely 100 millimeters of suspension travel. Into this travel spectrum, the Americans have packed a whole slew of different model platforms. The Highball, the Blur, the Blur TR, the Tallboy, the 5010, the Hightower, the Bronson, the Megatower, the Nomad, and the V10. Lost track? That’s 10 different frames.

The Tallboy, with 130mm of fork travel, marks the transition from the sporty to the descent-focused bikes. The Santa Cruz 5010 has just 10mm more travel, but it’s already proven to be a party animal in our tests. Is the Tallboy more serious, or is it splashing in the same pool?

You can rarely go wrong with a bike from Santa Cruz. The image and aesthetics are on point. The VPP suspension really rips, especially in its latest Lower Link incarnation. The geometry has always been on the nose thanks to the American brand’s keen sense of design.

And the bikes’ robustness is also mirrored by the lifetime warranty on the frame or their in-house carbon wheels. Even the bearings in the rear suspension are covered with a lifetime replacement for the original owner at this American firm. That’s what customer service looks like.

After an extensive real-world test, we can confirm: The same applies to the Santa Cruz Tallboy. The handy storage compartment in the downtube, the easily replaceable cables, and the threaded BSA bottom bracket also make it clear that Californians understand bikers appreciate pragmatic rides with straightforward maintenance.

The Tallboy excels on the trail and in the shop, yet there is an issue when looking to purchase a bike from Santa Cruz.

The prices are steep. Our test bike is the top-end model in the Tallboy lineup. Decked out in the “Saint-Tropez” trim, it commands a cool 12 grand. When compared to the market milieu of all trail bikes over €8000, the spec is decent yet not outstanding. Particularly, the SRAM Level TLM brakes with their 180mm rotors don’t pack enough stopping power for our taste.

Without a doubt, Americans charge a premium for the arguments listed above when it comes to their bikes. After all, bikes with similar specs and comparable travel can be had from Specialized for 9000 €. And the Epic Evo isn’t known to be a bargain hunter’s dream, either. German direct-to-consumer brand YT proves with the Izzo Core 4 that you can get a seriously well-equipped bike for less than 6000 €. Check out the comparison of all models here:

The brutal lineup from the Americans featuring 10 different model families inevitably confuses many riders. Even if you’re willing to drop some serious cash, with such a vast selection, the question remains: Is the Tallboy really the right bike for your individual taste?

To address this question, we put the Tallboy with 130 millimeters of fork travel to a back-to-back test against the 5010 with 140 millimeters of fork travel. This way, we can cleanly distinguish the personalities of each bike.

For our comparison, we outfitted both bikes with uniform Maxxis Dissector tires. With the same rubber, there’s only a 510-gram difference between the two bikes on the scales.

The reservoir shock, beefier fork, and heftier brakes contribute to the 5010, featuring 140 millimeters of travel on the fork, being about a half kilo heavier than the Tallboy.

With the original Maxxis Forekaster tires, the Tallboy shaves off another 400 grams. Obviously, you’re entering a territory that makes a noticeable difference on the trail. Particularly on long rides with a serious amount of elevation gain, the Tallboy just rips faster and climbs more efficiently.

When you compare the geometry of the Tallboy with that of the 5010 using our comparison feature, it’s evident: They’re quite similar. However, one must tread lightly with the claim that the geometries are identical. Because geometry business is a game of millimeters.

Minor tweaks can often make a huge difference. Even though head angle, seat angle, reach, and stack might suggest minimal variance, the smaller 27.5-inch rear wheel on the 5010 distinctly sets apart the personality of both bikes.

While the Tallboy rides with composed and steady poise on light trails, the 5010 acts like a little devil on your right shoulder, constantly whispering into your ear: You could drift here. Pop off that feature over there. And down on the trail, you should definitely pull a manual.

The character of the 5010 is noticeably more playful than that of the Tallboy. For those who want more details: We have a separate video about the 5010 on our channel.

When the going gets rough, that’s when you really see the difference between an All Mountain and a Trail bike. Despite identical tires, the Tallboy with its 130mm of travel loses traction at the limit a bit sooner than the 5010. In fast, root-infested turns, the Tallboy starts to drift, where the 5010 still carves with authority.

When sticking those landings after big airs or charging through choppy sections at high speed, you’ve got to grip the handlebars a bit tighter on the Tallboy. During long descents, the shock with the piggyback reservoir delivers a more consistent performance thanks to its superior heat management.

The Tallboy is available in 8 different build options starting at €5399. We’ve taken a closer look at all the choices. Using the arrow icon , you can also pull each model into comparison with any other bike from our extensive market overview.