RACH’S COTIC FLAREMAX GEN5 DOWNCOUNTRY/PLATINUM XTR £6,999
The wait is over, and our staff writer’s fun is about to begin on her new steel steed
I’ve finally got my hands on a 2023 longtermer… just as 2024 bikes begin to be launched! But, based on the first few rides, it looks to have been worth the wait. Coming from an enduro background, I was keen to try out something with a bit less travel. So, I was stoked when Cy at Cotic agreed to send me a fifth-generation FlareMAX.
This is the Platinum build, which comes highly-specced with a Shimano XTR drivetrain, Cane Creek eeWings titanium cranks and a load of Hope kit, including their Tech 4 X2 brakes and Fortus 30 wheels. I opted for the Downcountry spec, with a lighter, shorter-travel RockShox SID Ultimate fork and Deluxe Select Plus shock, because I aim to take the bike out on longer rides in the mountains – albeit ones that still offer up spicy sections to keep my appetite for enduro tech satisfied. It weighs an impressive 13kg (full build, no pedals, size C2).
Under Cotic’s new reach-based ‘C Sizing’ system, I could have gone for the C3 frame,
