Santa Cruz Bicycles Stigmata Carbon CC GRX Gravel Bike

Back in 2015, we applauded Santa Cruz's revival of its Stigmata. With carbon fiber layups matching the brand's most elite mountain bikes, and beefy thru-axles that gave the bike more versatility when we reached the end of the tarmac and pushed out onto country roads, gravel, and dirt, the Stigmata symbolized all that freed us from restrictions that both road cycling and mountain biking put on us. And here we are once again with a bit of Deja Vu, as Santa Cruz launches yet another iteration of the Stigmata Carbon CC GRX Complete Bike that proves the brand's commitment to deepening the adventure, or building the ultimate rallycat CX rig. While in 2015 Santa Cruz set the Stiggy apart from its competitors with technology that was new to the all-road scene, like internally routed cables and disc-brakes, these days you don't have to look hard to find other steeds that feature the same tech, so Santa Cruz looked to riders to see what else might be missing from the dream ride, and modernized the Stigmata to keep it at the top of the game -- regardless of whether that game is bikepacking adventures, cross season, or endless miles of gravel racing. This particular build marries the Stigmata's off-road versatility with the shifting comfort of Shimano's new off-road specific GRX groupset that's built to improve chain retention and shift feel through rowdy gravel rides. All of the new Stigmata frames sport Santa Cruz's top-shelf CC carbon lay-up, which delivers robust strength and stiffness alongside lightweight efficiency. The significantly revised carbon layup borrows knowledge gained from the mountain-going hardtail, the Highball, and knowledge gained when building Danny MacAskill's trials bike, to produce a ride yielding more compliance helping to smooth out the ride. Up front, the new Stigmata CC Fork uses the same high-end carbon for uncompromising stiffness and strength when you need it most and substitutes the old 15mm thru-axle for a more road and gravel appropriate ...