We’ve recently seen some spy shots of what was purportedly the new Nomad on social media, and Santa Cruz just made it official. Now in its fourth generation, the latest Nomad gets – what else – more travel and a slacker head tube. The Nomad now gets 170mm of squish at both ends of the bike. Santa Cruz didn’t just up the travel on the third gen Nomad and call it good though, they took the opportunity to completely redesign the bike.
Along with the new Nomad, Juliana Bicycles – Santa Cruz’s sister company – is launching the Strega, a women’s version of the same bike.
V10-Style Linkage
The new Nomad still employs Santa Cruz’s VPP suspension platform, but the shock is now mounted to the lower link, similar to what you’ll find on their V10 downhill bike. Santa Cruz claims the shock rate is almost completely linear for excellent small bump compliance and big hit performance. That linear rate means that riders can choose air or coil rear suspension based on their preference. Since the shock is so low in the frame, and so close to the rear tire, the Nomad comes with an integrated fender to keep grime out.
Geometry
Bro-brahs rejoice! The new Nomad has two geometry settings: high and low. Santa Cruz suggests the high setting for everyday riding – if that’s even a thing on a 170mm bike – and the low setting for “full on DH status.” In the high setting the Nomad has a 65-degree head tube angle, which matches the gen-3 Nomad, although that bike had 10mm less travel up front. Flipping the chip to the low setting puts the head tube at 64.6-degrees and drops the BB height by 5mm. Most notably in the geo department, reach has increased substantially, by a frame size or more when compared to the previous model. A size large Nomad now has a reach of 460mm, where it was 438mm previously.
Builds
In typical Santa Cruz fashion, the Nomad is available in a variety of builds with two levels of carbon frames: the high end “CC” and slightly more affordable “C”. Pricing for a Nomad C starts at $4,500 for a complete bike, and tops out at $9,000 for the blinged-out Nomad CC. Of course, you can opt to add Santa Cruz’s new Reserve 30 carbon wheels for an extra $1,200. A frame and shock option is available for $3,200.
Poking through the different builds available, Santa Cruz appears to have let the cat out of the bag on the previously unannounced SRAM GX Eagle group. The GX Eagle group is a more budget-friendly version of SRAM’s 12-speed groups. The GX crankset in particular has undergone major changes, with a much chunkier aesthetic. We’ll have more info on the new components after the official announcement.
Reserve Carbon Wheels
To go along with the Nomad and Strega, Santa Cruz announced that they’re getting into the carbon wheel game as well – a trend we’ve seen more and more companies follow. There’s not a ton of info regarding specs of the wheels, but according to Santa Cruz, they should be some of the toughest wheels around. In fact, they’re backing them up with a robust lifetime warranty. There aren’t a bunch of caveats either. If you break one of their rims while riding, they’ll replace it free of charge. Should you run over your bike with your car or drive it into your garage, they’ll help you out with a low cost crash replacement.
Visit your local Santa Cruz and Juliana dealer to learn more about the newest Nomad and Strega.
