It depends where and how you ride, but swapping the somewhat narrow and low profile Forekasater tires for something with a more aggressive tread would do wonders for this bike. If you ride smooth trails with hard-packed dirt the Forekasters might be just fine for you. If you ride more aggressive terrain or in loose conditions, it would be worth considering something with more cornering and braking bite. Giant has spec’d the Stance 29 with their own XCT tubeless-ready wheelset. On the 29-inch version of this bike, the wheels have a 25mm internal rim width which is bordering on narrow in this day and age. The 27.5-inch wheeled version of this bike comes with wider rims and tires.
They’re a hefty set of hoops and tubeless compatibility isn’t really on the radar at this price-point but we can’t see them presenting any durability issues. Visually it closely echoes its longer travel big brother; the Trance. In fact the Stance looks a lot like the Trance Advanced 0—a bike that costs four times as much. Giant has certainly done well to retain the appearance of a premium bike on this entry-level dually. The Stance is Giant’s latest entry-level dually and it’s priced well enough to lure would-be hardtail buyers over to the land of squish.
For your inside leg measurement, stand against a wall and using a book hold it in between your legs into your groin and make sure it’s flat against the wall. If your height is on the cusp of the size range, your reach is often the deciding factor in which size to go for. To find out if you have short or long reach you will need to measure your ape index. If you have a positive ape index then go for the larger size, or if you have a negative ape index go for a smaller size.
The Maxxis Ardent 27.5 x 2.2 tires are not enough to match the bike’s capabilities. I love it, I’m just starting back in MTB and this has me hitting the trails again. I easily did my initial setup, added a couple things that I prefer giant ROAD BIKES to ride with, and hit the trails. Rear derailleur is slow to shift causing about a one second lapse in putting the power down between each shift. Still happy with the bike, but a good clutch style derailleur will be my first upgrade.
The Stance still uses old quick release rear wheel where the Trance has a thru-axel. Some may consider the 90mm stem to be on the long side when combined with the widish bars but swapping to something shorter should be easy enough at the time of purchase. The Connect saddle is the only part of the Stance that looks like a recreational bike; it’s big, wide and cushy. Great for cruising along the fire trail, but a bit bulky when the speed and action heats up.
Testers found this moderate reach to be quite comfortable on the descents while the 67-degree head tube angle and big 29-inch wheels inspired the confidence to roll down just about anything in its path. Don’t get us wrong, this isn’t a super hard-charging bike on the descents, but with a calculated approach, we found that it’s capable and fun while taming most trails. I was surprised that the bike isn’t setup with giant KIDS BIKES a seat post dropper, especially given the high quality of the frame and other components. I’ve gotten very used to these for mountain biking and feel that they are worth having, especially for full suspension models. While they do add a bit of weight, the bike is already heavier than average. At this price, simplistically shaped heavy gauge tubes would be entirely passable but the Stance offers much more.
When the leaves start falling and the weather becomes more unpredictable, the Forekaster is the late-season tire of choice. I applaud giant for being able to hit that price point for full suspension but there are a lot of things you’re just not going to find on most modern full squish bikes. Maintain a steady spin in the granny ring and you’ll crest the climbs with minimal fuss—slow and steady is the best way up on the Stance. In regards to tire pressures- need to know your weight with riding gear, are you set up tubeless, and what size tires are you running to get you into a ballpark range.
This trait is less apparent in the granny ring but it’s best to remain seated and smooth on the pedals when you’re using the two larger chainrings. The Stance 2 is packing a lot of intuitive features that will aid any beginner or intermediate rider in their riding performance and capabilities. Before buying any trail bike, you need to take a close look at what you value most as it relates to reliability, versatility, design, and accessibility.