Marin ‘s Rift Zone Carbon 2 is a fun, capable bike built and priced for those of us who don’t have five figures to drop on a bike, no matter how much we love to ride. Sometimes, it’s clear a brand was trying to hit a specific price point and sunk all of their budget for the build into one shiny part. Maybe a coil shock, a high-end fork, or fancy wheels—and aside from that one bit of flash, the rest of the bike…kinda sucks. Or at least doesn’t live up to what I want when I’m shelling out more than $4,000. That’s not pocket change to most of us.
That’s not Marin’s M.O. with the Rift Zone Carbon 2. They’ve been smart about picking parts that fit the needs of the rider so that the bike performs the way you want it to, while still hitting a price point that allows you to actually own it.
Price: $4,379
Star Rating:
★★★★☆
Specs:
- Carbon front triangle and aluminum rear
- 125mm rear travel, with a Fox Float Performance shock with reservoir
- Fox Performance 34 Float,130mm travel
- Shimano SLX 4-piston brakes, 208mm front & 180mm rear rotors
- Mixed Shimano XT/SLX drivetrain
What I like: The Rift Zone is a well-balanced and poppy ride; call it down-country, mid-travel, or cross-country plus, it’s a fun bike at a relatively affordable price.
What I’d change: I did remove one of the volume spacers in the fork. The saddle and I were not the best of friends, so I’d replace that.
My call: With a slack 65.5° head angle, a steep 76° seat tube, 29-inch wheels, and 130mm/125mm travel, the Marin Rift Zone 29 Carbon 2 is a great all-rounder that’s quick, but still fun on the descents and through rocks. Plus, the mid-range build keeps it practical and affordable.
Marin Rift Zone 29 Carbon 2: The Build
The Rift Zone Carbon 2 is a 29-inch full-suspension with a little more travel than your typical cross-country bike. It has more of a long, low and slack front end and steep seat angle that you’d expect of a trail bike. The big wheels combined with the Performance series Fox Float shock, a 130mm-travel Fox 34 Float fork, and Marin’s MultiTrac suspension platform make for a versatile and surprisingly playful down-country bike.
Fox sells the 130mm-travel 34 Float fork with three volume spacers. I’m not sure if it’s an OEM spec for all the Rift Zone Carbon 2 bikes or specific to the size small I tested, but this fork had two volume spacers. Two spacers was one too many for this tester to move through all the travel, so I did end up taking one out.
I’m a fan of Maxxis tires, but I don’t often run quite as toothy a setup as what comes spec’d on the Rift Zone. The 2.5″ Assagai front and Aggressor rear combo have more bite than I need on about 80 percent of my trails, but I really appreciated it on that other 20 percent. If your typical riding doesn’t require such an aggressive tread, you can always swap out to something more in line with your needs. You’ll probably save a bit of weight doing that as well.
The 12-speed Shimano drivetrain is a mix of XT and SLX parts, with an FSA crank and direct mount chainring. A 12-speed 10-51T cassette paired with the 32T gives you plenty of range with the benefits of a single-ring setup. The SLX brakes aren’t the lightest and may not have the same level of modulation as a higher-end trim, but with four pistons and a 208mm front and 180mm rear rotor, they do provide a lot of stopping power, so you can have more confidence and carry more speed on your descents.
Other practical features include a threaded bottom bracket for stiffness and ease of maintenance and ISCG-05 chain guard tabs in case you’re a basher. The rims are double-walled aluminum for strength and are tubeless-compatible. I’m not sure if the bike comes stock with a tubeless setup, but I know the one I received was set up tubeless. The small size I rode has a 125mm TransX dropper, but their website says that drop increases according to frame size.
Marin Rift Zone 29 Carbon 2: The Rides
My test trails are a maze of rocky terrain and sand through ponderosa pines and overgrown scrub oak with very little organic matter in the dirt and lots lot of gravel or decomposing granite. Most eight to twelve-mile rides in the preserve will net you about 1,200 feet of climbing. I took the Marin out on several local rides, both shorter technical laps, and longer days with lots of climbing. I even made a trip into Colorado Springs for a run on Captain Jack’s. While the Rift Zone was fun in all of those settings, it really excelled on the longer rides with lots of up and steep, fast downs.
Riding Captain Jack’s
Captain Jack’s trail in Colorado Springs is a mountain bike and moto and trail with whoops that have been defined by the motos. The climb from Stratton Open Space varies in steepness but is long enough to require at least one snack break. The trail down is steep, but not particularly rocky, droppy, or anything else that requires “trail bike travel.” If you filled a deep luge track with ball bearings, and then rode down it—that’s Captain Jack’s. It’s fast and fun, as long as you’re comfortable letting your bike slide and knowing that too much braking will only increase that slide.
I’ve ridden Jack’s on racy cross-country hardtails and on longer-travel trail bikes. Opinions vary, but I personally don’t feel like I need tons of travel on this particular trail, but I always want those trail-bike angles. That’s where the Rift Zone really shines. I get the efficient climbing of an XC bike and the stable, controlled feeling of a trail bike when the descent gets fast and steep. That ball-bearing slide is where I was also able to appreciate the aggressive Maxxis tire combo. It’s easy to lean the bike into corners and let it slide knowing the tires are going to bite and hold.
Riding Rocks and Tech
When I ride a 29er through the rockier backyard trails, I mentally prepare for a couple of things:
- I may have to roll through rocks that I typically hop over on my personal 27.5.” It’s less fun, but with the bigger tires, it’s easy and fast.
- I may not always make some of the tighter lines or switchbacks, due to the longer wheelbase.
I didn’t have either of these issues with the Rift Zone. As a shorter rider, I’m used to 29ers feeling stable and stuck to the ground. This isn’t necessarily a good or bad thing, it just depends on your riding preferences. The Rift Zone has the stability I expect, but I was pleasantly surprised with how playful it is and how easily I can get it off the ground. Everything on my trails is rollable, but there are plenty of opportunities to feel cooler than I actually am and pop off of rocks and bumps—and the Rift Zone lets me do just that.
Again, going up isn’t an issue for the Rift Zone; it did just as well on slow-speed technical climbs as it did on “settle-in-and-grind” type rides. The short 425mm chainstays made a noticeable difference when I needed to get the bike around tight corners. It managed switchbacks and tight line choices well. While it did fine on my backyard chunk, much more than my two-ish foot drops are likely pushing the limits of what this bike will happily do. It’s a capable bike, but it’s still got 125mm of travel out back, it isn’t intended to be a go-big, park bike.
Small Rider Changes
The only real issue I had while riding the Rift Zone was that I initially had trouble moving through the travel of the fork. The 130mm-travel Fox 34 Float came with two volume spacers installed. I did two rides with both spacers, couldn’t get through the travel, and decided to take one out. At that point, I was able to get the squishes to properly squish. It’s worth noting that as far as mountain bike suspension charts are concerned, I’m a lightweight rider. Removing volume spacers is likely more of a “me problem” than an issue most folks need to worry about. Make sure your sag and rebound are set properly and you’ll more than likely be happy with the fork.
Marin Rift Zone 29 Carbon 2: Final Word
The Rift Zone Carbon 2 is a solid daily driver, especially if you’re trying to stretch dollars. Marin chose parts that get the job done and keep the ride fun without drifting into dentist-bike territory. The build isn’t fussy or high-maintenance, but durable and ready to work. It manages to be both practical and fun at the same time. The down-country style takes the best elements from XC race bikes and big travel all-mountain bikes in a way that fits the way (and the places) many of us ride most of the time.