In an era when almost every mountain bike manufacturer has its own "proprietary" suspension design, Felt knew that to be considered a legitimate player in the mountain bike game they couldn't just license an existing platform. Therefore, after three years of development, Felt introduced the Equilink suspension. The heart and soul of Felt's design is the red, dog bone-shaped Equilink, positioned vertically behind the seat tube.
Test quote: "With five inches of travel and weighing just under 26 pounds, the Virtue Team is a bike that begs to be ridden all day. Love or hate remote fork lockouts, the RockShox PopLoc is as good as they come. On extended, less technical climbs, we used the PopLoc religiously. The RockShox Revelation fork has a tunable platform blow-off valve. This feature allows for a tiny bit of supple travel when the fork is locked out, smoothing the trail on chattery climbs."
Stoked:
Unique suspension design
Great pedaling bike
Bummed:
Toss the Felt grips
Selle Italia SLR Ti saddle hurts
It is expensive
Bottom Line: The Felt Virtue Team is a remarkable cross-country bike. For a full-suspension rig it can scamper up climbs with ease, and 5.1 inches of travel bests any other bike in the segment. The Virtue can be treated as an ultra-light trailbike or a leggy race bike. At 25 pounds it won't be the lightest bike on the start line, but a real weight weenie could probably find a way to shave off another pound or two from the Team's build.
(See full specs below)
FELT VIRTUE
Price...$6199
Country of origin...Taiwan
Weight...25.8 pounds
Website: www.feltracing.com
Full test: November 2008 MBA
Frame tested...Medium
Bottom bracket height...14.2"
Chainstay length...17"
Top tube length...22"
Head angle...69.8°
Seat tube angle...73.5°
Standover height...31.5"
Wheelbase...43.25"
Suspension travel (front)...5.1"
Suspension travel (rear)...5.1"
Frame material...Aluminum
Fork...RockShox Revelation 426 Dual Air
Shock‚¬¦Fox Shox RP23
Rims...Shimano XTR
Tires...Maxxis CrossMark 2.1 UST
Hubs...Shimano XTR
Brakes...Shimano XTR
Brake levers...Shimano XTR
Crankset...Shimano XTR
Shifters...Shimano XTR
Rear derailleur...Shimano XTR
Chainrings...Shimano XTR 44/32/22
Cassette...Shimano XTR 11-32
Pedals...None (weighed with Shimano XTR)