Mavic Crossmax Carbon XL R 29 in review

Not without reason did I, two years ago when building my new enduro bike, choose the pragmatic route. After all, many manufacturers of complete bikes tend to skimp on the wheels rather than on the groupset. Some time-trial or triathlon bikes are even fitted only with "placeholder wheels".
The advantage, besides cost savings for the manufacturer, is also the relatively simple possibility of later tuning; after all, wheels can be swapped quickly compared with a groupset or a handlebar‑stem unit if necessary.

To spare the saved cash from further inflationary devaluation, I therefore decided, without further ado, to convert the money into carbon fiber. Not that I had been unhappy with the wheels fitted up to that point; but there are also other sensible arguments in favor of an upgrade:
Since I’ve been riding the Foxy, it’s basically just the enduro or, in contrast, my Rose Backroad for me. And if you use a 160 mm bike as a hardtail replacement, a few hundred grams of weight savings uphill and especially as rotating mass do make a difference. But first things first…

Every gram counts, not only in races or marathons, but just as much on a tour. Whether you're carrying an extra few grams of Christmas cookies with you is, in my opinion, secondary, because the rest goes on the packing list anyway. Otherwise you could, by the same logic, say that nothing matters and stuff the backpack to the brim.
Then I'll just take two spare batteries for the drone, two lenses, a lightweight jacket, warm gloves, a big pump, tools ... but then there's no room left in the backpack, so a bigger backpack, then there's room for leg warmers and the second camera, spare batteries for the camera and a third lens — but then ...

No — that must not happen under any circumstances. And so the procedure always ends up the same: take equipment for the rider or for the camera and possibly needlessly lug thousands of meters of elevation around, or just leave the stuff at home. With the only difference that, thanks to my Mavic Crossmax Carbon XL R, I get one piece of equipment or a comfort gain for free.

Even off long tours you can feel the more efficient acceleration; after all, a large part of the saved weight spins around the wheel axle. The fine 9° engagement of the freehub does the rest when it gets a bit more technical uphill.
I catch myself more and more often choosing the enduro instead of the hardtail for the quick local loop, because the Mondraker as it currently stands is simply the ultimate all-rounder and, not least thanks to the light wheels, a bit more fun to handle; downhill of course, but now also uphill.

Even though I had a lot of fun on the Wexl-Trails jumpline and could get a bit of an idea of how easily the light wheels can spin in the air, jumping isn't my preferred way of getting around. I'd much rather let loose on a rough downhill or a technical trail now and then.
There you immediately feel how nimble the carbon wheels are. It's a lot of fun to see how the suspension can work at high speed with the less inert wheels. Even on technical trails, when it comes to changing lines, you notice the reduced weight.
The funniest thing in that regard was switching from heavy, sluggish e-bikes to the Mondraker equipped with the light Mavics. That amplifies the impression even more, and downhill you also feel featherlight — as if you suddenly had a road bike with 160 mm of travel beneath you.

On the dry, grippy Burgenland trails, and also on the larger berms in various bike parks, the Mavic Crossmax XL R roll smoothly through the corners, offer good feedback and can be pushed really hard out of the turn to accelerate. All in all I find the package around the current price quite solid, and on my enduro it provides a nice improvement in handling compared with the aluminium predecessors.

As a passionate photographer and pedal-only rider I have always had to carry a somewhat heavier load on tours (a big camera backpack and a bit of belly) than most of my companions. Still, I love the freedom that a motorless biking life offers. For that reason — whether it's equipment for the bike or the camera — every gram counts.

With the Crossmax XL R Carbon, the traditional manufacturer Mavic offers a classy and understated wheelset with a solid weight-to-price ratio. The 420 g weight saving gives me, in my specific case, room for one more lens in the backpack, a little more fun on the trail, or the necessary Kaiserschmarrn reserve at the hut. Technically speaking, however, it always means less rotating mass both uphill and downhill.

The wheels accelerate noticeably more easily than the previous aluminum ones, provide good feedback in corners, and have shown no weaknesses downhill with my riding style (sometimes quite rough, but without much airtime).
The biggest advantage for me is that on long tours, with the same effort, I get up climbs a little more relaxed, and on the Mondraker in the current setup I hardly need to shy away from any downhill — so classic trails like Petzen, Fleckalm Trail, Wexl-Trails (DH, Jumpline, Trail) or some technical sections in South Tyrol are a huge amount of fun. Thus, not least thanks to the light Mavic wheels, my enduro bike, alongside the gravel racer, got the most use last year.