First Look: Lee Cougan Crossfire Trail XC Bike

Mar 7, 2024
by Jessie-May Morgan  
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Lee Cougan is looking to take a slice of the XC pie with the all-new Crossfire Trail, a 120mm travel, 29" affair. Slotting into the lineup alongside the 100mm travel Crossfire 428, this new platform is the Italian brand's answer to the technical savagery that now litters XCO courses the world over.

A slacker 67.5° head tube angle is paired with a steeper 75.5° on a flex-pivot suspension platform with a frame design that takes an unusual approach to improving torsional stiffness.

Crossfire Trail Details
• Carbon Frame
• 29" wheels
• 120mm fork
• 120mm rear wheel travel
• 67.5° head angle
• 75.5° seat angle
• 430mm chainstays
• Starting Price: €5,249 /$6,399 USD (RE Eagle with MicroTech)
leecougan.com

Some readers may be more familiar with Lee Cougan as an American brand, thanks to the incorporation of the US flag in its 1990s logo. Indeed, its origins are American, but its HQ now resides in North Eastern Italy (and has done for the last 15 years), sitting alongside Basso Bikes under the umbrella of the Stardue Group. Basso and Lee Cougan share an R&D department; all their bikes are designed in Italy, but are still manufactured in Taiwan, the same as they ever were.

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Not a brand looking to imitate the designs of bigger, more well-established competitors, Lee Cougan already has some interesting bikes in its stable. The Rampage Innova "soft tail" stands out from the crowd, thanks to its shock-less suspension design. Though the name is suggestive of something with a little more squish factor, the Rampage Innova delivers just 30mm travel through a pivot-less flexing swingarm, using two hydraulic pistons at the seat stay to seat tube junction to damp rear wheel displacements. You can see a video of the so-called Integrated Structural Suspension in action here.

Pre-amble aside, let's dig into the details of the all-new Crossfire Trail, a bike with a rather more conventional approach to suspension travel.

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Construction & Frame Details

The Lee Cougan Crossfire Trail frame gets a full carbon construction, and it weighs a claimed 1,850 grams in a size medium. That is inclusive of the 165mm x 40mm trunnion shock, which is partially recessed into the downtube. They refer to this feature as the Structural Crossbar System, claiming that it improves torsional rigidity around the bottom bracket area by 30%, something that is essential for pedaling efficiency. That improvement is relative to a design wherein the shock is mounted in a more conventional way with tabs extending up from a standard downtube, as is the case on the Crossfire 428.

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Cable routing is internal, entering through the headset. There is a remote lock-out system in place for the fork and shock. For the latter, there is a custom metal cable guide visible on the underside of the downtube that routes the cable to the compression dial, preventing it from a developing sharp bend that could cause issues with the cable pull. Also down here is a custom extension for the shock valve, that would otherwise be inaccessible with the shock mounted to the frame.

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Tire clearance is maxed out at 29" x 2.4" with the Crossfire Trail's 430mm chainstays. The swingarm construction is a little unusual in that the chainstays wrap around the front of the seat tube fore of the main pivot. Positioning the lateral bracing member here improves clearance behind the seat tube for the tire. The main pivots run on oversized bearings, with lightweight, hollow aluminum axles.

The bottom bracket is a 92mm Press Fit, and the Q-Factor is 168mm. The production bikes will not be devoid of chainstay protection, as the ones shown at Bike Connection were. All frame sizes except for the S have room for two water bottles inside the front triangle.

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Lee Cougan partnered with Granite Design to integrate a multi-tool with a mini ratchet wrench into the steerer tube. The top tube bosses can also be used to add a custom Miss Grape frame pack.




Geometry

The Crossfire Trail is available in four sizes; S-XL, with reach spanning a 413mm to 485mm range. The geometry is more progressive than that of the Crossfire 428 marathon bike, with a 67.5° head angle and a more upright 75.5° (a smidgen slacker on the L & XL).

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The Crossfire Trail is certainly not pushing any boundaries though, with a number of competitors offering slacker head angles and steeper seat tube angles - the (Orbea Oiz) is one example. Of course, not every rider is searching for the longest, slackest XC machine out there, and the Crossfire's updates do bring it nicely up to date.

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Builds & Pricing
Team Eagle (€8499/$9999 with DT Swiss | €7869/$9399 with Microtech)

Transmission: Sram XX SL Eagle AXS
Fork: Fox 34 Factory StepCast, 120mm travel, FIT4 (3-Position Remote)
Shock: Fox Float DPS Factory Remote
Seatpost: Fox Transfer SL Factory, 125mm travel (100mm for size S)
Brakes: Magura MT8 SL
Cockpit: Lee Cougan Comptrol integrated (S,M/85mm; L,XL/95mm)
Wheels: Microtech RK25 / DT Swiss XRC 1501
Tires: Continental Cross-King 2.3" (Black Chilli compound, TL-Ready)

Race Eagle (€7659/$8999 with DT Swiss | €6899/$8299 with Microtech)

Transmission: Sram XO Eagle AXS
Fork: Fox 34 Factory StepCast, 120mm travel, FIT4 (3-Position Remote)
Shock: Fox Float DPS Factory Remote
Seatpost: Fox Transfer SL Factory, 125mm travel (100mm for size S)
Brakes: Magura MT8 SL
Cockpit: Lee Cougan Comptrol integrated (S,M/85mm; L,XL/95mm)
Wheels: Microtech RK25 / DT Swiss XRC 1501
Tires: Continental Cross-King 2.3" (Black Chilli compound, TL-Ready)

RE Eagle (€5899/$7099 with DT Swiss | €5249/$6399 with Microtech)

Transmission: Sram GX Eagle AXS
Fork: Rockshox SID RL, 120mm travel
Shock: Rockshox Sid Luxe Ultimate, Remote lock out
Seatpost: KS Range, 125mm travel
Brakes: Magura MT4
Stem: LeadTech Trail 60mm
Handlebar: FSA Comet 740mm
Wheels: Microtech RK25 / DT Swiss XRC 1501
Tires: Continental Cross-King 2.3" (Black Chilli compound, TL-Ready)

All builds are available an all three colours: Boreal, Raw Black, and Arctic White.




Author Info:
jessiemaymorgan avatar

Member since Oct 26, 2023
52 articles

89 Comments
  • 186 6
 Headset cable routing, weird shock mounting, pressfit bottom bracket, what’s not to like.
  • 60 7
 You’re getting downvoted by people that have never worked on a bike in their entire life.
  • 14 6
 @nickfranko: Hey, I never work on my bike due to laziness. That doesn't mean I still can't like the looks of the bike.

But other than the cables, I like the looks of this bike.
  • 2 4
 Are sub-76 degree STA's normal in XC?
  • 4 7
 @nickfranko: Yep, today's world for most. Call an electrician to change a light bulb.
  • 19 0
 @chriskneeland: I live in a fairly flat region, a huge local climb might be 20 minutes, most are rolling hills, and I have to say the latest crop of steep seat angles is not as comfy in the rolling terrain as it is in the winch and plummet terrain out west.
  • 3 1
 @crazy-canuck: Ya I guess that makes sense. I just remember how much it sucked to climb with slack STA's and a 36in inseam, especially on bikes with shorter front ends. I figured we'd never see anything under a 77 again.
  • 3 0
 @chriskneeland: Totally agree. I find the steep seat angle incredible on the technical climbs, for me the sweet spot has been 76 degrees, bit I'm sure some locals would say the enjoy the 78+ even on the flatter terrain.
  • 8 1
 @chriskneeland: A 75 degree STA on an XC bike will be as steep or steeper than a 78 degree STA on a 160mm bike, when sagged.
  • 1 0
 @TStruckMTB: Bought a house a couple of years ago, and the previous owners did just that. And, as a result, no 2 fixtures seem to take the same bulb!
  • 3 0
 Don’t forget riding around with a brand name that sounds like a 70’s era serial killer “Lee Cougan”
  • 3 1
 Scott fans are going to like this one.
  • 3 0
 Don't forget that the headtube is a degree too steep for a modern XC bike. From the sound of it, if you're in the market for a new XC bike, Tuesday is the day.
  • 2 3
 @blissindex: The Lee Cougan killer sounds perfect for a serial killer. Lee targets cougars. Drugs them, loves, them, kills them.
  • 1 0
 A small LC on the headtube would go a long way with the name.
  • 3 0
 @crazy-canuck, @chriskneeland,

The ideal seat-tube angle (for a given rider) depends on travel and terrain.

The effect of terrain slope is intuitive: if we want to maintain an ideal seat-tube angle when climbing, the static (i.e. flat ground, unsagged) angle has to be steeper than ideal by the slope of the climbing terrain. Everyone's trails are different, so this varies from rider to rider. "Winch and plummet" riders are the most extreme case - not because their climbs are necessarily the steepest, but because the only time they're seated is on climbs, so they have no need for the seat-tube angle to be suitable for seated pedaling over mixed terrain.

The effect of travel is often overlooked: More travel means more sag when the rider's weight is heavily rearward on a climb due to the slope of the ground, so the static seat-tube angle of a long-travel bike has to be steeper than that of a short-travel bike to compensate for the greater sag.

Finally, keep in mind that old-school seatposts usually had offset heads, exacerbating the problem of already too-slack seat-tube angles - and we couldn't just use a straight post and slam the saddle forward because the front-centre was so short that we would've gone over the front every time we hit a small obstacle.
  • 1 0
 @R-M-R: Good points. I actually can't remember the last time I've seen an XC bike in person. It seems everyone I know goes from gravel bikes straight to mid or long travel trail bikes. But then again XC bikes probably aren't anywhere near the trails that I'm riding. Hell, most of the trails I'm on could aptly be names Winch and Plummet.
  • 1 0
 @nickfranko: PF bb ok. headset routing not as bad as people make it out to be. But inverted shock is just never a good idea. Unless you like bone dry internals, that is.
  • 1 0
 @everythingsucks: you might like the look of an inverted shock, but you won't like the look of your too-frequent, shock-service bill.
  • 1 0
 @pancakeflatted: You're making the bold assumption that I get my shocks serviced when they should be.
  • 1 0
 @R-M-R: This all is true, but when a company brings out a bike that has a slacker STA and steeper HTA for and XC bike, Pinkbike rips it apart as if they found it in a vault labeled 1980.
Not all XC bikes need to be steeper on the STA.
Some of us don’t fit on them.
  • 1 0
 @HumpDiesel: Yes, if people aren't used to seeing XC bikes and/or riding XC terrain, XC geometry looks antiquated.

XC riding on XC terrain is what we used to do ages ago, so the geometry that (sort of) worked then is similar to what works now for similar conditions. Other categories of riding have greatly expanded the terrain, speed, and riding styles of modern mountain biking, which have necessitated new geometry for those categories. XC needed only some minor tweaks, which - inexplicably - have taken longer to arrive than the creation and refinement of other categories.

My opinion is that XC bikes benefit from a steeper seat-tube angle than the traditional 73°, which requires a longer reach to maintain a suitable butt-to-bar length. Not as steep as a long-travel chassis, though, for the reasons discussed in my previous post. I believe most XC riders and use cases benefit from a modest amount of the typical geometry modernization changes, though I'm sure there are some use cases and rider preferences that will favour true old-school geometry.
  • 12 2
 "Not a brand looking to imitate the designs of bigger, more well-established competitors..."

Wink, wink... quietly proceeds to build a bike that looks suspiciously like a Giant Anthem....
  • 1 0
 And the Anthem was/is an absolute ripper of a bike! Good luck to them! The uniform rear end is neat. Can't wrap my head around taking it off though haha.
  • 1 0
 @steviestokes: took me a bit to figure that out too, but you'd just thread the open rear axle area around the seat tube and it all slides in.
  • 10 2
 "The desire to create versatile bikes ready for anything is realized by pushing hard on the pedals of innovation." This brand looks like it's fun at parties.
  • 6 0
 I think there is a little bit of cause and effect reversal going on with that shock mount. It's not the shock location that makes the BB area stiffer, it's the nice and wide frame members coming into the BB. The wide downtube then _allows_ the shock mounting location. If the shock being there _is_ actually contributing to the stiffness, then that's just a recipe for side loading the shock and ruining it in short order.
  • 1 0
 I lost two shocks to a design like this... both the aluminum and titanium mounting bolts that replaced the broken aluminum bolts bent and seized...
  • 2 0
 @R-trailking-S: What if you could buy bolts only marginally heavier than ones made of aluminum or titanium made of a space age material tailored for high tensile strength, infinite fatigue life and superior bending resistance?
  • 5 0
 Considering the XC crowd tend to be weight weenies, it's surprising there is no mention of weight for the various build kits.
  • 6 0
 "Lee Cougan" sounds like a local rough kid from the 90s who'd pinch your Kenwood stereo from your Vauxhall Nova.
  • 1 0
 you're definitely British, or have a strange fascination with niche counter-cultures
  • 2 0
 "a flex-pivot suspension platform"

Describing it like that is like calling a Stumpjumper's suspension a "double-row-bearing pivot platform", or an Ibis a "bushing pivots platform". It doesn't actually tell anything about possible characteristics. Because "flex-pivot" is just another way to allow needed movement between members, but it's the location of those pivots, not the type, that influence kinematics l.
  • 4 0
 Within the world of XC bikes it's a sufficient way of describing which layout it uses becaue they've converged on the same formula. If somebody makes an XC bike with a flex pivot somewhere OTHER than the upper chainstay then maybe you'd have to point that one does things differently, but this one is like all the others so no need to spell it out again.
  • 2 0
 @tacopop: agreed. When I see that in relation to xc bikes I assume it means a linkage driven single pivot with flexing seat stays.
  • 3 0
 @Austink: I've just learned there already are XC bikes that place the flex pivot in the chainstay so actually it looks like I'm confused in more ways than calling the seatstays the upper chainstays lol. I take it back, maybe it us necessary now to specify where it is.
  • 1 0
 Actually when the pivot flexes the most influences the spring rate... flex pivots can feel very different from identically placed pivots, especially across different shock pressures or maybe even spring rates
  • 1 0
 @tacopop: Cannondale Scalpel, for one.
  • 1 0
 @R-trailking-S: spring rate is just one factor. The influence the flex stays have can also be countered, since spring rate curves of shocks can be tweaked with volume spacers. If the flex stay adds spring rate as it flexes (tries to return the suspension to extended even without a shock installed), remove a spacer or two. If the stay flexes such that it tries compress the suspension without the shock installed, then you might have to add a spacer. But this is very different than how a different pivot location or suspension layout alters the kinematic in ways that can't always be countered with spring changes.
  • 1 0
 @justinfoil: well, yes and no, you could compensate with spacers. But as far as the overall spring curve, a fair few of the flex stay bikes try to add spring at the top and reduce spring rate at bottom out - more linear, and also better off the top pedaling... sometimes it doesn't quite mesh with the size of the negative spring on the aircan. Spring, damper and kinematics combine to make quite different bikes...
  • 5 0
 Lee Cougan is very Italian...
  • 2 0
 Lee Cougan is italian as headsot is afrikaans...

Anyway, they are "born in the USA, grown in Italy".
  • 2 1
 Is the frame open like that under the shock, or is this a cutaway? If it is like that, I'm assuming the designer has never ridden an MTB before? I'd love to see the mud build up there causing issues with the suspension, not to mention the lockout cable will seize up pretty quickly.
  • 2 0
 It isn't mentioned, but at their website there's a couple pictures showing a black, plastic looking patch over the access. The shock comes in from below and then the patch is popped over it. Now any mud can bounce off the bottom, but maybe it will still act like a bucket from the top.
  • 1 0
 Apply tape to temporarily cover the underside of the shock pocket, or buy a Scott Spark and complain about its design being a maintenance hassle.
  • 1 0
 This would be a meh bike, except for the cable tourism which makes it a blech bike. Bike industry needs to stop trying to push a cost saving measure (that they know reduces durability and increases difficulty of service) as a positive feature/selling point. If the cost of not having to design and mold cable ports is passed onto the consumer (say $500 cheaper frames) then I'd tolerate it.
  • 4 0
 Looks like a spark, I wouldnt blame them though since its a great bike
  • 5 3
 What’s worse? Press fit or headset cable routing? Just kidding…I can’t believe there is something I hate more than press fit.
  • 2 0
 This. i actually like that they are thinking about bikes a bit differently with their softtail, but explicitly not listening to mechanics, and any riders who do their own maintenance seems a bit dumb.
  • 13 2
 i've been racing XCO and fast road chain gangs for more than 10 years, never had a problem with pressfit on a single bike.
  • 1 1
 @xrob: I am guessing you never had a bb30 bike. Everyone I know who had a bb30 bike had issues. I blew up a ton of bb30s.
  • 5 0
 @xrob: same, it all depends on the manufacturer and their tolerances. but people love to hate
  • 1 0
 @maybemarcusking: even if the tolerance is perfect it is much more of a pain to change out every year or so…
  • 3 0
 @xrob: most only hate pressfit because they really have no idea...
  • 1 0
 @Frank191: how? punch the old cups out, press the new ones in. Couldn't be easier.
  • 1 0
 Pressfit works great in frames that are made properly! But that's maybe half of carbon frames out there and the rest have bottom bracket holes that are oval, wrong size or misaligned. Or all of those haha. Bearings really, really don't like that.
  • 2 0
 @maybemarcusking: unless if there was a genius idea of screwing them out
  • 2 0
 @Frank191: and then you have to bond a threaded aluminum piece into the carbon fiber shell, creating a potential point of failure that doesn't need to exist. Headset cups have been pressed in for decades and no one compains about that. Press fit BB's = superior.
  • 3 0
 If only there was a term to describe a trial bike with slight XC geometry..
  • 3 0
 Lee Cougan should rebrand
  • 17 0
 If they are truly a US company, perhaps rebranding to "General Lee" and slap a #1 on their frames...
  • 8 1
 @konafarker: I feel the confederate flag is due for a comeback as well.


....sarcasm for anyone who only likes good jokes.
  • 6 0
 @konafarker: As an American, anyone who gets a Dukes of Hazard reference into a bike comment deserves an upvote. Even if it was one of the lamest shows to ever make it on television.
  • 4 0
 @konafarker:
Did you mean slap a 01 on it, Cletus?
  • 3 0
 @dlford: Absolutely thanks for correcting me...01 it is on a burnt orange inspired fame
  • 1 0
 I heard Fezzari is available. Even comes with its own astroturf army.
  • 1 0
 fun fact: the brand was founded in the US but it's been Italian owned and built for years now..
  • 1 0
 @giovenji-mtb: "Some readers may be more familiar with Lee Cougan as an American brand, thanks to the incorporation of the US flag in its 1990s logo. Indeed, its origins are American, but its HQ now resides in North Eastern Italy (and has done for the last 15 years), sitting alongside Basso Bikes under the umbrella of the Stardue Group."

Almost like that part was in the article.
  • 1 0
 I'm sure a certain brand would be happy to refer them to the marketing genius that decided dropping the "Fezz" would align better with the soul of the company. They'll probably spend 2 minutes coming up with Coug and then bill 500 hours on the marketing campaign and content production explaining how that is really the identity of the company.
  • 2 0
 Sorry, but cannot have a XC bike article without the weight of the bike and frame.
  • 2 1
 How to innovate 2024: steal an idea (e.g. from Banshee) and give it a pompous name (e.g. "Structural Crossbar System") ...
  • 1 0
 they've used iterations of this scheme for the past 7(?)+ years..
  • 2 1
 For not wanting to follow in the footsteps of larger brands, it sure looks like a Giant Anthem with cable tourism
  • 1 0
 This bike is a single pivot.
  • 1 0
 @nickfranko: I bet the next Anthem has cable tourism
  • 1 0
 This bike seems like a pain to work on but it is beautiful so worth it for me
  • 1 0
 Didn't BMC have a bike called the Crossfire? My spidey-senses see a name change incoming...
  • 1 1
 Spec say Continental, but the pics show Maxxis, because neither the test-riders nor the photographers are willing to ride Contis anywhere other than a groomed park trail.
  • 1 0
 The dropper insertion has to be next to nothing...
  • 4 0
 We're going to play a little game called "Just the Tip"
  • 1 0
 Looks like a 2021 Trek Top Fuel to me
  • 2 4
 Cut to the chase: scroll down to the geometry and if it's steeper than 66 hard pass! Smile
  • 6 0
 Not every bike needs to be a super slack and long 38lb enduro rig built to shred the gnarliest gnar bro. This is an xc/race bike and the geometry is very suitable for that.
  • 3 0
 @robw515: no no. Every bike across all brands should be exactly the same and catered to my specific needs. How can people not see that my meeting preferences is *exactly* what would make every bike the best it could possibly be in all situations?
  • 2 1
 @pmhobson: this guy gets it.
  • 1 5
flag plume (Mar 7, 2024 at 10:16) (Below Threshold)
 @robw515: I'm sure you're getting ready to defend that seat tube angle next? Makes sense.
  • 2 0
 @plume: Yep! Exact same seat tube angle as the brand new Specialized Epic 8, another 120mm XC trail/race bike. So yeah I'd say it's probably right where it should be.
  • 3 6
 Lee Barf







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