Home > Bikes+Frames

Review: Felt Virtue Nine 3

The latest incarnation of the Felt Virtue Nine 3 has a nicely detailed carbon-fibre frame with very cleanly executed internal cables. The rear travel on the bike is 130 mm, which is more than enough for today’s 29er trail bikes. The travel may explain the slightly lofty ride height the bike seems to have. You can manage this lofty feeling on steeper descents with the KS eTen remote seatpost that comes already equipped. Lowering the saddle will help you to adjust your centre of gravity.

2014 Felt Virtue Nine 3
2014 Felt Virtue Nine 3
Felt Virtue Nine 3

The latest incarnation of the Felt Virtue Nine 3 has a nicely detailed carbon-fibre frame with very cleanly executed internal cables. The rear travel on the bike is 130 mm, which is more than enough for today’s 29er trail bikes. The travel may explain the slightly lofty ride height the bike seems to have. You can manage this lofty feeling on steeper descents with the KS eTen remote seatpost that comes already equipped. Lowering the saddle will help you to adjust your centre of gravity.

Felt Virtue Nine 3

Components SRAM X7 and X9
Suspension 140 mm RockShox Sektor fork, 130 mm Trail UHC Performance MMC Equilink suspension frame
Wheels WTB Speed Disc i23 29″
Sizes S (16″), M (18″), L (20″), XL (22″)
Price $4,349
Website feltbicycles.com

At the front, the 140-mm-travel RockShox Sektor fork with a thru axle and PushLoc remote lockout complements the rear end’s thru-axle setup. This arrangement definitely makes for a flex-free chassis, likely even under a Clydesdale-class rider. The frame uses Felt’s Equilink suspension, which it says is the most efficient out there. It is definitely efficient in restricting pedal bob in most situations. The only time the suspension felt a little unnatural was when the trail forced me to stand and pedal while in the small chainring. When standing in the larger of the two rings or seated in either one, the feel was consistently on the firmer end of the spectrum.

The 2×10 drivetrain from SRAM consisted of a mix of X7 and X9, and adequately did the job. The Virtue Nine 3 has Magura hydraulic discs, which seemed like a strange choice given the rest of the parts on the bike coming from the SRAM family. The Maguras did do a decent job once broken in.

I found the 2.35″ Schwalbe Nobby Nic tires quite aggressive, but didn’t leave much mud clearance at the frame’s seatstays. Clearance isn’t an issue if you don’t ride muddy trails. But it’s definitely something to watch for in sloppy conditions as the mud could pack up in the tread and do some damage to the frame.

The bike’s strength lies in keeping the speed up and letting the big wheels and higher bottom bracket float over obstacles.

As for the overall ride, the bike’s strength lies in keeping the speed up and letting the big wheels and higher bottom bracket float over obstacles. The fairly short wheelbase and somewhat steep head angle made tight turns a non-issue in the trails. Felt has done all they can to keep the front end low enough with a short head tube and super low riser bar to balance the tall wheel and fork. This machine has some tough competition out there for the asking price, including the alloy version of this bike, the Nine 20. But if you want to see an industry-leading example of carbon-fibre construction on a rugged trail bike, you will want to give this bike a really close look.