Transition Scout, you will be mine hahaha...****Updated ***

Right then, i currently have a Mondraker Dune RR 2013 160mm front n back , goes up not bad, goes down even better, whenever i ride i try to put as much effort in ascending as i do descending, anyway the Transition Scout (£3,800) has 140mm front, 125mm round the back so i wondered if i was gonna be under suspended doing my new favourite route at Glentress, black route going up, EWS route from the mast right down to Peebles which took me 17.18 mins today,how that stacks up against anybody else i don't know as i've just created it on Strava, first thing i noticed is how roomy it was, a nice length from seat to bars with just enough width on the bars, ideal

Riding the thing:-
On the flat it was quite quick and i put this down to the 27.5 wheels so no real surprises there but it did it smoother than the Dune, better suspension ? probably. the first real test though came on The Goat Track...time to put the hammer down....boy it picks up speed fast, this section undulates with some nice rocky bits to fly off and drop off to begin with then goes on to be nice singletrack and i can say it really carries speed brilliantly, where i have to put in some pedal strokes in with the Dune the Scout just keeps the speed up without having to do that, just steer it and it keeps on going, so far i'm really impressed

Ascending it was also noticeably smoother and the bigger wheels made a difference also, rolling over obstacles much easier, going up a section called the tower trail which i usually cut out but did it today as a test of it's climbing ability the 42t ring out back really came into play here making things easier for my old legs which is a bonus at my age so yes I'm converted ... yes it climbs pretty good without any wandering from the front end but i'll never be a climbing god anyway so as long as i get there that'll do me 

Descending (that's why we do this really innit )
The first real downhill section is called Britney Spears which is a singletrack with a series of berms, Wow this thing is on rails, again it bloody flies down, you can chuck it into the berms without braking first and it doesn't feel like it's sinking into it's travel, nice and firm, it must be the Pike and Monarch doing its awesome thing then, now i know what all the hype is about them, the WTB rims felt good too as i never felt them flex once
the new track that takes you all the way from the mast down to peebles is the longest at GT, as i say, a tad over 17 mins and a 4 mile descent , starts of on a 3 ft wide smoothish track that dives and undulates through the trees and is now cutting up a wee bit so makes it a bit more interesting, the front end felt really precise which is just as well as those trees get a bit close at times, all the time it felt really balanced, you don't really feel any bounce from the suspension, nice and supportive, the trail joins up to an exsisting trail called ho chi min and again once pointed downwards it really picks up speed and holds it's line brilliantly, further down the trail it gets natural, just hand cut stuff not on any marked trail and i had a wee off on a steep chute onto a sharp off camber right hander..oops, i'll master it one day but in my defence it was very slippy, on this section i managed to get it in the air, POP off a little jump, no effort required really, just guide it and it flies, ......when i got to the bottom i was grinning like an eejit 

To sum up then
if your looking for the perfect trail weapon then this is it, i rate it that highly, not once did it feel out of it's depth with any terrain i took it on today ( it's just the pilot that's dodgy), hard packed man made stuff or natural hand cut stuff , i didn't feel like i was under suspended at any time despite it's weeny 140/125mm mix, i suppose it's the geometry of this up to the minute flyin machine that makes it so good, the weight is good too, under 30 lb so should bee good for all day treks out in the wilderness, would i buy it...in a heartbeat, as soon as i get some cash it'll be mine 
Cheers, Kev