Back for More: the Forbidden Druid V2

When the Forbidden Bicycle Company released the 130mm Druid back in 2020, mountain bike norms as we knew them got flipped upside down. There had never been a bike like the Druid until then. Carbon, high pivot, and chain routing crazy enough to drive envy into google maps reroute. People stopped me on the trails constantly to see the bike up close, interested in what this small BC brand was up to. The bike was exceptionally good at most things - in my opinion, Forbidden's first attempt at an aggressive trail bike was near damn perfect. Some refinement to the platform was due, but before the "little bike that could do it all" would get its crack at a revision, the Dreadnought and Supernought would steal the spotlight.

There wasn't anything glaringly wrong with the Druid V1. It was agile, fast and performed similarly on trails much bigger bikes boasted about. The issues it had were suspension performance under braking and frame sizing. While these were small problems to deal with, they required a whole new suspension platform to solve. The V1 Druid used a link to drive the shock and unified read triangle. Essentially a single high-pivot suspension platform that was stable, predictable and provided high anti-squat and low pedal kickback numbers. Under heavy braking that would lock the rear wheel up, the suspension squatted deeper into the travel, extending the wheelbase but also practically turning into a hardtail. This required different riding and braking techniques that weren't very intuitive. Once mastered, the Druid danced with speed and dared stupid lines on the roughest trails.

To address this issue and add even more suppleness to the already very active design, Owen Pemberton and his crew at Forbidden added another pivot to the seat stays with the inverted four bar suspension design. Not dissimilar to the very fast Norco Range, the Druid V2 quickly grabbed the "mini Range" name amongst some riders.

Tim dove into some of the differences between the V1 and V2 in his first look . The evolution of the Druid made some changes to the sizing as well: it now has rear centres that grow approximately 15mm per size and reach numbers that make a little more sense thanks to a steeper seat tube angle and longer top tubes.

All the geometry adjustments on the Druid V2 are improvements to the V1. 460mm reach and 624mm Stack on the size S2 review bike here are welcomed by this 5'9" rider with longer arms. The rear center is 437mm at sag and grows as the bike compresses further into its travel. I had overforked the V1 Druid with a 160mm Marzocchi Z1 with the efforts to slacken the head angle half a degree. The bike was fast and needed a front end to match the performance of the rear.

Surprise surprise, the V2 Druid is an even faster bike. You can buy the Druid in dual 29" or 29/27.5 inch configuration along with a frame only option. There are no geometry adjustments to be found on the Druid for different wheel size options. This may sound weird on paper but the simplicity of the design allows for 2 bikes to exist on one platform. All the angles slacken out half a degree and the reach loses 5mm with the smaller rear wheel. I think these changes are welcome given the intended purpose of each wheel combo. The Druid wants to play hard and the smaller rear wheel blows that door wide open.

Pedaling the Druid V2

The pedalling position on the Forbidden Druid takes a minute to get used to. A steeper seat tube angle than I am used to puts me in a very upright position. On flat ground, this pitches me forward quite a bit. Coupled with 165mm cranks, my first ride on the Druid was a strange one up the hill. My legs felt like they were spinning in tiny circles. I have ridden eMTBs with short cranks but the lower cadence of assisted bikes probably made the transition easier. On the Druid, coupled with the 32t chainring and 29" rear wheel, I got up to all the trails I needed to on the North Shore. If I lived in Whistler, or anywhere with steeper climbs, a 30-tooth chainring would be my first move. The anti-squat values of the Druid means the suspension stays where it should when the pedals are spinning. There is no bob or wallowing even when you are out of the saddle for power moves. The Druid climbs like a hardtail. When the rear wheel encounters a bump, it moves out of the way easily. One thing I did notice when pedaling on flatter, bumpy ground was the cycling of the rear suspension, coupled with the steep seat tube angle pitches you forward a bit. The overall feeling is a rocky ride that feels less refined than the downhill performance. When things are steep, the Druid is super happy clawing its way to the top.

This urgency is helped by the rear tire spec: the Maxxis Forekaster MaxTerra EXO+ is a pedaling monster. It has many smaller, sharp centre knobs and sufficient side knobs to make the Druid feel like an XC machine on steroids. Copper reviewed the Forekasters and runs them on his XC bike all year long. It does create an interesting dilemma with the front tire choice, however. The Assegai MaxxTerra EXO is a traction horse even in the MaxxTerra compound. It works well on most surfaces apart from deep mud and loam. It is rather mismatched to the behaviour of the Forekaster in the rear. This struggle of balance becomes more evident on the downhills.

Downhill

In simple terms, the Druid V2 is an absolute monster on the descents. The way the suspension works with the geometry and the speeds you can reach on rough trails can only be understood first hand. The Druid asks you to look further and further down the trail as it erases all the chatter underneath your feet. Setting up the Druid is a simple affair, too. With a higher starting leverage ratio, Forbidden wanted to make the small performance accessible to lighter riders. Emmy Lan, rather small in posture yet massive in performance and skill, piloted the Druid to the top step throughout the 2024 race season.

Settings

I set the Druid up at 32% sag from the get go. The bike will respond to a setup window of 30 to 35% without much problem on either end. If you want a more responsive chassis, go for 30 or if you are after a calmer, plusher ride the 35% will do you just fine. For my 160-lb (72kg) weight, I ended up with 185psi in the RockShox SuperDeluxe Ultimate. With HSC at +1, I found a nice balance of plushness and support. On some of the larger hits, I found the bottom of the shock without any concerning sounds. I think an extra volume spacer and 0 clicks of HSC would be my next move.

For the 150mm RockShox Lyrik Ultimate I settled on 80psi, 0 HSC , +5 LSC. I am really liking the new generation of RockShox forks with the Charger 3.1 damper. The Lyrik rises to the occasion without much fuss and provides a muted, calm ride that matches the rear of the Druid well. I believe a Fox 36 would also work well with a livelier, poppier character.

I inflated the tires to 19psi on the front and 24psi in the rear. The Druid feels balanced fore and aft apart from the aforementioned issue with tires and traction. The cockpit is where it needs to be for an all-rounder and the parts hanging off of it do not hold the bike back. For 11,499 Canadian dollars, you get plenty. There are better deals out there for sure but if you are after a Canadian company making some of the best bikes out there, the top-end spec Druid is a hole-in-one.

The straight line performance of the Druid is exceptional. There is just enough feedback from the ground to let you know how much grip you have at all times. You can come up short, you can overshoot, you can take the wrong line all you want. There is enough capability packed into the rear of the bike to make up for the lack in your skills. In the corners, the 437mm rear end stretches into something longer and require a heavier lean to initiate the turn. But that's where the Forekaster says "Hold my beer" and breaks traction way before the Assegai does while steering. This results in a rapid oversteer that can catch you off guard. I don't know what my solution would be other than either putting in a less aggressive front tire or a more aggressive one on the rear in place of the Forekaster.

The XO Druid comes with SRAM's Code Ultimate brakes. While I don't love the lever feel, there is plenty of stopping power on tap. The front 180mm rotor is slightly out of place on a bike this fast - it needs a 200mm front rotor, especially if the brakes are Codes. With Mavens in place, a 180 should suffice.

The XO transmission is trouble-free and shifts up and down easily. I don't love the pod shifter, especially matched to the lever. I can never get the correct angle. Same goes for the dropper lever. Which is where the problem starts to appear on the Druid. The size S2 Druid comes with a 150mm OneUp V3 dropper. Combined with the 165mm cranks, there is just way too much seatpost sticking out of the frame that could have been a longer dropper. A 180mm dropper should have been stock, with the option to go 210mm if possible. I had a 180mm dropper on the V1 Druid and it was perfect. On the trail, the lack of drop is not immediately present. But when things get steeper or the jumps bigger, I would have liked the saddle to be absent the space near my knees.

Crankbrothers Synthesis Carbon wheels are just fine and fend off rocks quite well. The ratchet hubs have plenty of engagement and run smoothly all day long. The wheelset is light and springy thanks to the Sapim CX-Ray front and Sprint rear spokes, too. 32H rear / 28H Front is a great balance of strength and light weight. The Burgtec Cockpit is handsome and comfortable to ride. Sizes S1 and S2 come with 22.5mm rise 9° back, 5° up sweep. Larger sizes come with a 30mm rise version of the bar. With a lower stack like this, taller riders may want more rise with 40 or 55mm options in the market. However I was not bothered by the height or width of the bars, which I cut down to 780mm.

With all the improvements over the V1 Druid in frame construction, kinematics, geometry and spec, the Druid V2 really is a one bike to do it all for a lot of riders. I love the lateral stiffness of the new frame being able to hold its line better. I love the updated kinematics and the performance under heavy braking. I still can't manual the Druid worth crap but I don't think the bike cares. I've heard some taller people complaining about the long rear centre making cornering a chore, but I did not find this to be an issue. If anything, the dual 29er bike rides like a mullet around the corners.

Speaking of mullets, the smaller rear wheel would make this bike an absolute joy to jump and corner. I would search for steeper rather than undulating terrain with that setup.

This is not often mentioned in reviews, but the Druid is now even easier to clean after a ride. The cavities around the shock tunnel are more open and respond well to a shot of water from the garden hose. The storage compartment under the bottom bracket is not the most practical. The quarter-turn latch is sticky and lining it back up takes effort. It only gets worse with mud and dirt. The opening is also too small for a tube of usable size.

The new Druid shares many of the good traits of the old one and improves upon its shortcomings. It comes in two great colourways and three different build kits. There are no cable shifting options available unless you build your own. I wish the GX AXS Plus kit came with better suspension components instead of wireless shifting. I think a bike like the Druid would benefit more from better suspension tunability than the robots shifting for you. New leverage curves should also respond well to coil shocks for people in the 140-160lbs range. The Forbidden Druid V2 is a fast bike with some flaws on the spec front but delivers top level performance when it comes to trail feel.

I am looking forward to riding it again every time I finish a ride. It is fast up and down the hill, which is exactly what I want from my bikes. The improvements to the idler design and chain retention are also welcomed by this Druid V1 owner.

Forbidden Druid