'90s retro looks meet bang up to date tech in Matt Jones' stunning, limited edition Marin Alpine Trail Carbon Fun² enduro MTB

By
published

Marin's sweet paint job combines an iconic '90s mountain biking look with a modern enduro carbon frame

Alpine Trail Carbon Fun² enduro bike in woods
The wild fade of flashy paint sends you back to the earliest days of Marin’s history (Image credit: Marin)

Marin Bikes has embraced its '90s mountain biking heritage with the launch of a strictly limited edition Alpine Trail Carbon Fun² frameset. If that wasn't exciting enough, you also get a free autographed hat signed by Marin ambassador, Matt Jones, when buying one of these eye-catching framesets. Matt has also built up one of the bikes and dropped one of his epic YouTube edits to accompany the launch of what he calls – the hottest looking enduro bike he's ever ridden.

The brand has been at the forefront of mountain biking for over 35 years, making some of the sports most legendary machines and is named after the birthplace of mountain biking – Marin County, California. Last year I met Chris Holmes, the Global Brand Director, and after hearing my tales of past Marin models I owned, he was delighted to show me his '90s rebuilt special edition titanium-framed Marin Pine Mountain. At the time he mentioned some special builds coming, and although he never gave me any specifics, I suspect this retro-looking enduro beauty may have been one of the bikes he meant.

Alpine Trail Carbon Fun² enduro bike frameset side on

Limited to just 300 frames, you'll have to snap one up quickly if you want one (Image credit: Marin)

If you want one of these, you'll have to be fast because Marin has only made 300 – and Matt Jones already has the first one. It's actually very reasonably priced at just $1,999 / £1,999 / €2,099, because it's not just the renowned Marin Alpine Trail carbon frameset with its flashy paint job that you get. 

In the box it comes with a 160mm RockShox Yari RC fork and a 150mm RockShox Deluxe Select+ shock at the rear. And there's more – you also get a TranzX dropper post and lever, FSA headset, and thru-axles. So your build has a great starting base with some of the most important components included. Check out Matt's build below for some inspiration, maybe just pass on his outfit though, and full details and ordering info can be found at Marinbikes.com.

Marin Alpine Trail Carbon Fun² spec

  • Frame: Alpine Trail Carbon Fun²
  • Fork: RockShox Yari RC, 160mm
  • Rear Shock: RockShox Deluxe Select+, 150mm
  • Sizes: S, M, L, XL
  • Price: $1,999 / £1,999 / €2,099
Paul Brett
Paul Brett
Staff writer

Paul Brett joined BikePerfect as a staff writer in 2022. He has been an avid cyclist for as long as he can remember, initially catching the mountain biking bug in the 1990s, and he raced mountain bikes for over a decade before injury cut short a glittering career. An award-winning photographer, when not riding a bike, he can be found at the side of a cyclocross track or a downhill mountain bike world championship shooting the action. Paul was the founder, editor and writer of Proper Cycling magazine, and he's traveled the world interviewing some of the biggest names in mountain biking and writing about some of the biggest cycling brands.

Current rides: Canyon Inflite, Specialized Diverge, Marin Alpine Trail 2