Bike Check: Andy McKenna's Santa Cruz Heckler SL

Andy McKenna is something of a legend of Scottish mountain biking. An avid rider since the dawn of the sport in the 80’s, for many years he was best known as the figurehead of the much loved guiding outfit of Go Where Scotland, riding and carrying his bike up mountains all over the country and showing off the very best of Scotland's riding and scenery to visitors from all over the world. 

Unbeknown to most however, a shadow was growing in the background in the form of a Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis in 2007. MS is a thoroughly unpleasant and lifelong autoimmune condition, where the body begins to attack its own central nervous system, damaging the nerves that control everything from balance and coordination to vision and strength. With no cure at present and little to no chance of long term improvement, the idea of living with MS for someone who loves sport and time in wild spaces is a terrifying prospect, but fortunately Andy is a massively stubborn individual.

Choosing to manage his condition without the use of pharmaceutical medication, he now goes by the ironic handle of ‘Stoked on MS’ and works to raise awareness of the disease, doing charity work for Overcoming MS, while continuing to spend as much time in the wild as he can, hoping to provide inspiration for others along the way. If you don’t already know Andy, then check out some of the films he’s made about his journey so far, in ‘This Way Up’, ‘Evolution’ and ‘MS Makes Me’ and see if you can keep a dry eye, and give him a follow on instagram at @stokedonms for his unique perspective on daily life. 

A man initially resistant to E-Bikes, he fully embraced the freedom they gave him a few years ago and has been loving riding Santa Cruz’s excellent full power Heckler bikes as his main way of accessing Scotland's landscape both at home and away ever since.

Andy's custom, full Shimano XTR CC Heckler SL

This beautiful, brand new Shimano XTR equipped Heckler SL arrived to us to build for Andy just the other week, and is an altogether new platform for him. With a couple of weeks of riding now behind him, we thought we’d check with him to see what the driver was behind the switch to the lighter, lower power bike and how he’s finding it so far after a couple of weeks of riding.

Over to Andy

“Full disclosure - I am 100% invested: I’m a long term fan and proud friend of the Santa Cruz brand; a love affair that started late 90s / early 2000s on the Heckler 2 (I’m misting up thinking about that beauty and the nonsense we used to get up to). For those of you too young to remember - the original Heckler was a single pivot aluminium mountain bike.

Andy and his original Heckler - the bikes have come a long way!

To be honest, I’m pretty much in awe of the reimagined Hecklers they’ve produced since, particularly because as part of my ‘old job’ I was tasked with hosting a Scottish Highlands engineering trip for the prototype that would become the Heckler 8 - so in truth, the connection with their e-bike project, my wavering health and my ability to continue adventuring the Scottish landscapes is a strong one.”

Now I’ve got all that out the way - what can I say about the SL? It’s still early days but here’s my first impressions:

Reserve HD30 Carbon wheels for Andy

1. It’s a mind bender:
If it wasn’t for the LEDs on the top tube and the surreal’y natural feel of the motor’s assist - you’d be hard pushed to know you’re riding anything other than an agile, uber-balanced mountain bike; it’s an absurdly good climber (obviously), and when pointed down it encourages recklessness way beyond my skill set. What sets it apart from the Heckler 9 is its poppable, hoppable manoeuvrability: the big Heckler 9 makes me feel like an X-wing pilot ‘keeping on target’ regardless of ruts, drops and trail debris - in the four years I’ve been fortunate to enjoy the Heckler e-bike platformthat vessel has (and will) continue to keep me out of jail; the SL by comparison is a mind bending reset that an (this!) e-bike can be both the hilarious downhill chuckle bus and the flickable, bunnyhoppable Bronson friend I’d forgotten about. With copious range (3-4 hours so far!) and assistance when I need it - it’s a bloody addictive thing!

I like some things to stay the same. Ilove familiar, dependable things: my go to Shimano XTR drivetrain and brakes had me feeling comfortable from the get go; I’d probably be on my arse far more often than I am if it wasn’t for the WTB Vigilantes I always rely on. And if you ride an ebike and haven’t checked out their Devo ‘grab’ saddle - do it because it’s one of those things (like a dropper post) that’ll soon become an essential for you too. You can thank me later!

New bikes generally need some tweaking and several on trail faff sessions to make it feel like ‘yours’ - rolling the bars, adding a headset spacer, adjusting tyre and shock pressures, saddle height, brake lever angles etc etc. I don’t know whether TVB’s pro mechanic Mat just has a good eye, or is a particularly solid judge of this overweight, reluctantly middle aged customer but the SL left the shop 100% trail ready, and on its maiden voyage, somewhat disappointingly I carried shock pump, tools and tape measure for no reason. Thanks Mat (and the TVB Crew).

The subtle Fazua Ride 60 motor that drives the Heckler SL

P.S the arrival of the nimble Heckler SL is not the end of the road for me and the full power Heckler 9 btw! When I want or need the extra muscle of the Shimano EP8 for those 6-8+ hour two battery missions I crave - I’ll still be reaching for that beautiful big beastie.

'More notes and comparisons to follow as my unique relationship with the SL develops."

It's always a real treat as a bike shop to build good bikes for good people so this one was extra special on both counts.

 Thanks Andy!