I find my Reign climbs very well considering the geometry of the bike.
It's interesting to see how the Reign frame has evolved over the years
because it will have an affect on how riders feel about the bike.
When first released, it had a lively 69.5 degree head angle. This was what had me laying cash down for one then. Plush all mountain suspension but with quick steering.
In 2007 the frame changed and head angle slackened to 69 degrees. That was noticeable.
In 2008 the frame lost nearly a whole kg in weight and stiffened which was impressive and again noticeable but the head angle remained at 69 degrees.
In 2009, the front end slackened a whopping degree to 68 degrees. 2010 it all stayed the same and the bank account breathed a sigh of relief....
2011 is another new frame and another 0.5 degrees taken out of the head angle - 67.5 degrees which I reckon is getting pretty slack for some trails.
All along the seat tube angle remained steady at 73.5 degree.
Now I find myself kind of longing for the early model's steeper and quicker head angle. Interestingly, the current Trance X has all but the exact same geometry of the original Reign (but at 5" travel instead of 5.75" and a whole lot lighter).
That said there's a brand new Regin frame sitting in the factory ready to be unboxed and built..... It's still the bike I'd take anywhere on just about any trail on the planet and feel confident that I'd get through. Moreover, it's satisfying to know that the bike wouldn't try to kill me and that there's every chance I'd be smiling at the end of the ride ready to high five anyone near me.