Thru axles front and rear, and mounting bosses on the forks.
I've been eying the RLT9 Steel since it was released, but it didn't make any sense for it to have rear thru-axle and QR on the front. It looks like it will get the new TA fork w/mounts too.
I was just eyeing that beauty as well. It is a very tempting bike, especially with the recent updates. I just wish it had the option to run a slightly larger tire, particularly for bikepacking in rougher terrain. That's where my Fargo still remains hard to beat.
I've ridden the "old" RLT 9 for the last year and I think the geometry for gravel -- including rough, rocky gravel and single track -- is very hard to beat. It is good that they are keeping the geometry on this bike. Very stable everywhere and controllable in a slide, but lively in acceleration.
I much prefer the new fork and would buy it as an upgrade if it weren't so expensive. I would love to be able to carry a couple more water bottles and leave my Camelbak at home.
My only concern with the new aluminum bike is the thru axle. It might make an already-stiff bike way too stiff for the rough stuff. On mild gravel and well-maintained gravel roads, it won't matter. On B roads with lots of large protruding rock, it might be too much.
On the other hand, the thru axles on the steel RLT 9 sound like a great way to go.
(I'm in the process of having the RLT 9 geometry built in titanium, with one small adjustment -- and with thru axles front and rear.)
It is good to see that Niner isn't resting on its laurels.
![[RLT9Steel_11_938x540]](https://s3.amazonaws.com/NinerBikes/Bike_RLT9Steel/RLT9Steel_11_938x540.jpg)