Mountian Bike

[Christophe Noel]

Excellent points by 29er. I've had many full suspension bikes going back to the days when Cannondale's full sus bike didn't even have a front suspension. Whacky. Anyway, I've gone back and forth over the years and now find a hardtail fits my needs perfectly. For the record, my new supliment of choice for my aging bod is a bottle of Ibuprophen. That wouldn't be different on a full sus bike. Unfortunately.

29er and I ride with at least a dozen guys on 29ers. None of us are obnoxious advocates who hound everyone on 26" wheeled bikes, but when asked if there are negatives to 29ers, we all seem to come up with nothing more than blank faces, and shrugged shoulders. There are common "negatives" voiced by the anti-29er crowd, I just don't think any of us avid 29er users have noticed those negatives. I haven't.

If anything, this is much a do about nothing. The most common regret when buying a new bike isn't about suspension or wheel size it has to do with under buying. There's nothing worse than dropping $700 on a bike only to really wish you had dropped $1000 instead. Cheap bikes stink.

 

[brut4s]

I will give both a try fs & hardtail.Which brands do you guy's lean towards? I think i'm still in pretty good shape.I hit the gym a couple of times a week,judo/ju-jitsu so no spare tire.

 

[Christophe Noel]

I will give both a try fs & hardtail.Which brands do you guy's lean towards? I think i'm still in pretty good shape.I hit the gym a couple of times a week,judo/ju-jitsu so no spare tire.

I'm not too loyal to any one brand. There are so many good bikes out there. See what's available in your area. If you can, shop for a discounted '08 model. 2009 is likely to see 10-20% increases in pricing. The biggest jump in decades. Hard tails will be the better value. Full suspension comes at a premium. Personally, I wouldn't shop for a full sus bike with anything less than $1200-1500. Really nice hard tails can be found for several hundred less.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Just throwing in some $0.02, you got great advise from the knowledgeable dudes already...

The one thing I will say... it's my opinion that anyone buying a new bike should get one with 29" wheels. For anyone who isn't (a) doing hardcore downhill or freeride on a 6" travel bike, or (b) isn't under 5'5", the advantages of 29" wheels are many, the disadvantages non-existent IMO.

There are some less good things about 29'ers, but it's really an individual thing. I jumped on my buddy's and hated it. Couldn't do switchbacks for one and I had some toe overlap (it was an older Fisher). Nothing earth shattering. I also didn't like that 22/34 was no longer as low, I'm slow (my 26" one speed is 34/21!) and granny isn't just for show. :-/ If it was mine, I'm sure that I would adapt to it and the feeling of riding a tall bike (and remember I ride a Blur LT, so tall is relative!) around switchbacks would go away and it would certainly fit better. But that test wasn't the epiphany that everyone said it would be. Plus I damage enough rims on both my Blur and my CX bike (on which I run 32 hole CXP23 rims, so they ain't fancy ultralights), so I'm skeptical of going to a 29" on the MTB. But it's also a locality thing, all our daily trails here are beat up and rocky, so 4+ inches and 26" wheels are nice for durability. Plenty of people ride 29" wheels, but I'm not smooth like butta and they are...

I'm not too loyal to any one brand. There are so many good bikes out there. See what's available in your area. If you can, shop for a discounted '08 model. 2009 is likely to see 10-20% increases in pricing. The biggest jump in decades. Hard tails will be the better value. Full suspension comes at a premium. Personally, I wouldn't shop for a full sus bike with anything less than $1200-1500. Really nice hard tails can be found for several hundred less.

This is so true. For $1000 you can get a whole lotta nice bike in a hardtail. I mean, XT level components and a decent weight. You can probably even still find a US-made frame near that price point, maybe a bit more. Anyway, a ton of value. But for even $1500 in dual squish is gonna be a pretty low level build. If asked, I tell someone who is not willing to spend $2000+ is to look careful for a good frame and go ahead and get cheap or house brand parts, sorta expecting some of them to break. A lot of times at the $1500 or so price the frame is the same or very similar (lacking carbon in places or the like) to higher models, but with cost savings at other places. I also have them consider the wheels, a decent frame and wheels are the key to value IMO and everything else can be worked around.

 

[Christophe Noel]

For $1000 you can get a whole lotta nice bike in a hardtail. But for even $1500 in dual squish is gonna be a pretty low level build. .

I should qualify that. I think $1500 is a basement starting point for even a discounted '08 model. One major bummer with many sub $1500 suspension bikes is well...the suspension. At that price, you usually get a dog of a fork and the shock unit isn't anything exotic.

As for 29ers, I would agree they are a personal thing. How and where you ride plays heavily into the 29er/26er debate. 29er and I live in an area with tons of gnarly rock sections, more than a few switchbacks but a good dose of nice fast singletrack. For us, they're ideal. I think issue with switchbacks is extremely valid IF you don't get a 29er with optimum geometry. Same for wheel durability. I've had my 29er wheels since 2006. They have yet to meet a spoke wrench and they're just house brand Bontragers.

That said, I'm probably going to go break a spoke on this morning's ride. Ciao.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I should qualify that. I think $1500 is a basement starting point for even a discounted '08 model. One major bummer with many sub $1500 suspension bikes is well...the suspension. At that price, you usually get a dog of a fork and the shock unit isn't anything exotic.

As for 29ers, I would agree they are a personal thing. How and where you ride plays heavily into the 29er/26er debate. 29er and I live in an area with tons of gnarly rock sections, more than a few switchbacks but a good dose of nice fast singletrack. For us, they're ideal. I think issue with switchbacks is extremely valid IF you don't get a 29er with optimum geometry. Same for wheel durability. I've had my 29er wheels since 2006. They have yet to meet a spoke wrench and they're just house brand Bontragers.

That said, I'm probably going to go break a spoke on this morning's ride. Ciao.

My man, we agree substantially. Our trails used to be buff singletrack, but the explosion of people a few years ago and a handful of summers where maintenance lagged use has left more than a few sections of very technical riding. The gnarly sections are getting rerouted, but some trails I think are gonna always be place were you work on your trialsin skils. Ask anyone who rides around Denver regularly about the Apex-Chimney Gulch loop. Yeah man, some fun! I'm seriously worked on my 5" bike at the end. The stairs section of Deer Creek, that's another one.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Just found a picture of part from one our more technical trails. This is along the Sluicebox section at Apex Open Space. It's a short section, about 3/4 miles. It climbs about 375 feet in a 1/2 miles section of about a dozen switchbacks like this, with the bulk of them (about 6 coming bang-bang-bang) coming in a section that runs about 300 yards and gains about 150 ft. The other side comes down Grubstake, which is a longer run out, but has a section of 6 switchbacks that descends 160 feet in about 1/4 of a mile. So on this loop, which is about 1.5 miles, there's around two dozen total switchbacks on loose, dusty rock. It's truly a beating. FUN! This particular switchback takes you from outside to inside naturally and I have to pull a track stand and hop to work my front wheel around. I get it about 1-in-3 without dabbing.

 

[29er]

We have a few really gnarly uphill switchbacks (think 393) that can be ridden well on the 29ers. It's all so relative and individual though. It really kind of makes me uncomfortable these days to coach people through buying the "right bike." Depends on too many different things and the person shopping around gets a dozen contradictory bits of advice back from every person they ask.

Best to ride 'em and hope you find one that you love. I've had a string of mtn bikes that I have really loved, so I've been lucky... but none of them hold a candle to my Spot 29er singlespeed. For me. The next person might hate my Spot.

That said, I'm probably going to go break a spoke on this morning's ride. Ciao.

I didn't hear any spokes poppin' today! What a ride, by the way. Bravo!

 

[DaveInDenver]

It's all so relative and individual though. It really kind of makes me uncomfortable these days to coach people through buying the "right bike." Depends on too many different things and the person shopping around gets a dozen contradictory bits of advice back from every person they ask.

Best to ride 'em and hope you find one that you love. I've had a string of mtn bikes that I have really loved, so I've been lucky... but none of them hold a candle to my Spot 29er singlespeed. For me. The next person might hate my Spot.

So true. It also seems so local specific. There are studs here that can do singlespeeds, but all of our rides look like inverted 'V's in profile. Start near the city, climb, climb, climb, do a loop, descend, descend, descend. A typical ride after work will be a 3 mile, 1,500 foot climb, 4 miles of rocks and then back down to the truck. My knees have cartilage damage and can only handle a few of our trails without gears. So that's my perspective when someone asks and why I almost never suggest a singlespeed as a first bike. That would be punishing to a newbie to try and ride around Denver on a one speed, guarantee that they hang it up...

 

[29er]

Sounds like our riding here, really.

I agree that a SS would be a bad choice for any newbie. Not sure the same is true of 29" wheels, though. Me personally, I've never noticed not being able to slice and dice through rocks as well, or being able to negotiate really tight singletrack, or having a harder time with switchbacks. And like Flounder, I've never put a spoke wrench to my wheels, even at 195 lbs.

BUT... I'm 6'3" so my riding style has evolved over the decades to accommodate lots of 'bigness' and height (and a lack of coordination). :bike_rider: Maybe I'm more used to dragging my gangliness thru the forest and the next person would find it harder to get used to big wheels. (Picture Reggie Miller on a mtn bike, heh heh)

Greg

 

[Christophe Noel]

Just found a picture of part from one our more technical trails. .

Many of our trails have sections that look like that. We manage to get our 29ers through those sections, often with a little more ease than with my 26 wheeled bike, but then again...that's me. For me, when climbing up those techy switchbacks, I have to be more aware of my line, but that big front wheel tracks and rolls like nobody's business. Probably very much a matter of getting used to what bike you have, more than anything.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Many of our trails have sections that look like that.

That's not just a short section, the whole trail looks like that. That particular line of half a dozen switchbacks beat me every time and was where it occurred to me that there are downsides to the big wheel. No one solution is perfect, it's whatever works for you. Same with singlespeeds, I have one and I ride it on trails that I can do. But on too many Front Range trails it's a take your singlespeed for hike, either because of the sustained 10% climbs or technical. I'm a natural donkey, doncha know. Some people are born thoroughbreds and some people are born donkeys. You guys are natural studs and that's always fascinated me the way you make it look so easy. I'm nursing bad knees from trying to learn to ski (I picked up skiing, telemark in fact, at 30). Non-releasable bindings are not my friend, so at 37 some days I need to hold on tight to the handrail going up stairs and I have no desire to need a cane. I'm a major lover of gears!

 

[29er]

Knee-wrecker but it sure as heck looks like a ton o' fun!

 

[DaveInDenver]

Knee-wrecker but it sure as heck looks like a ton o' fun!

He's cheating, using plastic boots and a lurk. If he was purist, he's be riding the cow with cable bindings. Skiing telemark as such isn't any harder on my knees, and in some ways is more gentle, than bondage gear. It was the falling. I do that a lot. The bindings don't release and I got twisted up pretty ugly. Still do, a lot. But pushing the skis with freeheels is a lot like singlespeed, simple and a ton of fun. Like I say, I LOVE one speeds, just the body is starting to fail me and I'm too young to think about knee replacements, so I baby the ones I have, trying to keep as much of the meniscus in place as possible.

 

[Speaker]

He's cheating, using plastic boots and a lurk. If he was purist, he's be riding the cow with cable bindings.

Maybe, but the lurk was traditional in Norwegian telemarking :ylsmoke: