who Mountain bikes regularly?
 

yesterday the unthinkable happened. yup..cant believe it myself. i had to dismount and walk my bike. :)

hah.

i've been jogging a trail system. i kept seeing young kids ripping down a bootleg section of trail above me. i finally asked one guy what that trail was. he said a few of them cleared it along the ridge and it is very exciting. okay. i chalked it to memory. he wouldnt tell me where that section started, but i had a decent idea. a few weeks ago, my knees were sore, so i put away my trail shoes and did the bike ride. i found the head of this trail hidden in thick bushes..i rip down. "rip" is misleading..i ripped down for me. old 1999 mtn bike, marginal rim brakes, tired suspension, strong sense of self preservation, etc.

holy crap..i made it. there were some sketchy portions! sections i would have done differently if i was clearing that trail. one..was a steeeeeppp. maybe 55 degree drop off with a 90 degree hard right, off camber turn at the bottom. i dont know how i made it. the top there is a small boulder you have to drop off, that is straight up, before you even get to the relatively safety of the 55 deg slope!!

yesterday. having memory of that corner, i got to the top..screech..dismount! my body took over. i stopped without thinking. i was actually thinking..GOOO! i wish i was young and dumb. i watch a much younger kid get full air at the top, land..brake steered around the bottom corner and was off in a puff of dust.

i'm gonna try again today. maybe i gopro the crash, maybe i dont. :D. bright side? i crushed that testosterone driven, pimply kid an a brutal uphill. he had to push his bike..punk! (he was riding a downhill bike, but whatever)

i am trying to parlay my mediocre performance into a new bike. my wife is 75% on board, but she hasnt seen the pricetag yet.

who MTN bikes regularly? you liking the new 27.5" bikes? hopefully this is a decent MTN bike thread..something to compliment that other roadie heavy thread.

Regular, although on the road bike now till the trails open around here in a few weeks.

No mountain's around here , but I ride a full squish 29er. Giant Anthem X.

I have started to walk a few features I use to ride regularly. My penalty for failure ratio has changed.

27.5 should be excellent. my next one will be 27.5.
do it. modern bikes are great.
i have ridden Konas for 25 years. love the brand.

This quote was worth the thread. Haha.

After riding a $400 mountain bike into the ground, I bought a new full suspension 29er last May and have been driving the wheels off it. My go to place was Skeggs Point (El Corte De Madera) for longer rides. It is a former motocross park and probably the best MTB riding in the Bay Area. There are also hills and trails close to work that I hit at lunch or after I finish.

Needless to say, I also hunt off the MTB. Duck hunting running the levees, dove hunting covering some ground, deer and bear in the coastal range mountains ...

What I love about biking is that it covers more ground than running, you can really see a lot at a very nice pace where it doesn't get boring.

For Bay Area rides, check out this website. My goal is to ride every all off-road trail he has on there. I am about 10% done. :)

Bay Area Mountain Bike Rides

Let's go some time and kick some butt on the trails! PM me!

G

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426870481.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426870996.jpg

It sure was...beautiful.

After my hip replacement in January I am truly painless for the first time in almost a decade. I was cleared to ride two weeks ago and dusted off my 1994 Trek from the Pleistocene era of mountain bikes. I am surprised I remember which barn I put it in.

I have begun to slowly press my very meager performance envelope. The Dinosaur I'm riding is still waaaay better than I am, and will be for a tad:D

I think the 27.5 is good for shorter riders. I have seen Vash, I think he may fall in that category. ;) If you are 6" or taller, 29er is the way to go IMHO. The difference large wheels make in terrain is profound. The price you pay is weight and toss-ability.

G

Rat Pack Trail above Lake Cle Elum:

https://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play;_ylt=A2KIo9SgVgxVy2MAxQUsnIlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTByMj BzZmhtBHNlYwNzcgRzbGsDdmlkBHZ0aWQDBGdwb3MDNg--?p=rat+pack+trail&vid=31fe45841def8d7b9baa9234d289 e78b&l=10%3A10&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fts3.mm.bing.net%2 Fth%3Fid%3DVN.608020735139252890%26pid%3D15.1&rurl =http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DMNCecS lI47g&tit=Rat+Pack+Cle+Elum+WA&c=5&sigr=11a1c2lj1& sigt=10k1ie9dc&sigi=11r7cpbha&age=1340310321&fr2=p %3As%2Cv%3Av&hsimp=yhs-004&hspart=mozilla&tt=b

They took over from us MC guys.....Didn't like it a bit when I was up there on my 650 Honda a few years ago.

Still riding my Santa Cruz blur Lt xtr equipped. I have beaten the crap out of the bike but have maintained it.
26 " wheels still are ok in my book. I can't justify buying the equivalent in the 27.5" wheel with the amount I ride.
There is a reason they have gone back down in wheel size. My impression is that the 29rs are not quite as good at the twitchy stuff but they will roll over almost anything.

who Mountain bikes regularly?
 

Double posted...

Still ride my old Crack-n-Fail Super V 900 as aggressively as I dare on occasion. I'm getting older though and have little desire to go home banged up, muddy and smelly anymore so I kinda just cruise more often than not...

I'd like a newer bike at some point but don't really see the need. The old Super V's performance envelope probably exceeds mine now.

who Mountain bikes regularly?
 

Really? I think a 29 is not rider size specific. They "scrunch" the frame down to compensate. I've ridden a few and they feel very cumbersome. Maybe I just need to get used to one.

And I am not short. Not for my people. :). 5-11 according to my DL!

Vash,
Like you I got back into mountain biking after a 7 year break of road riding. We moved to mountain bike country in SW Virginia and I dusted off my old mtn bike from 1998 and hit the trail. After about two weeks I came to the conclusion my old bike was not up to safely tackle our local trails at the speed I wanted. A few local shops let you demo bikes for $40-$60 per day and I tried a few "all mountain" or XC full suspension bikes.

During my first ride I could not believe how much technology has pushed mountain bikes, the things I can do on my new bike are impossible on my old hard tail. My average speed climbing one of my favorite trails was up 3 mph by just changing bikes. Budget was my main issue as I just don't see spending $4-6k on a bike. I decided what I wanted and a bike shop about an hour away had a 2013 left over when the 14's came out and gave me a screaming deal. The 29 vs 27.5 thing is a personal choice depending on riding style and what kind of trails you will be riding. 29 works for me and I am very happy 98% of the time, very tight switch backs can be challenging with the 29 but that is less than 2% of my total riding. I really like that I can cruise at 18 mph on one road section that is 2 miles long to get to a spot we ride.

Here is what I ended up with, Specialized Camber as almost 1000 miles on it and not even a hiccup. Will upgrade the wheels at some point but I am very happy for now.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426877190.jpg

I do think the cumbersomeness goes up the shorter or smaller the rider and the taller the wheels. It is just the proportions. That doesn't mean you can't ride a 29er if you are Napoleon.

The only time I worry about the 29er tossablity is when I have hair pin turns in switchbacks. They are tough to maneuver and I think it is due to the larger wheelbase.

And that's a respectable height. Just like my weight in my license - nice and slim! :)

G

I mostly do the bunny trails in State Parks that allow my 50 year old broken body to look like a champion. A compromised heart and lung package thanks to Cancer, and a plate with pins and screws holding my pelvis together thanks to a bad car accident 2 years ago dictates that I don't grab air anymore, or do the tuff trails. At least i'm still out there, and not in a wheel chair or fat scooter !

^^^ This!

If you think your 10 year old bike is just fine, go take a new one out. It is impressive, especially the suspension. When I went bike shopping I was just going to get another $500 basic bike, then I started test riding the full suspension 29ers ... point of no return!:cool:

G

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426878298.jpg
Hard Tail
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426878486.jpg
Full Squish

I walk my by mountain bike hanging on the garage wall regularly... Does that count?

I ride a full-suspension Cannondale.

When I was shopping for a new bike a few years ago, I never thought I'd spend as much as I did.
Then I rode a few bikes back-to-back, having already decided to buy a cheaper bike. No way is the same frame with a bit better components worth twice the price.

Wrong!

After a very short comparison ride, there was no choice but to get the right components from the get-go. Much cheaper than upgrading piece-by-piece later on.

Couldn't be happier.

I need to sell a couple of bikes and buy something new. It's getting to be a bother finding replacement parts. :(
The only problem is, all the bikes I've seen lately are really spendy, yet look pretty boring.

I have been riding for 24 years both mtb and road, I still ride 4-5 days a week :)

I've been doing it since 1992. Still ride/race and has not lost one bit of enjoyment.

29'r is my choice, both Hardtail and Full


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426884813.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426884911.jpg

My favorite MTB is my 24 hour bike. 26" wheels, XT/XTR mix with sweet-assed Spinergy wheels. Literally a bomb proof bike.

I've ridden 29ers with varying opinions. The first that I tried was just silly tall, felt completely awkward and there was so much toe-lap that I absolutely would not recommend even thinking about it (16" frame as I'm 5'5). A few years later, I rode another and the geometry had been changed significantly for the frame size. That one was workable. Didn't feel any taller than my 'cross bike (which is logical as 700c 'cross bike wheels are the same as 29er MTB). It's the height of the bottom bracket that makes it feel "tall" to me. I thought the acceleration was a little sluggish compared to my 26" wheeled bike. But it rolled over stuff like roots and baby-head rocks like they weren't even there.

I also test rode a 27.5. Very impressed with that. In the 16" frame, these wheels felt 'just right' under the bike. Nearly as quick and flickable as my 26" wheeled bike, but rolled more easily over obstructions with none of the too-tall feeling that even a good 29er gives me. Not sure that I would buy a 27.5 as I'm tending toward having one 26" and one 29er. Though the 29ers feel tall to me, on the right course, I could probably just fly on one. But I would highly suggest you give the 27.5 a try. Like Goldilocks, you might find it to be just right!

angela

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426885023.jpg

I'm fresh out of mountain bikes as of last fall, I was riding single speed 29ers both fully rigid and front suspension. I can see buying a full squish 29er or 27.5 in the future, as I'm ready to get back to a full suspension bike. Age tells me it'll make riding more enjoyable and safer. This will have to wait for funds though, I bought a gravel racer last fall to replace what I had.

I chicken out today as well. :)

Giant Trance X 29er here. I get out about 2 to 3 times a week. I demoed this bike before I bought it and fell in love...coming from a 26er it does almost everything just as good and some stuff much better on the trails I ride.

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...pswnpgcmzj.jpg

I live in Mt. Bike Heaven and ride a lot! I rode a Niner Jet 9 Carbon last year, my first 29er - came from a 26" full suspension Tomac cross country rig. I'm 6' tall and ride a size large frame. I generally like it, but there's a few funny things about how it rides and it took me a bunch of rides/time to get used to it. For the trails where I live, and the type of rider I am, the Jet 9 is about perfect in concept.

In general, if you're fit, a 29er can be pretty quick. Momentum is key with the bigger wheels. They shine on middle ring & big ring rolling terrain & the bigger wheels & tires really do provide another inch or 2 worth of suspension.

Like all big expensive equipment purchases, if you can spend a ride or 2 or 3 demoing a few different bikes before you throw down, it's best.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426983178.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1426983206.jpg

You should look at getting a nice set of wheels; like some Stans with Chris King hubs, or similar. It will really wake up your bike on hills. Giant wheels are strong but heavy.

I MTB and just started getting my family involved. We all ride Specialized. I have a Stumpjumper Comp 26", wife rides my old 2003 Epic and the kids ride Hotrocks. The bigger wheels may be more popular, but I don't think it will help my endurance which is the limiting factor in my riding.
<a href="http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/tsutton22/media/20150308_144018-EFFECTS_zpskam6zrbu.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah205/tsutton22/20150308_144018-EFFECTS_zpskam6zrbu.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20150308_144018-EFFECTS_zpskam6zrbu.jpg"/></a>

After a 9 month break, I am back at it. I pedaled everyday up until I stopped. 6 days in now. Going on vacation for a few days tomorrow, but plan to be back at it when I return.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427002949.jpg

I'm a huge mnt bike fan! SmileWavy I'm not sure if I will go with a 27.5 when I change out my bike.. Def won't go 29er, but will give the 27.5 a demo just to see how it feels, but I really enjoy the 26..sad to see it getting tossed aside by manufactures these days.

Can't wait to get high again ;)
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427003445.jpg
The rig. 2009 trek remedy 26in 160mm travel. 32single ring
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427003461.jpg
And of course have to take my trail buddy, or deal with seeing the sad face when leaving the house haha
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427004006.jpg

Happy to see a mnt bike thread on pelican!!

Careful not to piss me off when riding! Notice what is in my right hand... :D

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427005549.jpg

I just built this on Monday, first ride Thursday. 2014 Niner Jet 9 RDO, to go along with my 26" Yeti which is still by far my preferred ride. Like others have said, if you can have more than one bike, there is nothing better than a bike designed for the type of riding you want to do, on a particular day. I demo'd a Trek Remedy 9.8 27.5" last year and found that it was an awesome bike, but was not as fun on the technical downhills and was not as fast as my old Niner Jet 9. And this new full carbon Jet 9 is even faster! (You'll also need a fat bike for snow, and a dirt jumper for the pump track, and a BMX bike, and so on.....) I might suggest that if you're looking for a first bike, get a 26" while you can. It's sad that they may join the pennyfarthing in history!

Buy used, and learn to wrench yourself, and it's not as crazy expensive as you might think. Good luck and have fun!

[IMG]<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/15874269@N03/16698869900" title="Jet 9 RDO by madridvb, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8721/16698869900_68e5153e68_c.jpg" width="800" height="600" alt="Jet 9 RDO"></a>[/IMG]

I've been biking with an old full suspension GT-LTS for years. It was great when I was down south with long down hill portions. But up here there's more pedaling up hill. So a couple years ago I picked up a Cannondale Flash 3. It's a light weight hard tail which made a huge difference. That GT full suspension sucked up so much energy going up hill but I'm sure they're better now. I stuck with the 26 because I didn't care for the 29ers but now the 27.5 is becoming popular. I don't know, I like the 26. I changed the pedals to Spank Spike with Teva link shoes and Ergon grips.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427071033.jpg

Me too, mine's XT. I think I bought it in 2005? I paid too much for the thing to get rid of it and it still is a great bike!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427117327.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427117360.jpg

Have ridden my 1988 Trek Antelope for years, upgraded to a Mrazek Boh about 4 years ago and last week into an Intense Spider 29 Carbon. This thing is a work of art. I still ride the "bunny" trails locally.

Doesn't hurt that my brother is an authorized Orbea, Specialized, Intense, .... dealer!

Here she is!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427123446.jpg

I have the benefit of living at the base of a stupendous riding area (Galbraith Mt) and a couple of hours from Whistler and try to ride as much as I can.
If I was looking to buy right now, I would certainly give 27.5's a serious look but with two Trek Fuels, my wife is not going to go for that anytime soon.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427127942.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427127980.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427128007.jpg

Santa Cruz Blur LT 2007-08. I like it alot bought it used in good shape 4 Years ago, To try Mt Biking it replaced my no suspension 1991 trail bike.

Wife has a new 29 and loves it, she is much faster on the good trails. I like the increase of pedaling efficiency.

I would look at everything out now. The comparison between the new bikes and the old bikes is pretty shocking.

I think I would go with the 29 if I bought a new one. Lots of decisions.

Nice Intense! Another VPP bike...
When I bought my Blur, a riding buddy bought an Intense. it was more of a XC race bike than my trail bike but it did ride very nicely.
I am going to test ride a Santa Cruz Bronson in the next while. 27.5s on it.
Will let you know what I think...