What’s everyone riding these days?

Hello Party People,

I checked back in a bit ago about building a frame I had vs buy. Well I did some soul search and feel that I’d rather pick up a FS bike as while I’m still young, I’m not getting younger and some old injuries are coming back to haunt me (knees and back).

I have been sifting through the ride reports, picture, etc. to see what popular choice are among you all as my beloved trails (Monroe, Marshall, Bonelli) are similar enough to the south OC trails (minus Luge and Laguna).

Are bikes like the Ripley or Tallboy popular? Hightower’s, 5010? I don’t think I need longer travel than those types of bikes cause I like pain (climbing).

Look forward to riding with you all once I get a bike and get back into the swing of things.

Rob

 

If you want to fit in than you must ride a Santa Cruz!

 

But I wanna be different!

 

Welcome Rob...

Ride what you like... Lots of great bikes and trails out there.

That's said I'm riding a Santa Cruz LOL!

 

One of us!

I was only using SC bikes as they are an easy point of reference. I guess I could have been more specific, you guys all hanging in that 120-140 travel range? Riding XC for big loops in Santiago? I used to ride a Stache 5 rigid for what it’s worth.

 

Any of those bikes on your list should bring a smile to your face and will definitely be capable for the trails you mention.

I love my Ripley. I want to try some other bikes but it just works so well for so much around here. I have mine set up aggressively with a 145mm coil fork and big rubber and 4 pot brakes, but you can run a shorter lighter fork, lighter rubber, and 2 pot brakes and have a very light but capable setup.

I rode with a friend in Mammoth and he had a 5010 and tackled gnarlier stuff than I can, so positive the 5010 wouldn’t hold you back.

Another bike to take a look at is the Cannondale Habit. A well reviewed trail bike, plus that lefty while funky looking is supposed to be a great fork. I was considering picking up the Havit SE before I got my Ripley.

Good luck on your search let us know where you land!

Btw still loving the Stache you sold me! I don’t get it on dirt as much as I should but the thing climbs like a goat and is so much fun riding around with the kids.

 

Glad to hear it!! Its a rad bike and I am glad that at least it is getting ridden! You were the one that got me looking at Ibis. While I am head over heals for an HD4 I just don't think that is the practical choice like an Mojo or Ripley LS.

 

Hightower here... Recently acquired. I think I'm 1 of 95 Hightower owners on the forum. Guerrilla Gravity was at the top of my lust list, but then I happened on a stupid good deal for the complete Hightower. If I were limited to one bike, I probably would have gone with the Tallboy. As it is, the Hightower is the perfect complement to the Chameleon.

The 5010 is overlooked frequently, but... It's more in line with a baby bronson- a lot more slack than the Tallboy.

 

GG Smash for me...best all around bike for me by a mile I’ve ever had. Also Waltworks custom 29+ 160mm steel FS bruiser (close second best all arounder). Old skool steel 26 single pivot (no linkage baby) DH bike. Motobecane fat bike. Also a Ventana 29/27.5 and a Kona Process 153.

 

The GG Smash seems like such a rad bike. Also, the thought of riding a single pivot scares me and excites me all at the same time lol. Of the bikes you chimed in with I have hear good things on the process 153 and the GG. Do you find that either of them make the climbs excruciating? I had a V1 Bronson years ago and I barfed the first time climbing it over by Turnbull Canyon. Took every bit of energy out of me.

 

I like your perspective on this as I still have a Honzo ST frame that, in time, I would like to build for the smoother, greater distance, dare I say relaxed rides.

 

If you ride mostly Bonelli Marshall and Monroe, then something like the tallboy or ripley would be perfect.

New stumpy st
Intense sniper trail
Pivot 429 trail
Giant trance 29
Habit 29

All shorter/mid travel, but very capable bikes.

I think incycle is having a demo at Bonelli in two weeks, you should check it out

 

I will have to check it out. I am on their mailing list and will keep an eye out for it. I have been demoing bikes through the Path and Jax (Fuel EX is phenomenal). If I am being honest my most frequent riding spot is FLOOP as it is on the way home from work and I can sneak in two laps. Regardless of bike, I am looking to hit more of the OC trails as I think I will be moving down there at the end of the year.

 

I demo'd a process 153. It climbed like a pig, I really didn't like it much .

Check out the pivot 429 I put up for sale, it climbs really well.

 

The Smash climbs ridiculously well...rides much lighter than its weight on climbs. The process is a good climber for being a mini DH bike (it’s a 2017 27.5), but definitely less so than the Smash.

 

It's seriously hard to buy a bad bike nowadays and the reality is, how well you go cop that hill is 95% RIDER if not more of the equation. I'm a "sit & spinner" no matter what bike I'm on, whether it's my 140mm Intense Primer or 170mm Intense Tracer. I could be on Nino Schurter's 21 lb hardtail and my buddy could be on a 33 lb Nomad and he'd still destroy me on the climb.

If you read the reviews, either from professional editors or amateur owners, you'll read that all the bikes in that class.....Tallboy, Primer, Ripley, Epic are all fantastic bikes that 98% of us can't ride to their full potential. I can't speak for any of the other bikes but what I love about the Primer is how versatile it is. I have mine set up with a 140 up front (it's 130 in the back) and generally XC type tires 90% of the time. However, I'll throw a beefy tire on it and ride Palm Canyon or Noble Canyon when almost everybody else is on a 6" travel bike. Many Primer owners are putting a 150 up front and installing there rear link from a Recluse to make it a 150/140 bike. I know others that ride it as a 130/130 and compete in endurance events like the Whiskey 50.

 

I ride a Bronson all over east and west of and in Turnbull Cyn and all the other canyons around here every day. So that was your pile of vomit I bombed through?

 

Haha! 4 years ago it was!!! Granted it’s not fair to blame the bike. It was my first FS and far from set up right. This time is different because I’m older and therefore wiser! Just kidding I’m still and idiot who likes bikes.

 

And then there was this deal: https://www.competitivecyclist.com/...pbiBCaWtlcyAmIEZyYW1lczoxOjI6Y2NDYXQxMDAxNjA=

I have heard mixed on the 4.5 but might be a good way of getting back into things.

 

I don’t think you’ll be disappointed in the 4.5 that’s a great deal!!

 

Climbing excruciating...just the opposite on my Smash. GG bikes use a steeper seat tube than most, and the effect is dramatic. Good position through the dropper stroke. Add a coil shock for small bumps, some grippy rubber and the climbing traction will amaze despite weight. Obviously GG bikes kill DH, lesser known is the climbing prowess, which is hard to overstate.

 

You guys are teasing me at this point. Checked their website and they are all out of Smash frames!!!! I will do some more research on the smash.

 

That is a fantastic deal. I've never heard anybody complain about the 4.5. I demo'd one against the Primer (2) years ago and thought the 4.5 climbed a touch better but I got a deal I couldn't pass up on Pinkbike for a 3 month old Primer and the rest is history. My buddy, who I refer to on here as Heart Attack Matt, normally rides a Tallboy LT but rode my Primer a couple weeks ago and claimed "climbing up hills on this thing is cheating".

 

You should contact GG for current availability. A new site and lineup reputes to be launching end of month. Danimal mentioned a discount on ‘18 frames. Talk to Jubal or any of the guys about what they can do rather than depend on the site that’s about to be canned. @Sassyquatch and I have been hammering Smashes, so ask away if any Qs.

Lots of good bikes out there. How many US-manufacturered frames? If that means anything to you, GG is an obvious choice.

 

Thanks I will reach out to them and see what's cooking. I will be sure to use you guys if I have any questions.

 

I'm still learning about what my '18 Fuel EX has to offer but it's a noticeable improvement over the aging Remedy it replaced.

 

I still think anything in OC can be ridden on a hardtail......save the "well not trail X".....if you can ride some of that crazy Sh!t, you aren't gonna be asking what kind of bike should I buy.

However most of you are gonna say to get a FS rig of some kind.

It's true, it's getting harder and harder to find bad bikes.

After almost 6 years of almost exclusively riding the SS, this year I bought a Hightower....say what you want, but SC has treated me well since 2000. I was replacing a Tallboy 2 that I hadn't ridden much the last several years. Automatically it was gonna be a Tallboy 3 or Hightower. I was not interested in 27.5 wheeled bikes.

As most that have ridden with me know, the SS didn't really hold me back on the DH's. So when it came time to buy a new FS rig, I inquired with some of the guys here I ride with to get their opinions. None of them said those bikes suck. I could have gone with either TB or HT and been perfectly happy. I ended up with the Hightower mostly because I wanted something different than the SS. I wanted something I could play and have fun on. I didn't expect to ride it that often....as I am SS guy.

I ended up putting about 1200 miles on it last year. It has handled everything I have thrown at it. I do not baby it on the DH's. It climbs very well. DH's it just eats up. I did upgrade the fork to 150mm to go along with the 135mm rear. I still have not found it's limitations. It seems to fit nicely into that perfect all around travel of 140mm.

I know a lot of riders will say you need more travel, but that is more of a trendy Enduro Bro thing, as most will never ride the bike to 1/2 of it's abilities.

If you are a 1 bike guy, then any of the current 130-140mm bikes are hard to beat.

 

I am currently mainly riding my SC Highball, and i LOVE it. I would agree that aside from the few more technical single tracks, a hardtail is fine for most OC trails. moreover, i really do end up enjoying the climbs more than i did before. Great also to combine it with some riding on roads, e.g in between parks.
For downhill, i have a Giant Reign. Great fun in places like Mammoth, but not that great in OC. I rode it the other day in the San Clemente single tracks, just for fun to try it out, and it was not that easy. The climbing, which is the thing you end up doing most time wise, is simply not as enjoyable. I do like the quality of the Reign for downhill and i thought it offers decent value too

 

Be careful of the "what bikes work best for ______ location?" discussion. As everybody above has said, there are so many great bikes, it's hard to go wrong. And yes, most everything CAN be ridden on a hardtail, but how you define fun is up to you. Some people relish in riding difficult terrain on minimal bikes. Frankly, I probably wouldn't even ride if I could only ride hardtails. We all like different things in our riding.

Get what moves you - but do not neglect geometry.

 

My new ride, check out that shock!!