We’ve been toying with the idea of adding a dual suspension 29er to the quiver. No doubt about it— big wheels are fast. The thing is, they’re just not as fun to ride as smaller wheels. If I was in the market for a short travel trail ripper, with all the sweet flow trails popping up, it would have 650b wheels. Of all the current 650b options, the Rocky Mountain Thunderbolt BC Edition sticks out as the class leader of shred.
The specs of the Thunderbolt read like a list of desirable attributes off my personal want list. Short 422mm chainstays, paired with a longer front center. Rocky Mountain’s Ride-9 Adjustable geometry doesn’t hurt, but it’s the slack, class leading 66.5º head angle that gets me all worked up. I’ve become a huge fan of steep seat angles on dual suspension bike, and the Thunderbolt seat angle has a range of 73-74.6º (effective) depending on the geo setting.
422mm/ 16.6″ chainstays
120mm of rear wheel travel paired with 130mm up front puts it solidly in the 5″ travel trail bike category, ideal for the bulk of the riding found in the Bay Area— but with geometry found on bikes defined these days as Enduro Race-ready. The BC edition comes spec’d out of the box the way I’d set it up too: wide bars, short stem, stiff wheels with aggressive rubber.
Thanks and shout out to Dre at Rocky Mountain for showing us the Thunderbolt at the Sea Otter, he’s got one of the sweetest gigs out there in bike land.
Check it out: Rocky Mountain Thunderbolt BC Edition
