There are some bikes you just don’t get rid of. The Kona Honzo CR has been one of them, filling the 29″ hardtail slot in the quiver for a few seasons now, and being the test platform for a wide range of review products. At the time of its introduction, the Kona Honzo CR enjoyed […]
First Ride: Orbea Rallon
The Orbea Rallon has been on my short list of 29″ trail smashing enduro rigs for some time. Blending downhill prowess with more than acceptable climbing chops, the Rallon fits into the magical one bike category — provided your dream bike blends DH capability with the capacity for all day rides. I’ve been waiting for […]
2018 Transition Sentinel Carbon
The Transition Sentinel is a fascinating bike. 140mm of rear wheel is paired with a 160mm fork and some of the most aggressive geometry we’ve seen to date for a bike consistently described as an absolute beast on the descents, keeping pace with bikes with more rear wheel travel. Keeping in line with current trends, […]
29″ Enduro Bikes We’re Watching
29″ wheels are fast. There’s no doubt about it. They’ve been proven at every level of the sport, from XC to World Cup Downhill and while we still stand by our previous recommendation of choosing 650b if you value playfulness, we’re all about 29″ for speed. While I have more fun airing out my 27.5 […]
Spotted: Evil Wreckoning (DH?)
Spotted on the Evil Bikes Facebook page and presented without comment — ok, minimal comment — is this image of Evil Bikes 6″ travel 29″ wheeled, all mountain-enduro destroyer, aptly titled the Wreckoning. We’ve seen Intense and a few other manufacturers playing with 29″ wheels on DH bikes. With Boost spacing allowing improved geometry and shorter […]
Niner Reboots Jet 9 RDO and Rip 9 RDO Models with Refreshed Geometry and 27.5+ Build Options
It was only a season ago when we participated in a shootout for a German MTB web mag. Over the better part of three days we rode a wide variety of trail rigs, consisting of both 27.5″ and 29″ wheeled rigs. We came away impressed with the straight line speed of the 29ers in the test, but we […]
BMC TeamElite 29″ Hardtail Featuring Micro Travel Technology
When Bermstyle Fashonista Inga Beck was looking for a light weight cross country race whip, the 29″ wheeled BMC Teamelite was on a short list of contenders. Like the others on our list, it features 429mm chain stays. (For us Americans 429mm translates to under 16.89″) In our book, anything sub 17″ qualifies as “short”, especially when 29ers with […]
Bike Check: Fred Cuthbert’s Wolfhound Chubby
I’m the first to admit I haven’t really been following the fat bike trends all that closely. Our local conditions don’t call for it, but there are clearly a lot of folks stoked on rigid bikes with huge tires. If we had snow covering our trails for a good part of the year, perhaps my POV on […]
Specialized Unveils Enduro 29er
I must not have been paying attention, because when we ran into the Specialized Wrecking crew at the Demonstration Forest trails near Santa Cruz a few weeks ago and saw they were all astride 29″ versions of the Enduro, I didn’t think much of it. Bad, bad, bike blogger. I’m so totally fired, and going […]
Wolfhound Retrosled 29″ Mountain Cruiser
It has been some time since I’ve spent time on a hardtail. A few buddies and myself put in a number of rides last winter on the NW Oregon coast rolling fully rigid single speeds, and it was a pretty good time. Sandy trails with short climbs and zero bike maintenance equals lots of fun […]