Dreaming of an aggressive 29er for the North Shore and PNW

Okay, this is another one of the million 'what bike should I get' threads. Honestly this is probably not going to happen for another year or two unless something goes significantly wrong with my existing bike, but it's fun to dream, discuss, investigate and demo.

Some bikes in the shortlist:
- Yeti SB5.5c
- YT Jeffsy (maybe over forked to 150 or 160 mm)
- Evil Wreckoning
- Spec Enduro

Ideally I would probably like to build one up from frame only if this option is available because I enjoy fiddling and picking the components I want.

I'm a heavy guy who likes to plow through / over stuff (I love to fly down Ned's on Seymour at full throttle) but don't want to sacrifice too much playfulness or the ability to ride slower / tighter North Shore tech like Ladies Only or Upper Oil Can on Fromme as well.

Anyone have any of these bikes or other suggestions? Opinions? Speculation?
Which ones of these come through North Vancouver on demo once in a while? I hear YT now has a distribution warehouse in Squamish; I wonder if they ever do demos? Who (if anyone) sells Yeti locally?

yes for YT demo,s and no to YT framesets already looked into them .

Trek Slash

My SWorks E29 is a riot on the shore. I pedal it up and on the way down it'll do anything I ask it, except stuff where you really need a DH rig.

I bet that any of the slack long travel bikes work well on the Shore.

I'm a heavy guy who likes to plow through / over stuff

Oh, you need a 27.5 + bike, man.

:)

Pivot Switchblade…. best of both worlds.

Trek Slash

This. The Slash appears to be pricey on paper but convert a SB5.5 or Wreck w/11-6 or any other shock you might want to run and the sticker shock (pun somewhat intended, is lessened.) Less than exciting times to be a CDN MTN stunt cyclist.

Add a futuristic Norco Range 29 as well.

Oh, you need a 27.5 + bike, man :)

I know many people who have them seem to swear by them, but I can pinch flat anything so I think I would have to own stock in the tire company before owning a plus bike. Low air pressure plus a wide rim seems like the perfect recipe for pinch flats not to mention the extra rolling resistance on smoother climbs like Fromme or Old Buck. That said, I'm only going by what I have read, but until I see Plus bikes winning Enduro races it's hard to take them seriously. I'm sure they have their application but I don't see one in my future at this point.

How about a Banshee Prime? I ride mine everywhere I used to ride my Trek Session on the Shore. Cypress, Fromme, Seymour handles it all. I'm running a 140mm Pike but you could go 150. Adjustable dropouts w 3 positions. I even ran 27.5+ on it as an experiment. It was different. I don't think better or worse, just different characteristics. Super Solid.

Canfield Riot

I'll definitely have to see if I can demo a Slash in the next year. I'm a little concerned about how the new single pivot arrangement affects pedaling performance though and the proprietary knock block headset arrangement is a little annoying. Other than these two questions / annoyances it seems pretty much a perfect spec.

Does anyone have a Yeti SB5.5c? Other than the price, this is probably at the top of my list due to the absolutely glowing reviews I've read about its balance of up and downhill performance. My three reservations are: Price, durability of the switch infinity link for North Shore winter riding, and if the rear 140mm of travel is progressive enough to keep me from bottoming out too often due to my 'bull in a china shop' riding style - or lack of style:(

Banshee also have a great rep for durability but 135 mm rear travel on the Prime seems just a little too short to me and they are a little on the heavy side. Ideally I'd like to keep my build around the 30ish lbs my current bike is.

My SWorks E29 is a riot on the shore. I pedal it up and on the way down it'll do anything I ask it, except stuff where you really need a DH rig.

I bet that any of the slack long travel bikes work well on the Shore.

+1 for E29… I love how it is everything from an XC bike to basically a DH bike.

As already said, Banshee should be on your list.

I'm betting with the good help of the board here you could zero in on the perfect frame, but finding 29er wheels that will meet the light weight/heavy plow requirement might be tricky…?