Short travel 29'ers

I wouldn't hesitate to try an Evil. I have the original Insurgent and to this day, every time I ride it I fall in love with the ride again. It is probably my all time favorite bike. The suspension is amazing, the cornering phenomenal and the look is super cool.

The other one I'd look at is a Knolly. The fugitive could handle a lot, my only caveat for a short travel bike is that it is still burly enough to handle a black on the shore.

Posted by: Vikb

Posted by: DanL

Vik - if you had to do it all over again, would you go straight for the Trail Pistol (and maybe over fork at some point )? Or get the Smash and then hanker for the N+1 ?

I'd have to ride a TP for a while to be sure of my answer. If I could only have one bike I think I'd get the Smash and build it lighter duty than my current burly dual coil machine. Since I have a nice metal Smash buying the carbon version of the Smash with a lighter build seems redundant. I plan to keep the metal Smash for years. So the TP seems like a great counter point. If I built a TP I would build it 140mm/120mm no matter what. If it was my only bike it would get a heavier duty build so end up more like a Smash-lite. If I am adding the TP to a Smash I can go lighter duty on the TP build since I have a bigger bike to jump on when I need it.

Sorry for the less than simple answer. 

I won't be getting a TP this year since I am building a Cotic hardtail, but perhaps next year if my finances allow.

After spending time on my 29er. I regret not taking the TP more seriously. I had a serious look at it when it debut. I ended up with a Kona Process 167. After 2 seasons on the 167 .I switched to a 29" 120mm bike . Withing a few rides I was wishing I had this bike the last 2 seasons. GG have a nice product . I think a lightweight coil sprung TP would be a killer.

Posted by: DemonMike

After spending time on my 29er. I regret not taking the TP more seriously. I had a serious look at it when it debut. I ended up with a Kona Process 167. After 2 seasons on the 167 .I switched to a 29" 120mm bike . Withing a few rides I was wishing I had this bike the last 2 seasons. GG have a nice product . I think a lightweight coil sprung TP would be a killer.

Thanks for the perspective. I think it would be really interesting to see how DH capable short travel 29er would do for my riding. I've started riding an aggressive hardtail a lot and if I can ride most trails with zero travel it seems like 120mm should be pretty good even on the more challenging lines. Obviously with some finesse and not at race pace. But, being 50+ now my sense of self-preservation is getting stronger and challenging myself at slower speeds on tech with less capable equipment seems smarter than using a very long-travel bike at the highest speeds I can manage. Fall off at slow speeds hurts a lot less than Mach Chicken. ;-)

Enjoy the new bike. Hopefully I can try a short travel 29er out next year. :-)

Posted by: Vik my sense of self-preservation is getting stronger and challenging myself at slower speeds on tech with less capable equipment seems smarter than using a very long-travel bike at the highest speeds I can manage. Fall off at slow speeds hurts a lot less than Mach Chicken. ;-)

This is a thing for me too. Extra capable bikes are a great skills crutch (for me) but they up the danger of a hospital visit when the crash comes around...

Posted by: velocipedestrian

Posted by: Vik my sense of self-preservation is getting stronger and challenging myself at slower speeds on tech with less capable equipment seems smarter than using a very long-travel bike at the highest speeds I can manage...

This is a thing for me too. Extra capable bikes are a great skills crutch (for me) but they up the danger of a hospital visit when the crash comes around...

Funny, riding partner and I were just having this same conversation too. He was ribbing me because I haven't been trying to drop him on every descent per my usual juvenile habit since getting my new shorter travel 29.

At 80% the short travel feels near as capable as the longer travel bike, but in that last 20% things change dramatically. I'm able to outride what the shorter travel bike is capable of at that point- you can feel it's limits approaching with frame and fork flex and bottom outs.

My long travel enduro bike however was probably more capable than I was, I don't think I ever reached it's absolute limit no matter how pinned or sketchy the ride.

But do you really need that? You eat shit at 90%+ and you might be headed for the ER. Chasing Strava leader boards and such requires all out riding on a race bike...and puts you in mortal danger. Those speeds can put other trail users in danger too. A limiter is a good thing is my new thinking.

Bonus is that the shorter travel bike climbs with alacrity that the big bike can't match, and makes every trail fun to pump and jib.

I guess it depends on what you ride. I run out of bike one several trails I ride. That can be worse for crashes IMO. I only have one bike so. My next bike will be a bigger travel 29er.

Posted by: JBV

Posted by: DemonMike

I guess it depends on what you ride. I run out of bike one several trails I ride. That can be worse for crashes IMO. I only have one bike so. My next bike will be a bigger travel 29er.

i've loved short travel 29ers for all the reasons stated. frankly, they are probably, the most fun of all mtb's, most the time. i still miss my original Smuggler and may get one again some day down the road.

but.... like a number of guys on this forum (compared to others, this one seems to be more 'mature' for some reason) i've crossed the Rubicon known as 50 and i'm facing some realities. in every sport i'm on a long term decline. i can improve for sure, i can train for strength, etc, but the fitness limits, the fast twitch response and max output efforts are what they are. there's no denying it.

so my response to that was to get away from this concept of being 'over biked' and just get the dam machine that's going to offer me the most support, the most 'got your back' factor for hard riding. i ride the same trails as ever (well, new ones are springing up all the time here) but the new bike is simply easier and more fun on all the harder trails, where i'm still trying to push speeds and take the impacts and look for jumps.

i can still feel the trail, no root and rock goes unnoticed, but there is more comfort and control and i while i still feel totally exhausted at the end of a ride, i don't feel as beat up. my joints and back are much happier over all.

i've gone from 2 bikes down to 1 and presently, i'm happy for the decision. i'm hoping for a long ownership horizon on this bike and i'll reevaluate in 5 years or so. there are any number of bikes in this category, mine is a coil sprung Slayer 29 and i couldn't be more stoked with the choice.

I switched to a smaller travel bike.After being sidelined with shattered ribs/punctured lung. And a torn up shoulder and back. Both accidents sidelined me for over a year combined. The smaller travel bike was supposed to slow me down Hahaha . That didn't really work, as all my big bike PR,s got destroyed. Many without trying to .

As you mentioned the smaller bikes are very fun. And Hell YAY I agree by far my funnest bike to date. I,m 52 next month so I fit the Mature category as well . Most of the guys I ride with are similar age . With several in the 30,s and 40,s. They all ride bigger travel bikes. 120MM gets short on travel real fast on some of the rides.

The coil-sprung Slayer 29 sounds like a fun bike. Carbon or Aluminum?

https://www.pinkbike.com/news/first-ride-2021-commencal-meta-tr-is-mini-enduro-a-thing.html

Just seen this , looks like a solid 1 bike ride.

My G16 29 (61°HTA) is a better climber than my Surface 29(66°HTA) My lardass the difference in tyres and overall bike weight don’t lend to it

Knolly Fugitive really excites me.

Posted by: Heinous

Knolly Fugitive really excites me.

Second that.

I was super close to a new Fugitive LT with one of the new X2's right as Covid hit. It's hurt me pretty badly on the work front so I'm just waiting patiently. I really rate the design and build.

those new epics look mint

https://www.pinkbike.com/news/first-look-2021-specialized-epic-and-epic-evo.html

GG's got a new SL version of the Trail Pistol for those on the weight weenie side of the fence. 

https://www.pinkbike.com/news/guerrilla-gravity-launched-limited-edition-trail-pistol-race-sl.html

I'm busy with a hardtail project at the moment, but I'll be interested to see what they do for 2021 when a short travel 29er could be in the cards. :-)

Posted by: Vikb

GG's got a new SL version of the Trail Pistol for those on the weight weenie side of the fence. 

https://www.pinkbike.com/news/guerrilla-gravity-launched-limited-edition-trail-pistol-race-sl.html

I'm busy with a hardtail project at the moment, but I'll be interested to see what they do for 2021 when a short travel 29er could be in the cards. :-)

26lbs!!! Too light for my style of riding. I think my bike is around 33/34lbs . All aluminum , coil shock , DH tires, Fox36. Be a great bike for those long climbing rides. Sadly I don,t do those right now. Maybe in the future.