The 'one bike' debate.

Perfect world:

Roadie/CX bike
26er steel hardtail
160mm trail/am/enduro bike
DH/Shuttle/Park sled.

FYP

Once the bike park and Cypress shuttles no longer interest me I will likely become a one-bike guy. For now the big bike just makes that riding so much better that I stopped debating the need for it. I'm happier when I can do that kind of riding the way I want to do it. As an unusually sized person renting a DH bike when I need it just isn't a realistic option.

That being said I do 85% of my riding on my Enduro. Overall I prefer a good climb up (preferably technical) with a great semi-gnar descent. Outside of some laps on Cypress I prefer riding the shore on my Enduro. With the new generation of 6" bikes I don't see the need for a 7" heavy pedalling FR bike anymore. The new bikes descend nearly as well and are more fun and better at everything else IMO.

If I had to have one it would be an Enduro-type bike with a second set of wheels.

Perfect world:

Roadie/gravel adventure bike
29'er steel hardtail
160mm trail/am/enduro bike
DH/Shuttle/Park sled.

This guy understands bicycle riding

Chromag Surface+Norco Range=50% of the way there. Probably will never get a DH though, but rather a moto based on geographic location. I can see a carbon road bike being a high priority for my pale complexion in the near future.

Although with a proper gear spread my Surface could most likely do the gravel adventure business, or I could borrow a Seek of either of the Parental Units.

IMHO, if someone had next to zero interest in mechanical assisted gravity riding, the Norco Sight 650B would be as close to the one bike quiver as I think someone could get

if they can build 32lb carbon dh rigs. why can't we have one bike to do it all. 2 shocks, 2 wheelsets. the am bike should be under 30 with the am wheels/shock. 170 cranks with these new low pro pedals are pretty much 175 with old pedals. 34t chainring. xx cassette/am wheels and dh cassette/dh wheels. 5 minutes to change wheels and rear shock

if they can build 32lb carbon dh rigs. why can't we have one bike to do it all. 2 shocks, 2 wheelsets. the am bike should be under 30 with the am wheels/shock. 170 cranks with these new low pro pedals are pretty much 175 with old pedals. 34t chainring. xx cassette/am wheels and dh cassette/dh wheels. 5 minutes to change wheels and rear shock

For me, once you have to change out so much stuff you gotta wonder: why not have a second bike?

It takes me a while to get my bikes dialled and I like to leave them alone once I get them perfectly set. Having a big bike and a small bike beautifully dialled for their respective purposes is really nice. You just get up and go. Plus my apartment isn't well set up for doing any kind of repair work.

I have 2 sets for my lil bike. different cassettes already installed as well as rotors. super quick to change. I think about it more and more because I do have limited space. I guess a bit longer change if your changing dropouts if you have 650b am wheels and 26 dh wheels. I know what you mean though. hard to tell how many bikes i'd have if I won the loto. fingers crossed

Anyone ride shore (including technical climbing to some extent) AND Whistler on one bike and love it for all? What bike is it?

Yup, my typical shore loop is pedally lower Seymour stuff and as much technical singletrack as I can string together to get to the gnarly-ish trails to come down. My Yeti SB66C is pretty ideal for it, as most of the higher end Carbon AM bike out there would be…

It's fine for a couple of Whistler days a year with some DH tires on, but if I was as into the park as I used to be - I'd want a proper DH bike. For what I ride 99% of the time, and because I like to do pedaly and gnarly stuff in one loop, the 1 bike is ideal.

There's no one perfect bike, but there are a few that come close.

I think the secret is to build in adjustability. An adjustable travel fork up front, a lockable rear shock, and an adjustable travel seat-post will create all sorts of options for you.

I've got a 6" travel frame with a reverb and Talas 180 up front and the adjustability lets me ride it on everything from XC loops to racing the Enduro from the Whistler Peak chair (probably going faster than I've ever gone on my DH bike).

My Enduro is a "one" bike, but it is a compromise. It's too long/slack/low for XC type riding and it just doesn't have enough travel for the bike park. That said, coupled with my HT and I am totally happy with it.

i agree with the running sentiment on here that one bike will not do it all and you'll either have compromises more on the xc end or more on the dh end with the one bike philosophy. i think for most people the choice on running only one bike comes down to lack of storage space or finances or maybe both. the finance question can be dealt with a lot easier than space, but even there creative options can be found.

i think the best way to answer the question really boils down to what type of riding do you do the most. figure that out and then make that your best bike. ie if you split riding into xc/am/dh and the split is 15/50/35 then get a lighter am bike that can handle some xc and have a cheaper dh bike for shuttles and park riding. i think having two bikes with one being a nicer rig geared towards the majority of the riding you do and a second bike to pick up the slack for your second fav type of riding is the way to go.

If you're not riding lift served or x/c racing there's no reason you couldn't do everthing else with just one bike.
Especially if you're willing to swap rubber terrain specific.

Lots of good healthy debate in here.

Trust me when I say I've combed over every possible quiver option there is. I think about bikes an unusually large amount, even around these parts. Ask Morgan if you don't believe me, he's heard this debate in my mind a thousand times.

If money and space weren't factors but I still wanted to have as multi-use and practical of a quiver as possible I'd say my dream quiver would be:

- Touring / CX road bike
- Steel hardtail, surely Chromag built by Chris. DJ and XC-able.
- 6" trail/AM shore-dialed bike for all up-and-down shredding
- 8" balls-to-the-wall DH bike built to be light enough to flick.

Which lines up virtually exactly with shirk's post.

However I'm hopelessly trying to maximize efficiency, both monetarily and spatially. I am pretty certain at least 90% of my riding would suit a Rune or similar burly-AM build, and the remaining 10% would probably not be terrible. Of course I would suffer on a 3 hour XC epic versus a dainty trail/XC bike, and for sure I will feel the compromise when I smash through braking bumps coming into a big berm on Freight Train (and I'll feel a little more tentative about how much speed I should carry off the lip). My debate is whether these fleeting compromises outweigh the added burden of another bike - one which will depreciate in value at more or less the same speed whether I ride it or not and which inflicts scratches on my trail bike every time I try to squeeze it out of the cozy nook my bikes have available to live in.

Thanks for all the points of view, even though they serve to hammer home the fact that it's not an easy decision more than anything they are also valuable pro's and con's to add to the list.

I believe in a modified "one bike" theory.

I can only ride one bike at a time, so whatever bike I'm riding at that time is the "one bike"

Right now I have a road bike, DJ/4X/pumptrack hardtail, and a DH rig. When money allows I will add a fourth - AM/burly XC rig….just need to decide which tire size to pin my hopes and dreams on.

My Mojo HD could be considered a 'one-bike' for some. But as some other said it is still a compromise. It's a convertible frame with a two shock option., so my XC build is 25.5lbs with reverb, carbon wheels, revelation WC, pedals, and decently light tires. My heavy duty build is Havoc wheels, RC4, Fox 36, and sticky heavy tires. Both setups are 1x10. I've ridden the park in the 30 plus lb build. It tires me by the end of the day…it is a lot of work. Maybe if I fit a totem on it or something it would take the edge off. I feel the compromise for the DH still is the lack of travel and geometry(not stiffness-it's very stiff), and for XC, the frame could be a bit lighter I suppose, and could use a bottle cage. However, in short mode it pedals firm and stays high, very XC ish. It's actually the mode I ride most of the time.