I was also wondering this especially as they have been proven to be faster.
Not as good in the corners? I've only ridden one for a short section of trail so what do I know.
EWS bike choices
Catering to what the market/buyer, the media and the industry want? Or simply trying to earn more money?
I have no idea, really.
There are more 27.5 bikes out there but the big teams (with a decent option) all seem to have at least one rider on a 29er..
Trek, Yeti, Cube, SC. Not sure on Specialized since the 27.5 came out but Curtis Keene used to always run the 29er. No Cannondale or devinci as they don't have a bike for them. Chainreaction all seem to run the smaller wheels even though they have an option.
Tracey Mosely, Greg Callaghan and the dude that won the Andes race have all won on them too.(BMC I think?). Greg and Tracey have won multiple times.
I heard one team say they don't like to make major changes too close to the season. If they've been training on 27.5 during the off season they won't switch to a 29 after the season starts because they are already used to the 27.5 tire. Anyone else heard this? Hmmm I think it was the Syndicate talking about switching from 26 to 27.5 but I can remember for sure.
Having had a Trek Slash for a year, the biggest penalty with the big wheels is the extra rotational mass further away from the axle. That combined with the dh casing tires needed, getting stopped up and having to accelerate can be quite painful.
Definitely a lot of advantages to the big wheels though.
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