New MTB

[Kent]

I think there's a direct correlation b/w carving and MTB. Fin, Dr. Tom, Jim J....and Seven's magician. My gosh, rather than post in an MTB forum...I'll just post here.

My MTB is a POS. Sure, it was able to wrestle up a few top spots this year, but its still a POS. 1999 GF X-caliber...totally stock with SI SLR and Shimano 540s. Opps, can't forget the BMX bar-end plugs to protect the handlebars from all my over-the-bar biffs.

So..it's time for something new. Pretty much narrowed it down to (3) TOTALLY different machines.....

I basically do technical singletrack, MTB races and will also do Chequemegon Fat Tire 40 miler. I need a 3 trick pony.

Comments?

[Phil]

Those three choices seem like a no brainer. I would go with the Santa Cruz.

If you like the 29er, have you considered the Sugar 292?

[big mario]

but it broke. :( There was a batch of larges with bad mitres, and I had one of them. Santa Cruz was great on the warranty. I got a heckler instead, which I felt was better suited to my 5-10 1/4 230# frame. The pivots on the blur, and there are a lot of them, where starting to make a lot of noise and were driving me nuts. The travel did feel bottomless, and I do miss that bike.

mario

[AaronG]

I love my 29er, after riding 26" for all these years I finally stepped up and plopped my $$$ down on a Super Caliber 29er, I can honestly say that this is one of the most awesome rides out there.

It is night and day difference between my old mtn bike in all aspects of riding. The only thing I noticed is it is a bit slow on steering response in tight singletrack compared to my Salsa Ala Carte.

Handling is great, acceleration is awesome and once you get those 29ers up to speed it is just cool to watch your buddies disappear behind you. I would think the 29er would be a good choice for technical s-track, with roots, drops, rocks, etc.. the big wheels roll over a lot of stuff. I will definitely use this bike in the local race scene.

Good luck, let me know what you end up with

[trailertrash]

want to chime in on your new blur?

[Derf]

I'm a bit conservative bikewise, so in the choices you gave, I voted for the Fisher Ziggurat. When you said brake/wheel upgrades, you surely meant discs? Mechanical or hydraulic? I don't know much about 29ers, I would expect them to be faster in races, but I don't know how nimble they can be when it gets technical. I never tried FS bikes, but I know they are heavier and more weight = slower in XC. I read somewhere that pros prefer hardtail for racing but their sponsors sometimes make them ride FS for publicity reasons (to sell more expensive FS bikes). In addition, I don't know much about Santa Cruz and the geometry of the Blur. I know they are renowned for DH bikes. If I went FS (and had the budget), I would like a Rocky Mountain ETSX (or an Element for a lower budget). I do like a lot Rocky Mountain bikes since I ride one (an old 1994 Équipe with a steel frame - nothing like the feel of a good steel frame).

[Phil]

I never tried FS bikes, but I know they are heavier and more weight = slower in XC. I read somewhere that pros prefer hardtail for racing but their sponsors sometimes make them ride FS for publicity reasons (to sell more expensive FS bikes).

In the real world, people ride mtb trails where FS can be a lot faster. Most pro XC race courses might as well be road races. In that case hardtails are faster. If your trails have any gnar on them, FS will be faster. Today's FS bikes really are not that much heavier either. Years ago it was a different story - FS was heavy and did not pedal as well.

Find a good solid gnarly loop to test this theory. Take your fastest hardtail and time yourself on the loop. Then borrow someone's blur and do the same. Ride it like FS, not like a hardtail. Stay seated more and take inside lines whether they are gnarly or not. Most likely you will find that you have a faster time on the FS.

Where I live, I smoke people who are in a lot better shape than I am simply because I have an efficient FS bike and they are riding hardtails under the same assumption that Derf has(I did ride hartails for eight years before I converted).

If you lived where I do, there would be no reason to have a hardtail. So your choice comes down to the kind of trails that you have.

P.S. I also chose FS to save body parts that were being destroyed on a hardtail.

[Kent]

I replied to multiple people...so I just replied to my post instead.

Believe me (Derf), I REALLY was looking for a reason to buy another hardtail. Cheaper and less hassles. Especially in Minnesota. Our trails aren't do hairly. Actually, most guys enjoy showing up at races with steel rigid singlespeeds. Were kinda purist around here. My problem is I REALLY like the "bmx" handling of my POS X-cal. All currrenty "high end" hardtails are using 80mm forks, except the Zigguart..which is 100mm. It rides very sweet. Yes, I'd upgrade the wheels to CrossMax and Discs to Either Juicy7 or Hope Minis.

As for 29s. There is an excellent article in VeloNews a few months back. Basically, all the top NORBA guys are riding 29er for training and waiting for the rules, courses and weight to change. The only thing that is holding them back is bascially the stop/go technical portions of many races. Otherwise, there no denying they are faster. Wonder when the manufacturers of aftermarket parts will catch up?

I am considering a Rocky Mountain (Element), but the Blur simply rides better (to me). Also considered the Specialized Epic, but the Blur roasts that as well.

Big Mario.....was this a big enough problem where I should watch out for a vintage on ebay?

Thanks for all the responses.

Fin..what are you riding these days?

[ARCrider]

almost treated myself last year with a new blur. after much deliberation I decided to simply stick with my Kona heihei and foxfork. don't go to many races anymore and I couldn't justify spending $$$$ since I am still having fun with my hardtail. But I did have my choice narrowed down to the Blur. a test ride on a friend's bike had me convinced I needed a new bike until I managed to unconvince myself.

also had some friends visiting this summer who race a lot. they see the 29s as the way to go for podium results.

This year has me close to the purchase of a good road bike. I've been riding good mtbs for 20yrs but I've never yet had a good road bike.

[big mario]

The problem was with 02/03 larges. The seat tubes were cut on the wrong side of the butt. The santa cruz people were amazed that the bike lasted as long as it did( midway through a second season) and replaced the bike no questions asked. Imho if there are any of those frames out there, they would have broken already.

mario

[bschurman]

want to chime in on your new blur?

Yea, get the Blur. It's a no brainer. I does what it's advertised to do.

From the Santa Cruz web site:

"There have been rumors, whispered around the watercoolers of the workplace, spoken in hushed tones behind the bike shop on Friday nights. Tales of mediocre bike handlers suddenly progressing their skills and floating wheelies through rock gardens on their new bikes. Stories of average folk getting a Blur and cleaning gnarly technical climbs as if they’d had the genes of a Colombian spliced into their DNA. Rumors, maybe. But they have to start somewhere.

6069 aluminum tubing with 4.5 inches of rear wheel travel filtered through our superlative VPP linkage and a Progressive 5th Element air shock. Sealed cartridge bearing pivots. Frame weight at a scant 5.6 pounds, including shock. Butterfly light, but boasting more lateral and torsional rigidty than any of the pretenders out there. Climbs like a monkey, sprints like a fiend, downhills like an anvil. What is it? Extreme XC? The Ultimate Mountain Goat? Freeride-Lite? The Best Trailbike Ever? All of the above?

Blur. Where the boundaries between disciplines get a little fuzzy."

It's all true. Get a Blur and don't look back.

[Phil]

"There have been rumors, whispered around the watercoolers of the workplace, spoken in hushed tones behind the bike shop on Friday nights. Tales of mediocre bike handlers suddenly progressing their skills and floating wheelies through rock gardens on their new bikes. Stories of average folk getting a Blur and cleaning gnarly technical climbs as if they’d had the genes of a Colombian spliced into their DNA. Rumors, maybe. But they have to start somewhere.

6069 aluminum tubing with 4.5 inches of rear wheel travel filtered through our superlative VPP linkage and a Progressive 5th Element air shock. Sealed cartridge bearing pivots. Frame weight at a scant 5.6 pounds, including shock. Butterfly light, but boasting more lateral and torsional rigidty than any of the pretenders out there. Climbs like a monkey, sprints like a fiend, downhills like an anvil. What is it? Extreme XC? The Ultimate Mountain Goat? Freeride-Lite? The Best Trailbike Ever? All of the above?

Blur. Where the boundaries between disciplines get a little fuzzy."

Jeeesh. Now I want a Blur.

[Derf]

Phil, you're probably right.

I think I'm just an old school nostalgic about steel front suspension bikes. Finding a good steel mountain bike in a bike shop is as hard as finding an alpine board in a snowboard shop. They were popular once, but not anymore. Anyway, I don't like to go fast, I like to take my time to get around technical sections and I like the calm of nature versus the noise of the city. I do more city riding (as an ex bike messenger who likes to commute by bike) than mountain biking, but I prefer mountain biking.

[Mike Tokar]

The ad is funny, but it's not far from the truth.

I had the chance to use a demo Blur for about a month, and it was amazing. I felt like I could catch people at will, and I'm normally one of the slower pedallers in my group. I normally hate climbing, but on the Blur I was loving it. I love technical stuff and downhills, and it made them even more fun. It seems to just wants to jump over obstacles.

The only downside is that I had to give it back after I finished building my replacement Cannondale. (and I've been a loyal Cannondale guy for more than a decade)

If you can afford to get it, get it.

Enjoy!

[Phil]

Phil, you're probably right.

I think I'm just an old school nostalgic about steel front suspension bikes. Finding a good steel mountain bike in a bike shop is as hard as finding an alpine board in a snowboard shop. They were popular once, but not anymore. Anyway, I don't like to go fast, I like to take my time to get around technical sections and I like the calm of nature versus the noise of the city. I do more city riding (as an ex bike messenger who likes to commute by bike) than mountain biking, but I prefer mountain biking.

I hear you. I started on a steel rigid and when Rock Shox came out with the RS-1, I was all over it (I still have that fork hanging on a wall). I really enjoyed my steel hardtail as well. Once I got on FS ('95) I never looked back. Of course, we have different riding styles. I like to blast through stuff, and take the fast line regardless of what it looks like. Personally, I would rather take a ski lift and forget about XC bikes altogether, but that is not an option.

[Bubba]

Kent,

For the Cheq 40, I would go with the hardtail any day. Don't know if you've ever raced it, but it is like a 40 mile sprint. Smooth, fast and nothing too technical. We used Conti cross country 1.5's, almost like being on a road bike. Thats my 2$

Kenton

[Derf]

Pardon my ignorance, but are 29" wheels the same size as 700? I remember around 10 years ago, some companies tried to make mountain bikes with 700 size wheels, some pros even raced them, but it never got off. Is it the same thing?

[AaronG]

Derf, 29ers are the same size as 700c, they increased the cross section of the rims to accomodate the larger tires, I have a friend who has a 29er that changes his tires from knobs to Continental Gran Prix road tires so he can ride the Tuesday night Pukefest, which reminds me, I am out of here cuz I am late for the Pukefest.

[Neil Gendzwill]

I'm confused, a 700 mm rim should be about 27 & 9/16", how do you get the "29" in there?

[Derf]

I'm confused, a 700 mm rim should be about 27 & 9/16", how do you get the "29" in there?

I checked on my GF's hybrid bike, and 700mm is the external diameter of the wheel including the tire. So if you put bigger tires for mountain biking, the diameter will be around 29".

[trailertrash]

maybe this bike:

bike

looks like a good price anyway

[Neil Gendzwill]

I checked on my GF's hybrid bike, and 700mm is the external diameter of the wheel including the tire. So if you put bigger tires for mountain biking, the diameter will be around 29".

At first I thought this was too stupid to be right, but a little googling finds this and also this definition of a 29er. So that's why my 700C hybrid with the 38C tires has wheels that look so damn tall.