Yeti ASR 5 Interbike Test Ride
The Yeti ASR 5 is brand new this year (not even on the Yeti website yet) and marks a bit of a departure from the 575 and ASR 7 models. The ASR 5 is still hand-built by Yeti in Colorado and boasts spectacular craftsmanship – just look at those welds and signature tube shapes!
The rear axle on the ASR 5 is both quick release and 10mm through axle compatible. A 10mm through axle offers a little extra stiffness over a 12mm axle PLUS it’s much easier to line up when you’re mounting the rear wheel. Good call.
During my test ride I had a hard time getting the rear shock dialed in for climbing and the large sized bike felt a little too short for my 6’3” height. But once I got to the top of the hill, the ASR 5 felt like a nimble, aggressive downhill bike and the 5” of travel felt more like seven. Riding the dips in Bootleg Canyon was like riding a wave which makes the shape of the top tube all the more appropriate.
Yeti has a full line of cool bikes for 2010 and we’ll be sure to bring you more info from the show later this week.
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September 22nd, 2009 at 7:31 am
does this replace the 575, it looks like it a lot. More Yeti more Yeti
September 22nd, 2009 at 9:39 am
Three questions:
1. Can a 2.4 rear tire fit without rubbing on the frame ?
2. Is the headtube a flared 1 1/8 to 1 1/2 headtube ?
3. Is the geometry the same as the current Yeti 575 ?
September 22nd, 2009 at 2:40 pm
Just one question…..Trek, how can a 10mm through axle be more stiff than a 12mm through axle as you quoted above? I run a 12mm through axle on both of my FR and DH specific sleds and it is a much stiffer feeling than my other FR bike with a 10mm through axle. Anyways, I was just curious. Nice write up brother!
Yeti’s are by far very fine bikes, but I have never been able to understand their lack of longterm warranty on their frames. Five years frame warranty is not much for a high dollar bike in my book. Trek, Specialized, Fisher, Giant, among a few others offer a lifetime warranty on their frames.
September 22nd, 2009 at 11:18 pm
The ASR 5 features completely different rear leverage ratios and is really meant for heavier riders than say the 575. The ASR 5 gets 5 inches of rear travel while the 575 gets 5.75 inches (guess how many inches the ASR 7 gets
)
Element22 says you probably can’t run a 2.4 rear tire on the frame (the test bikes were set up with 2.25 tires). Element also says the headtube is indeed flared from 1 1/8 to 1 1/2″.
The stiffness thing is confusing to me too ChiliPepper. I honestly didn’t get it myself but the rep I spoke to made it sound like a big deal. We’ll have to try to find out more once the official spec sheet comes out…