So I did some test rides and discovered a few things. One, I am not really in the market for an enduro bike. I will be riding almost exclusivey XC, but I want something that will be fun on the way down. Two, I found that I really liked the feel of a 29er. Huh. So my list has been adjusted to say the least. I was able to test ride the Stumpy 29 and Tallboy on some very tame trails and I was able to take the Niner Jet 9, Yeti SB95 and Kona Satori around the block near a different shop. I really liked the slacker geometry of the Yeti and Kona but it wasn’t a trail test ride. Plus, the Yeti is out of my price range 😢 I found the Tallboy (at 100mm) to be a tad more enjoyable than the Stumpy. I’d really like to compare them to their slacker brethren (Tallboy can be adjusted to 120, Tallboy LT and the Stumpy EVO). I’d like to try out a Transition Bandit 29 at some point too. Is there anything else that you’d add to my list?
New list:
Stumpy Comp EVO 29
Tallboy (LT?)
Kona Satori – Any experience?? I really liked the geometry and it seemed to be spec’d well.