ndthornton – you should have said “viva la 29er revolution” 😉

Having driven both,the Maserati guy by far,it’s about cubes mannnn…

sticking to the road limits I hope?

no law against acceleration TurnerGuy. Or shoudl there be a legal limit of no more than N m/s acceleration to level the playing field?

But it is not a level playing field is it if some people get a ‘free’ extra 2mph – can the guy who wins on the 29er really be happy that he is the worthy winner against the guy who was on the 26er?

Shock horror, if my mate beats me with his new-fangled 10 speed chainset then that’s just not fair

My 29er is faster over some trail sections I ride, whilst my 26er is faster over others. Mountain biking I hope never becomes a ‘level-playing field’, what’s the fun in that. Are we to all ride identical bikes to our mates and check our tyre pressures are the same before each ride just to ensure the fastest guy having the most fun is really the true-fastest and happiest rider?? 😉

Psssst… sometimes I even take out my rigid steel hardtail when I want the trails to be especially challenging 😀

The drawback though is that, as these bikes make things easier, smoothing things out with their bigger wheels, you have less interesting and difficult terrain in a particular area.

A trail that might have been seen as black and somewhat edgy on your hardtail might be an easy red on your 29er FS.

If you mtb for some degree of adrenaline rush, or the mental challenge of forcing you to face some difficulty, then I am not sure I see the point of moving to these bikes, they are skills compensators, you might as well just ride easier routes on your hardtail.

You could alternatively argue that you will be able to ride stuff that you couldn’t previously so you will get the same mental challenge or adrenaline rush but you will be riding the same stuff faster to get it or be riding stuff you couldn’t previously ride both of which are positives in my book . Most of us prefer riding the bike to pushing it so if you have a bike that means you can ride a climb that you previously had to push up then how can that be a bad thing ?

bit like the 2 snow boarders one is capable and does a 30 foot cliff drop, the other a novice and does a 1 foot drop, who has the biggest rush?
so riding the same trails on a 29 er v a 26 at different speeds may provide the same rush ? who knows

so riding the same trails on a 29 er v a 26 at different speeds may provide the same rush ? who knows

It does,as it does with h/tails or rigids.The point at which you are just about hanging on & keeping it all together arrives on all types of bike but may be at different speeds. The rush or plain old grin factor is still the same though….HUGE !

It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that bigger wheels are faster. Of course they are. The bike manufacturers are interested in pushing the boundries and don’t make bikes for us recreational riders where a 10g weight saving or an extra 2mph of speed will make a jot of difference to our enjoyment of the sport. Just ride what you’ve got and have a laugh. And there is no way on earth a Maserati is more fun than a proper Mini Cooper S (not the bloated, overweight, oversized BMW Mini Cooper S) – if you’re talking about driving that is. It’s like comparing driving a Kart vs. an articulated lorry.

29 or 26. I’m 42 years old not getting any more skillful and frankly you could stick me on a full carbon 10k uber bike with whatever wheels woudn’t change the fact that I can’t do a decent manual.
Also I’m heavy so 26 is prolly stronger. In the words of Chuck D don’t believe the hype.

the massive push of new wheel sizes comes down to one very simple fact, that is that it is much harder to sell a person something they already have.
forks have gotten about as good as they can get.
better rear shocks have made rear suspension work well no matter what design it is.
brakes can send you into orbit with 1 fingers worth of pressure etc.

the big boys needed a new selling point so they started the whole 29er thing, a good few million $ later it caught on. suddenly everyone (americans) is selling their perfectly good 26″ bikes and buying 29ers and the marketing men are overjoyed. move on a few years and the same marketing, sorry R&D department decide they need a new angle and suddenly 650b is the third coming, suddenly craigs list is awash with the old hat 29ers and any american seen on a trail not riding a 650b is scoffed at by his peers.

at the end of the day the fittest rider will be the fasted to the top of the mountain regardless of wheel size.
and the most skilled rider will be the fastest to the bottom regardless of wheel size.

[/quote]29 or 26. I’m 42 years old not getting any more skillful and frankly you could stick me on a full carbon 10k uber bike with whatever wheels woudn’t change the fact that I can’t do a decent manual.
Also I’m heavy so 26 is prolly stronger. In the words of Chuck D don’t believe the hype.

Don’t believe the hype , just ride one with an open mind and make your own mind up .

sticking to the road limits I hope?

You’re thwarting your own argument, there isn’t a speed limit on the trails, so the faster bike is better?

nope the faster rider is better always will be.

at the end of the day the fittest rider will be the fasted to the top of the mountain regardless of wheel size.
and the most skilled rider will be the fastest to the bottom regardless of wheel size

This x 26

I don’t want to go any faster. It hurts enough as it is when I have an off….

Seriously though, how extreme are some of the trails going to be soon? And is that too much for 99% of the non-awesome riders (I appreciate 100% of riders on STW are awesome.. 😛 ). Or will there be 29er only black trails?

You’re thwarting your own argument,

no I am not.

if you have a mini cooper then there are a vast number of roads you can drive road within the speed limit and have fun.

if you have a supercar then there are a lot fewer roads you can have the as much fun on.

same goes with a bike.

if I go out on my cross bike then there are a vast number of trails that I can have fun on, for example flat trails through the local woods on a crosser can be as much fun and as edgy as some singletrack up on the hill on the HT.

If I then go out on, say a 5-spot, the local woods are a waste of time as they are too flat and so I need to go to some gnarlier singletrack on the hills to have as much ‘edgy’ fun as I got on the crosser in the woods across the road from my house.

Do you guys seriously think 29″ wheels make trails that much easier??

Some sections of the trail are faster and more stable on my 29er, but some others are more suited to my 26er. Neither make the trail easier or less fun, just different.

nope the faster rider is better, always will be.

I agree, whatever wheel size they’re on.

Seriously though, how extreme are some of the trails going to be soon?

Exteme natural trails have always existed if you’ve chosen to ride them. The terrain of the British Isles hasn’t changed.

Trail centres seem to be getting smoother if you ask me with more asphalt surfacing etc.

case in point:

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/cyclocross-what-is-it-good-for

Seriously though, how extreme are some of the trails going to be soon?

there is a point here in that some steep sections which were fine on a HT or short-travel FS get chewed up into wide and very loose slopes by people flying down them on big-travel, big tyred bikes, as any slower and they wouldn’t be having any fun on such a big bike.

Fair enough, but it also does a lot more damage to the trail than might have been done otherwise, and that might be why:

Trail centres seem to be getting smoother if you ask me with more asphalt surfacing etc.

as they have had to protect themselves against people doing ever more damage on the big bikes.

I haven’t ridden a 29″ bike, which is better for wheelies?

there is a point here in that some steep sections which were fine on a HT or short-travel FS get chewed up into wide and very loose slopes by people flying down them on big-travel, big tyred bikes, as any slower and they wouldn’t be having any fun on such a big bike

I know you’re trolling, but it is braking that tears up trails, not travel or tyres. If you don’t need to brake on a big bike, you’ll be doing less damage than dragging the brakes on an XC bike.

I rode a bunch on wetter than I was expecting DH trails on Sunday on my XC 29er that I’d normally ride on my patriot, and I bet I did more damage on the XC bike as I was out of my depth in parts that I’d have been completely in control in on my big(ger) bike.

I haven’t ridden a 29″ bike, which is better for wheelies?

I think as always it depends on which 29er and which 26er you’re comparing.

I’m rubbish at wheelies, but in my experience it’s slightly easier to initiate a wheelie or a manual on a 26er, but not impossible with the right technique on a 29er.

I had a chopper and it was rubbish for wheelies….. what does that tell you??

Frankers – Member
I had a chopper and it was rubbish for wheelies….. what does that tell you??

Your chopper is not working right

I know you’re trolling, but it is braking that tears up trails, not travel or tyres

yes, but the slopes I am thinking of are ripped up by big tyres braking as they corner at speed, not the type of braking mark that an XC bike would cause on such a slope.

yes, but the slopes I am thinking of are ripped up by big tyres braking as they corner at speed, not the type of braking mark that an XC bike would cause on such a slope.

….why is this different to you using your Turner as opposed to others using a hardtail?

Actually, 29ers will help smooth out the braking ruts caused by 26ers, as they won’t drop into the troughs and will work to erode the peaks and smooth them out. So all will benefit.

Here’s my question. And I think this is the place to ask it.
The best and most welcome innovation in MTBing since suspension in my opinion (and that’s what counts) is UST tyres.
I haven’t seen any UST 29er tyres.. Am I right in thinking punctures are not a problem with the bigger wheels 😕 , or has UST just been ignored for these new style bicycles?

Fair point, I think the likes of specialized 2bliss, schwalbe TLR and Bonty TLR kinda do away with the need for the UST tyres of old

….why is this different to you using your Turner as opposed to others using a hardtail?

‘cos my turner is a flux and runs the same forks and tyres as my HT, and so the only real difference is the 4inch of rear suspension verses the 2inch of seatpost suspension and steel chainstays on the HT.

And the flux is lighter.

do away with the need for the UST tyres of old

Except they’re not as good..

yes, but the slopes I am thinking of are ripped up by big tyres braking as they corner at speed, not the type of braking mark that an XC bike would cause on such a slope.

I run very big tyres on my rigid hardtail. I wouldn’t even think of braking during a fast corner though.

As brakes get more powerful, you enter faster and brake harder later, into the corner.