Dead simple question and one best suited to be answered on here I would imagine

How do you choose between bikes ?

For me its something that annoys me as I see one sat looking all shiny and clean but not getting used for weeks on end making me think sell sell sell ,but when I do get it out my mind set changes.. Am i just fickle

Weather and trails

Dry, Whyte T130
Wet, Parkwood
Wet and Windy, Zwift on the Isaac

You see both mine are very samey

Alpine five 29er .. big mile munching days out also Lakes days

Orange Five 26 .. again Lakes bike and good for ;long saddle days< big sentiment here for this bike,

No hard and fast rules but weather and trails do influence choice

The wetter it is the more likely the HT
The less gnar it is the more likely the HT
The more local the ride the more likely the HT
Night rides more likely the HT

It can also just depend on how I’m feeling that day, and as the FS is the ‘new’ bike it’s more often the FS.

I always choose the only bike I’ve got 8)

I’ve got two bikes.. but I only consider the new one the active bike.. the other is just waiting for me to sell or strip/sell.

However, as an comparison. I have 7 guitars hanging on the wall. on the surface there is 1 bass, 3 electrics, 2 acoustics and a resonator. thats 4 ‘usage’ cases.. 1 of the acoustics is a nice sounding dreadnaught, but doesn’t have electrics or a cutaway. the other acoustic has both. and electrics wise.. one strat, one telecaster, one les paul. all very different sounding guitars.

so, pick the right tool for the job.

bikewise.. i want an all-rounder, and hope to just find ‘the one’ each time i upgrade

I just go for a spirited drive in the Macan until the answer comes to me

That’s my problem, trying to justify keeping both .. both do the same thing both make me smile .. should I just shut up

There’s usually one with a niggling problem I forgot to fix from last time, so that’s ruled out – so if I’m doing a road ride that’s settled it.

If MTB, there’ll usually be one of the remaining two which is obviously more suitable or which I fancy riding more.

I’ve deliberately got fairly big “gaps” between my MTBs, so I don’t have to agonise over this.

Not BPW: SIR9+.

BPW: Five.

Weather and conditions to disintegrate bearings – hardtail
The 2 days a year the weather and conditions aren’t going to disintegrate bearings – cosseted bouncy bike

I always choose the only bike I’ve got

Wishes that was me 😥

Reign – Steep/rough tracks (Eastridge, Bucknell, Bringewood, Uplifts)
Smuggler – Flatter, more pedally (FOD, Cannock, etc), midweek xc rides.
4x Bike – Pumptracks, BMX Tracks

Easy, I only have one bike.

The road bike doesn’t count 🙂

Winter/mucky weather/long rides/short rides/kids rides – singlespeed
Other rides – geared hardtail.

Big days out or mainly down hill = 160mm FS

Most other stuff = HT (at the moment Ragley blue pig, but next spring(ish) will be a cotic solaris I think)

Roughly

Under 2 hours Hardtail
Over 2 hours Full suspension

It normally comes down to being in a hurry and whichever is easiest to extract from the pile, sometimes I re-arrange the pile, and no matter how I re-arrange the pile the Wife’s bikes are always in the way 😕

So many cries for HT use yet I just don’t get on with them. I have considered going full fat but I believe once you go full you never go back … I think that’s how I heard it

Bigger/DH trails – Nomad
Normal trails, feeling up for it – 5010
Normal trails, out for a laugh – Fatboy
Normal trails, not feeling up for it – Turbo Levo FSR
Raining/winter road – Trek 1.5
Summer road – Madone

I just go for a spirited drive in the Macan until the answer comes to me

😀

outside: mtb
inside: turbo

=IF(“Going off-road”=YES,MTB,ROAD BIKE)

Local rides – hardtail
drops and jumps – hardtail
smooth DH – hardtail
Rocky DH – full sus
full days out – hardtail or full sus depending on whatever feels right.
At least that’s what it normally works out to be, but it’s not like I have rules or anything…just ride whichever you feel like, sometimes a ride on the ‘wrong’ bike can be great fun.

offroad:
1) mtb
2) cross race = cross bike
3) canal path = cross bike

onroad:
1) winter = winter road bike or fixed road bike
2) summer = nice bike
3) commute = fixed wheel or see 1) for faster club night
4) race = race bike
5) at sister’s = old race bike
6) need happy = recumbent trike
7) track = track bike
8) time trial = TT bike
9) bimble to town = recumbent trike

The cross bike is a new addition, previously mtb was for all offroad duties. They all get ridden.

Trail centre/BPW/techy/rocky – Full Sus (26″ Zesty)
From the door/XC/marathon event/less techy trails – Hardtail (29″ Scandal)

I don’t really want to be riding the Zesty in real gloop and clay and crap, so would rather then Scandal when it’s like that, but I don’t really like it on techy stuff, I have fast rolling summery tyres on it that I don’t wan’t to swap, and it’s a bit steep.

The above two bikes are excellent, but a bit at either end of what I ride. I should really just have a modern 120-130mm 650b hardtail to do the lot. But that’d be boring.

If anyone has a large 26″ Soul frame I’m after one!

Easy choice atm as injured and no cycling for foreseeable. But usually two (completely different type) bikes are used. Can only use one at a time. This makes things simpler.

1. Shopping/visiting locally – the utility bike. (3spd hub geared, hub dynamo lighting, roller brakes, mudguards, racks, kickstand, overbuilt step-thru frame with huge and stable luggage-carrying capacity. Integrated locks. Also largely maintenance free,

2. All other stuff – the ATB. (29er rigid 2×10)

Simple*

*Ignoring the retro hybrid that remains only for sentimental reasons. Need to make a move on that 🙁 **

** And the retro Raleigh road bike given me by a dear friend (albeit in need of restoring)***

***And the 26er Cannondale MTB that needs selling as is too small.

Simple!

Whichever is least broken. I then pick terrain to suit the bike.

BFe and Covert

BFe 90% of the time (Surrey Hills, XC, even road), Covert ridden on holiday and occasional trip to “bigger” terrain. That or whatever I have locally as each bike is at a different place. Torn between getting another hardtail (Soul) or FS (Bandit) … bidding on both and will buy whatever comes up first

Camber – I’m going for a ride
Genesis Zero – I’m going for a ride to a pub

Normally, I pick the one that’s closest to needing some work or a clean.

Trail centres- Solaris
Quick blast- Solaris
Big off road loop- Solaris
Techy Lakes ride- Solaris
Commute- Arkose

Quick scoot and reasonably dry – Sherpa B+

Bikepacking/muddy – Solaris 29er (paintwork ****-ed due to front roll contact points 😥 )

Commuting – TCX (only bike with neat enough bars to fit in the bike locker)

Road – probably the Solaris…. 😆

160mm full sus for most off-road stuff. CX bike for everything else.

On the road? Take the Whyte Suffolk. Not on the road, take the Whyte G150. Simples.

Sort of a mixture of what the weathers doing and what type of trials.
But also my mood or which bike is working can change things a lot

Nope does not help at all

Only hard rule is summer road bike does not get dirty / rained on

A big part of it for me is who I’m riding with. This could sound a bit awful but it’s true, if I’m riding with slower/less good mates I’ll often take the fatbike as a handicap. Not just as a handicap, I love riding it, but it reduces the gap and that’s good, it means we’re riding more together.

If I’m riding with better riders or by myself, more often than not I take the #enduro bike, because I want the skill compensator and generally I just want to go as hard at is as I feel like.

Road
Good summer weather but more of a training ride, or turbo duties: the CR1
Best bike for the mountains or big event bike: The Izalco
Group rides when I’m not trying too hard, probably a cafe stop: The Orca
Winter/wet/damp training: The Milanino
Recovery rides: Guerciotti
Going to town: Paddy Wagon

MTB
Longer rides, proper MTB trails: Anthem
Shorter, filthy weather: Inbred SS

Other
The Frankenstein Kaffenback SS Cross

Easy really.

Shitty weather=HT Dartmoor Hornet
Just for laughs and to make me concentrate on uplift days=HT Dartmoor Hornet

Cosseted easy ride, perfect weather and those great days on a bike=FS Giant Trance SX with 160mm fork and slacker head angle than the HT (i think)
I don’t take it out in crap weather, it was a lovely project build by buying the frame alone and spending the best part of 12 months selecting parts and putting it together….it’s lovely, I’m running X-fusion suspension front and rear, latest Shimano XT brakes, Sunrace 10 speed cassette with 11-42 gears, Shimano 10 speed shifters, Hope single ring front setup, Nukeproof 40mm stem and Nukeproof 780mm bars, SLX cranks, 35mm wide rims from Superstar built up with Novatec hubs, dropper post obviously, Charge saddle, Maxxis Shorty front tyre, Maxxis DHR2 out back, rear shock mod with the 200×51 replaced with a 200×57 giving me around 155mm travel as opposed to the standard 140mm for a Trance, Renthal grips…. I’m a bit precious about it as you can probably tell, it’s bloody lovely and very much ‘my’ bike and pretty unique…it lives indoors much to my better half’s disgust…the HT lives in the shed.

My two bike are not that different ,both 150mm front and 140 rear , both single pivot cabinets juts one is old school 26 the other 29,and after reading and taking time to think i could not choose between either, both have there place. the Small Five more suited for general hooligan days rock smashing with the other nutters ,the 29er for big days where distance if greater yet the need for big bounce is still there