Hi, would appreciate any advice on these three bikes from owners.I have ridden the Five and Zesty and they are both excellent. I'm 5ft7 and weigh about 64kg. My riding is pretty basic but improving, I don't do huge jumps or drops and enjoy a good climb!
Looking to buy a do-it-all bike as I'm off to Morzine for a week but mainly ride in Surrey, Swinley and other local trails.
Thanks!
canyon bikes.
sounds like the lapierre will suit you best.
None of them are built for huge jumps/drops although the five is a pretty good descender.
Hi, re Canyon Bikes, I bought a nerve XC 5.0 in May but I don't like it therefore looking to change.
Never ridden the Pitch so any views are very welcome.
Zesty they rock 
No experience of the pitch but have ridden the lapierre and the orange.
I'm 5'7", 72 kg's, mainly ride trail centres and pick up my new 17" Five tomorrow!
I enjoy the climbs so expected to prefer the zesty based on reviews but in my opinion the five was much better uphill.
If you're in that price bracket and like the up's, have a look at the Santa cruz nickel, the marketing is right 'it descends like bigger bike than it is' deliberated over this and the five for about a week and it was a very close call.
sure canyon bike geometry would suit a good climb.
cant go wrong with either a 5 or zesty though..orange seem to have the market.i would'nt have one not keen on em.
i really like the new Trek's miself,not the fashion at the minute though..
buy the five, just ace and buying one keeps a Yorkshire man in beer money 
Zesty they rock
+1 
i really like the new Trek's miself,not the fashion at the minute though..
Why is that? 18 months ago the Fuel EX was the bike to have ... two mates of mine have 'em & love 'em ... they're obviously good bikes, but they don't get a mention anymore.
buy the five, just ace and buying one keeps a Yorkshire man in beer money
And buying a Zesty will keep a Frenchman in Vin.
Blower - yes it's a good climber. However it is SO harsh!! Seems to want to throw you off at any given opportunity. Nasty 
Thanks for the replies.
I had a Zesty. It was alright. Didn't like going down too much, and the super long chainstays made for interesting handling (from someone who races DH's perspective anyway).
Tried a friends 5, and ended up buying one. The Maxle back end makes it a lot stiffer, and the shorter stays make it a lot more playful. Seems to fit me better too.
5 all the way, of course folk hate them and are made from re cycled filling cabinets, but they are a hoot to ride and bomb proof.
If not a 5 then always a heckler which is also a minter
I love my Pitch pro, fantastic do it all bike!
I asked Guy Kesteven what he thought of them on facebook heres his reply 'Congrats on getting a Pitch Pro. The only reason that wasn't one of the shortlisted bikes in the WMB bike of the year was because Spesh told us they weren't going to get anymore. Eejits!
Anyway you are lucky enough to have one!'
That was a good enough recommendation to me, he's ridden 1,000's of bikes!
I can't imagine any of those 3 bikes being rubbish though
Which did you prefer? get that one
They are not what i would call all'rounders.
I've got a five and is amazing at trail centers with a winch to the tip and plummet to the bottom.
But for a xc ride round where I live it sucks the life out the ride.
It just make everything sooooo easy and my Soul is so much more fun at general riding.
My pal has a Trek Fuel and he rides it everywhere, but for me I'd stick to a 100mm ish full suss like an Orange ST4 or something similar.
Those are all great bikes but the Zesty's the most balanced one out of the 3 IMO, if I had to ride down a mountain I'd go Five or Pitch as they just edge it but if I had to ride up the mountain first then I'd go Zesty...
I tested the Zesty and the Five, ended up with a Five. The Zesty was alright but the Five felt like a pair of old boots. It climbs very well, descends even better, its simple, and excellent customer service.
The only downside is no one will like you.
Actually... I've reconsidered, I'd get the Pitch Pro and spend the change on a holiday somewhere with proper mountains and lots of chairlifts.
the Five felt like a pair of old boots
Spot on! I was trying to think of a concise way of describing how they feel and that's pretty good.
You might not want to do drops and jumps now, a year ago I didn't either but things change and if/when you do, you could do a lot worse than a 5 to help you develop your skills. I'm not saying you won't find that with any other bike ever! But from my experience the 5 has made it feel really natural.
One more thing....
But for a xc ride round where I live it sucks the life out the ride.
I disagree,unless you live somewhere totally flat, it might be forgiving but that just makes me want to push it harder and that where the real fun begins and where the bike excels.
The only downside is no one will like you.
Yep, but you won't care.
Much as I hate to disappoint you JP, Orange don't make a 17" 5.
They go from 16 to 18 to 20" frames.
If you've been sold a 17" frame the shop needs some staff that know their stuff.
The Nickel climbs well, but has a poor stock fork fitted in the shape of the Sektor R. IT has no damping that I could find, and it dived under braking and bump response which left the bike feeling like the front end was too low, pitching the rider over the front of the bike.
Not good.
With a better fork, the bike would be excellent.
If you're thiniking about the Zesty, the Spicy climbs just as well and gives you 20mm more travel to boot.
I rode on the MBR test in 2008 which put the Zesty against the 5 and a few other bikes.
The Zesty felt more like my Coiler than a trail bike on th climbs and descents, although it was a bit quicker overall.
I changed mt Coler for a 5 after that test, and haven't regretted it at all.
Much as I hate to disappoint you JP, Orange don't make a 17" 5.
Check the Orange website fella. They do now sell a 17 inch.
That's a bit of a shock to me, to be honest. Michael Bonney always said they'd never need to conform to the euro size standard.
The times they are a changing.
There was a call for it from customers for years, so it's good to see it.
If you've been sold a 17" frame the shop needs some staff that know their stuff.
Lol pwned 
I haven't ridden the zesty or the five, but love my pitch. After selling my DH bike it now has to cover as a mini DH bike and it is fantastic, although admittedly the only original part is the frame. Even with my climb compromising spec it was still great fun at Dalbeattie recently, particularly when pointed downhill. Oh and don't forget that Specialized warranty is one of the best out there, not sure I would say the same of a certain British company.
If you've been sold a 17" frame the shop needs some staff that know their stuff.
17" new for 2012 - customer demand meant many wanted the the 18" reach but with a bit more standover. Given I'm 5'8" and had to buy an 18", I wished they'd done that size in 2008...
i really like the new Trek's miself,not the fashion at the minute though..Why is that? 18 months ago the Fuel EX was the bike to have ... two mates of mine have 'em & love 'em ... they're obviously good bikes, but they don't get a mention anymore.
fashion changes.what will take over from the 5?
im probably wrong though,just my 2 cents worth :-),its all 5's 5's 5's init!.. their marketing strategy is a good un.
Northwind has a point to be fair - on the VFM stakes the Pitch is awesome.
A 17 inch Orange 5 has been a special order "Strange" option for some time. A sort of custom half way house between the 16 and the 18. I was offered a 17 option earlier this year. For the 2012 madel year the 17 is a standard size. From the Orange web site:
Frame Size 14" 16" 17" 18" 20" 22"
C. Top Tube 542 557 570 576 596 616
D. Effective TT 564 582 602 602 620 640
G. Head Tube 120 130 130 130 150 170
H. Wheelbase 1096 1116 1140 1140 1160 1175
Standover 680 716 735 755 791 820
You can see the differnces between the 16, 17 and 18 are small but could make all the difference. I'm 5'7" and ended up going for the 16 and with the addition of a dropper post it fits me spot on for the various types of riding I do. That was Holmbury Hill yesterday, local trails on Sunday and the Brighton Big Dog next Saturday.
There are no differences except more stand over.
Remedy 7 is also pretty good for the price.
I had the same dilemma a few months ago and actually ignored the pitch at first because I really disliked specialized.
I test rode 2 zestys and the orange 5 and 5am in various sizes but couldn't decide what to buy. Also test rode a lot of £3k+ bikes but finally gave the pitch a go and bought it straight away!
Of course the price of £1700 had nothing to do with my decision 
they even gave me £170 of free bike bits!
Yeti 575 all the way!!
I love my Zesty but only on the gnarl. The dude above that said such bikes suck the fun out of less technical stuff was right IMO. However, if you like to ride in the alps and only have one bike then I doubt you'll be disappointed by either Zesty or 5. I think anyone with really polarised opinions on such things (and there are a few above) either hasn't ridden both or is into the princess and the pea terrain.
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