Help – cant make my mind up 2 differnet bikes I know but:
Specialised Stumjumper FSR Comp Evo or Whyte M-109 thats the shortlist. Wont be doing any serious downhill stuff more trails but saying that, I find its easier to catch up with my mates goin downhill that haulin my ass up the hills so need to keep that in mind too.
Whatcha reakon then???

Thx

Get a demo on both! Simple really…

But you’re comparing a beefy 150mm travel, slack angled, 26″ wheeled bike with a dropper post, with a 100mm travel, lightish XC 29″ wheeled bike.

In other words, you’re hardly comparing apples with apples! You NEED to probably have a good hard think about what your priorities are in a bike, cos these 2 are pretty wildly different, and will be noticably so to ride…

With respect to Whyte… They make fantastic riding bikes but they’ve had a lot of problems with the 146. I’d be waiting til the results of the public beta are in.

Yeah your not the first to say get a demo thx. Seems the sensible route and I know its not apples with apples Im just thinkin the whytes better suited but the stumpy was MBR’s bike of the year. Trutth is their both “SHINY” 🙂
Cheers

A lot depends on where / what / how you ride? Horses for courses etc.

MBR’s bike of the year is for their machismo fueled gnar. They were never going to pick a Giant Anthem 29er and nor were they going to pick a Santa Cruz V10. In their eyes the SJ Evo is the happy medium. Your happy medium sounds like it is going to be slightly more towards the Whyte end but there are plenty of good bikes in the spectrum between SJ Evo and the Whyte.

How about a Trance 29er?

Get a standard Stumpy and if you won’t to go mental buy an Evo link.

Stumpy may have been “MBR’s bike of the year”, but that means very little whatsoever… Better at what? Better for who?

If it doesn’t suit your needs at all, it is in no way better than a £100 Apollo for what you want out of a bike.

For most people in the UK, 150mm of travel both ends really is too much. But then you may not be most people. You’ll know quite quickly when you get a go on the bikes, which one suits your needs better.