Discuss

Cracking bike. The mark 1 for preference, before the CEN nonsense. If forks were readily available and I wanted another geared bike I’d have another.

Loved my mk2, also love my 27.5. Probably prefer it. And it looks so nice.

I do appreciate soul, but I’d have to say I prefer the funk

When you die your soul is but a drop in an infinite ocean of souls, constantly moving, touching other souls. No human vices exist, there is no greed, envy, lust or anything else, just enlightenment and ecstasy.

You know that dark matter that no-one knows what it consists of? That’s the ocean of souls that is. I’m not sure about re-incarnation, might have something to do why the universe is constantly expanding if it doesn’t exist.

I’m thinking of starting a cult based on my theories, send me £5 and an SAE for a certificate and sticker if you want to join.

Other than that I like the mark 2 green one with the black panel. Would still prefer a green Stanton Sherpa though.

The only thing I have kept through the changing fads of the last 10 years. Mine is very dark though…

You didn’t even keep my old 5 Spot! No cult membership for you.

About as perfect as a 26″ wheeled hardtail could get.
120mm fork on the mk1 was its sweet spot.
Timeless classic.

I have one in the shed, and had planned to take the bars, stem, drivetrain, saddle, brakes pedals and hubs and use them to build my new hardtail.

Made a half hearted attempt to sell the frame, now I’m spending money on new bits for the new bike just so I can keep it.

I’m selling mine!

Soul for sale. Devil need not apply

I have a mk2 as my main bike, love it, my riding improved 100% the day I got it.
As regards out eternal spirit: our consciousness is nothing but a series of electrical impulses running around a large piece of flesh, the idea that this consciousness transpires the death of the flesh and goes on to live a happy life with all our old dead friends and family in bliss is ludicrous. 😀

Happy Monday.

About as perfect as a 26″ wheeled hardtail could get.
120mm fork on the mk1 was its sweet spot.

Amen brother.

I love mine. Ace bike. 🙂

MK3 with a travel adjust fork. Bloody brill.

I wanted one for years but when I finally got one I was a bit underwhelmed. I suppose with all the hype I was expecting a hover board! Now I have had it a few years I realise how much I like it and how often I ride it compared to the FS.(

Just upgraded my mark 1 to 1×11 XT for winter use – removing the front mech gives it so much mud clearance. Love it.

I had a MK2 in black, loved it, just swapped for a MK3 in green. Feels the same, probably a touch heavier, but I’ve never weighed a bike, and certainly can’t feel any increase. Only swapped for fork compatibility, as I think this will be a keeper (had the first one 12 months or so), currently running 120mm rebas.

Just ordered a cheap dropper, and when the drivetrain wears out I’ll maybe go 1x as it’s the more gnar of my bikes. Having said that, I’m about to get a cx bike and struggling to find the love for my Scandal 29er still, so it may get the 2×10 XT off that. The scandal feels and rides so fast, but I just don’t enjoy it like I do the soul, and doubt it’s actually any faster.

Just upgraded my mark 1 to 1×11 XT for winter use – removing the front mech gives it so much mud clearance.

I’m seriously thinking about this myself. What did you put on?

Black Mk 1 (from 07/08), 120mm forks.

Looking forward to trying my mates new Soul27.5 (in Hot Yellow) this weekend…

Just upgraded my mark 1 to 1×11 XT ….. removing the front mech gives it so much mud clearance

Are you me?

Also swapping to XT wheels, carbon bar and Reba forks has brought it down to around 25lbs, and it now goes quicker than I do 😳

I have one in a damp vault going rusty.
I feel bad.

Love my mk3, 1×10, 140 forks. It does everything from all day rids across Dartmoor and the Quantocks, to steep Triscombe techy stuff and days at BPW. I don’t regret selling my Zesty at all

2013 one here, 120 Reba’s, Reverb, xt 2×10 groupset, and thomson/easton. My main bike, love it 🙂

Some people reckon a bike can have a soul. I agree but I reckon that no bike has soul when new no matter how niche, custom or finely bearded the builder is.

Bikes gain soul through experiences with the owner(s) so that a generic Carrera, Trek, Spesh or whatever that’s been through many adventures, experiences or just miles will have more soul than a fresh out of the box (recycled cardboard natch) Jones or other niche ego chariot.

Soul cannot be bought.

Yes it can.

http://www.cotic.co.uk/product/soul

Great to see so much love for these bikes!

I’m seriously thinking about this myself. What did you put on?

Full new 11 speed XT setup on the original Hope wheels. Original Sektor fork running about 130mm iirc. 50mm Hope stem, 740mm Fatbar and Thomson dropper post. Running shorty / minion tubeless.

Not the lightest (Size L / 28lb) but I love it.

Are you me?

Sounds brilliant. Great minds / fools…

I learned to ride on mine, basically. I mean, I could ride before but it was a Soul that i started doing it right on. Such a perfect allrounder, loved it, I still get wandering eyes every time a black Soul with white bits turns up. Took me a long time to find anything to match it.

With 26ergeddon I can see me picking up another in the future, they’re already getting offensively cheap.

With 26ergeddon I can see me picking up another in the future, they’re already getting offensively cheap.

Like the one I’m selling 🙂

our consciousness is nothing but a series of electrical impulses running around a large piece of flesh, the idea that this consciousness transpires the death of the flesh and goes on to live a happy life with all our old dead friends and family in bliss is ludicrous.

I think that maybe you’re half right there perhaps.. I’m certainly no believer in an afterlife

Conciousness is indeed a series of electrical impulses, energy if you like.. Memory and experience contained within our gurt brain lumps by some complex organic electrical storage system..
But then isn’t everything energy, once you get down to the really teeny tiny stuff..?
So is there a shared conciousness as all this energy vibrates stuff at molecular levels in us and around us?

When we’re dead and gone where does the energy go to next?

Wildly speculating here as ever, but maybe those little squiggly string theory jobbies could contain data… We couldn’t have dreamt of the stuff stored inside a strand of DNA not so long ago..

Maybe our souls are in there?

(mines brown FWIW, MkII and rigid and I wouldn’t part with it 🙂 )

Conciousness is indeed a series of electrical impulses, energy if you like.. Memory and experience contained within our gurt brain lumps by some complex organic electrical storage system.

A theme explored in The Third Policeman by Flann O’Brien

“The gross and net result of it is that people who spend most of their natural lives riding iron bicycles over the rocky roadsteads of this parish get their personalities mixed up with the personalities of their bicycle as a result of the interchanging of the atoms of each of them, and you would be surprised at the number of people in these parts who nearly are half people and half bicycles.”

I let go a gasp of astonishment that made a sound in the air like a bad puncture.

“And you would be flabbergasted at the number of bicycles that are half human, almost half man, half partaking of humanity.”

I keep my Soul within touching distance. I’m sat on the sofa, if I reach out my left arm it’s right there… Yup, just checked the back tyre, it’s still ‘up’ looks like the sealant has finally worked that’s about three weeks

Why would the energy need to ‘go’ anywhere. Isn’t that what entropy is all about? Plus all the new little souls born every minute, where does that energy come from (seen as it can’t be created or destroyed?).

Birth life death decay. It’s the natural order. Why do human lumps have anything that plants, etc., don’t? Be mighty cluttered if it’s not!

Had 3 including owning the same frame 3 times. Sold them all in search of a change and now I’m bike less. I prefer the looks of the straight steerer version, does everything very well, last build was 120mm Rebas (perfect amount of travel), superstar wheels, Zee gearing, Deore brakes, Thomson stem, Carbon bars and seatpost. Weight was just over 25lbs.

I’d have another but I feel I need something different so eyeing up a Bird Aeris.

I think they should make a lightweight Race model or summink. Call it the ” ‘R’ Soul ”

I’ve had three 🙄

luv em to bits

just about to try a Solaris to see how that compares

Winter set up on my first build project. Loving it although getting back on a hard tail after a summer of full suss use does feel harsh. But the soul is quite forgiving. Loving it 🙂

rather extreme mudguard angle on that one…. 🙂