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are the mongosse full suss bikes anygood?
I have an 08 Teocali elite bought new a year ago from Pauls Cycles and I can't fault it. Goes up and down hills brilliantly.
I bought a new 2009 Teocali Super for a bargain price in 2010. I hadn't test ridden one but it was a calculated gamble as it was £900 and I knew I'd get more than that for the parts if I didn't get on with it.
In the end I couldn't get on with the geometry. On paper the size should have been spot on but it felt wrong.
It felt cramped when sitting pedalling up hill and front seemed strange. On paper the head angle was pretty typical of a 140mm trail bike but when standing up it seemed incredibly steep. I can't really explain it but it felt weird. A mate who rides the same size bikes as me rode it and said the same. It was probably just the wrong size for me.
The suspension action seemed plush when you sat down but firm and crude in the mid stroke when you stood up. Which is the opposite of what I would want.
Having said all that a certain Mr Akrigg seems to find them ok.
I remember the mountain bike mags raving about them in about 2005 ish, they won all the awards and recommendations from MBR I think, then for some reason went out of favour or just went off the radar. Always liked the look of them, but never ridden one.
That's a lie actually, I have actually got a Mongoose full sus, but it's an Amplifier from 1995. The back end is flexy, but it is light. I don;t think that's the one you're interested in though. 8)
I did the Megavalanche on a Teocali (with Pikes). I'm not the greatest rider that ever lived but never felt like the bike was the limiting factor.
One thing though... the tyre clearance is pitiful and got horrendously clogged one day with sticky Aple d'Huez mud a couple of days before the race when I was practicing on the course. It had rained overnight and everyone was having [i]some[/i] claggy mud problems but nothing like the mess I got into. There's an awful lot going on down there with suspension links, fromt mech, stays etc and when it clags, it locks solid. I only had the problem one day in about three years I owned the bike but when it was bad, it was very bad.