[Closed] Soloists... What bikes do you ride?

The normal inbred. For winter duties, maybe the slot dropout for SS?

I've never done a 24 but have done plenty of 10 hour solos (9 apparently, counting up - 5 x 10 Under the Bens, 3x 10 at Kirroughtrees and 1 10 at Moray) - started off with an Orange Sub3 that was OK but a bit racy and had a bit of a "go really fast ooops you're knackered and it's only 6 hours in" thing about it.

Swapped that for an FSR120 that I tolerated but could never love. Had a Rush for the past couple of years - can't fault it. Handles really nicely, climbs well and very forgiving on the descents and incredibly stiff fork for the weight.

Really recommend a bit of sus for comfort and "margin" for cock-ups on the downs. IMO it's worth a lot more than a pound or two of weight over the 10 hours even on a hilly course.

What FS have you got at the moment - bet it's not much lighter than the Inbred frame if it's something reasonably light!

Go for full sus everywhere except the Strathpuffer, SS hardtail there just for reliability.
However many bikes you have, take them all to whichever race you do, and every spare wheel, drivetrain, brakepad, disc you have and every peice of riding kit you own. Borrow more riding kit and take that too. Being this well prepared means nothing will go wrong and you won't need any of it.

I start on a Van Nicholas Ti hardtail and stay on that as long as my arse/back can cope, then i get on my marin full sus. If it turns shitty i have a Van Nic Ti SS with Alfine hub, Just to cover all bases!

For 24 solo - Cube AMS100 full suss as main bike, Simple SS set up for mud duties.

Went for FS mainly for comfort as I was having trouble with legs/back but is also forgiving after many hours in the saddle. Cube has been superbly reliable and willing to put up with the extra weight - sub 12kg without XTR and too much carbon.

Went for SS to keep going in the mud rather than having to stop all the time.

I have a Yeti 575 and a Commencal Meta 6 at the moment. Love them both but the Meta is set up for the alps rather than racing. Due to a mechanical with the Yeti I ended up riding the Meta for the full 12 hours at SITS. Was OK but a bit on the heavy side. Wouldn't have fancied doing another 12 hours on it.

A couple of people I spoke to at Mayhem said they'd recommend 1 hardtail & 1 full sus as you ride them differently so it gives your body a bit of variety. Can't afford another full sus but might be able to build up an Inbred.

Was thinking of going 1x9 to help with any mud issues. Any advice on that?

Full sus for me- even at Strathpuffer! If your backs sore, that's just one more reason to consider quitting, and I find it a real help at 3 am when my brain isn't working.

When picking a bike, lightweight and comfort were what was important to me, as well as reliability. I sacrificed some weight by going for aluminium in places a lot have carbon fibre, and using XT gears and brakes. All that's happened so far on this bike is a chain break.

This is my race machine (usually I run flat bars and ends however)-

[IMG] [/IMG]

Short travel full sus, built lightish but reliable. Take at least one other bike (preferably with wheels that can be swapped) with different tyres, e.g. one set for dry, one for mud. You don't want the hassle of changing tyres when you can just swap wheels over.

Specialized Epic but it's quite old now and not particularly light. Works well though.

For muddy conditions my default is not to ride but if I have to then I've got a fully rigid Ti with 1.7" mud tyres on it. If it's horrible conditions the last thing you need is full sus, especially on the claggy courses like Mayhem and SITS. My full rigid weighs about 20lb and will cut through anything.

Cotic Soda has been a revelation for me this year

[img] http://images.fotopic.net/?iid=1yfj16&outx=600&=1&nostamp=1 [/img]

Had a Flux before that which was immense (just a little on the heavy side for me!)

Did my first SITS solo this year and I did 8 out of my 11 laps on my Cube LTD Race HT. I was amazed at how long I lasted on it as my back can give me a load of grief at times. The FS for the last 3 laps was very welcome especially when very tired. I went armed with HT, FS and SS. Would ideally like a short travel FS but that's not going to happen, prob another Cube and Rohloff the SS frame.

rode a SS 29er scandal for my first 24 solo this year. worked well, wouldn't change anything - other than maybe getting the front end a bit lower.

scandal or an inbred would be a good bike if you need another one? 😉

spesh epic

spesh epic

Spesh Epic.

I'll be selling a brand new S-Works frame in a couple of months, with forks and chainset, make a cracking 24 solo bike... 😉

What ever full sus I have at the time for Mayhem or SITS, but for strathpuffer, it's been my geared inbred. But as others have said, loads of brake pads for that one.

http://mickarms132.fotopic.net/c1445231.html

Used to ride a classic Blur, but now on a Spider FRO, I also have a very old SS Chameleon for pushing in mud.

I did my first 24 this year on my Genesis hardtail. I was pleasantly suprised how comfortable it was.

I plan on doing a couple more next year so wouldn't mind a short travel full suss. Don't think funds will allow though. 🙁

Rigid SS with carbon fork. Perfectly comfortable for 24hrs. Both 26" and 29". Simple, nothing to worry about, nothing to think about except ride.

Faster guys may have different needs.

The most important thing isn't the bike, but yourself. Keep fed, keep warm, and don't stop when that little worm in your head is saying "This is ****in' dumb".

Oh, and slow down 🙂

I'll be selling a brand new S-Works frame in a couple of months, with forks and chainset, make a cracking 24 solo bike...

Hmm... really now? Would it happen to be a medium?

I have been pondering upgrading my aging Epic for a little while...

I did both my solos on my voodoo.

Yes Aidy it will be a medium. Email in profile if you're interested!

Voodoo Wanga SS

Thanks for the feedback. Now just the difficulty of aquiring the third bike when we haven't been on holiday this year...