Bikes for Young Teens

I have twin lads, 13 in Feb. Good mountain bike riders and currently riding Isla Creig 27 hardtails which have been brilliant bikes. Added dropper posts, decent pedals and proper tyres.

We ride singletrack in the Peaks, Coed/Bike Park Wales etc and have been abroad riding. They can handle reds no problem and are progressing well. They are about 5ft 1″ and 7 3/4 stone. Strong for their age group and they love their biking so keen to encourage them.

We are wanting get their next bikes and the thought is a full sus. Have looked at some second hand bikes like Trek Remedy or Whyte T130 of 2-3 years old. I dont mind spending for a decent bike but I am nervous that due to their weight/size a full sus might be heavy and counter productive. Will they get the benefit as one reason the Islas have been so good is their light weight.

Should I get them a more progressive hardtail rather than a full sus? Would be interested in views and recommendations of possible bikes. Plan is maybe to try to hire one for a day to see but haven’t yet.

We went FS.. Starting with a Liv Embolden, then a couple of 15/16 year Specialized enduro/FSR, then moved on from there.

T-130 is a decent shout though.

Following.

I got home last night and my 11 year old pointed out he’d just raised his seatpost to its maximum on an XS adult bike. I measured him and he’s grown an inch since August!

One of my 11 year old boys has gone from size 8 to 10.5 this year. His cycling and mountain bike shoes have gone through his 41’s (I always/mostly buy almost new off of eBay), my wifes 42’s and then my wide 43’s and now 45’s. Please stop growing!!!

Dont start me on getting riding kit, mainly shorts. Hillingdon kit is all good, but anything else, mainly shorts are the issue. Problem is very long legs no bum… Youths all to short, XS/S adult assume big ar$e

Both this twin and more normal sized brother are on used Orange Zest 26’s which have been amazing. Now looking for a good 27.5 HT, I think I have found one he will love. I will post a update tomorrow if it works out…

At age 13 they’re going to be developing some serious strength over the next few years..
We went FS at about that age.
We also started fitting DH tyres and inserts shortly afterwards – they start to really plough / batter through / case and have much more strength and weight going through wheels. One of mine was a destroyer of wheels for a few years.

Also, I would go on condition of bike rather than seeking a particular model. Between 3 lads we had Orange, Lappiere Radon x2, Giant, Specialized X2 and a Santa Cruz – all were decent enough, only the Lappiere was one I wouldn’t buy again.

My grandson is 13 and a keen rider. For his birthday I was arm-twisted into giving him my 3-year-old Giant Trance 29er.
He rides it just about every day, has put more miles on it in the last 4 months than I did in the 3 years I had it. His technique is pretty good, wheelies and endos a-plenty!

My lad has just progressed from hardtail to full sus (Canyon Spectral) and for some reason is impressed because it’s “much lighter than his old bike”. It’s not at all but if that’s what he wants to believe then let him. Weight is just a number (up to a point obviously)

My daughter is 10 and 4.11, moved into an XS full suss. Weight is an issue but will get used to it pretty quickly. About 4kg increase going form 24 inch hardtail to 27.5 full suss. Hills are slower but I think fatigue at the end of a ride is less.

My daughter is nine now and has been on a FS for a few years. It’s not the lightest and has pretty heavy tyres (Vee flow snap), but she doesn’t seem to have any issues with the weight. It’s hard to keep up with her when she gets her sprint on 🙂 If anything, the weight gives her a bit more stability… and she came from a pretty lightweight Hellion.

the thought is a full sus. Have looked at some second hand bikes like Trek Remedy or Whyte T130 of 2-3 years old. I dont mind spending for a decent bike but I am nervous that due to their weight/size a full sus might be heavy and counter productive. Will they get the benefit as one reason the Islas have been so good is their light weight.

We went through a similar process. I bought a Norco hardtail of some description from Evanscycles to replace his Islabikes Creig. It sat unused for a few weeks until I made a decision and took it back. It was just monstrous, huge forks, huge burly wheels and tyres and frame. Everything on it was the same components as they supplied on the adults XL. Horrible anchor of a thing.
In the end we bought a Trek EX Junior full suss which was actually lighter than the bloody Norco as it wasnt so overbuilt.
It was lots heavier than the Islabike Creig, but still worked great. Fair enough i tended to tow my kids a lot at that age as it made everyone’s ride more fun; but i dont think the extra weight held them back.
Son1 did the west highland way on it and it’s since been used to excellent effect in Tignes, Finale, Germany, Meribel etc etc

After that we got a Giant Anthem 27.5 which was bloody brilliant. ( nothing like the 29er Anthem to be clear)
It was pretty lightweight and nippy but also excellent for semi tech and gnarr. Used it on Cairngorm, Antur Styniog and loads of places in the alps. Excellent combination of XC compatibility but also great for jumps etc. I imagine a stereotypical bloater mtb rider would have borked it by now, but for a 40- 50kg kid it was brilliant.

I did replace the back wheel with a DTSwiss with Panzer inserts after he got 3 pinch flats on cairngorm, but apart from that…. it really is versatile

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Verbier

Shout if youre anywhere near Manchester and want to try it out for a day.