Last summer I got my first 29er, a Salsa Horsethief. It’s not been ridden a huge amount but coming from 26er’s it seemed very good in a straight line but a little dull in the handling department, all my previous bikes were much more nimble. Is there anything I can do to improve things? Would a wider bar (700mm +) make much difference?

Secondly… Gearing. It’s currently running 2×9. I’d like to upgrade it but I’m not sure if 1×10, 2×10 or 1×11 is best for me. I tend to ride trail centers, Mayhem in the summer and muck about in the woods local to me. What say you Singletrack?

What are you looking to get from the gearing upgrade?

Easy spinning up the hills and some speed on the flats. Similar to 2×9 but more up to date. I can’t say I’ve missed not having a 42 tooth ring.

2×9 isn’t really much different to 2×10. The main upgrade there is just clutch mechs, which are nice to have but not really gamechanging… 1x has bigger differences but at the end of the day it’s not going to change the bike’s agility, it could save some weight but will that do what you want?

I ride a Big Honkin 29er as my main bike and I think wheels and tyres are pretty important, if yours has heavy wheels on it now I think that’ll be the biggest change.

Bars are good to mess with, it won’t necessarily make it more nimble- that means all sorts of different things to different people- but tweaking controls will always change how you fit on and interact with the bike. And it’s pretty cheap, too, you can get bars for buttons and try different lengths (stems, too, remember- they’re pretty much a package)

Interested in this thread – having just bought one on classifieds.
I will be sticking on standard 29er 46mm revs – not the frame designed G2 51mm
Explains it here. So I might be asking the same question in a couple of weeks.

The gearing question is separate to the handling one. A little less weight is always a bonus! The nine speed kit I have is getting on a bit and I won’t be able to replace it like for like, so I have to make the jump to 10 or 11 speed at some point. I’m not sure which.

Wheels do need looking at- I’m still running inner tubes (remember them!) so going tubeless is the next step. I just want the bike to be a little more nimble and flickable.