I contacted 2Pure to check on pricing/availability and they didn’t seem to be sure what an ‘Ibis Exie’ was…

Not gonna lie, my dealings with 2Pure have been disappointing. Never seem interested in helping and speaking to local Ibis dealer, they never have anything in stock, even before Covid. I asked about the possibility of trying a Ripley before Covid hit and they weren’t interested. Left a real sour taste as I was dead set on one, but obviously wanted to try before hand.

Conversely, I’ve had great service from Windwave after a small paint defect on my Spur, was sorted in no time and they were super helpful.

Hoping the cars are a little smaller, even if they are heavier, the reduced size should help make them a little more agile. Anyone looked to see if they’re staying the same width? obviously they went from 1.8 to 2.0mm in 2017, be interesting to see if that’s changed also.

I don’t think we’ll go back to cars the size of MP4-4’s or even the late 2000’s. The weight may come down a little bit as battery tech gets better, plus if more power is coming from the electric motors from 2025 as seems to be the plan along with 100% biofuels, they may use less fuel and need smaller tanks so be lighter/smaller that way. Can’t wait for next year, hopefully the racing will live up to the hype.

Snakeskin is on a par with the new Super Ground but way lighter in theory. I had a 2.35 Snakeskin a while back on an old Mondraker Foxy and found it really good. Never had any issues with Snakeskin tyres, even battering through the peaks etc

Kind of looks like a love child of the old and new Ripley in a short travel package. I like! It is pricey, but when you consider it’s on a par with what Hope are doing here in the UK, it’s comparable price wise, even if the bikes are totally different in their intentions.

However, as much as I like Ibis as a brand, unless I seriously wanted the lightest, raciest bike possible that could still act as a trail bike, I’d struggle to justify the extra over a Spur.

@rOcKeTdOg, what size is that? Sorry to tag on to the OPs post but thinking of one of these too, or the aforementioned Faran2, or an Escapade… So much (but also so little) choice!

Because Max was 5 seconds ahead and would have just pitted next lap to cover. Hardly rocket science.

But at least it puts Red Bull under pressure to perform and ace everything. They’d already fluffed one pit stop for Perez, not at all saying they would do the same again, but even if they had a 99.9% chance of acing it, that’s still better odds than the 100% chance of not getting anything else from it if they don’t force them to stop at all. Red Bull won at Ricard because they were aggressive, Mercedes have won before being aggressive, hence why I was confused they didn’t even attempt to force the issue and apply a bit of pressure. Sitting back and letting Max streak away just felt like they’d given up, which is not how you win championships…

Still can’t fathom why Merc didn’t take a punt on stopping Lewis earlier and trying what Max did at Ricard, they gave up for fastest lap so why not roll the dice and earlier and give Lewis 20 laps to make up the 25 second gap after the pit stop, he would have finished second and probably still got fastest lap at worst, or have been closer to Max at the finish rather than have him cruise to the finish. They’re going to need to be more aggressive if they want a chance I think if they have truly stopped bringing new parts to the car…

One thing that did pop into my mind the other day that I thought was interesting, was the lower grid always going for a good allrounder after Williams have come out and said they’ve gone for more peaky downforce so their form might ebb and flow over the season. I was reminded of 2009 when the Force India was super strong at Spa and Monza and thought, hang on, why not just build a car for a specific type of circuit and maximise your one or two chances through the year and hang on for the rest? With all the will in the world, Williams et al will be lucky to score a handful of points this year, so if they built a car purely for straight line speed so they’d be a genuine threat at Spa/Monza they could get a couple of strong points finishes or even a podium or win if the stars align? It’s not a long term strategy, but worth a shout if you find yourself at the back and need some cash from a better constructors placement at the end of the season?

As others have said before, if you’re not prepared to pay import fees, don’t buy from the EU. Treat anything over £135 as being the price plus circa 25% and if you don’t have to pay the fees it’s a bonus. But generally best to work on just expecting to pay them on anything over £135.

It’s a XC race bike, not a Gnarpoon, yes racers are running droppers now, but not 200mm long ones, 65-100mm is about the norm.

Transition set the 120mm benchmark with the Spur

Not an XC race bike though is it.

On the RC, yeah a 200mm post is a lot, but still, nice to give people the option? I’m not saying every bike needs a 16 inch seat tube (I have a Spur and thats 460mm on a large, so not super short like others), but it’s nice to give people the option, especially so if you insist on sharing the frame between XC race and trail bike. The Spur might not be an XC race bike per se, but it ain’t far off with XC race tyres fitted I can tell you!

So close and yet so far again for Scott. It looks great from afar, but those seat tube lengths are unforgiveable. We have 210mm droppers now, very few folks need their seat tubes to be that long, we’ve moved past this! On the large its only 10mm shorter than on a large Addict, their ROAD BIKE…

The integrated stem cables can sod off as well. they look neat yes, but having seen veteran mechanics pull their hair out with similar setups from Scott and other roadie brands, forget it. IMO, Transition set the 120mm benchmark with the Spur, all they needed to do was hit CTRL + C (they could even have added a rear shock lock out if they had too) and voila, job done. I’m intrigued to try the Spark to see how it rides, but would I own one? Nope.

My biggest one was kind of non-riding related. In my uni years I applied and was interviewed for product tester jobs at another bike mag/website, was close to getting the dream gig but just missed out. TWICE.

A few months later, got an email asking if I was interested in doing some freelance testing for them as I’d been highly recommended on the back of my interviews previously. PERFECT! Could finish my degree, get some experience testing and writing and having my works published. Cue every bugger under the sun having me blabbing in their ear I’d finally be doing what I’d worked towards for years… Then complete radio silence. Nothing. Emailed them asking what was going on… nothing. 7 years later and I’m still no closer to the dream of riding and writing about bikes for a living :(

+1 for Nobby Nics. Used to swear by them, wouldn’t touch them now. Was interested in the new ones, but they’ve made them silly heavy. Shame.

Shimano drivetrains are another. I’ll stick with SRAM thank you.

!20mm bikes being not enough. They really, really are more than enough for most folks, me included. Doubt I’ll buy anything longer travel again for what I do!

If you want to put a 160mm fork on a Smuggler, you have the wrong bike really. I wouldn’t want to overfork it longer than 150mm, or even 140mm really, why not just stick an angleset in if you want it slacker? Will keep the BB height and seat angle reasonable.

Did exactly that and went from mechanical X01 Eagle to GX AXS and prefer it overall. The shift is more consistent, takes less effort and it looks way cleaner. Not sure whether it’s because the mech is so heavy or the clutch isn’t as strong as mechanical, but I have noticed a bit more chain slap than mechanical, but that’s the only niggle I have really. Battery life is great, I got around 200 miles from a the first charge and it was still not flashing to say it had less than 10% battery. If you can afford it, get it!

You should get yourself an ebike, makes it so much easier.

The reworked B Line is great now, actually some proper jumps you can fit at a decent speed. Need to rag it to clear the last table & hip

I’m good thanks, at 29 and being fit enough to go up 3 mile climb in under 20 minutes with breaking too much of a sweat an ebike is a long way for me!

It just strikes me as a bit of trail that didn’t really need attention. I’m not a fan of all the jumpy stuff that seems to be appearing everywhere, not just degla. Maybe it’s because I’m not a great jumper or a bit old school, but give me a fast, steep-ish and rough/technical trail any day of the week.

The main issue I have with the last descent (Now called the Darkside) that leads back to the cafe is the roughness isn’t from the trail itself but the fact it’s ridden so much. There’s a large hole right before the boarded section that has claimed a number of rims that I know of (mine included) and to me it just needs a bit of TLC to spruce it. Aside from that I love it, great descent with some nice tables and the rock gardens at the end will keep you focussed if you hit them too fast!

The new section that’s replaced the drop is pants. The rock garden into it is nice but after that it’s just to hard to maintain speed for the jump at the end. The others changes they’ve made are good but not a fan of this section. The last descent is bad need of some work, some the holes and braking bumps there are getting out of hand. I blame e-bikes!

Got one of mine already! I adore my Spur, it does everything I want it to and way more, the fastest but also most fun bike I’ve owned by far. It’d be nice to have some even lighter wheels and a 200mm Reverb AXS whenever they do one, and I will get round to sorting out some oil slick ti bolts for the stem one day, but aside from that, it’s perfect as is!

Out of his depth in F2, let alone F1, should never have been given a super license really. There’s moving up struggles and having an iffy car, but spins in every race so far, repeatedly getting in the way of other drivers… just all smacks of being lost at sea with no hope of turning it around, and that’s before we get in to sexual harassment issues… Sooner he’s dropped the better

All 35mm Sids are just a simple on-off open or pretty much full lock out, with no in between compression adjust. Select+ and Ultimate are for sure super firm when in the “locked” position.

I’ve been on a Select+ Sid on my Spur for 7 months now and I don’t recall ever getting more than 100-110mm or so out of them but honestly they still feel great and I never feel short changed. They’re supple when they should be and give support when I want it and even though I use most of the travel on the Sidluxe shock on most rides (in theory using slightly more travel), the bike doesn’t feel unbalanced. I would set them so you’re happy with small bump response and the rest should be good from experience!

I’d go GX AXS personally, I’ve been on it since release day and it is chuffing good. I rode everyday in April and only had to recharge the battery at the end of the month. Very smooth and consistent, plus you’ll never have to replace a gear cable again! The add-on rocker paddle upgrade is worth going for too I found.

I really didn’t get on Shimano’s 11-speed stuff (or SRAM’s for that matter!) everything I tried just felt cheap and nasty compared to 10-speed that went before, but the 12-speed mechanical SRAM has been spot on for me and AXS is on another level.

They are very, very different bikes, so odd to cross shop them! The Epic Evo is basically a more trail friendly XC bike (downcountry, whatever etc) where as the Optic is a proper trail bike through and through and will ride way differently despite the similar travel. For me the more important question than the size is which bike is right for your riding.

Sounds like a Spur would be perfect if you can find one. A lot of the confidence people find from the 150mm travel bikes is more down to geometry than travel, you’re just adding weight and suspension for the sake of it a lot of the time. Short of black runs at the likes of BPW/Stiniog or super, super steep hand cut trails like Macc forest/llangollen, I’d be happy riding my Spur on most things in the UK. The beauty is in it’s weight and geometry, it’s XC bike rapid but has the geo to really let fly on the way down. I adore mine!

I want one. I was just thinking the earlier I wish I’d had one of the Ti SodaMax’s they did, but really as a compliment to the Spur, this is probably better, a proper forever bike… Damn I’m tempted!

There’s a lot to be said for being over-tyred (wasn’t there a thread on that recently?) you’d be surprised what you can get away with grip/durability wise. The thing with a lot of modern bikes is the geometry allows riders to just plough through things, but that’s not always the best way and tyres/rims take the brunt of the abuse. Be a bit more selective with your lines and not just rely on the geometry to get you through it and lighter, faster tyres might become more useable and make climbing less of a chore. Same can be said of enduro bikes for a lot of folks, but that’s a whole different debate! Does make me wonder though if the riders who have sold their enduro bike to get an ebike or one to go along side it would have done so had they actually ridden a more appropriate, lighter, shorter travel bike rather than lug a 35lb+ beast around a lap of trail centre…

I’ve got a MK5 Soul with the Long shot geometry and do find it a long old bike. It’ll do big, long rides, but like others have said, they do feel a lot more downhill orientated compared to the older bikes. You could always size down and fit a longer 50mm stem rather than the 35mm they recommend and get a more traditional fit, just need to make sure you have enough seatpost in the frame.

I only found out the other day that Vettel won the 4 championships and comfortably beat his teammate up until his first child was born and has neither won a championship or really beaten his teammate (I don’t think Kimi was really trying) since.

Possibly just coincidence, but being a father does change you mentally.

I’m wondering if his heart’s really in it, whether he thinks it is or not.

All due to respect to Mark Webber, he’s a good driver, but not a world beater. He’d even say so much himself. The Red Bull’s him and Vettel were equipped with at the time were immensely quick and he got incredibly lucky in 2010 and 2012. I didn’t exactly respect Alonso at the time, but in my mind, the titles from those years are his, especially so 2012 when he pulled together one of the best seasons I’ve ever seen, only to be robbed by Grosjean deciding he wanted to be a Torpedo at Spa and then getting wiped out by Raikkonen at Suzuka. Worth remembering that in 2013 as well, after Pirelli went back to the 2012 tyre after the Hungarian grand prix after the Silverstone failures that year, Red Bull gained massively from that and everyone else who was closer at the time fell back.

Don’t get me wrong, he’s a decent driver, but his career has been littered with mistakes, crashes and blame gaming. The quality drivers really shine through out their career. Alonso has been on it since the start, so has Lewis (2011 personal life shambles of a year aside), add the old guard of Senna, Prost and Lauda to the list. The newer, younger generation, Leclerc, Verstappen et al. have made mistakes, but not with the frequency and consequence of Seb. Pressure him and he’ll buckle.

In those title years, Red Bull built the cars to qualify at the front, run at full chat from pole, build a gap and cruise to the finish. When that didn’t happen and he was made to work and scrap, he made mistakes, just like he does now. When push comes to shove, to me he’s just not of the same calibre of others and the titles are not reflective of his overall level at all. Just my opinion of course!

You can match it up with a GX Eagle derailleur and cassette for 10-50t though, hence the lack of 10-42T option. I’m weighing up a new gravel bike from a frame and tempted by this for sure!

Maybe but I needed a set so just ordered as such.

As did I when I got my G2 ultimates from R2-bike, but bought them separately as I worked out (with the help of a few forum folks) I’d have a better chance of slipping through the net so to speak. Worked out about tenner more than buying a pair before added fees, but they got through no issue at all as both were under £135, rather than a collective £260.

Most shops will be told what they can have, rather than actually being able to order what they want. A lot of bikes coming are already pre-sold too. Honestly, you can’t be too picky and for christ sake don’t ask for a discount regardless of how much a bike is. The shop will sell it all day long at RRP. Overall, you’ll be in one of 2 places: falling lucky and getting something along the lines of what you want soon-ish, or pre-ordering and waiting a few weeks/months.

Been on it since the day after launch and well impressed so far! I got on okay with the stock rocker paddle but upgraded to the newer style rocker and prefer that overall I think. Shifting is fast, crisp and consistent, seems better under load than the mechanical X01 I took off the bike (which shifted super well already!). Been riding every day this month, just a quick half hour spin before work and the battery is still good in the mech, still flashes green when I check the battery life. Overall, well impressed and basically indistinguishable from the X01 AXS I’ve ridden before.

I’ve recently thrown a 2.35 Maxxis Rekon Race on the back of my Spur and put the normal 2.4 Rekon that was on the rear up front and I’m loving it. So fast but still just enough bit in softer ground. I previously owned a T130 and it was much faster feeling once I swapped the Minion DHF/ HRII combo I had on there for a set of 2.35 Maxxis Forekasters, again, great speed and a little more versatile than the Rekon Race. You’re definitely on the right lines going for lighter/faster but still reasonably tough and wide, I think a lot of brands and riders over-tyre their bikes for some reason!

The Smuggler, particularly the later SBG frames, were heavy AF. close to 9lb for the frame and shock. You’d have to work very hard and spend some serious coin to get one under 30lb, let alone the 26/27lb build for the Spur. FWIW, my Spur (large GX) was 12.4kg without pedals when I got it, it’s now at 12.3kg (now with XT trail pedals) with a few upgrades.

Fair play Pigyn, they look great, is the frame the same as the NS Synonym? Looks very similar on paper. The only gripe I have is the seat tube on the large is super long, otherwise you’re spot on, it’s a very good comparison to the Spur. I just find it crazy NS charge so much for a catalogue frame built into a full bike!

Honestly, sounds like you need a Spur. Nothing gets too close in terms of weight and geometry. Heavier bikes get close geo-wise, steeper, racier bikes get close on the weight. A Spark is a close match weight wise and the suspension is similar (taking the pointless twinloc out the equation).

I’m biased as I’ve got a Spur, but honestly, it’s bent my mind with how fast, fun and capable it is. The thing just generates grip and speed like nothing I’ve ridden.

I’ve just put the Rekon rear tyre on the front and a put a new Rekon Race on the back and honestly it now feels as fast as any proper race bike I’ve ridden but can still be proper trail hooligan. I rode a friends Tallboy recently and it felt nowhere near as fast. It might have an edge on really rough terrain, the kind where you think a 120mm bike is probably under-gunning it, but everywhere else, it’s not as good IMO.

The Spurs are pricey, but the back up is great from Transition if you need, they look amazing and are beyond fun to ride. I adore mine!

If you’re expecting it to be “different”, don’t. I’d say in rude terms they’ll feel similar. Different in how they do their business yes, but as a bike to go alongside a Jeffsy? Not different enough, don’t let the shorter travel fool you, the Druid rides and handles like a longer travel bike. If you wanted to replace the Jeffsy, it’d be a cracking option, but for something more lively than it, not the right option for me. Something like a Tallboy, Spur, Izzy or Ripley would be more along the lines I’d be looking if I found myself wanting something more agile than a Jeffsy.

Got mine last Friday, day after Launch. 2 rides on it so far and its ace, as the reviews have said, feels far crisper and more consistent than any mechanical Eagle drivetrain I’ve had. Adds about 70g over the mechanical X01 I took off, which is not much really although the rear mech is CHUNKY! It’s still not cheap, but its going to be popular for sure, especially for the OE market on complete bikes next year.

You shouldn’t need the extender if you get the right hanger, I’d just get the hanger first and go from there

Looking online, looks like any models that were originally equipped with Shimano mechs had the Shimano Direct Mount mech hanger and the Sram equipped models had a regular one. New (non-direct mount) mech hanger required!

No brainer, OneUp for me. Have 2 of the 180mm drop posts and they just work, are easy to work on yourself and are cheap as chips to buy, service and rebuilt if you need too. Seem a great company to deal with too if you do have issues. I think the price and ease of service would be good enough, then for it to be pretty light, have plenty of drop and a super short overall length and seem just as smooth as any Reverb/Transfer or other high-end post I’ve tired, I can’t recommend it enough.

Cheers Stu, excellent help! I do feel like I run heel heavy, so the Endorphin sounds like a miss too. Will give the Triumph’s a try and see how they feel, reviews I’ve read seem to suggest they’re good for beginners

Cheers for the feedback so far all. Reading up a bit more, sounds like of the Saucony range I should steer more towards the Triumph or the Endorphin Shift, the reviews for both look good. I’m not to arsed by speed. I’m 29 and pretty fit, but I’m not going to be looking to be doing mega miles or going for 6 minute miles either! I just want something comfortable to take the stress off my hips and knees that’ll last well. Hoping to try the Triumph soon, checked just now and Endorphin isn’t in stock yet. Any other feedback would be much appreciated though!