wobbliscott – Member
OK, if you want to do 10 foot drop off’s and tail whips off 6 ft gap jump a ride like an 18 year old hard core ‘yoof’ then clearly a 29er is not the right tool for the job. But the majority of recreational riders – especially middle aged recreational riders, get off the ground is 6 inches and tackle the occasional rock garden on a black run at a trail centre, so not exactly pushing the envelope of human achievement on an MTB and not likely to attract the attention of Red Bull any time soon. All they’re after t is a bit of a thrill at the weekend before the monotony and drudgery of the monday morning grind starts, and speed gives that thrill, so by that reckoning a 29er is not hampering the riders experience at all and may very well be adding to it. You never know till you try – keeping an open mind is the key to so many things in life. I think if you’re having to resort to throwing the bike around at any stage then there is something wrong with your technique. When I watch the Pro’s doing their stuff it looks to me like they’re not having to man-handle their bikes, just the opposite.
Good post!
I rode one for the first time yesterday, I’m 5’8. To be honest turning was not noticeably different to my 26″ bike in my local woodsy singletrack. What was noticeable was the difference in acceleration between the two, the 26″ has got it there, also I felt that the 26″ climbed quicker but I’ve been ill so that might be me.
In all though, having ridden 26″ wheels forever I prefer the 29er, it took about 1/2 hour to get used to it which isn’t too bad considering it’s a hard tail with a big wheel and I’ve been riding 26″ fs bikes since 1996.
It rolls better once up to speed, it seems to have good grip in the corners, I’m more in than on the bike and most importantly it was fun. I bought one too 🙂
It’ll be interesting to see if I’m faster on it, not that it matters as I think I’ll have more fun on a bike that is more suited to the flatlands of Kent.
