I agree a trail bike is good enough but be mindful of having enough travel for your weight. I'm 210 pounds with at least 10+ pounds and gear and I barely have enough travel for hard hits. I'm at 27.5 w/150/140. I'd love to get a long travel 29er w/ 160+, front and back!
@@justsayin3600 Proper setup matters, short travel and high weight (I have two stone on you) still works quite well - the only reason that logic still persists is that then you're in real Clyde territory, you need overbuilt, and those parts tend not to come on shorter travel options.
Me one month ago: “I’d like to buy an MTB to enjoy the trails lesser traveled near where I live. I bet it’s gonna be a simple purchasing decision”. Me now: “I wish I’d never started researching MTB’s.”
Ibis Ripmo, hands down best all arounder. I know several people who own one. If that's out of your price range, a hardtail might be a good option depending on where you live, the Kona Honzo is pretty nice.
Mountain bikers can be so snobby. I see kids cooking a lot of mountain bike trails on cheap old mountain bikes. Don’t let not having a fancy downhill or enduro rig stop you from shredding. Love this video.
@@arranroberts1463 Snobs get everywhere, you'll find them in every aspect of life. They will often be nice to your face, and laugh behind your back. Just enjoy riding what you have and upgrade when you can afford to, if you really feel the bike is holding you back. A good bike does not a good rider make.
About 50 years ago my buddies and I wanted to ride our bikes off road in the woods downhill. So we took our standard upright kids bikes and stripped off the mudguards and put these big cow horn handle bars on. Then we proceeded to quickly destroy our bikes in the woods … but it was fun 🤣
@@arranroberts1463 being snobbish doesn't necessarily mean being a dick. But the judgement flows like water if you bring up the right, or wrong, subject with folks. I talked to a very nice man on the lift last month who talk as if anyone with a bike under $10k shouldn't be allowed on the mountain with him. I don't even think he got the irony of telling that to me on my $3.5k bike.
I started (back in '98) on a RIGID. By 2000 I was riding a hardtail. I then rode an XC bike with... wait for it!... 90mm of travel on the rear and a 100mm fork at the front, complete with a manual lockout (for climbing) and NO anti-bob features at all. As I pass the half-century mark, I'm just now upgrading to a new (21st Century) trail bike.
Theres a kid in Chihuahua mex who rides a cheap hardtail on tourist trail who is a guide and people with 6000 dlls enduro bikes and can't catch up.... My point is what ever works for you
I gues it also depends a lot where you live. As for me, living in the middle of the alps, I'm more happy with my current enduro that my previous trail bike ...
I live in flat terrain and even here I prefer my enduro bike. I m easy with carrying that extra kg for not thinking about flat landings or chicken lines once I m in a bikepark.
I live in the rhine valley which has a few notoriously gnarly trails. I ride a 130 mill trail bike with really grippy enduro tires, and i am totally happy with it, even though everyone else is riding enduro bikes.
Yes to trail bikes! I had a Santa Cruz Heckler from 2007 that took me everywhere: downhill racing, skislope shredding, long epic rides and even around the Annapurna circuit. With 26" wheels! Then I got a hardtail Specialized Fuse with 27.5 plus wheels and it blew my mind, for how capable it is and how fun, and even slacker than the heckler! With this bike I haven't been riding ski slopes, neither racing downhill, but it still could do it, maybe not very fast, but fast enough to have tons of fun. After all, is not about the bike, but also the rider's skills... To finish, I'd say: just ride whatever works for you, have fun and respect other bikers choices. Happy trails!
I rode a short travel 29er everywhere. I rode double black, steep backcountry descents, whole enchilada. It's what I had, and I could often keep up with people who rode much more aggressive bikes. I switched to an enduro this year, but I'm convinced that you really don't need that much travel to get down pretty much any trail, it's just nice to have if you're trying to rip downhill.
Have to agree with this video! Absolutely love my enduro bike but I can ride my trail bike on all the same trails. The trail bike just makes you pick your line a little more thoughtfully
I have one gravel bike with road tires and knobby 700c 40 tires to swap between and one full sus trail bike with two stem sizes to adjust ride position for DH or trail. That's all I need anything more is overkill imo
I'm still riding a 2011 giant trance x2 26" wheel bike, nice and light. I had a fully decked out niner wfo 9 I built, manitou triple,, Hammerschmit, dropper post, she was big, heavy and just too much bike for my trails.
All your arguments stem from 'trail' not being a competitive category and being more user friendly because of it (customer wishes end up being more diverse and designers will end up abiding those needs in stead of mere in-race-performance). I'd argue the trail bike is also the best learning platform for new riders because it is less specialized to a specific discipline. However, I disagree with it being the jack of all trades, master of none. Some traverse-ey type trails are definitely most suited to trail bikes. Perhaps you thought only of competitions and judged there's no race that typically suits trail bikes best. This doesn't mean trails and uses don't exist for which the typical trail bike is the best weapon of choice :) - it only means professional races aren't organized which zero in on those uses (yet).
I only own XC bike, but yeah, feels like a trail bike is a real do-it-all without much drawbacks here and there. If I had option for 2 bikes, that'd probably be gravel and trail
It'd always be a XC hardtail for me. Not only as a only mountain bike but also as a only bike full stop. Enough to chase friends on gravel and road bikes, enough to ride all my local trails and also just about enough to go outside the comfort zone in the 'gnar' :P
Agreed. Here in the Mid-West, even with Esker-Kame topography, a smartly equipped XC Hardtail, with a variety of wheelsets given the occasion, should be the only bike one needs.
@@REVMuscleCars Some people make a big deal out of XC frame geometry with the steeper head tube angle and the shorter axle to axle length of the bike being a negative for rougher, technical terrain and downhills. I was thinking of getting an XC bike anyway for an all-arounder. As an XC hardtail rider, what do you think of all that?
@@madcapper6 Read PK's reviews on Commencal Meta TR - an trail bike tilted towards enduro! I love mine!!! I also bought lower end SRAM and upgraded derailleur (not cassette) and shifter to GX.
I love mine because of the versatility - I can lighten it up to be more XC focused by putting on lighter wheels and tires, or I can put on heavier, more robust wheels and tires to make it capable of a lot more aggressive terrain. It does a little bit of everything well enough for my needs.
Nice I've just got a 805 people on full susses tell me it's bad for what I ride but it's so fun even when it gets rough from the challenge and there's no better feeling then beating that 40 year old on his 7k bike saying it's impossible on a ht
I ride enduro trails o an XC hardtail with my buddies. It's not the fastest but it can get through alright so in my opinion saying a full sus trail bike is not capable just means you need to push your skills a little more
How’s Powerline? I used to love that ride. We would start from Spenard, ride all the way up the powerline, over the pass and down to Indian, and then back into town on the highway. Good ride; about 55 miles.
I have a Scott Spark 940, and it's the best hybrid of XC and Trail. It can handle absolutely anything technical, while retaining some incredible cross country efficiency.. And it looks gorgeous!
My friend went full XC for a while and did some big races, Leadville for example. So much training became a burden and he got burnt out. He won’t ride with me because the trails are too rough for him/ bike. My 140 mm full sus 29er treats me well and I’m riding the crap out of it ( though I do wish for that XC bike when I’m earning my down-hill runs).
The trail bike allows you to make great mtb routes, going up almost as good as an xc bike, and going down almost as good as an enduro bike. Buut you won't win an xc race nor enduro race.
Bottledincork - I tried racing a few times. Pay to ride, wait and be told when to start, lines for the bathroom, crowded trails. Not for me, I ride for the fun and freedom. I guess a trail bike is best for me too.
Did you see any taking part in the Tour de France? How about in Trials riding, extreme downhill or cyclo-cross? How about the daily commute, carrying the shopping or cycle touring? Your idea of the "ultimate machine" is different to most. 🙄
Trail bikes are good enough for almost everything but if you do ride a lot of DH tracks the overall greater durability of enduro and DH bikes will definitely be appealing
Great point. One thing is that you can 100% ride a 130 mm trail bike down most of downhill tracks. But its bearings, bushings, rear wheel wont like it at all.
This is why bikes like the Ripmo and Sight are perfect all-conditions bikes. Can do anything short of riding off a cliff with them. Enduro monster trucks are just too much bike 95% of the time. That said, if it climbs decently who cares....
Twill Ongenbone thats the thing with my yeti sb6 it pdeals like a dream with no bobbing or anything and you can even ride some tours on it without being hindered too much but if it comes to trails you can just shred whatever you want and there are almost no limits so perfect bike for me
I feel like a trail bike is like a good jackknife. Is it the best tool for every job? Of course not, but it does everything good enough for my needs. I'm not a racer, and there isn't much in the way of DH in my local area. If I could, I'd own a bike for every discipline, but you know there's things like a mortgage, and a car payment to think about... so I have a decent commuter bike for around town, and a 130mm trail bike which is plenty for any of my local trails.
Absolutely. 1 week of ownership with a GT Sensor 29er has convinced me that I really don't need another bike. Bike park laps, singletrack, XC loops, does it all.
I think it's all about the rider. The MTB scene here in Melbourne is a cesspit of kids with 10 grand full squishes who can't even hit the smallest jump in the bike park or pick a line down a rock garden. I ride a Trek Marlin 5 and despite being the worst possible tool for anything over a hard blue trail, I somehow managed to drag it down a double black tech trail with a 10-foot double where you land on wet, mossy rocks. Trust me, it's not fun but it did the job, and though you probably want something with a bit more travel, but the best XC racer could probably drag a DH bike up, and a DH racer could probably drag an XC bike down. For me, I would go enduro just because they climb ok and you can also take it to a bike park like whistler. thanks for reading this long comment :)
Great comment, I ride a Marlin 5 too, trhew Mavic Crossirde wheels on it, Shimano SLX Groupset and brakes + Rockshox Recon solo air front fork. Solid and nice frame and 1x11 groupset gives great response. This bike is like a unicorn, every time I go out a guy or two on the trail ask me to pull over to check it out with their own eyes :D
Yep, great comment. I know what you mean about those kids. I just got a Marlin 7 but would like to spec it up just a bit so it could handle some moderate DH stuff but not too crazy .. what upgrades would you do if any?
Jerry Martin I would recommend an air fork and a 1x, they are relatively cheap and if you are progressing a lot and want to stay on the same bike then they do bits for you on the trail. I had a bit of money saved so I bought a nice trail bike but a hardtail with upgrades are great. Oh, and also chuck some good tires on it, it’s super great to have grip on a trail.
@@hc90256 thanks mate, I have the 1x as its a 2021 so got a head start there. Yes, I was looking at an air fork but not sure on 120 or 130? I think it can only fit 120? Tyres are a definite, it comes with 2.2 but maybe looking at 2.3? I'm probably over thinking it too much, too many bloody options! Otherwise other option is ride the wheels off it as is and save for a trail bike 🤙
Any bike with full suspension can be ruled out if you do any bikepacking. OK, you can in theory bikepack with full sus, but i would imagine the load carrying is limited.
Let’s face it, whether a bike is going to feel sketchy as shit once you push it is more dependent on geometry (most importantly), stem length, tires, brakes, having or not having a dropper, and handlebar width moreso than than 30 or 40 mm of travel. More travel will allow a rider to go faster through gnarlier stuff, and will open different lines, but the amount of suspension is not going to allow or prevent someone from safely doing most trails or features. And the beauty of a trail bike is that if you ride more XC type stuff you can get one more oriented towards that end of the trail riding spectrum, and if you like to do some enduro type stuff a bit you can get one oriented more towards that end of the spectrum.
For me its a modern long travel slack hardtail. 160mm fork 64 deg ha. Extremely capable and under rated bikes. You really have to ride one to appreciate just how capable they are. The ability to build Speed by pumping on flow tracks is beyond compare, is equally at home at the bike park, very responsive bikes, a bit like riding an over sized bmx bike. And on top of that less maintenance.
The best bike is the one you feel good about it. I've seen radicals that go to gravel group rides in DH bikes because they just love their bikes and they're not considering getting a more "appropriate" bike, or people that never got used to full suspension bikes (yeah, I've seen them, in DH racing). I agree that trail bikes are "great for everything, best for nothing". Factors like aesthetics also comes to play in this game, I dare to say many of us are looking for the most beautiful, badass, cool, nice bike.
Give me a full suspension trail bike or a Hardtail trail bike any day. I just got my first bike which is a Cross Country bike and you can't do everything on it.
You can argue til the cows come home, but you won't get people to agree, because they all want something slightly different. And people tend to argue that what they currently have is ideal... pride and ego are huge obstacles to overcome. 😁
Have a Giant Anthem 2 27.5 2017 model. I'm only 5ft8'. It's 28lb with deore and SLX with a chunky Fox upfront. 120mm at the front 115mm at the rear. It transcends cross country and trail riding beautifully. They do the 29er Trance now with the same travel. I love my best of both worlds bike. Anyone ridden both the last model of the Anthem 27.5 and the latest 29er Trance? Evolution or nice difference? Happy riding everyone!
At the moment I don't get out much with my child about. So I have an enduro bike which makes up for my lack of practice and skills/fitness which have declined over the onset of fatherhood. Safer option.
I've been riding my Patrol and I really like riding with more travel than I need. I really enjoy the added confidence. Of course, it is a bit of a chore winching myself up hills on it...
yes, I am a novel at MTB and my fist time in a bikepark was also the first time I rode my Giant reign 160mm I was landing everyjump, even if my technique was bad I would not fall since the 160mm would save me everytime; I sold the bike to get a size more of my fitting but covid happened and there's just no bikes anywhere, I borrowed my brother's old 26inchs specialized with 120mm; I crashed my first jump, an small jump and I went over the bike
Bought all mountain (trail) bike hwatever you call it. Giant trance x 29 and i was dissapointed. Downgrade from my previous giant trance 2 2014. Clumsy fat heavy 29 coll sucks. 15 front 13.5 rear travel isn't enough. and after all that I had my tubeless tire pumped on 1.8bar rear and when i did bunnyhop on some high road curb and i hit it with rear wheel the tires burst and the rim twisted a lot. New trends are shit and trail bikes suck. Selling that shitty bike after 3 weeks of use and buying enduro. So pissed I wasted my money on this.
My perfect trail bike is a 27+ Hardtail with a 120-130mm travel fork, that's why I am picking mine up on Friday after the shop builds it up. Friday = New Bike Day 😁
I was thinking the same thing a while ago, but with how capable in all ways possible bikes have become, IMHO the do it all MTB nowadays is an All mountain full suspension bike, with 130-140mm rear travel, and 140-150mm front travel... Or a beefed up trail bike with 150mm travel in front, if looking to upgrade
Sometimes I love to ride my NINER AIR 9 hardtail (2014) with 120 mm front fox, carbon wheels, and sometimes I love my SC HIGHTOWER C. Depends on my mood and how crazy I want to get. I will admit, the fun factor for my aluminum hardtail is hard to ignore, so quick and nimble. BUT the Hightower, lets get crazy on the rough/downhill stuff.
I bought a hardtail because I thought it might be better somewhere than my capra. (And because hardtails were heavily marketed some months ago, and I am a stupid sheep). It isn't. I still ride my capra everywhere, when I am on a casual ride in the woods I just add some air in the dampers and it is perfect.
Enduro bikes are the way to go because you don't have to sacrifice anything on the climb and you don't sacrifice anything on the downhills versus trail bikes trail bikes tend to not be as efficient as an Enduro or a cross-country when it comes time for pedaling uphill and they sacrifice a lot when it comes two down hills
I am totally with you guys, but i would say that there are a few mor beefier trail bikes which are, in my opinion, the do-it-all-bikes. Eg Canyon Spectral, YT Jeffsy, Ibis Ripmo,.... You got all the advantages you mentioned in the video but still a tiny bit more travel for the rougher stuff
You're free to choose whichever bike you like, assuming you can afford it. The number of people who would stick with their current bike is probably quite high. After all, they spent good money on it and would hate to admit to anyone they made an expensive mistake. 😁
@@another3997 "expensive mistake" what a word! I have an XC, Trail and DH but for the most part I'd still go by my DH ... Tell me, why buying and loving the bike you used the most is a "mistake"
I've been riding yt jeffsy 150mm trail bike for 2 years after 8 years on DH/FR bikes. I ride 95% of trails FASTER NOW. The only exception is super rough dh lines. DOWNHILL BIKES ARE DEAD
I think for the average and experienced rider trail bikes are far more capable then people give credit. I've lived in the Kootenays (B.C) for 3 years now and the amount of people out on the trails with $6000+ Enduro sleds who avoid just about every trail feature is upsetting. Dh bikes, oh man, I don't think some people actually realize how much bike that is. Takes a pretty confident, skilled rider to push 8" of travel to it's limits that's for sure. I wouldn't say dh bikes are dead!
My all arounder has been my 2009 Trek Remedy 8 . I have no complaints since doing the coil swap on the lyric 2 step fork and putting a fox on back. Has been a great all around bike. I also love my 2008 S-works ht for any xc . Both are still running strong
Enduro bike for me. As for affordability, my 2020 Whyte G-170s cost less than my 2019 Giant Trance 2. However, my 2019 Transition Patrol is more expensive and cost just a bit over $3000. I have rode many Enduro bikes, the G-170s is the best climber and descender. It's amazingly stable on the fast, loose DH trails. The climbing feels effortless on both the Trance 2 and G-170s. Whereas, the Patrol feels like I'm towing a tank.
If you love bikes you will have more then one😂 ten years ago I had a crapbike wich had no Definition... just... a bike... two wheels and so on. Know I have a Daily roadbike, a Mixture of road and gravelbike wich I converted myself from an old bike, an hardtail and my newest one, a Trailbike 😅
I recently sold my trail bike for a "down-country" style xc bike. It basically works as a short travel trail bike. And can get some what deep into enduro territory, while still being a light weight KOM beast
Ahah down country. I love my giant anthem x1. Still a trail bike but lighter and shorter travel. Good at climbing while not sacrificing too much dh capability
@@twinshock175 yeah, but in all honesty with this geo, the xc model is plenty enough trail bike for me. I'll probably try the longer fork and shock at some point though.
This has got to be one of the best reviews I've seen because I have agree on all the points you guys made about the TRAIL BIKES I LOVE MY TRAIL BIKE THANKS GUYS!
I can ride my hardtail Whyte 905 anywhere I can on my Orbea Rallon. Sure I get beat up by the lack of suspension more and some sections I have to be more careful, but I am still having loads of fun. But on the flipside, I ride my Rallon on XC trails sometimes and even though it is overly plush and not as playful on those trails, I am still having loads of fun. Point is, bikes are fun, enjoy what you have!
IMHO the best all-rounder is a full suspension XC bike. They feel great on XC trails (duh), are reasonably good at jumps, provided you don't hit anything bigger than like 5 feet or so, and they're decent for riding downhill if fitted with a dropper.
You can argue the same with most bikes... they can do some things well and some things adequately. There isn't one type of bike that is very good at everything. Just accept that they all have limitations, and you can get on and just enjoy riding.
I have a trail bike Marin Rift Zone 2. I changed my fork to Yari but reduced travel to 150mm and changed the tires to DHF/DHR combo. Worked wonders for me. Still a trail bike in a sense
I'd agree before I got my '20 Specialized Enduro. It handles techy climbs, rocky jank and tight switchbacks better than most trail bikes, and isn't nearly as far behind in efficiency as you'd think. Then on the way down it's almost magical. I can't imagine a better overall bike to cover challenging trail riding all the way through laps at the dh park. I just want a light 130mm version of the exact same thing for all day long distance epics...
Then the Specialized 2020 Stumpy ST Alloy 29er is for you, not too pricy not too heavy very upgradable (if your into that) and looks like a runway model. My Stumpy can handle anything I can throw at it and she's so much fun to be on.
I have a 130/130 27.5 trail bike. It descends much nicer than my 100/80 26” xc bike used to, though it does weight 33lbs. I feel like if I bought a 150mm fork it would basically almost be an enduro bike at that point. And I could always swap back to 130 if I wanted. Fork swaps aren’t that hard. It’s never going to be an xc race bike but I’ll take the stability and travel. I was never going to be in shape for racing either.
A trail bike is generally a very good choice for most riders. Mine (Pivot 429) is great for both backcountry XC and also works fine for bike park tech and small to medium drops. But if I live in a really flat area, I'd likely just get a XC bike. If I lived next to a bike park, I'd likely make an enduro my main ride.
I upgraded from an older pure XC race hardtail 100/0, to XC full suspension 100/80, to a trail bike 130/130 in the span of 2 summers. Where I live the trails are covered in giant sharp rocks. The FS trail bike feels SO MUCH NICER. I reckon that if I swap to a 160 or 170mm fork someday in the future I’ll almost have an enduro/freeride bike. No amount of upgrading was going to make either of my XC bikes comfy on super gnarly lines... but since I can barely jump and have no business riding downhill there’s no need to ever go bigger than a trail bike.
Not all our comments are always right. I'm trying to buy a CUBE STEREO HYBRID, and I can't decide if I should go with 140 SL or 160 SL? www.cube.eu/en/2021/e-bikes/mountainbike/fullsuspension/stereo-hybrid-140/cube-stereo-hybrid-140-hpc-sl-625-iridiumngreen/ www.cube.eu/en/2021/e-bikes/mountainbike/fullsuspension/stereo-hybrid-160/cube-stereo-hybrid-160-hpc-sl-625-275-pacificnred/ Pro for 160 SL: -better suspension, I think. -cheaper -less weight -looks nicer Pros for 140 SL: -bigger wheels 29, compare to 27,5 -faster on trails, more easy on up hills I think 160 SL, as you have a motor and a battery and you don't need to warry about going fast or up hills.
I’d agree. Except that I have two dh bikes that I would rather push up the hill if I had to choose between pushing the bike up the hill or riding my trail bike. But yeah. If I had to pick a bike it would be 150mm travel so pretty much all mountain (probably because I have shall we say more show hill then trail).
Right now I ride a 27.5 XC H/T. I weigh 180lbs and I am 68 years old. I really love the 'purest' H/T. What I am missing though is what really is the difference between a full susp XC and a full susp. trail bike?????
I Ride a 2019 Cannondale Scalpel Lefty 27lbs 100mm travel Great all around Bike and a 2020 Turbo Levo Comp That’s the best Bike of all For my preference and Budget 💪🏻 But seriously any bike that you own and use is better than NO Bike
