Favorite Bike So Far?

[smmokan]

Thought this would be a cool thread since there are so many members on here who have ridden a ton of bikes, in a variety of locations. Could be a good resource for those looking to buy something specific, too. Feel free to add gravel/XC/HT bikes too.

Enduro bike for super rowdy/steep/technical trails: Forbidden Dreadnought, set up with 170 Lyrik and Cascade Link (Rockshox SDU) in back making it 165mm rear travel.

Enduro bike for big rides: Specialized Stumpy EVO, 160mm CC Helm II up front and Cascade Link (CC Kitsuma Air) in rear for 158mm travel.

Trail Bike: Propain Hugene, 140 front (Pike Ultimate) and 140 rear (Rockshox SDU). Very close second is the GG Trail Pistola, RIP.

[Roxtar]

After spending time on several multi linked bikes; Nomad, Bronson, Hightower Pivot 429 Enduro, Canfield Lithium, and Ibis Ripmo, I found the one I could live with forever.
A year on an Evil Offering has made me a huge fan of Weigel's Delta Link. Amazing at climbing large jank. Sort of Canfield-ish in it's ability to get up & over anything in it's way, yet extremely supportive when working with gravity and just a great all-round trail bike.
The Offering is a trail bike with teeth. I rode it in a chunky enduro without feeling under-gunned anywhere, but very playful and fun on ordinary trails. Like I said, this was "The One".

Then...

I just built up a Wreckoning for a client and it was a revelation.
I took it on several flatish, trail rides (I knew it would be great on DH chunk) and, frankly, it felt amazingly close to my Offering on terrain it had no right to.
None of that big rig sluggishness. None of that, "Please get me off this trail and point me DH" feel. And that was with the coil rear.
Putting an Ohlins TTX2Air or Vivid on one would take it to the next level, IMO.
I'm now viewing an air-sprung Wrecker as the evolution of "Why Not" bikes.

"Why Not" bikes?
The Ripmo and Offering had 120mm pedaling performance in a 140mm platform so "why not?"
The Wrecker takes that ethos up to 160mm.

[Bunion 2020]

Only owned around 6 Mtn Bikes since my 1st in 1986.

1. Focus something or another. It was what you would expect for that era.
2. Fisher Montare SC, I really liked that bike except for the U-brake under the chain stays. Won the 1989 UT State Championship sport class on it.
3. Fisher SC7. I really like that bike a lot but the fasteners kept breaking where the rear steel triangle bolted on to the AL front, managed a 7th place in a NORBA National at Deer Valley and moved to MT. Fisher eventually warrantied the frame but I had fallen in love with Kayaking and hardly rode until 2002.
4. 2003 worked hard as a carpenter and felt I owed myself a treat, bought an Ellsworth Truth, my 1st full suspension, 3.5" x 3.5". It was OK.
5. Traded that into EW for an Epiphany for more travel, tube angles were a bit steeper than I liked. Rode it for a few years but it was a 26" bike so I went bigger, ended up giving it to a kid who was broke and wanted a bike.
6. Pivot Mach 6, 2016 (27.5) Still riding it. I like it very much, climbs decently, descends well and is a skinch under 28 lbs. It is also a 2x. I will continue to ride it til it breaks.

[Andeh]

Enduro bike for everything: Nomad 6. Set up with Zeb 170 & Vivid Ultimate, although I also ran it with a SDU Air and SDU Coil which felt great also. I prefer the high flip chip setting. It pedals very efficiently, has nicely progressive suspension to soak up my hackish attempts at jumping, a stiff frame, and not too much pedal kickback. In "high" its not too uber slack to become unmanageable in slower, tighter corners. Suspension feels better and better the faster you go.

Bikes I've owned and not gotten on well with:
* Sentinel V1: great geometry, but bottomed out too easily. Probably would have been a really great bike with a Cascade link, but that didn't come out until after I sold the bike.
* Smuggler (v2?): had the aluminum one, so seat insertion was bad - could only run a 150mm. Geometry was a riot, and encouraged you to ride right up to the limit of the bike. Like the Sentinel, not progressive enough.
* GG Smash / Gnarvana / Megatrail: similar story to the Sentinel: good geometry but the suspension kinematics weren't to my taste. Not very progressive (easy to bottom out), horrendous pedal kickback. I also found the geometry didn't line up with the specs - slacker than what they said. Oh well, enough beating a dead horse though.

[N1CK.]

Dj/street: Evil sovereign
(2nd runner up: og Chameleon)

Trail: this current gen Pivot Mach 6.

[Full Trucker]

Enduro bike for super rowdy/steep/technical trails: '22 Yeti SB150
Enduro bike for big rides: '22 Yeti SB150
Trail Bike: '22 Yeti SB150

I had a '19 SB150, and loved it. But in late 2022 I went with a smaller bike (SB130, whatever I'm an unabashed fanboi) thinking it would be more appropriate for the majority of my rides. Spent the last year really trying to like it... and while it's a great bike, it's not a great bike for me. So when I blew the shock up a couple weeks ago I found a killer deal on a brand new old stock '22 SB150, and it's easily better than the '19. Stiffer chassis, the Fox 38 is a marked improvement over the 36, and the newer Float X2 shock feels smoother and doesn't have the occasional compression spikes that the previous '19 model did.

[toast2266]

I love my old Canfield Yelli Screamy. It's been replaced by something more modern and progressive, but I still fart around on the Yelli sometimes and that thing's a blast. Way ahead of its time.

All of the modern bikes I have are great, but nothing all that special. They do their job as intended (really well), but none of them really stand out as being an all time favorite.

The last bike I had that I was pretty psyched on was a 2018 trek slash. It's dated now, and I'm sure doesn't ride as well as my modern bikes, but I really liked that thing at the time.

[Conundrum]

My fav so far would be my Spec Demo 7. But it's probably a timing thing. Really cool lift served trails being built, plenty of time to ride them, a big DH scene, bros without kids in the way to party with, a body that handled crashing better... One could really geek out technically and I'm looking at it as what bike have I had the most fun on. I'm sure there's bikes today that do everything and more compared to my old Demo.

[wkd-rdr]

I'll second the Stumpy EVO

Got a LEVO with cascade link, and that's pretty rad, too.

Wasn't ever a spesh fan, but damn, the bikes just work. My customer service experience sucked (rear tri warranty took 3 months, and they called it a moving part with only 1 year warranty) , but I keep riding that bike over my Altitude the garage.

[evdog]

I've had a lot of good bikes over the years but two really stood out:

Trail bike - 2009 Ibis Mojo. Light, nimble, great climber including both rocky tech and long pedally grinds. Loved it descending tight tech gnar and steeps. None of the bikes I've had since did all of that so consistently well. Rode this bike everywhere from 2010 to 2017. No "modern" bike I've ridden felt as natural a fit as this one, perfect geo and sizing. Kept it as a spare for a few more years and every time I hopped on it, it just made my current bike feel awkward.

DH - 2002 V10. Heavy, long, and super plush but still pedalled well for a big bike. Like the Mojo this bike just worked for me. So comfortable at speed and handled big drops. Very confidence inspiring. Owned a couple later V10 versions and some other DH bikes and they never clicked the way the V10 did.

[Shredhead]

My newest one.

Currently a Transition Spire XT w/coil.

[smartyiak]

I’m a XC guy…but only have one bike, so I got a Kona Hei Hei CR/DL. It’s fully binged w/ XX1 and I9 hydras. It is BRILLIANT for everything I do….i just love it.

I will say: I would change the wheels for DT190 w/ carbon hoops. The i9 are fantastic (they’re very pretty and awesomely buzzy)…when they work. But they have spent a TON of time as the world’s most expensive work bench trinkets. And every repair costs a BUNCH more $$$$ that a simple J-bend or straight-pull. 3/10.

I’d like a new SuperCal for racing and a longer-travel trail bike too, but the Kona covers so much of what I do, I haven’t really been able to justify a new MTB.



Sent from my iPad using TGR Forums

[detrusor]

Back when I owned the shop I scored one of those s-works ultimate carbons. Built w all the blingiest purple and carbon stuff of the time….21 pounds with a specialized carbon rock shock ….had it set up with Suntour microdrive with custom spaced hyperglide 11-24 rear cassette. Shifters were rebuilt so I could run them upside down but right side still shifter rear. Loved that bike, won a lot of races…it was awesome. Until some d-bag stole it.

[Canada1]

My first mountain bike I purchased myself was a rockhopper in 1986. Still have it. Upgraded to Tanje prestige front fork and road the ground controls off of it until the full XTR Cadex carbon fiber in 1992. Those two stand out to me because they created the passion that has remained since.

[Eluder]

2014 Remedy 29. Prior to selling I had it built up with xx1. I loved that bike.

My current Sentinel is probably better in every way but...

[WaistDeepGroomers]

2016 Evil Following. I had gotten steadily bigger and squishier bikes until I got that thing. Nothing rode like that bike then. Could bounce down Lithium off Teton Pass with 120 mm of travel, hanging on the edge the whole time, and then even when riding flat XC after moving to Maine I could double roots like it was a video game.

The rear end (which got replaced) got super flexy and after I built up an Offering, gave the old bike to a friend who'd had his stolen. Offering was more capable, but didn't have the pop the Following did.

Have a Top Fuel now that has been a lot of fun to ride around Portland (East Coast version), does great in the corners and off a built jump lip, but doesn't explore into the air off any random chip like that old orange bike. Might be driving to Rhode Island over the holiday to grab a newer Following off a guy who is not riding his enough...

Otherwise in the past decade went from an '08 Fuel EX to a Slayer to a Mach 6 to a Following, then an Offering, and now have an Altitude and Top Fuel.

[volklpowdermaniac]

Of the bikes I've owned in last ten years since I got properly into the sport- Blur LT, Yeti SB5.5, sb165, Stanton Sherpa, epic evo, and status 160, also ridden a little bit on megatower and sb150

T1. EE/SB5,5
2. status 160

The rest are great, but not my faves.

[Abies]

This 2009 Redline XC hardtail cus I rode it all the time and was super fit and 20 pounds lighter

I kept it for 10 years, eventually converting it to a rigid commuter/touring bike which was probably a better use overall since it had like an 80 degree head tube angle.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[beaterdit]

I feel like favorite bike has at least as much to do with where you are in your life of riding as the bike itself. My new bikes have had better geometry, suspension, wheels, everything, and I love them as much or more than my old favorites but...

For all time favorite I'd prolly have to say my old 2014 Intense T275c. It was my first Carbon bike, first step up in wheel size and first set of wide carbon hoops, first piggyback shock. That bike coincided with a period of huge progression in skill and fitness for me. I was in the best shape of my life, rode more miles, vert, epics, and locales, sent more shit, won or placed well in more races on that bike than any other. Definitely pushed that bike beyond its intended service window in all aspects. That poor Pike! And I broke those carbon hoops. And I actually bent the bike, the whole thing. When I was cleaning it up to sell it I discovered both links were twisted and the back and front of the bike pointed different directions. New links, and a new Lyric up front fixed it up. Sold it cheap also with a new drivetrain and light use on the Stan's Flow wheels it came with but still felt kinda bad for the buyer just knowing what I'd put that bike through though.





Before that I had two prior generations of Tracers, then one more after. The last being my last 27.5 bike. The 26 inch Tracer2 aluminum (circa 2010?) gets an honorable mention. Lots of progression, miles, and results on that one too.



All that said, my Canfield Lithium, and the shorter travel Tilt it replaced, ride better than all of those bikes. Modern big 29ers are pretty sweet. Loved my Firebird29 too. I've tied my PR from my glory days down our local test piece on all these bikes, they're fast for sure. Now that I'm broken, old, and scared though it just isn't the quite the same, hahaha.

[Full Trucker]

But it's probably a timing thing.

I feel like favorite bike has at least as much to do with where you are in your life of riding as the bike itself. My new bikes have had better geometry, suspension, wheels, everything, and I love them as much or more than my old favorites but...

Been thinking about this thread some, and in particular the concept(s) above—that where you are in life or what's going on in your bike world influence what "favorite bike" can mean. I do stand by my assertion that my brand new bike is (at least going to be) my favorite bike so far—it's the best fitting and most capable bike I've ever owned and I'll be damned if I don't do some rad shit on it. But man, I've had a lot of great memories on a lot of great bikes. Even the bike I just sold (which I decidedly did NOT love) was a great bike and has a ton of special memories: a week long ride trip to Oaxaca for my 50th, first time riding in Squamish, a week in Pisgah with just the bros riding all the rad shit, the most Crest laps in a single season to date, etc.

[skaredshtles]

I'd have to say my favorite ride was a 2010 Giant Reign. I rented one in Moab in the fall of '09 to ride Porc Rim and it was a goddam revelation, coming from a purely XC bike.

Bought one in the spring of '10 and rode the shit out of that bike. It was quite a bit better once I replaced the rear DHX4 air with a CC DB Inline coil and a LOT better once I got rid of the worthless Fox 32 and replaced it with a RS Revelation.

I'd probably still be riding that bike if it wasn't for the straight steerer "issue."

[volklpowdermaniac]

Been thinking about this thread some, and in particular the concept(s) above—that where you are in life or what's going on in your bike world influence what "favorite bike" can mean. I do stand by my assertion that my brand new bike is (at least going to be) my favorite bike so far—it's the best fitting and most capable bike I've ever owned and I'll be damned if I don't do some rad shit on it. But man, I've had a lot of great memories on a lot of great bikes. Even the bike I just sold (which I decidedly did NOT love) was a great bike and has a ton of special memories: a week long ride trip to Oaxaca for my 50th, first time riding in Squamish, a week in Pisgah with just the bros riding all the rad shit, the most Crest laps in a single season to date, etc.

Yeah what you all said. My favorites aren't favorites because they're the best. In many ways opposite. Shit man I even reflect fondly on a rim brake Gary fisher circa 97 I pulled out of my friends storage closet after sitting almost 15 years at 10k feet. Thing was falling apart just looking at it , but got it going with a little bit of love and romped around the high country trails for a season til I taco'd it coming home from bars one night. But man it got me infected with the bug, and for that, I think it's one of my favoritist.

[nickwm21]

Banshee Prime V3; my current rig; built with a 36, DHX coil, WAOs, SLX, MT7s.

It just works. It’s the first bike that I’ve owned that when I’m riding I’m not thinking about what can or should be…

It’s 160F/135R. The correct amount of travel in my mind. I never feel under or over gunned.

She’s heavy. And that’s ok.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[XtrPickels]

My Epic Evo.
Started life as a Comp because that’s all I could find during COVID.
Rebuilt with Shimano XTR / i9 / Fox Factory (over-shocked to 117mm).

It had my back across Portugal.
It rips on fast XC like WRIAD.
It’s a capable trail bike with a quick wheel-change.

More than anything it’s the bike that brings me the most smiles.

[biggins]

V1 Ripmo. Going strong into season 6.

Hoping for a V3 as my next bike, but hearing they may just make a 160ish HD3 instead. So we'll see. But the Ripmo was/is that bike that my whole riding life I hoped would manifest one day. I love her dearly.