Pampa
Well-Known Member
My first real MTB was a FS ( '08 Cannondale Rush 1000) and then I moved to HTs for efficiency and because I was into XC racing. A combination of getting older, not racing anymore and less risk appetite than in the past when going downhill have me looking for a FS bike again.
I mostly ride Stephens Park/Allamuchy/Deer Park; not too much technical stuff. I'm thinking about trying some endurance races in the future too (like the 4 hr H2H races and maybe a few longer than that).
In looking at the range of bikes between pure XC and pure trail, I think the sweet spot for me is more towards the side of an XC bike with relaxed geometry (29er). I checked other threads here and elsewhere and I really like the the Niner RKT. I also like the Pivot Mach 429 SL. The RKT is optimized for 100mm forks and compatible with 120mm forks. The Pivot is the other way around; their builds come with 120mm forks but the bike is compatible with 100mm forks.
The first question I have is about the rear suspension of these bikes. There's plenty of info and rave reviews of the DW-Link suspension but couldn't find much about how Niner's CVA compares to that (one review positive and one negative). Anyone has experience with both? All I want to confirm really is that Niner's CVA doesn't suck and that it's somewhat comparable to the DW-Link.
The second question is what fork would you recommend. I'm leaning towards the Fox 32 Step Cast 100mm because it's pretty light and the 100mm might not be much, but it's more than the 60mm of the Lauf I'm running now on my Air 9. I'm also considering putting a Fox 34 120mm just because I'm not good at picking lines and I like how I can bash through things on my fatbike.
The rest of the build might be a transfer or parts from my Niner Air 9 (SRAM XX1 + RF Next SL direct mount, Niner bar, stem & seat post) except for the wheels (TBD).
Thanks!
I mostly ride Stephens Park/Allamuchy/Deer Park; not too much technical stuff. I'm thinking about trying some endurance races in the future too (like the 4 hr H2H races and maybe a few longer than that).
In looking at the range of bikes between pure XC and pure trail, I think the sweet spot for me is more towards the side of an XC bike with relaxed geometry (29er). I checked other threads here and elsewhere and I really like the the Niner RKT. I also like the Pivot Mach 429 SL. The RKT is optimized for 100mm forks and compatible with 120mm forks. The Pivot is the other way around; their builds come with 120mm forks but the bike is compatible with 100mm forks.
The first question I have is about the rear suspension of these bikes. There's plenty of info and rave reviews of the DW-Link suspension but couldn't find much about how Niner's CVA compares to that (one review positive and one negative). Anyone has experience with both? All I want to confirm really is that Niner's CVA doesn't suck and that it's somewhat comparable to the DW-Link.
The second question is what fork would you recommend. I'm leaning towards the Fox 32 Step Cast 100mm because it's pretty light and the 100mm might not be much, but it's more than the 60mm of the Lauf I'm running now on my Air 9. I'm also considering putting a Fox 34 120mm just because I'm not good at picking lines and I like how I can bash through things on my fatbike.
The rest of the build might be a transfer or parts from my Niner Air 9 (SRAM XX1 + RF Next SL direct mount, Niner bar, stem & seat post) except for the wheels (TBD).
Thanks!
I was actually going to go with the 120mm and then changed my mind at last minute because of weight savings (after getting excited by discussions of building a very light XC FS bike to race). The truth is that this will be my only bike (besides my fatbike) and I'm not going to do more than a couple of XC races next year. I'm planning on doing a long bikepacking race and this will be my bike for that too.
