What style bike is everyone riding in North NJ?

A

avc8130

Active Member
So I'm getting more and more into mountain biking and I think I'm looking for a new bike.

My current ride: 2013 Cannondale Scalpel 29er 3. I'm realizing each time I go out that an "XC" bike is just not right for what I'm trying to do.

Sure, the bike climbs like a goat and cruises over non-tech trails like no tomorrow, but the second we find a rock garden or point it downhill I have trouble getting comfortable/confident.

We generally ride the following areas:
Kitattinny
Mahlon
Allamuchy
Dickerson

I'm not the strongest pedal-er or the best biker out there. I want something that will provide me confidence and help me learn. Right now I get overwhelmed and timid on the Scalpel as it just feels so much more capable than I am.

So...what is everyone riding in these areas? Should I be looking at a "trail" bike around 5" travel or should I be looking more "all-mountain" with 6"+? I think I really like the 29er wheels.

ac
 
I go back and forth between a new Salsa El Mariachi and an Ibis Mojo HDR 27.5
My opinion is that you really can't get enough speed around here (unless you are completely insane) to warrant 6 inches or more.
I do enjoy the Full suspension of my Mojo sometimes though, but I don't think I've ever wanted more travel. I ride mostly Ringwood/Jungle/Top of Skyline/Ramapo
I actually prefer that hardtail on days where I feel good, it just gives me good feelings. But the El Mariachi (the new geo ones) are pretty "all mountain" ish in terms of hardtails. The chain stays are slammed, and the rest of the geo is "fun"
I do not go for the high BB bikes which are getting more popular, I thing around here it's not what you want. I want to be able to climb the difficult stuff and feel lower on the bike for carving.
Check out some 27.5 bikes, jdog at Halters has a nice line of Santa Cruz bikes he has for demos. It's a really good balance for a full suspension bike.
 
Is your suspension set up well for your riding style and weight? Or do you not feel confident because of the steeper head angle of the Scalpel? If you don't XC race and just want one bike, I think a 120 to 130mm front and rear travel 29er with 68-70 degrees would be the optimal, all-around bike to have for this area. If you want to add some enduro racing or a bit of downhill park to the mix and still only want one bike, then you could consider a 160mm travel 650b.
 
1sh0t1b33r said:
Is your suspension set up well for your riding style and weight? Or do you not feel confident because of the steeper head angle of the Scalpel? If you don't XC race and just want one bike, I think a 120 to 130mm front and rear travel 29er with 68-70 degrees would be the optimal, all-around bike to have for this area. If you want to add some enduro racing or a bit of downhill park to the mix and still only want one bike, then you could consider a 160mm travel 650b.
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Great questions. I've played with the air pressure in the fork and shock. I reset the o-rings every time I ride and write down my air pressure. I kept reducing pressure until I was bottoming and then went back up 5psi. It seems like I have the pressures about as good as they can be for 4" travel.

I moved the head spacer from the top to the bottom to slacken the head angle .5 degree. This made the bike "ride-able" for me. Before that I couldn't control the bike at all.

ac
 
I was riding a 26" FS SJ at RW and JH and liked the 150 fork travel, but recently converted an old 26" HT (120 travel up front) to SS. I tested it at RW last week and now want to marry it.

Yeah, I know, 26" HT SS probably belongs in the same sentence as "I called blockbuster video on the telephone about renting a movie."
 
I wasn't trying to be a smartass or was I.
Seriously if you are not a racer and just want a bike that feels confident fatbikes are like cheating. The will make rock gardens easy, climb the steepest easy and stick the downhill like glue. Try one you will be surprised.
 
Hmmm......sounds like you already have a solid ride and just need to put in some more riding time. I used to ride six inch travel bikes for trail, but after some time out west as well as riding with more skilled riders on this forum I ride rigid. While not always the best option I can climb better on it, and that is my weekness (majority of my riding was downhill from 98-13/14).

I just don't believe we have the type of hills/terrain here to warrant a 6" travel bike full time. Now, if you are regularly bombing 5 foot plus drops, 15 foot plus doubles and hitting the bike park, that is a different story.

Bigger trail bikes are nice on the downhills, but you will pay for it on the climbs and longer trail rides. My $0.02
 
avc8130 said:
I moved the head spacer from the top to the bottom to slacken the head angle .5 degree. This made the bike "ride-able" for me. Before that I couldn't control the bike at all.
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Unless you have one of those magical Lefty's of which I don't know much about, moving a headset spacer from the top to below the stem won't change your head angle. It only raises the bar higher, so you may feel more comfortable on it now. Have you ever had a bike fit done? Low rock garden, root, and downhill confidence leads me to believe that, just maybe, your stem is too long and/or the bars are too narrow. Have you ever played with those things? A closer, wider bar along with looking further ahead on trail can take some of those "techy" shakes away. It could also be something as simple as improper tire pressure for conditions. Just some things to check out before you splurge on a fancy bike you might have the same issues with.
 
1sh0t1b33r said:
Unless you have one of those magical Lefty's of which I don't know much about, moving a headset spacer from the top to below the stem won't change your head angle. It only raises the bar higher, so you may feel more comfortable on it now. Have you ever had a bike fit done? Low rock garden, root, and downhill confidence leads me to believe that, just maybe, your stem is too long and/or the bars are too narrow. Have you ever played with those things? A closer, wider bar along with looking further ahead on trail can take some of those "techy" shakes away. It could also be something as simple as improper tire pressure for conditions. Just some things to check out before you splurge on a fancy bike you might have the same issues with.
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Cannondale designed the bike with an adjustable head spacer. It's 10mm and can be placed above or below the stem. It's not a headset spacer, it really adjusts the geometry. I confirmed with Cannondale, it slackens head and seat angles .5 degrees and raises the BB height 4mm.

You might be right about the stem. Unfortunately Cannondale uses "special" stems so swapping for fun is a bit pricey.

ac
 
I ride the same parks as you including Stephens and Mooch North. I currently ride a ROS 9 SS, steel hard tail with 130mm front suspension. I find that this bike is all I need.
 
Steel Kona honzo HT w/ 140mm in the front. She does me good.

The one thing I wouldn't give up is a droppe post. I wouldn't mind riding jersey stuff on a full ridgid but I sure do love having the seat out of the way.
 
jumpa said:
Steel Kona honzo HT w/ 140mm in the front. She does me good.

The one thing I wouldn't give up is a droppe post. I wouldn't mind riding jersey stuff on a full ridgid but I sure do love having the seat out of the way.
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Did you see that you can get the honzo in steel, alloy or TI in 2016?
 
jdgang said:
Did you see that you can get the honzo in steel, alloy or TI in 2016?
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The Ti would be cool. I have a 2014 so steel was the only option at the time. But I'm not a big fan of how its aluminum now or how the new St/tt brace looks like.
 
Currently on a Specialized Crave SS running a mix of the chisel carbon rigid fork and 100mm Reba (depending on my mood, mileage, terrain, etc.). After a few rides on a demo ROS 9 I'm leaning toward a bit slacker HT - Honzo, El Mar, ROS9. The Crave has been great overall for me and it's only been limited by my fitness and technique and I'm not sure if a new frame will really solve a problem I don't have. I regularly ride Ringwood, Ramapo, the trails between the two, Jungle, Tourne, LewMo. and occasionally Mooch parks.

I grew into the Crave coming from a Bikes Direct Dawes Deadeye and then "upgrading" to a Monocog before settling into the Crave so I suffered as I grew my skills and fitness along the way; keep at it and you'll get there! It's a process that may take a season or two, but the ride you've got now is a pretty capable machine. Have you tried playing with the bar width a bit? I went a bit wider of bars and found that settled down the steering response on a XC race-like geometry and gave me a bit more leverage while in the rocks to keep the bike upright and not as easily bucked around.
 
Rigid 26" SS for me, I also have a 29er rigid SS but I don't like it at all.
Skyline, Ringwood and Waway are where I ride.

I also called Blockbuster video.

My sig line says it best.
 
I've been debating trying a shorter stem and wider bars. Would that be heading in the right direction to calm it down?

Currently it has a 110mm stem with 680mm flat bars.

ac
 
Rigid SS ONLY.

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