To summarize: the funnest enduro bike is the one the one most like a downhill bike, the funnest trail bike is the one most like an enduro bike, the funnest downcountry bike is the one most like a trail bike... I think to really evaluate these bikes you'd ned to have done larger single rides on them. This test method effectively just evaluates how well they get you to the top so you can focus on the descent where the benefits of not going with a trail over enduro bike or downcountry over trail bike is on a longer 12-30 mile ride the character of the ride is totally different because of how the bike covers terrain. Sure on just one climb and descent the most aggressive bike will come out on top, but anyone who's ridden an enduro bike on longer rides now has or wants a trail bike. Thanks for the work and providing the entertainment it's been a great series, just some observations for next year
@Paul Brenneman Ha ha! You just nailed every bike review for the past 5 years!!! One million points to you. I think this is how they design them as well. "Let's see, we need a new trail bike design..." Pulls out last year's enduro bike design and done! Best trail bike EVER!
I know everyone is constantly talking about this "down country" category, but it seems really straight forward to me. Its about progressive geometry matched with a priority on pedaling/short(er) travel and light weight. These bikes are for people who would normally want/need a traditional XC bike, but want alittle more descending capabilities . You wouldn't buy it for a bike park...just like you wouldn't buy an SB150 to win XC races.
@@FZ1Taranis good question. Based on their review, it had a "enduro-ish" shock, weight, and they took it on A-line. So no. But it's definitely splitting hairs as they also said it pedaled really well. It wouldn't seem weird to cross shop it with the Trek Top Fuel or the Pivot, but it does seem like it would suit a slightly different buyer than those 2. In reality, it all comes down to feel on the trail!
I'm also going to add that the Optic had Stan's Flow wheels on it... those make it seem more Trailbike and less "Down Country." XC bikes would use Stan's Crest, so a Down Country would more likely use Stan's Arch. Racing anything that had a lot of climbing with those wheels would be a disadvantage, and "down country" bikes are not biased towards downhill, just make small changes to the component spec to help in that regard.
I live down the street from them and actually sometimes help with testing. When it was being made we wanted it to be light on it's feet while giving you a bunch of confidence. But it's like a long travel downcountry bike but not a trail bike
@@REB4444 I can see what you mean. It's not for everyone, the Guerilla Gravity wants to be pushed down dumb crap so you gotta add some weight. But we live in pretty much a dustpit available to us day to day.
I have a giant anthem 27.5 2018, I is meant to be 110mm r and 130mm f but I bumped it up to 140mm and its "down country" really good pedaling and descending
I know the new categories in MTB seem silly, but Downcountry is actually the best description for many of the North Georgia trails I ride and actually describes my bike best too.
I like this category. Getting into the sport in the 90s weight has always been a big factor in a fun bike but this has greatly diiminished in importance as travel increased. Yeah enduro is what is marketted and gets all the attention, just as all mountain did and freeride before that but for the majority of trail riders, I think shorter travel 29ers are the most relevant match for the types of trails the majority of people hit including myself. Weight is important because I am not shuttling and the majority of my time will be going uphill so why not make that as easy as possible? Yes, riding up hill can be fun when its challeneging and technical, ditto rolling up down type trails with lots of short steep climbs. Its what I end up riding most of the time and this "down country" class is perfect combing the downhill ability of a trtail bike with the efficiency of XC making long all day and techy trails a lot more fun. My weapon of choice? Intense Sniper Trail with XO Eagle and custon Noble carbon wheels on Onyx hubs. I guess a total weight of 25lbs complete. Could have saved half a pound on different hubs but Onyx are one area where I will take the weight.
Levy, don't feel bad to put a name to the category that you're trying to describe. I had a RIP 9 form 2010 that filled that niche to a tee. It was perfect for a do-it-all bike for someone who didn't have gnarly downhill yet still had some chunk to ride (like Tucson, AZ). Roots in cross country trails with a love for shredding fast (and possibly loose) trail. It has it's place and I think that with as many categories of mtb as there currently are, down country is here to stay. Own the fact that you were the first to recognize it!
Downcountry is the perfect category! Mid travel 29ers are all the rage right now. I wish an Ibis Ripley would have been included...it may have won 🤷♂️.
Nah, I would consider downcountry as a XC bike (weight and travel) with more enduro geometry. Slapping a longer fork on doesn’t change the vast majority of the geometry.
@@kevinclark9176 I hear you. I guess I'm just more of a downcountry purist. In Levy's original article that gave birth to the term they were just throwing droppers and heavy rubber in XC bikes. I still think a real good downcountry bike should be a little scary on the downs instead of being a short travel enduro bike.
Cody Brown I get where you’re coming from, but I also feel that that’s how a lot of categories start but then they mature into a real, refined category. Enduro was nice trail bikes with long travel forks and DH tires. But now the geometry, suspension and build kits have been refined to be a true category. The bike you are talking about sounds like a homebuild and thus a review of such a category wouldn’t really exist. I guess it is also just personal as this refined category meets what I want in a bike. I have mostly XC style trails with some rock gardens and shirt, fast decents, so a light and quick bike makes sense but it’s also nice to have the stability and confidence inspiring traits of more gravity oriented geometry when it gets steeper and rougher. So basically it’s easy to slap on a long travel fork at home, but not to slacken the head tube and lower the BB.
I'm really starting to think, all these sub categories in (MTB's) is getting a little ridiculous if you ask me....I don't know maybe it's just me!....lets just ride and have fun.
lol I already felt that "trail" was the catch-all in-between term. XC - light mtb with less travel enduro - heavy mtb with more travel trail: basically everything in between
@@willyolio9590 I agree with you, but then I saw last year's XC circuits and tbh I remember thinking wtf, this is no xc territory, this dips well and trully into the trail bike territory. Sure as hell an experienced XC rider would make it work even on a HT but in the circumstances of a race small changes matter.
To do a comparison should you not define what the travel is of "Downcountry"? Is it 100mm or 120mm? A Pivot 429 Trail is 120mm which compares better to your other 120mm bikes in this test.
what are the group's thoughts - why wasn't a Yeti SB100 included in the round-up? Seems like the folks at Yeti purposely developed that bike for 'down country'.....
Definitely a down country. The 27.5 is full trail and even closer to enduro. Not sure why they made the 29 and 27.5 so different in travel but they are almost 2 completely different bikes.
@@hardtailparty Actually it does, most people arent going to drop 2k+ on bike and not think about what they're getting, what if he's buying somethin and wanted more trail than country? Who gaf about the term, its all fun and kind of makes sense..people get butthurt when change happens.
I dont ride anymore but XC bikes had like 1.5” tires in my day and the freeride downhill stuff was 2.5”. What are these “down country” bikes running for tires? Oh and it was 24 or 26” wheels back then too.
Chuck Beef I remember those days! Xc bikes if old are now gravel bikes, downhill bikes are now enduro. Nothing new under the sun. Just new ways to sell more stuff.
It’s all getting very confusing. I’m wanting a bike that goes up hills well. But can also handle most downhill stuff. Nothing huge but knarley, small drops. Steep downhill stuff. Thoughts?
Personally I would call them XC-LT (Longer Travel) or XC2 bikes. But that's just me. Time to vent: I'm an old man, sure I look 45, but I'm old (nearing 60). I have a 2005 Blur Classic. When I purchased this bike, I expected it would be the last MTB Bike I would ever purchase and 15 years later that remains true. My bike weighs 26 pounds and cost $4,000 at the time for my specific build. It's outfitted with XTR/XT/XO components and has 115mm travel out back and 100mm up front. I consider my Blur to my best friend and it feels perfect to me. Now-a-days a lot has changed since 2005, but my bike is still a great XC bike. I would love to buy a new bike, but living on a retirement income as well as it would take a hefty $8,000~ of today's money to purchase a bike that could replace my 05 Blur. The riders that can kick my ass now, would still kick my ass on a new steed and vise-versa. Triple.
I'd say that's pretty concureent with what i understand the sections to be, though I'm still confused as to why there's an all mountain section. Seems like that should just be called enduro.
Wouldn't these have just been called trail bikes a few years ago? I thought DC was supposed to be XC bikes that are overforked, and maybe a bit slack. Oh well. I never understood the difference between All mountain and enduro either.
"Downcountry" is a confusing term. Why not just use, "Cross country or Trail"? I recently got a Carbon V1 Ripmo after riding my V1 Ripley for about 5 years. I was torn between getting another trail bike or one that is a bit more Enduro focused. I was considering the new Ripley but what made me decide on the Ripmo was the added travel and added stability. I recently took my Ripmo on my local trails to really test her. She felt a lot like my Ripley and don't really notice a major difference yet. So far, what I really like about her is that although she is heavier than my Ripley, I don't feel the extra weight. To be continued...
Yes!! I want a XC bike that’s a bit more capable on decent’s. I’m a downhiller/enduro rider at heart, but going XC for some endurance racing. Which one is the best XC with a bit more downhill capability??? Thanks
+1 for the element. I have a 2018 slayer and an element and the element rips hard. Is light and smashes climbs, raced it on a couple marathons then put better tyres on a d flip chip to slacker mode, and hoon my local trails.
Why must we go as fast as possible up hill if it's not a race? I'm guilty, I want it all. Do I need it all ? no but I still want it all... 30 years of mtb marketing tells me so... wait a tic
these downnn country bikes might make more sense if they were reviewed by riders with a XC background instead of trail/enduro riders... as a former XC racer myself i can’t say enough about how much fun these downcountry bikes are comparing to them xc bikes... in my mind these are great choices for ppl that want their bikes to have a bit more capabilities than their current xc bikes.. with that being said converting a full sus xc bike to one of these is easy and relatively cheap, a fork a dropper and maybe stronger brakes do it all... if someone were to look into buying a whole new/different bike a trail bike makes more sense to me
It’s good to have these reviews too. To be fair I’ve finally gone down to a trail bike as opposed to just downhill or freeride (north shore style). So for me I just can’t wrap my brain around less then 5” of travel. These bikes are if I’m not mistake aimed at cross country riders wanting slightly more and will probably be a very popular category as so much riding area is more conducive to xc then dh/freeride stupidity. XC riding is also imo a much safer style of riding not that I do it anymore. Or ever did tbh.
I'm looking for a new frameset but I can't really find many options that fit my criteria. I want to use 650b and I have a 140mm fox 34 so I could up that to 150 I suppose. Have a 31.8 dropper. The commencal tr is the only thing that seems to fit my spec that I can find, would prefer a threaded bb but that's not to much of an issue. Anyone have any suggestions of other bike? Metal over plastic. Thanks.
I agree...just a new marketing term to sell more bikes. I think we should stick with what we have....DH, Enduro, All Mountain/Trail, XC. ...or short, mid or long travel 29er..or Hardtail :-).Done.
Patrick Williamson these bikes are just XC bikes or the new term a trail bike . Now the new term trail bike has a sub category called down county? An xc bike is an xc bike it’s just not a race version. I think we are getting way too many subcategories. We’re get subcategories of subcategories in the mtb category. I remember when the Mtn bike category name came out categorizing it from other bikes that we were building to ride in the woods.
Down Country ? Really and why this renaming of a trail bike ? I’ve been mountain biking since 1986 . And started building up bikes to ride on trails in the woods since 1974ish. As the xc bike evolved from just a mountain bike there became the trail bike . So now there is a trail bike that was just a long legged xc bike and now you’re trying to call a trail bike a Down Country bike ? Then what is a trail bike ? Exactly, it is a xc bike that’s not a race version and you have now sub categorized the trial bike . The free ride bike is what now ? Because I never here that term anymore. I have a 2001 Kona Stab which was then a free ride/downhillish bike with 150mm travel . It was my trail bike because I liked the extra travel . It was originally 41 lbs and I trimmed her down to 36. I guess what I’m trying to say is , do we need more and more subcategories of bike types . You’re renaming the trail bike category for no reason. These bikes are just an xc bike period. Xc doesn’t mean race . Xc is just a mountain bike because you can ride it , get this and it’ll blow your mind......” across country “ . The A in across is kind of how the abbreviation of X came about aka Xc. So these bikes you are testing are really XC bikes just not a race version. So what are they then ? Well that makes them a trail bike . Peace
I would consider today’s trail bikes as generally having more travel than these bikes. More like 140mm bikes. Downcountry combined the short travel XC with more downhill geometry. Though it might be closer related to trail than XC at this point.
Not gett'n down with this "Down Country" term. How about Down XC or Gnar XC bikes? Maybe Trail Lite? Anyway in a year or so this is where XC bikes will be heading anyway as the courses become more technical. Don't go round stuff, smash them with your front wheel and go over, preferably without going over the bars first. :)
Frankly, there really isn't the need for that many categories of mountain bikes. From 100m travel to 200m travel we already have XC, trail, AM, Enduro and DH, that's 5 categories for the difference of 100m of travel as if they are 5 different sports (down country? what about cannondale's XXC?). Do we need more categories? Really?
All the major players' frames are made in Asia. I won't spend >$5K on a bike made in Asia. I'd much rather buy my new ride "Made in The USA" so I'm looking @ a Guerrilla!
Great bike , rides smooth th-cam.com/users/postUgkxHL1v1R3NE5x4KiYfyt8dnQmyNYz7qi5L I added a bigger spring loaded seat to it . Takes a bit of adjusting cables to get brakes and shifting to perfect . I've owned quite a few bikes in the past that were absolutely uncomfortable to ride and they always ended up as garage wall decor . I'm not seeing that with this one. It's pretty light I've only ridden it a few miles but I like it . As for the pedals falling off in the other reviews , the pedal arms are aluminum along with the pedal studs look to be also . I would not overtighten them. I can see it would be very easy to overtighten them and strip the threads right off . All in all I think it's pretty good quality besides the aluminum pedal thing
%100 agreed. Ok how many categories can we make just to confused the damn customer? I can understand that there are a number of different categories. Downhill sure, and add in some air for another category and then let's say an all around trial bike. They are WAY overthinking this whole deal. An all around purpose bike shou ppl d be good at climbing and some downhill maybe not extreme downhill but, and be able to effectively articulate the challenges on the trail from rocks, roots, dirt, sand, holes dips maybe some brush, tire choice for mud and snow and for thos who want to ride in ice.....and what else is there?
Ride Alongside there was the category “backcountry” for a while then that went away. Backcountry bikes were longer legged xc bikes you could do endurance events on or just ride more aggressive terrain on and was comfortable enough for long hours on . Then these started being called trail bikes or the standard xc bikes instead of a race bike . Now they are supposed to be down county? Weird as duck
Please, not another category of bike. These desperate sales tactics really are getting out of hand now. What will be the next latest and greatest product the public don't need but will be told they do need? *Sighs
Well, at least we didnt get a new tire size this time around. Allso, xmas is coming and still no trail or enduro bikes? I honestly dont really care all that much about those companies wanting to create the next useless hype, so... (Theres a fine line between having to pay the rent, and being a shill, you know?)
why should I care what these reviewers think about these bikes? are they considered fast or skilled riders? have they ever designed a bicycle themselves or in a team?
@@Kaspurr84 He's unfamiliar with the term "review" I'm assuming. We all(at least I do)enjoy seeing what has come out of the market, the bike porn and some some facts about basic geo, suspension and handling of these bikes. It's the same reason I watch a review of a Porsche GT3 RS...it's interesting and better than picking your nose. Plus PB are solid peoples.
To summarize:
the funnest enduro bike is the one the one most like a downhill bike,
the funnest trail bike is the one most like an enduro bike,
the funnest downcountry bike is the one most like a trail bike...
I think to really evaluate these bikes you'd ned to have done larger single rides on them. This test method effectively just evaluates how well they get you to the top so you can focus on the descent where the benefits of not going with a trail over enduro bike or downcountry over trail bike is on a longer 12-30 mile ride the character of the ride is totally different because of how the bike covers terrain. Sure on just one climb and descent the most aggressive bike will come out on top, but anyone who's ridden an enduro bike on longer rides now has or wants a trail bike. Thanks for the work and providing the entertainment it's been a great series, just some observations for next year
@Paul Brenneman Ha ha! You just nailed every bike review for the past 5 years!!! One million points to you. I think this is how they design them as well. "Let's see, we need a new trail bike design..." Pulls out last year's enduro bike design and done! Best trail bike EVER!
Νailed it indeed!! I can't stop feeling that for the past two years, despite the plethora of choices, mountain bike design has stagnated.
Amen, this is just getting silly
But arguably the funnest part of MTB is going downhill...
@@chriskoutroulis4531 they really can't get any better. I feel they have hit their pinnacle.
I know everyone is constantly talking about this "down country" category, but it seems really straight forward to me. Its about progressive geometry matched with a priority on pedaling/short(er) travel and light weight. These bikes are for people who would normally want/need a traditional XC bike, but want alittle more descending capabilities . You wouldn't buy it for a bike park...just like you wouldn't buy an SB150 to win XC races.
Greg Cavanaugh agreed. Do you think the optic fits in that definition?
@@FZ1Taranis good question. Based on their review, it had a "enduro-ish" shock, weight, and they took it on A-line. So no. But it's definitely splitting hairs as they also said it pedaled really well. It wouldn't seem weird to cross shop it with the Trek Top Fuel or the Pivot, but it does seem like it would suit a slightly different buyer than those 2. In reality, it all comes down to feel on the trail!
I'm also going to add that the Optic had Stan's Flow wheels on it... those make it seem more Trailbike and less "Down Country." XC bikes would use Stan's Crest, so a Down Country would more likely use Stan's Arch. Racing anything that had a lot of climbing with those wheels would be a disadvantage, and "down country" bikes are not biased towards downhill, just make small changes to the component spec to help in that regard.
Top Fuel 2020 is an absolute beast
Down country sounds like a new music genre
Ibis Ripley vs the field?
That guerrilla gravity is 100% atrail bike and so is the tallboy.. Should've been compared to the optic.
I agree bro but thats the weong comment sectikn
I live down the street from them and actually sometimes help with testing. When it was being made we wanted it to be light on it's feet while giving you a bunch of confidence. But it's like a long travel downcountry bike but not a trail bike
@@REB4444 I can see what you mean. It's not for everyone, the Guerilla Gravity wants to be pushed down dumb crap so you gotta add some weight. But we live in pretty much a dustpit available to us day to day.
Surprised you did not include the Ibis Ripley v4 in the test.
Fun-country FTW, I love my GG Trail Pistol!
I have a giant anthem 27.5 2018, I is meant to be 110mm r and 130mm f but I bumped it up to 140mm and its "down country" really good pedaling and descending
Pinkbike needs a new rule, Levy has to drink a shot everytime he says downcountry 😂
... or eat a doughnut.
I know the new categories in MTB seem silly, but Downcountry is actually the best description for many of the North Georgia trails I ride and actually describes my bike best too.
Instead of down county, how about trail lite?
up trail?
I like this category.
Getting into the sport in the 90s weight has always been a big factor in a fun bike but this has greatly diiminished in importance as travel increased.
Yeah enduro is what is marketted and gets all the attention, just as all mountain did and freeride before that but for the majority of trail riders, I think shorter travel 29ers are the most relevant match for the types of trails the majority of people hit including myself. Weight is important because I am not shuttling and the majority of my time will be going uphill so why not make that as easy as possible? Yes, riding up hill can be fun when its challeneging and technical, ditto rolling up down type trails with lots of short steep climbs. Its what I end up riding most of the time and this "down country" class is perfect combing the downhill ability of a trtail bike with the efficiency of XC making long all day and techy trails a lot more fun.
My weapon of choice? Intense Sniper Trail with XO Eagle and custon Noble carbon wheels on Onyx hubs. I guess a total weight of 25lbs complete. Could have saved half a pound on different hubs but Onyx are one area where I will take the weight.
no idea what downcountry is. i got the top fuel for a light trail bike with a lock out
Levy, don't feel bad to put a name to the category that you're trying to describe. I had a RIP 9 form 2010 that filled that niche to a tee. It was perfect for a do-it-all bike for someone who didn't have gnarly downhill yet still had some chunk to ride (like Tucson, AZ). Roots in cross country trails with a love for shredding fast (and possibly loose) trail. It has it's place and I think that with as many categories of mtb as there currently are, down country is here to stay. Own the fact that you were the first to recognize it!
Downcountry is the perfect category! Mid travel 29ers are all the rage right now. I wish an Ibis Ripley would have been included...it may have won 🤷♂️.
"It felt like an XC bike with a longer fork on it." THAT'S THE DEFINITION OF DOWN COUNTRY!!!
Nah, I would consider downcountry as a XC bike (weight and travel) with more enduro geometry. Slapping a longer fork on doesn’t change the vast majority of the geometry.
@@kevinclark9176 I hear you. I guess I'm just more of a downcountry purist. In Levy's original article that gave birth to the term they were just throwing droppers and heavy rubber in XC bikes. I still think a real good downcountry bike should be a little scary on the downs instead of being a short travel enduro bike.
Cody Brown I get where you’re coming from, but I also feel that that’s how a lot of categories start but then they mature into a real, refined category. Enduro was nice trail bikes with long travel forks and DH tires. But now the geometry, suspension and build kits have been refined to be a true category. The bike you are talking about sounds like a homebuild and thus a review of such a category wouldn’t really exist.
I guess it is also just personal as this refined category meets what I want in a bike. I have mostly XC style trails with some rock gardens and shirt, fast decents, so a light and quick bike makes sense but it’s also nice to have the stability and confidence inspiring traits of more gravity oriented geometry when it gets steeper and rougher.
So basically it’s easy to slap on a long travel fork at home, but not to slacken the head tube and lower the BB.
I'm really starting to think, all these sub categories in (MTB's) is getting a little ridiculous if you ask me....I don't know maybe it's just me!....lets just ride and have fun.
This shit is so staged. But I agree how many damn categories do you need for offroading?
lol I already felt that "trail" was the catch-all in-between term.
XC - light mtb with less travel
enduro - heavy mtb with more travel
trail: basically everything in between
@@willyolio9590 I agree with you, but then I saw last year's XC circuits and tbh I remember thinking wtf, this is no xc territory, this dips well and trully into the trail bike territory. Sure as hell an experienced XC rider would make it work even on a HT but in the circumstances of a race small changes matter.
Levy looks stoked to be listening about these bikes
I think stiffness should be a talking point. It's difficult to "measure," but it's super important.
That’s what she said.
To do a comparison should you not define what the travel is of "Downcountry"? Is it 100mm or 120mm? A Pivot 429 Trail is 120mm which compares better to your other 120mm bikes in this test.
Peter DeMos they did... but to me it seems that nowdays you can‘t categorize a bike by it‘s travel since geo‘s have gotten so much more progressive
@@banoodel5121 429SL is a World Cup winning race bike. The 429trail is the bike for this category and it is ultracapable for it's numbers.
what are the group's thoughts - why wasn't a Yeti SB100 included in the round-up? Seems like the folks at Yeti purposely developed that bike for 'down country'.....
Bradley Hewitt because it isn‘t new for 2020...
So would a Trance 29 be a downcountry bike or a trail bike?
Definitely a down country. The 27.5 is full trail and even closer to enduro. Not sure why they made the 29 and 27.5 so different in travel but they are almost 2 completely different bikes.
Does it matter? Ride your bike. Have fun. Downcountry is a made-up term that really just confuses more people than it helps.
@@hardtailparty Actually it does, most people arent going to drop 2k+ on bike and not think about what they're getting, what if he's buying somethin and wanted more trail than country? Who gaf about the term, its all fun and kind of makes sense..people get butthurt when change happens.
I dont ride anymore but XC bikes had like 1.5” tires in my day and the freeride downhill stuff was 2.5”. What are these “down country” bikes running for tires? Oh and it was 24 or 26” wheels back then too.
Chuck Beef I remember those days! Xc bikes if old are now gravel bikes, downhill bikes are now enduro. Nothing new under the sun. Just new ways to sell more stuff.
Bring back the process 111🔥🔥
The Process 111 has a successor,
it is called process 134 (new in 2020).
It’s all getting very confusing. I’m wanting a bike that goes up hills well. But can also handle most downhill stuff. Nothing huge but knarley, small drops. Steep downhill stuff. Thoughts?
Up Duro bike test next!!
Just trying to find out what song is in the intro 🤷🏻♂️
Personally I would call them XC-LT (Longer Travel) or XC2 bikes. But that's just me.
Time to vent: I'm an old man, sure I look 45, but I'm old (nearing 60). I have a 2005 Blur Classic. When I purchased this bike, I expected it would be the last MTB Bike I would ever purchase and 15 years later that remains true. My bike weighs 26 pounds and cost $4,000 at the time for my specific build. It's outfitted with XTR/XT/XO components and has 115mm travel out back and 100mm up front.
I consider my Blur to my best friend and it feels perfect to me. Now-a-days a lot has changed since 2005, but my bike is still a great XC bike. I would love to buy a new bike, but living on a retirement income as well as it would take a hefty $8,000~ of today's money to purchase a bike that could replace my 05 Blur. The riders that can kick my ass now, would still kick my ass on a new steed and vise-versa. Triple.
So XC hardtail to 100-110mm, down country 110-120, trail 120-140mm, Enduro 140-170, all-mountain 140-180mm
I'd say that's pretty concureent with what i understand the sections to be, though I'm still confused as to why there's an all mountain section. Seems like that should just be called enduro.
Why the Mach 4sl and not the trail 429?
David Goldthorp - Wondered the same thing.
Where’s the Spot Ryve 115?
Wouldn't these have just been called trail bikes a few years ago? I thought DC was supposed to be XC bikes that are overforked, and maybe a bit slack. Oh well. I never understood the difference between All mountain and enduro either.
When is the 150mm travel 20lb bike coming! That's the future ain't it
"Downcountry" is a confusing term. Why not just use, "Cross country or Trail"?
I recently got a Carbon V1 Ripmo after riding my V1 Ripley for about 5 years. I was torn between getting another trail bike or one that is a bit more Enduro focused.
I was considering the new Ripley but what made me decide on the Ripmo was the added travel and added stability. I recently took my Ripmo on my local trails to really test her. She felt a lot like my Ripley and don't really notice a major difference yet. So far, what I really like about her is that although she is heavier than my Ripley, I don't feel the extra weight. To be continued...
Pinkbike should test the 2020 Bandwagon. I hear it’s the next big thing that no one knew they wanted.
Where is that Epic Evo OR Scalpel Si SE ? The scalpel has been out for a few years and really feels like a down country bike!
enough bike categories already.
lol if i change my handlebar grips it'll probably be classed as a new category.
Yes!! I want a XC bike that’s a bit more capable on decent’s. I’m a downhiller/enduro rider at heart, but going XC for some endurance racing.
Which one is the best XC with a bit more downhill capability???
Thanks
I think the Tallboy/Joplin is the most capable descending bike, but the top fuel would be better for endurance XC racing
Rocky Mountain ELEMENT!
+1 for the element. I have a 2018 slayer and an element and the element rips hard. Is light and smashes climbs, raced it on a couple marathons then put better tyres on a d flip chip to slacker mode, and hoon my local trails.
SB130
Merida one twenty
Why must we go as fast as possible up hill if it's not a race? I'm guilty, I want it all. Do I need it all ? no but I still want it all... 30 years of mtb marketing tells me so... wait a tic
The bike that peaks my interest is the GG Trail Pistol. I’ve been wanting a GG frame but was hoping that they would update to the 157mm spacing.
Guerrilla Gravity I agree that your bikes are amazing. I also think wider is better and wider flanges make better wheels.
Isn’t “downcoutry” just what was termed “all mountain” 15 years ago?
Pinkbike should make a bike with the consensus’s that they’ve mad from this series
oh i get it! Down country is just a category of trail bike that is at the short travel end of Trail bikes...........
these downnn country bikes might make more sense if they were reviewed by riders with a XC background instead of trail/enduro riders... as a former XC racer myself i can’t say enough about how much fun these downcountry bikes are comparing to them xc bikes... in my mind these are great choices for ppl that want their bikes to have a bit more capabilities than their current xc bikes.. with that being said converting a full sus xc bike to one of these is easy and relatively cheap, a fork a dropper and maybe stronger brakes do it all... if someone were to look into buying a whole new/different bike a trail bike makes more sense to me
It’s good to have these reviews too. To be fair I’ve finally gone down to a trail bike as opposed to just downhill or freeride (north shore style). So for me I just can’t wrap my brain around less then 5” of travel. These bikes are if I’m not mistake aimed at cross country riders wanting slightly more and will probably be a very popular category as so much riding area is more conducive to xc then dh/freeride stupidity. XC riding is also imo a much safer style of riding not that I do it anymore. Or ever did tbh.
agreed at least one should be an xc rider
James is the best reviewer
Gravel => XC Race => XC => Trail => DC => AM => Enduro => EWS or Full Enduro Bro => LT Slope Style (DJ => Short Travel SS => LT SS) => DH => WCS DH ... insert HT variants everywhere ... easy ... oh wait ... insert E versions ... soon to be everywhere
Why not the SB100??
I'm looking for a new frameset but I can't really find many options that fit my criteria. I want to use 650b and I have a 140mm fox 34 so I could up that to 150 I suppose. Have a 31.8 dropper. The commencal tr is the only thing that seems to fit my spec that I can find, would prefer a threaded bb but that's not to much of an issue. Anyone have any suggestions of other bike? Metal over plastic. Thanks.
santa cruz 5010 fits everything you want
No Ripley in this test???
WhT is too countrish bike?
Please review the cannondale jekyll 2019 model. Thank you
The downcountry term is just going to further confuse an already confused group of mountain bikers. There's no benefit to it.
Exactly they are just trail bikes
I agree...just a new marketing term to sell more bikes. I think we should stick with what we have....DH, Enduro, All Mountain/Trail, XC. ...or short, mid or long travel 29er..or Hardtail :-).Done.
Down country ? Pffft been calling this category old man Xc for years .
Patrick Williamson these bikes are just XC bikes or the new term a trail bike . Now the new term trail bike has a sub category called down county? An xc bike is an xc bike it’s just not a race version. I think we are getting way too many subcategories. We’re get subcategories of subcategories in the mtb category. I remember when the Mtn bike category name came out categorizing it from other bikes that we were building to ride in the woods.
I agree
Mondraker 🤘
I wouldn’t mind the Joplin color available on the tallboy frame sizes
i feel the same about some of the Liv bikes (Giant's womens brand) some the guy versions can be pretty boring comparatively.
I love how visually uncomfortable the others get when Levy starts talking about "dOwNcOuNtRy"
Its like trail bikes splits in subcategories, but what do i know🤷♂️
Down Country ? Really and why this renaming of a trail bike ?
I’ve been mountain biking since 1986 . And started building up bikes to ride on trails in the woods since 1974ish.
As the xc bike evolved from just a mountain bike there became the trail bike . So now there is a trail bike that was just a long legged xc bike and now you’re trying to call a trail bike a Down Country bike ? Then what is a trail bike ? Exactly, it is a xc bike that’s not a race version and you have now sub categorized the trial bike . The free ride bike is what now ? Because I never here that term anymore. I have a 2001 Kona Stab which was then a free ride/downhillish bike with 150mm travel . It was my trail bike because I liked the extra travel . It was originally 41 lbs and I trimmed her down to 36.
I guess what I’m trying to say is , do we need more and more subcategories of bike types . You’re renaming the trail bike category for no reason. These bikes are just an xc bike period. Xc doesn’t mean race . Xc is just a mountain bike because you can ride it , get this and it’ll blow your mind......” across country “ . The A in across is kind of how the abbreviation of X came about aka Xc. So these bikes you are testing are really XC bikes just not a race version. So what are they then ? Well that makes them a trail bike .
Peace
I would consider today’s trail bikes as generally having more travel than these bikes. More like 140mm bikes. Downcountry combined the short travel XC with more downhill geometry. Though it might be closer related to trail than XC at this point.
Not gett'n down with this "Down Country" term. How about Down XC or Gnar XC bikes? Maybe Trail Lite? Anyway in a year or so this is where XC bikes will be heading anyway as the courses become more technical.
Don't go round stuff, smash them with your front wheel and go over, preferably without going over the bars first. :)
Orange Stage 4. Doesn't get more down country than that. Missed opportunity.
Wow, Joplin/Tallboy nearly unmentioned at all. Is it really that bland of a bike?
I wondered that too.
they already did a full review of it against the fuel ex
Frankly, there really isn't the need for that many categories of mountain bikes. From 100m travel to 200m travel we already have XC, trail, AM, Enduro and DH, that's 5 categories for the difference of 100m of travel as if they are 5 different sports (down country? what about cannondale's XXC?). Do we need more categories? Really?
I didn't know Facebook's founder was so into bikes.
GG vs Norco for the win
The top fuel is the bike
dont forget you can turn ur gg bike into an enduro bike
@Guerrilla Gravity +rep for social media presence gg! lol way to be on top of it
All the major players' frames are made in Asia. I won't spend >$5K on a bike made in Asia. I'd much rather buy my new ride "Made in The USA" so I'm looking @ a Guerrilla!
A year later the spur answers your wishes.
Great bike , rides smooth th-cam.com/users/postUgkxHL1v1R3NE5x4KiYfyt8dnQmyNYz7qi5L I added a bigger spring loaded seat to it . Takes a bit of adjusting cables to get brakes and shifting to perfect . I've owned quite a few bikes in the past that were absolutely uncomfortable to ride and they always ended up as garage wall decor . I'm not seeing that with this one. It's pretty light I've only ridden it a few miles but I like it . As for the pedals falling off in the other reviews , the pedal arms are aluminum along with the pedal studs look to be also . I would not overtighten them. I can see it would be very easy to overtighten them and strip the threads right off . All in all I think it's pretty good quality besides the aluminum pedal thing
these companies just make everything more and more confusing for customers...
%100 agreed. Ok how many categories can we make just to confused the damn customer? I can understand that there are a number of different categories. Downhill sure, and add in some air for another category and then let's say an all around trial bike. They are WAY overthinking this whole deal. An all around purpose bike shou ppl d be good at climbing and some downhill maybe not extreme downhill but, and be able to effectively articulate the challenges on the trail from rocks, roots, dirt, sand, holes dips maybe some brush, tire choice for mud and snow and for thos who want to ride in ice.....and what else is there?
Should just call it backcountry.
.
Oh wait....lawsuit.
Ride Alongside there was the category “backcountry” for a while then that went away. Backcountry bikes were longer legged xc bikes you could do endurance events on or just ride more aggressive terrain on and was comfortable enough for long hours on . Then these started being called trail bikes or the standard xc bikes instead of a race bike . Now they are supposed to be down county? Weird as duck
So..... trail bikes.....
“Down Country”. Just say NO.
Please, not another category of bike. These desperate sales tactics really are getting out of hand now. What will be the next latest and greatest product the public don't need but will be told they do need? *Sighs
🤡🤡🤡 : Downhill - Enduro - All mountain - Trail - XC - Down country 🤡🤡🤡
#Under bike
Does anyone else hate that meaningless "downcountry" buzzword?
Wow that girl is fit for her weight constitution
I thumbs downed countried your vid.. for the amount of times "down country" was said in this video.
Well, at least we didnt get a new tire size this time around.
Allso, xmas is coming and still no trail or enduro bikes?
I honestly dont really care all that much about those companies wanting to create the next useless hype, so...
(Theres a fine line between having to pay the rent, and being a shill, you know?)
why should I care what these reviewers think about these bikes? are they considered fast or skilled riders? have they ever designed a bicycle themselves or in a team?
Aaron Spindell so why are you here
@@Kaspurr84 He's unfamiliar with the term "review" I'm assuming. We all(at least I do)enjoy seeing what has come out of the market, the bike porn and some some facts about basic geo, suspension and handling of these bikes. It's the same reason I watch a review of a Porsche GT3 RS...it's interesting and better than picking your nose. Plus PB are solid peoples.