MixMastaMM

I had a Truth and Moment. They were good bikes for their time. Ellsworth has fallen off horse and is years behind in their updates. I'm also done with Tony's arrogant attitude. "Rare earth Environmental Friendly Carbon" LOL

Tystevens

Yeah, the riding here in Utah is pretty killer. One of the main 2 or 3 reasons we live here, actually.

Re: bikes, you are just getting started, right? No need to go all in on a $6500 dream bike. Plenty of good bikes in the $2000+ range to get you started, let you figure out what you like to do, what suits your terrain. Most riders wouldn't feel the difference between the dream bike and the suitable bike anyway (including myself, probably -- I hear people talk about this and that and the other, and I think it is mostly all smoke ...).

I have a variety of terrain at my disposal, and love the steep, fast and rocky stuff. I use up all the travel on my 6" Enduro every ride. Perfect bike for what I ride. But you have to find out what you like.

MCDavis

iTrader: (1)

[MENTION=81406]Andrade[/MENTION] it really comes down to what you want to ride...type of trail that is. Freeride bikes and DH specific bikes are heavy beasts, for a reason. They are meant to bomb. My Anthem is 4" front and rear and it's plenty enough for what we encounter here in the the foothills of VA.
You likely wouldn't want to go with more than 5" of travel front and rear if you're trail riding and not bombing. Like [MENTION=179876]Tystevens[/MENTION] said, there are PLENTY of options under $3k.

BigRedFord09

Anyone else here bmx or am I the only over grown kid? Lol

Andrade

iTrader: (3)

I doubt I will do anything crazy like rock hopping since I will not be anywhere near that terrain, I will likely do single trail forest biking and occasional downhill. I do like speed and I anticipate flying off the bike so carbon might not be the way to go, I used too have a Jeep before my truck so I'd love to hit similar terrain but with a tuff bike. There are plenty of bikes out there but what I want is to build one and be proud of riding it, I wouldn't get the same satisfaction with a store/shop bought machine. The bike I posted above was to kinda show the frame as what I have in mind and too get an idea on what drivetrain to run. It will be fun building a sweet rig that's for sure!

MCDavis

iTrader: (1)

Piecing together an entire build is fun, but it's EXPENSIVE. I've done it a few times as a shop employee, but I wouldn't do it as a weekend warrior rider now. There are far too many good options out there for "rack bikes" as we employees called them. I'm fond of Giant (they actually make frames for companies such as Specialized) as they offer good bang for buck. Their "Trance" model bike is a XC/Freeride oriented rig that is a good blend of both worlds. I'd suggest it to anyone that isn't just riding maintained singletrack like myself...the Trance is a good rig for a multitude of uses.

nvr2low

I have a Trek Fuel, its a modest bike and could have some nicer components but its more than enough to cover central New York single track. I would recommend visiting a few shops and getting a feel for some bikes, look for left overs, you can get some great deals. I wanted a model higher than what I bought but I saved over $600 because it was the last of the previous years models and they wanted it gone.

I am very mechanically inclined, and like to do my own work on my bikes but there is a lot more too it than you would expect. although I also think it would be cool to build a bike from scratch, know what you are getting into. it may not be quite as easy as you would expect....

Tystevens

Yep, McDavis is right ... much cheaper to buy a factory bike than build your own. One thing you'll notice about the high $$ bikes is the components won't make any difference for the average rider. You (and I) don't need XX or XTR or other $1000 drivetrains. The mid-level stuff is great, reliable and lasts a long time. I have high end stuff on my Enduro (XO derailleurs, shifters, etc), and I can't say I can tell a functional difference compared to the XT stuff on my '04 mountain bike.

Good bang for your buck is the larger bike companies low or mid-level spec. Giant's 'level 2' bikes (ie, Anthem 2) and Specialized's Comp level bikes usually have decent parts and are a relatively good value. Other brands that are not as big can be great as well -- my last mtb was a Jamis, and I rode that thing everywhere for 7 years (still have it as my backup bike), and it was a bit cheaper than the big brands. Used bikes can be a great deal if you know what you're looking at as well.

This is a good time of year to buy a bike. The last 2 bikes I've purchased were in Oct/Nov, and I got brand new bikes for considerable discounts about $1500 off msrp on my Enduro and about $1000 off msrp on my road bike. It takes a bit of legwork but I eventually happened on to just want I wanted that the LBS was looking to clear out for the next model year bikes.

Building or buying a specific bike based on what you hope to be riding is not the way to do it. You need to get a decent all-arounder bike and get out and ride for a couple years. Then you'll know what you want the bike to be able to do for you!

Tystevens

Nah, I didn't even BMX when I was a kid.

My grandpa had an original Diamond Back Ridgerunner, and the first time I rode that, I only wanted a bike with gears. I've had a mountain bike of some sort since I was big enough to ride 26" wheels!

BigRedFord09

Yeah big wheels are fun, i never pass up an opportunity to ride them! But bmx has always been my thing. Pretty cheap to build a pro level bike and theyre light so it makes whips more fun haha