Hey all, I've been riding motocross for some time now, but I'm looking to get into the dh scene. I need recommendations for a bike that can hold up to some intermediate dh riding but also isnt exhausting to ride cross country on. I've been looking at the reign, and was told to look at the santa cruz nomad, and the specialized big hit. Looking to drop about a grand.... thoughts? thanks guys
Suggestions for xc/dh bike
- Thread starter Calibomber
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big hit out. of those 3 nomad/reign will do what you want. The AM scene is littered with 6" travel bikes that'll do what you want.
1k isn't much of a budget for a bike tho..
Big hit? No. Intermediate downhill does not require an 8" bike, and an 8" bike will be misery for the most part on anything but that downhill, which will likely comprise 1% or less of your overall riding. Get something with 150-170mm travel, maybe 170ish travel fork up front, 6"-ish travel out back. You can do a lot with a bike like that as long as it's reasonably slack.
At a grand you are going to be kinda limited in your choices. I'd look at giant reigns, older specialized enduros, and SC bullits. You most likely wont find a nomad in that price range. Pinkbike is the best online classifieds for used bikes or your local Craigslist may have some too.
I've seen some older (07 range) enduros and nomad completes in that price range- usually on Craigslist. After riding a bighit for xc and DH when i was younger, I would hands down take my old 07 enduro over it for all but the steepest and gnarliest.
I side with those suggesting an Enduro. Great to it all (most) bike.
I have a reign I'm 225 with gear on and I beat the crap out of it
I have no complaints
I have no complaints
Also check out an SX Trail. I see the older ones for around a grand.
For that budget, check out older Kona Coilers or Coilairs, preferably a Coilair to shed a little weight. Think that's what I'd buy for $1000 as a trail bike, capable of some DH/freeride here and there. My Yeti 575 has been excellent, mostly a trail bike, but I've ridden lift-assisted trails, drops, lots of rocks etc and it's never let me down, but even used, you're looking at $1500-2000. My Foes is the best pedaling DH bike I've ridden, but just the weight alone (37.3 lbs) makes it seriously suck as a trail-bike. The Coilair is about 35lbs (I think) but I'm pretty sure you could shed a few lbs without spending much money.
They're old enough now, that you should be able to get a higher level one, which will give you better components than a newer bike. To me, the components are more important than the frame, most frames are pretty good these days, and have been for almost a decade. entry level components are still designed to be cheap and work fine for a guy who rides once or twice a month. Lots of guys I ride with have entry level bikes because they bough new rather than used, I'm constantly tuning their derailuers and rebuilding their hubs, for what they spent, they could have had the same components I do, and my X.0/X.9 drivelines require virtually zero maintenance,
They're old enough now, that you should be able to get a higher level one, which will give you better components than a newer bike. To me, the components are more important than the frame, most frames are pretty good these days, and have been for almost a decade. entry level components are still designed to be cheap and work fine for a guy who rides once or twice a month. Lots of guys I ride with have entry level bikes because they bough new rather than used, I'm constantly tuning their derailuers and rebuilding their hubs, for what they spent, they could have had the same components I do, and my X.0/X.9 drivelines require virtually zero maintenance,
Sorry to break this to you but it sounds like you need 2 bikes and need a bigger bike budget. I guess it depends on where you are riding dh, but with a moto background, I would think you'd want some real dh?
I do run a dh park and own a fleet of Reign's and Glory's and we do not allow the Reign's on the dh trails. Just not enough bike or travel. Maybe for smooth dh if that's your thing?
I think I might have just the thing. Check it out, and shoot me a PM if you think it might do the trick.
http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1394101/
What a load of crap, people above have suggested some good bikes that will do what you want.
A decent rider can do a lot on a fairly short travel bike, problem is people like to blame the bike for their lack of balls and skill, if the OP was a decent moto rider there's a chance he will go alright on a MTB.
A recent DH race near me was won by a guy on a Santa Cruz Tallboy, the track is pretty tame, but still, hitting an 8m double on an XC steed is pretty crazy.
This is true- in addition, a while back a lot of people destroying gnarly terrain on sx trails, which can be pedaled without too much trouble.
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I didn't know I shouldn't ride my hardtail on downhill trails. I should stop.
On a side note, I've taken guys out that have never really ridden bikes besides when they were a kid and had them kill guys that had years of experience.
It's not the bike, it's the rider.
On a side note, I've taken guys out that have never really ridden bikes besides when they were a kid and had them kill guys that had years of experience.
It's not the bike, it's the rider.
I really do think the reason everybody is on the Enduro bandwagon these days is that, they're just not good enough riders to need a real DH bike. The pro Enduro guys are another story, but average riders, generally aren't riding anything they need 8"+ travel for. Way better to have 1 $6500 bike that does everything well, than 2-3 $3500 bikes that only do one thing, or in the OP's case, a single $1000 bike that only goes downhill. Between my Yeti and my Foes, I've got like $12,000 worth of bike, it's stupid, had the SB66 existed when I built my bikes, I'd have built a single, no compromises bike and had tons of cash leftover. If Graves can place 3rd on an SB66 at the World's, it's more than I'll ever need.
The OP's $1000 budget isn't going to yield a lot of options, but as mentioned, there's a select few out there that are great bikes, and fit the bill. It's dumb to tell a guy to come back when he's got more money, he's got enough to get himself riding, that's all that matters. There's always something good enough at whatever price point you're working with.
Back 7 or 8 years ago I used to race an occasional DH race, there was one as$hat who raced a single-speed hardtail with a 24x3.0" white-wall beach-cruiser tire. He cleaned up, was just stupid watching him float through the sketchiest sections where guys with 8-9" travel bikes struggled, I figured he just didn't have enough grip to slow down, so he learned to get on top of the bumps, or something.
Of course, I'm the exact opposite, rode just about every high end DH bike out there, and was slow as hell on all of them. Turns out, I'm just a crappy DH rider.
I was looking at going from a full DH bike to something with minimal travel but a nice slack head angle, I was liking the Xprezo Gamjam but they only have a Small and Medium frame.
A bit out of the OP's budget but still cheap-
Seller: north-shore-bike-shop | Login to contact seller | seller History | Add to My Watch List
Location: flag North Vancouver , British Columbia , Canada
Date: Sep-05-2013 9:53:14
Category: DJ/Street/Park Bikes
Price: $2250 CAD
http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1278592/
!!Price includes tax and shipping anywhere within Canada!!
in-store price = $2050 + GST = $2152.50
A bit out of the OP's budget but still cheap-
Seller: north-shore-bike-shop | Login to contact seller | seller History | Add to My Watch List
Location: flag North Vancouver , British Columbia , Canada
Date: Sep-05-2013 9:53:14
Category: DJ/Street/Park Bikes
Price: $2250 CAD
http://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/1278592/
!!Price includes tax and shipping anywhere within Canada!!
in-store price = $2050 + GST = $2152.50
2nd the coiler/coilair suggestion. I bought one as a do everything a few years back. It worked decent for that. You should be able to find a 2008ish and newer for well under $1000 at this point in time.
I am not even remotely the fastest guy on the mountain, but it's still funny to see people's reactions when they are on a DH bike and get passed by a dude on a hardtail.
come on, that was one of the world's most talented riders on the most tame DH course of the year, perhaps of the last 10 years. It was pretty obvious that shorter travel bikes posed a significant advantage over full on DH bikes on that course. Don't get me wrong, it's a talented rider on a capable bike, but the difference between a full-on DH bike and an actual trailbike (not an RM approved 65* head angle "trail" bike) are huge. You might be able to get it done on a shorter travel, lighter bike, but you won't be able to put it away wet and not worry about it the next time you take it out.
I would much rather have a dedicated DH bike and a dedicated trailbike than one bike that costs the same as both and does each half as well...but that's for ACTUAL DH trails, not sloped rail trails with jumps.
Start with a 6" bike, you can do everything on them. If you find yourself doing a lot of steep/technical lift/shuttle assisted riding then add a DH bike later, you'll be faster and more confident then on a 6" bike. When you buy the DH bike you can either sell the 6" bike for a shorter travel trail bike, or just keep the 6" bike for trail riding (that's what I do).
I'd suggest looking for an 07ish Reign X or SX Trail.
I'd suggest looking for an 07ish Reign X or SX Trail.
that sounds like good advice to me. If you need a full-on DH bike, you'll know it pretty quickly.
while I'm not disputing the main gist of your argument, you have to take into account the park and the terrain Mike rents bikes for. Whiteface will eat up and spit out even the toughest DH bikes. It's rough. And if you take into account the fact that most (I'm assuming) people who rent bikes there aren't going to be the most accomplished riders on the mountain, I'd rather err on the side of caution in this case.
But I concede your point in general. This new crop of trail bikes is pretty wonderful, and can do a lot. Maybe more than most riders can.
Um... That is kind of an elitest BS attitude. Maybe since they are YOUR bikes and you don't want them trashed it is ok, but one of the guys I ride with can pretty much hang on any DH trail with me and he is on a HARDTAIL.
agreed. Just gotta spend more money than $1k.
I was referring to the 2 places that I ride dh. Whiteface and Bootleg Canyon. If you want to bring YOUR trail bike to either of those 2 places, be my guest. And yes, there are a few people who can ride any bike down any trail.
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You could easily ride a trail bike at Bootleg. Just sayin'...
Most of the bikes mentioned would be fine there...
Most of the bikes mentioned would be fine there...
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A trail bike at Bootleg Canyon (on the dh side)would make it much more likely to break your bike, flat before you got down or crash and need stitches.
You can also turn a phillips head screw with a butter knife. However, sometimes the right tool for the job can help, and make it more fun. And, I am not trying to start a pissing match, just trying to help. For 99% of the people that come to ride Whiteface or Bootleg, bring a big bike to have more fun.
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Yeah fair enough, also if the OP buys secondhand and gets a decent deal you can break even or profit if you sell it on before you kill it.
On the tame DH track I raced there was only about 5-6 seconds between my SS hardtail, 7" Corsair and my Nicolai Ion. On the HT you don't really get any safe spots to brake so it makes you look like you have balls and I was too much of a bitch to get the most out of the DH bike which was a bummer.
On the tame DH track I raced there was only about 5-6 seconds between my SS hardtail, 7" Corsair and my Nicolai Ion. On the HT you don't really get any safe spots to brake so it makes you look like you have balls and I was too much of a bitch to get the most out of the DH bike which was a bummer.
I ride a Reign on all the Dh trails around here with zero problems..im not tiptoeing down them either..
while I can see not wanting to let beginners trash your rental fleet insinuating that a Reign isn't up to the task of riding burly rock sections while still being able to pedal to the top is pretty silly..
for that matter my buddy rides a stumpy 29 and he's pinned 100% of the time..aside from some blown rear shocks that thing takes the abuse with little complaint
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Your dilemma will be this; You are going to end up with a bike that is OK for both and great at neither. A highly skilled rider would be able to ride just about any DH trail on a 5-6" bike faster and better than an average rider. BUT, this doesn't sound like you at this point. If you are riding DH with other somewhat experienced riders who are on full DH rigs...you probably won't be able to keep up because you have the deck stacked against you. On a full DH bike, it will at least level the playing field and the bike will be much more forgiving and get you out of trouble a lot easier.
The same goes for XC to a lesser extent. If you were riding with true XC guys, [don't know why anybody would
] unless you are a monster, you would get dropped pretty quick on a AM style bike. Now granted I assume you just want to be able to pedal up some climbs and still have fun bombing down hills, but I think you get what I'm saying.
If you really want to get into DH, jump in. A Specialized Status is a more than capable DH bike and can be had for under 2K. It will be far more fun on DH trails and allow you to keep up with riding buddies with less risk.
I will also say that I have a Specialized Pitch Pro and it is a solid 5x5 trail bike with relatively slack geo that is not bad for mild DH trails. It is also very reasonably priced and I bet you could find used close to your price range. I still would not want to take it DHing with friends who were on full DH bikes but it is more than capable for riding with buddies on similar equipment, and it usually comes in a cheaper price.
Disclaimer:I am not associated with, and despised Specialized in the past..until I owned one and now I own two including my Demo. They just have some great options that are priced right.
The same goes for XC to a lesser extent. If you were riding with true XC guys, [don't know why anybody would
] unless you are a monster, you would get dropped pretty quick on a AM style bike. Now granted I assume you just want to be able to pedal up some climbs and still have fun bombing down hills, but I think you get what I'm saying.If you really want to get into DH, jump in. A Specialized Status is a more than capable DH bike and can be had for under 2K. It will be far more fun on DH trails and allow you to keep up with riding buddies with less risk.
I will also say that I have a Specialized Pitch Pro and it is a solid 5x5 trail bike with relatively slack geo that is not bad for mild DH trails. It is also very reasonably priced and I bet you could find used close to your price range. I still would not want to take it DHing with friends who were on full DH bikes but it is more than capable for riding with buddies on similar equipment, and it usually comes in a cheaper price.
Disclaimer:I am not associated with, and despised Specialized in the past..until I owned one and now I own two including my Demo. They just have some great options that are priced right.
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I 2nd (or 3rd or whatever) the Reign x/ Enduro Trail recommendations. It'll do whatever you need until you decide you need a full on dh bike. If can't do a dh trail on one of those with dh tires, then the trail is over your head skills-wise, anyway.
My post had nothing to do with protecting our rental fleet but providing the right bike, for the trails chosen. Some places you'd be MUCH better off with a big bike. That's all. As I 1st mentioned, it depends on where you ride.
thanks for all the input guys. I should have mentioned im looking for a used rig. My previous ride was a Giant warp ds2 that I purchased when they first came out. I beefed it up a bit but it was obviously useless for DH. Ive ridden my buds 7500 dollar v10 but it seemed way too much "bob" for xc.
Btw, that specialized status looks very similar to what im looking for!