[DirtMcGirk]

I've nailed it down to wanting one of these two frames.

About me:
- Large mammal @240#
- Not the smoothest rider
- Living in AZ, so lots of rocks.
- No longer racing, but still riding hard.

Which ever bike I go with is going to need to be lighter than my current 303DH. Unless its an all downhill trail, that bike's weight gets to be an issue, especially when its over 100 here.

Its going to see a lot of AZ rocks on Phoenix's South Mountain, and then a week in Tahoe and another week in Whistler.

I've been riding my 303DH for four years now, and its really made me into a better rider. But its time for a new frame and for the current 303 to move onto a new home. Its just too damn heavy for non-lift serviced trails.

Thoughts?

 

[jonKranked]

from talking to people, the 951 seems to be less of a plow bike, which I think is what you need.

 

[armada]

i think the 303r is more comparable to the m9? or?

 

[DirtMcGirk]

Yea, but I think the M9 is out of my price range unless there's a REALLY good sale somewhere.

 

[teamkranzelbike]

If I remember corectly from the Mid Atlantic series races, we are about the same size and ability riders.I no longer race either and was looking for something different( coming of several Konas over the years) I recently picked up a 951 for this season. I only have a couple of rides on it and am still getiing the rear shock sorted out ( Fox RC4, should have got the Double Barrel). anyway I am loving it. It is a completly different beast. Much more lively ride. corners better and pedals better. MY Kona was 43# and the 951 is 36# took a little to get used to the light feeling. I havent tried to bash any sections yet, but, I have jumped the bike a bit. Now we arent talking big, high , or long here, but it is definatly a confidence builder how it handles so much better. I was a bit skeptical at first that the 951 may not be "heavy Duty" enough for my portly plus body, but after a couple outings I am feeling good about the purchase. I was going to purchase an M9 but felt I could never ride up to it's potential.

 

[stoney]

Fat bastard/Ogre = Yeti. This has been discussed before.

 

[John P.]

I just built up my RDH, and if you're worried about weight, don't be - I have a couple of light bits on there (Boxxer WC, mag pedals), but I've got some heavy stuff, too (Azonic Outlaw wheels). Total weight was 38.5 lbs.

I'll do my first DH rips on it on Thursday, and I'm sure it will be "plush", "balanced", "pedal great" and "rail turns", just like everyone else's bike who posts up after their first ride.

 

[Full Trucker]

...I'll do my first DH rips on it on Thursday...

Shuttling Apex, are ya? Well... it IS an "even" day...

 

[DirtMcGirk]

JohnP: just tried to email you. Got the email rejected because "Reason: The domain size limit has been exceeded."

Let me know if there's a better way to reach you. Had a question about the 303RDH.

 

[Nick]

Shuttling Apex, are ya? Well... it IS an "even" day...

beat me to it.

(btw: if anyone is up for shuttling apex Thursday, I'll take a long lunch)

 

[gfisher270]

The Yeti goes through anything. It jumps well and can handle rocks. I love mine and wouldn't ride anything else.

 

[John P.]

Ha! I'll be trail riding Apex tomorrow or Thursday, but we're DHing someplace else (I don't know the name of the place; I'm a newbie to the area).

Try jpyeti AT gmail DOT com for email. Not sure what the heck's wrong with our server.

--JP

 

[norbar]

I'd look at GT Fury. I know the MSRP is 3999$ but ive seen new ones for as low as 1700$ (2010 of course) and there is one on ebay for 2299$ which is still half the price. The susp is fairly rearward so it should be able to handle rocks better than the 2 mentioned. I may be wrong but it seems like the only differance between the 2010 and 2011 is the angleset (which you can still buy).

If not - the 303R. Proven to be hack proof.

 

[Mr Jones]

The 951 will pin SoMo just fine, but the 303 will just do it smoother. For the riding you're looking at doing, the M9 sounds ideal. Heck... go with an M6 if you can find one. Rides a little further back than the M9 but plows just as smooth.

 

[BikerBoy28]

I'd look at GT Fury. The susp is fairly rearward so it should be able to handle rocks better than the 2 mentioned.

Unless I'm mistaken, I believe the 951 has a fair bit of rearward as well...vpp?

 

[MinorThreat]

. . . and I'm sure it will e "plush", "balanced", "pedal great" and "rail turns", . . . .

I opened the Roget's in my bookshelf just to be sure and for every term you mentioned, there was a common synonym: "303R DH."

 

[norbar]

Unless I'm mistaken, I believe the 951 has a fair bit of rearward as well...vpp?

Most VPP bikes are not very rearward while the fury main pivot is quite high.

 

[Idahoo]

Though not as heavy as you (I'm 190lbs) I am almost in your exact same boat...

I had a 303DH but cracked the head tube after 1 1/2 seasons on it (I was the third owner) and got it crash-replaced with a 303 R-DH.

So far, my experience is this:

- The R-DH is over 1lb lighter just in the frame, this makes a big difference.
- The R-DH is MUCH more flick-able and jump-able than the DH. This is in part due to weight, but also design. The suspension is much more "poppy" in the rear and you will "plow" much less for sure.
- The R-DH is much more pedal-able than the DH, a feature which I enjoy
- I also feel that the R-DH is much better in corners. It just holds lines better and is faster at laying over to get those side knobs engaged.

From talking with Yeti at one of the Mountain States Cup Races (Yeti sponsors it) they said the 303DH was designed for world cup courses mostly with Europe in mind. Fast, loose, and down. It was designed to be the fastest it could be while plowing over rough terrain the most in the most efficient manner.

As for the debate which one to get, I don't have a clue about the 951 other than it essentially replaced the SOCOM in the Intense line-up. If you have any other questions, please feel free to hit me up.

 

[cowman]

I don't know what way you're leaning or what size you are... But you may want to check out this deal go-ride has going right now.

http://www.go-ride.com/SPD/yeti-303-rdh--8000291E-1228859066.jsp

They also have some Intense frames on sale

http://www.go-ride.com/CategoryProductList.jsp?cat=MTB:FOR+THE+BIKE:FRAMES:INTENSE+CYCLES

 

[DirtMcGirk]

I saw the Yeti deal, and I am kicking myself in the head for not getting on it when they still had the mediums. I'm 5'9" or so, so I think the small would be too small for me.

 

[demo 9]

I vote for the 951, I rode 1, thought it was a fun nimble bike, the owners seem to like them. Its intense, why not!

 

[jonKranked]

I vote for the 951, I rode 1, thought it was a fun nimble bike, the owners seem to like them. Its intense, why not!

null and void opionion there fatty. dirt here is pushin the scales at like tree fiddy

 

[DirtMcGirk]

Like 235 this morning.
Though, now that you mention it, I am gonna need about three fiddy.

 

[Uncle Cliffy]

If you were a lil bit taller...

VVV

 

[Mr Lahey]

I have a year of east coast racing and weekly rides on my 09 RDH and it is still in fantastic shape.

The design of the frame and suspension really allows you to ride up over the trail instead of smashing through it- sort of another way of saying you can get the bike off the ground easily. This resulted in much less wear and tear on parts compared to my Sunday. Tons of fun if you have a bmx or dj background.

I would like a tad more stand over on the medium, but that's my only real gripe.


Also worth noting, this frames build into a near silent bike which you come to appreciate very quickly.

xc tires for a good times Ohio DH race we just had...