so i got another taste of this "29er thing" on sunday. i went to the SoCal Fat Tire Fest put on by CORBA and the guys from niner bikes were out with some demo rides. i got to take out an orange SIR9 set up singlespeed with a rigid fork. the bike was a size large (19" ST and 24.5 TTT) and set with a 70mm stem and a set of bars with a ton of sweep (can't remember the brand name).
it was a blast to ride. i loved the super simple set up. it was awesome to not have to think about shifting. there were some times on the flats where i wanted more gear to pick up some speed. however, on the climbs, the gearing was just right and i was able to move up a pretty good slope on a fire road without having too much trouble.
the demo was at Malibu Creek State Park which as a very techy rockgarden section called Crags. there are lots of small up/downhills and tons of rocks and roots. i was able to plow throug quite a bit of it without too much trouble. the biggest issues i had were with getting comfortable with the super-sweepy bars and the fact the bottom bracket was so low that i kept slamming my pedals into rocks (the frame has an EBB and it was set in a low BB-spindle height position).
i have to say that for riding a 19" frame with 29" wheels i would have expected the thing to feel like i was on stilts. instead, it felt very comfortable and i was able to get through the rough stuff much easier than i thought i would. i was also pretty comfortable taking the bike back down the steep fireroad i climbed up. damn fine handling for a rigid fork.
bottom line - i'm getting closer to buing one of these 29 bikes. i'm definitely going rigid, steel, and singlespeed. i want to try another brand before i make any final decisions. i emailed vassago and they gave me some contact info for some people in san diego and OC that i should meet up with for demo rides.
29 = 
it was a blast to ride. i loved the super simple set up. it was awesome to not have to think about shifting. there were some times on the flats where i wanted more gear to pick up some speed. however, on the climbs, the gearing was just right and i was able to move up a pretty good slope on a fire road without having too much trouble.
the demo was at Malibu Creek State Park which as a very techy rockgarden section called Crags. there are lots of small up/downhills and tons of rocks and roots. i was able to plow throug quite a bit of it without too much trouble. the biggest issues i had were with getting comfortable with the super-sweepy bars and the fact the bottom bracket was so low that i kept slamming my pedals into rocks (the frame has an EBB and it was set in a low BB-spindle height position).
i have to say that for riding a 19" frame with 29" wheels i would have expected the thing to feel like i was on stilts. instead, it felt very comfortable and i was able to get through the rough stuff much easier than i thought i would. i was also pretty comfortable taking the bike back down the steep fireroad i climbed up. damn fine handling for a rigid fork.
bottom line - i'm getting closer to buing one of these 29 bikes. i'm definitely going rigid, steel, and singlespeed. i want to try another brand before i make any final decisions. i emailed vassago and they gave me some contact info for some people in san diego and OC that i should meet up with for demo rides.
29 = 
