Bikes and Tundra

Yeah not looking forward to that. It really is a season here now.

 

Spring riding.

May 5, 2022 by SPP™ SlowPokePete, on Flickr

SPP

 

Looks like a nice camping' rig!

 

Mellow riding the last couple of weeks for me, took a relaxing ride with the wife around Coronado Island in San Diego, CA. Great ride if you're ever in the area, and also make a stop at "Lil Piggy's" barbecue!

 

Looking at upgrading to my first "real" MTB. I presently have an ancient Gravity G29 single speed 29er. I'm between a Trek Marlin or Giant Talon, any input between the two or the different variations of each? Open to other recommendations as well. Most of what I ride are pretty mild trails at speed, nothing very rocky, no jumps.

 

I always say “ride and decide” which isn’t easy in this market. The right bike will let you know when you ride it.

 

Giant Talon, or Giant Talon 1?
The Marlin and Giant Talon 1 are
Pretty darn comparable spec’d bikes. It’ll come down to what you feel and which one you prefer. Maybe even just color scheme. You’ll be good either way.

 

@Squatting Pigeon and I both just got a Marlin 6 and are pleasantly surprised by how well it rode. Definitely look at the trails you want to ride to determine what you need and also consider the difference in price points.
I know I wanted above the Marlin 5 but under the Marlin 8. If I was spending for the Marlin 8, I would have gone Roscoe 6.

 

Took the kids for loop-around forest trail we have behind the house. You know I was packing on the ranch rocket

 

I've got Onyx on both of my bikes right now and there is now way I could ever go back. That silent sprag "clutch" is a game changer.

 

Yeah I’m extremely happy with them. I love my bike right now just never get time to ride it, lol.

 

I went up to Crosby and Chisholm MN last week for some mountain biking. Really beautiful country up there.

 

How do you like that swing out hitch?
Does it keep the bikes pretty steady?

 

I love it!! It was expensive but I keep my rack on most of the time so it's in the way a lot of the time. I swing it out more than than I thought I would. It's just super nice to get the bike rack out of the way to get at the bed. It's rock solid. It has a bolt in pin thru the receiver so it doesn't rattle or move at all.

 

Which one do you have?
I'm getting a "camping" topper for my truck and would love some means to get the rack out of the way so I can access the tailgate area.

 

I have the 1up-usa RacAttach. https://www.1up-usa.com/product/rakattach/

 

For a hardtail that can do it all and you can grow with, I recommend my bike....Specialized Fuse Expert. I love this bike! It's more expensive than the two you mentioned but it's a great bike and rips on downhills. YMMV.

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/fuse-expert-29/p/171068?color=263307-171068

 

I love Specialized bikes. I know they get a bad rap, but they do put quality into their bikes, even if they're a little pricier. My first FS was a base model 2019 Stumpumper. For what they were asking for at the time ($1800 if I recall), that bike was unbeatable. I tested other bikes in that price range, and they were all noisy/clunky by comparison. The Stumpy didn't jiggle or make any clunk doing the bounce test, and is equally quiet on trails. I've since gotten a couple of other bikes, but I still ride the Stumpy and have kept it mostly stock. I love that bike!

 

How were the ticks and skeeters?

 

Yeah this is the first Specialized I have ever had and it's been a great bike. They do cost a little more but one thing about them, they seem to have very dialed in geometry on most of their bikes. This bike works on everything IMO.

 

None on the trails. Some skeeters at the campground in Buhl and my buddy had 1 tick crawling on him.

 

Completely agree! That was a big reason I went with the Stumpy. It had the best balance for climbing and downhill among the bikes I tested at the time. Not too steep, and not too slack.

 

I just ordered my Industry Nine 1/1 Enduro wheelset. They are lighter, have a wider internal width, and more teeth in the hub than my factory wheels. Now I just need to figure out whether to put on 2.4 or 2.6 wide tires on (30mm internal width rim).

 

I vote 2.6

 

That’s what I am leaning towards… Not an aggressive rider by any means but where I ride is littered with rocks and roots, slower technical riding with a little fast single track mixed in.

 

New owner here and I just found this thread. I've got a few bikes (too many according to the Mrs.) and I'm looking at options to carry with the Tundra. I have an older Saris two bike hitch rack but really I am looking for a option for the bed that locks. I have mostly thru axel bikes and see that Yakima makes an option. I'd love to hear what others would recommend for the deck raol however

Since this is a bike thread, I'll throw up a photo of my latest ride, a 2022 Trek SL7 with a few goodies swapped out (namely SLR aero stem/handbars). This thing is a dream to ride and the color won me over. It replaced my oldest bike (2005 Trek 5000) which is now dedicated to Zwift

 

My ghetto homemade bike rack I use to carry my bike around. I put it together about 2 years ago with parts I had in my garage before a bike trip with friends, been working every since so I never got around to buying something else.

 

I have the Ibis 35mm wheels with the Industry Nine hubs. I have tried 2.8, 2.6 and 2.4 over the last few years with them. I did not like 2.8, I had 2.6 for the longest time and really liked them, but they are sensitive to air pressure. They become really bouncy when they are just a tad overfilled, and they get too squishy when they are a tad under. I have been riding 2.4 for the last two seasons and I prefer them over the 2.6. They are not as sensitive to air pressure and they handle a little quicker (probably subjective.) The 2.6 with smaller tread patterns like Ikons or Rekons felt the fastest to me. With the 2.4 I run the Disector in front and the Rekon in the back and it is my favorite combo. My riding is fairly steep and rocky, a short ride for me is about 10 miles with 1,000 feet of climbing and a long ride is about 30 miles with 5,000+ climbing just for perspective on the type of riding I am doing. I ride fairly fast on the way down, so I like the way the 2.4 grips over the 2.6 but once again, the type of terrain, type of riding, and personal preference will make the biggest difference.

 

I have several.

- 2022 specialized stumpjumper for the trails.
- 2021 specialized fuse comp 29 to ride easy trails with my 2 year old.
- 2022 specialized rockhopper for my wife to tag along.

 

I am currently running the DHF in the front which is a decent tire but where I live the trails are very rocky and litter with roots. It’s really difficult to get a good lean (only in a few sections) which the DHF is known for. I have the Agressor which I simply don’t like. I was looking at your setup Dissector/Rekon. Not really an aggressive rider but I love go and up and down the terrain with good and confident traction. Thanks for your input.