MTB Lover
November 26th 03, 08:41 PM
Well, I have had Ellsworth exactly one week. I have put about 75 miles
on it, including a nice 4 hour jaunt around Santos.
Keep in mind, this is my first full suss bike.
Initially I was worried about pedal bob, I was moving up and down
slightly when riding on level terrain, this I have gotten used to, to
the point I no longer notice it at all.
Handling, the bike carves twisty singletrack like nobody's business, I
though my hardtail was going to really shine here, alas I am pleasantly
surprised. I even found myself going completely, insanely too fast on
some sections with short (<3ft) up and downs and tight twisty banked
turns, and I was surprised to find myself feeling quite in control, it
will be interesting to find my new limits. On the Hardtail, when hitting
those short up and downs too fast, each progressive one sent you further
and further out of control until you endo'd or hit the brakes, this bike
soaks it up and screams to go faster.
Jumps, haven't hit it too hard yet, but the first little one I did, I
was quite surprised at the sensation when landing, VERY soft and cushy!
Steep drops, if they are smooth, it seems the same as my hardtail, if
they are bumpy, if feels a bit more controllable. On technical steep
downhills, I find myself not riding the brakes as much and just letting
the suspension soak up the hits, this is nice.
I thought that a brand new LX group would be better than a 3 year old
XTR group, I am wrong here, the old half worn out XTR stuff on my old
hardtail still shifts quicker, and quieter than the brand new LX stuff,
still quite functional, and hopefully durable.
I have gotten pretty comfortable on the full suss platform, and am now
wondering how I lived without it.
YMMV
--
Jerry
remove the nospam and the period to email me.
on it, including a nice 4 hour jaunt around Santos.
Keep in mind, this is my first full suss bike.
Initially I was worried about pedal bob, I was moving up and down
slightly when riding on level terrain, this I have gotten used to, to
the point I no longer notice it at all.
Handling, the bike carves twisty singletrack like nobody's business, I
though my hardtail was going to really shine here, alas I am pleasantly
surprised. I even found myself going completely, insanely too fast on
some sections with short (<3ft) up and downs and tight twisty banked
turns, and I was surprised to find myself feeling quite in control, it
will be interesting to find my new limits. On the Hardtail, when hitting
those short up and downs too fast, each progressive one sent you further
and further out of control until you endo'd or hit the brakes, this bike
soaks it up and screams to go faster.
Jumps, haven't hit it too hard yet, but the first little one I did, I
was quite surprised at the sensation when landing, VERY soft and cushy!
Steep drops, if they are smooth, it seems the same as my hardtail, if
they are bumpy, if feels a bit more controllable. On technical steep
downhills, I find myself not riding the brakes as much and just letting
the suspension soak up the hits, this is nice.
I thought that a brand new LX group would be better than a 3 year old
XTR group, I am wrong here, the old half worn out XTR stuff on my old
hardtail still shifts quicker, and quieter than the brand new LX stuff,
still quite functional, and hopefully durable.
I have gotten pretty comfortable on the full suss platform, and am now
wondering how I lived without it.
YMMV
--
Jerry
remove the nospam and the period to email me.