I dunno man, riding two up, at low speed, in those conditions, with a bunch of crazy bicyclists around you. Not for me. <object style="height: 390px; width: 640px"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/XYpx26nkG7A?version=3&feature=player_detailpage"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/XYpx26nkG7A?version=3&feature=player_detailpage" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="640" height="360"></object>
Sage advice... except for the fact that Aurelius lives in FL.:loll My 2 cents to him would be to get up to speed on his current ride and work on his skill set before graduating to a long travel bike. A fancy high dollar bike won't make him a better rider. There are lots of folks around here who have spent thousands of bucks only to find out they're still slow.
I'm about to throw down for my first cross bike. It will mostly be a gravel grinder and shitty back road bike. I'm thinking the caadx with 105 will work. I get 25% off on cannondales. I already have wheels, so I could sell the take-offs as new and come in well under $2k. Sure, I don't need it, but the cross movement has made it to Tx.
But I'm not slow - anymore. The first time I rode at Santos about a month ago, I was easily the slowest rider out there (except for a few kids ). Last weekend I was one of the fastest riders on those very same trails, and a lot of that has to do with how much better my FS copes rocks and roots compared to my HT. Because of that, I can fly through those trails at much higher speeds than before without any fear of crashing. The only trails at Santos that are still difficult for me today are the 'expert only' Red trails. And just as before, having a different bike would make an enormous difference there. How do I know this? Because I did back to back runs on my Superfly and on a bike I borrowed from an instructor which was equipped with massive forks and 7 inches of suspension travel. His bike would glide over huge rocks as easily as my Superfly would go over a 2x4. It was absolutely unstoppable. Instead of having to pick my lines carefully through or around obstacles, I just plowed right over them at full speed.
Cross is probably the hardest thing I've ever done on two wheels. Most fun too! Aurelius: faster does not equal better rider. All this means is you've paid more for the bike than someone else. Break out that HT again and get fast on that, THEN go bashing over stuff with no regard to lines, smoothness, and finesse. Learn the right way before you take short-cuts. Yeah, I'm a retro-grouch that learned to ride off-road when there was no such thing as suspension. M
Riding a flat (although bumpy) Paris-Roubaix for 160 miles, 30 of which are cobblestones, on a dirt moto wouldn't be so bad except that the trip takes 6 hours because you only average 25-27mph. To me, the real badasses are the guys who keep up with/ahead of pro cyclists on some of the mountain descents. 60mph, in the rain, on rough roads, switchbacks and sweepers, with a pillion who's carrying a camera and standing up or leaning off the bike to get those artsy shots. Here's some good moto footage from the 2011 Tour of Switzerland, stage 3 into Grindelwald. <iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/VtpQ_7Bj_YM" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="560"></iframe>
Have you ever ridden any of the trail systems in Florida ? You would be suprised at the elevation changes. And pedaling uphill in sugar sand isn't easy. We have no mountains but that doesn't mean the trails are flat. Many were built in old phosphate mines.
Nope to the riding in FL. I have ridden uphill sand sections during the 24 Hours of Moab race several years ago. That was interesting in the dark. Lesson from that race? I found that carrying the bike was faster than pedaling, so I'd rather carry a 28lb XC bike than a 38lb DH bike.
While in the aforementioned Greenway Bike Shop, I got to talking to an older dude with a Specialized Enduro. He said it was the only bike he hasn't been able to break. They get great reviews in all the magazines. As mentioned, the Giant Reign is another great bike. You might, also, look at a Kona Operator or Intense Tracer 2 (made in USA).
Just had a test ride on a Specialized Stumpjumper with a carbon fiber frame. Very nice bike, and not at all twitchy like the other 26" bikes I've test ridden. The suspension felt very strange though. The rear felt undersprung while the front felt too hard, yet both were set up for a 180lb rider. I also noticed that despite it's lighter wheels, I couldn't bunny hop or wheelie it any easier than my 29" Superfly.
Sugar sand is absolute hell. Riding through that stuff can be exhausting, even on flat areas. Last week I investigated the new trail out in Mt. Dora. It looks pretty manageable in the videos, but many riders warned that it's a real 'leg burner'. They weren't kidding. From start to finish, I was either riding down a steep hill or riding up a steep hill. After about 20 minutes of that I decided I'd had enough and drove up to Santos. They have some steep hills up there as well, but thankfully they're relatively short stretches.
Isn't a 105 caadx like $1500, list? Are those silver, or unpainted? I'm a sucker for a raw aluminum finish....
indeed. I rode photo-moto at a triathlon once, was a great experience. I could see doing a lot more of that if I didn't have a full time job.
No, but it does mean having more fun. Which makes it a chick magnet, right? Too late! I traded in the HT for the FS. Makes me glad I wasn't around in the 19th century. I just put clipless pedals on mine. $50 bought me more power, and now I can bunny hop (sort of) by pulling up on the pedals. Not to mention the street cred I'll get just for having them.
It's raw, and the group is actually rival, but we have so many take off groups at the shop that I'll just switch it out. I think list is $2300.
I was also riding rigid back in the day when anodized purple bits were cool and xt was the hottest setup available. Suspension allows me to ride with more finesse. I can load the front or rear and clear those roots and logs...not plow over them. I have to change some seals and bushings every few years, but otherwise, no trouble. A team scalple is my next bike.
Be sure to research what you rode, on the Specialized site. If you rode the FSR Expert Carbon Evo, then there's a reason it feels the way it did. It's not a ~general purpose, MTB like the XC bikes you've had. The Stumpy is laid back, which puts more weight over the rear, hence the undersprung/too hard feeling you note. Your inexperience is partly to blame for the inability to bunnyhop. You're not going to be very good at it, when you're on a squishy, long-travel bike. They absorb the energy you're trying to put into the suspension. This bike is designed to go blasting over terrain; not perform BMX tricks.
