David Rosen

Thank you to everyone who has replied to this topic. Many of the people that
responded have converted to 29ers and not looked back. Others have pointed
out that I need to keep in mind what kind of riding I plan on doing, and
still others have said I will adapt to it.

The best piece of advice has been to demo a few bikes if I can and go from
there. This is definitely not an easy decision and I appreciate everyone's
input on the matter.

Thanks.
Dave

From: obra-bounces@list.obra.org [mailto:obra-bounces@list.obra.org] On
Behalf Of David Rosen
Sent: Sunday, January 02, 2011 11:21 PM
To: 'OBRA List'
Subject: [OBRA Chat] 29er vs. 26er mtb

2nd question of the evening:

I am deciding between getting a 29er or a new 26 inch mtb for the upcoming
race season. I ride trails with friends and race XC. I am not into the
hucking or big air stuff. I like riding the tight technical stuff really
fast, but I have been seeing many people riding away from me on their 29ers
during certain races in certain situations.

My question to those of you who can answer: When you made the switch from a
26in bike to a 29er, have you ever found that you wanted to go back to a
26in bike due to certain types of trail conditions or racing scenarios? I
was told by someone once that if I want to go fast on the straightaways, get
a 29er. If I want to go fast in the tight stuff, stick with the 26in. I feel
like there is enough tight stuff around here that I am not really missing
anything by sticking with the 26in, but those big wheels sure do look
pretty..

Thank you for the thoughts and feedback.

Dave

Rick Johnson

David,
I'm sure this will quickly turn into a "wildfire thread" but I'll try to
get a couple points in before it gets out of control...

First, be aware there's a third choice that's right in the middle of 26"
(ISO 559) and 29" (ISO 622) wheels for MTB use. At 27.5" it's commonly
referred to as 650B (ISO 584) and it embodies many the best qualities of
both the smaller and larger wheel choices. The size has been around for
about 80 years but it's only relatively recently been adopted for MTB
use. About 2 years ago I converted one of my hardtail 26" bikes to 650B
and could not be more pleased with the results.
I suggest you consider this "'tweener" size as an option. And while it
is true that there is not yet the voluminous nebula of choices for
things like tires and forks many of the available choices are
exceptionally good. Simply stated the important part is not whether
there is a lot of choices, it's that the existing choices can satisfy
your needs.
Let me know if you'd like any help with specific 650B questions. I have
a pretty good knowledge base of what's out there currently.

That brings me to my second point. Which wheel size your ultimately are
the happiest with very much depends on many individual factors.

* Your physical size - are you trying to wedge 29" wheels into a
small frame geometry or large?
* Is your riding style more "sedate like-to-roll-over" or
"aggressive like-to-dodge-and-jump"?
* Are your most ridden trails flowy or do they involve lots of speed
changes and quick accelerations?

Just those three major factors will have a significant impact on your
level of satisfaction. I suggest as you consider opinions on this topic
you give the most weight to those coming from people that ride like you
do, where you do and that are similar to your size.
And of course don't forget to borrow their bikes for as many buddy demos
as you can!

Good luck,
Rick

Rick Johnson
Bend Oregon

* * *

Liberal intercourse - founding father approved since 1796

On 1/2/2011 11:21 PM, David Rosen wrote:
>
> 2^nd question of the evening:
>
> I am deciding between getting a 29er or a new 26 inch mtb for the
> upcoming race season. I ride trails with friends and race XC. I am not
> into the hucking or big air stuff. I like riding the tight technical
> stuff really fast, but I have been seeing many people riding away from
> me on their 29ers during certain races in certain situations.
>
> My question to those of you who can answer: When you made the switch
> from a 26in bike to a 29er, have you ever found that you wanted to go
> back to a 26in bike due to certain types of trail conditions or racing
> scenarios? I was told by someone once that if I want to go fast on the
> straightaways, get a 29er. If I want to go fast in the tight stuff,
> stick with the 26in. I feel like there is enough tight stuff around
> here that I am not really missing anything by sticking with the 26in,
> but those big wheels sure do look pretty....
>
> Thank you for the thoughts and feedback.
>
> Dave
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> OBRA mailing list
> obra@list.obra.org
> http://list.obra.org/mailman/listinfo/obra
> Unsubscribe: obra-unsubscribe@list.obra.org

David Rosen

2nd question of the evening:

I am deciding between getting a 29er or a new 26 inch mtb for the upcoming
race season. I ride trails with friends and race XC. I am not into the
hucking or big air stuff. I like riding the tight technical stuff really
fast, but I have been seeing many people riding away from me on their 29ers
during certain races in certain situations.

My question to those of you who can answer: When you made the switch from a
26in bike to a 29er, have you ever found that you wanted to go back to a
26in bike due to certain types of trail conditions or racing scenarios? I
was told by someone once that if I want to go fast on the straightaways, get
a 29er. If I want to go fast in the tight stuff, stick with the 26in. I feel
like there is enough tight stuff around here that I am not really missing
anything by sticking with the 26in, but those big wheels sure do look
pretty..

Thank you for the thoughts and feedback.

Dave