In my quest to find a worthy replacement for my trusty Anthem 29er, I start my search in familiar territory and then move far beyond. First test ride is all about suspension – The 2014 Giant Trance 29er has 120ml suspension and is jolly good value for money with a street price around $3,500. So I really want to believe that the differences between this bike and my trusty ole Anthem are worth the spend. The suspension does feel plush, the head angle feels relaxed at 69.5º and the 2014 paint job is pretty cool. And I reckon if I had never owned an Anthem I would be happy on this bike – but I have, and the more I think about it the more I have to admit to myself, I would miss the XC roots.

Picture from http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-au/bikes/model/trance.x.29er.0/14921/66477/

And so my second test rides takes me out of the Giant stable and into the Trek one. Trek have been involved in 29ers for many years and their purchase of the Gary Fischer brand is well known. (Gary Fischer of course changed mountain biking forever by introducing the modern 29er to the world.)

In November Trek, in association with BikeWorx Erina (my local bike shop – LBS) held a Demo Day at Ourimbah State Forest tracks. So here was a chance for Paul and I to have a decent hit out on the brand new Trek Fuel EX 9.8 29er. Having received glowing reviews in mountain biking magazines, with comments that caught my attention such as it being the one bike to do all things trail, I was really looking forward to testing it out.  This bike has a carbon frame with 120ml rear shock and forks. Now, one thing about Trek\Gary Fischer 29ers that, up until recently, has been unique, is the 51mm custom offset fork, said to improve the front end steering of these big wheeled bikes. (That 5 year patent has now run its course so other bike manufacturers can now use the custom fork.)

Picture from http://www.trekbikes.com/au/en/bikes/mountain/singletrack_trail/fuel_ex/

And on the tight, XC single trails of Ourimbah this bike felt light and responsive. In the hour long ride the suspension handled the humps and bumps very nicely and the steering was clean and direct. We both thought this bike was a cut above our aluminium framed Giants in the way it manoeuvred through these trails. I took it for a detour up a steep fire trail to get a feel for how well it pulled up climbs. My impression: it felt more responsive than the Trance and less responsive than the Anthem. So, with a retail of $5,500, would it be a value for money upgrade?

Picture from http://www.pivotcycles.com/bikes/detail/13

My sights turned further afield after reading a review of the Pivot Mach 429 carbon in Flow Magazine. Their review, and many others, of this very appealing looking bike were very positive. The stiffness of the frame is said to be its standout feature, providing exceptional trail handling manners. It has 120 mm fork and 100 mm rear shock. On paper, it sounded like a trail bike with some XC manners. Only way to know for sure, was to ride one.

But now this is where the search entered difficult ground. You see, I live in Gosford NSW and the closest place I could  ride or even see one of these boutique bikes is Canberra, nearly four hours drive away. This being an important decision, however, I was willing to rise before the sun, drive down to the nations capital, hire a bike for the day then drive home, hopefully being closer to choosing my dream bike. I scheduled a day, rang to book the hire bike only to be informed it was in for repairs — and the rather junior (I suspect) phone assistant let it slip that it had a cracked frame!

So at this point in time, I couldn’t ride one, I was a bit concerned about the cracked frame but could squeeze no further details out of the store as to how that happened, and though I thought the bike looked very sexy indeed, in my head I really wanted a full 120mm suspension bike. I would keep looking.

As a result of much web searching my attention was drawn to the Ibis Ripley 29er. I read many many 29er reviews and forums and amongst them the Ripley stood out. For me, it ticked the most boxes.

120 mm suspension all round.

51 mm offset fork.

Short chain stay.

DW link suspension. 

Definitely XC in its heritage yet with the longer legs of an all mountain trail bike — fast pedalling uphill efficiency with enough suspension to soak up the rougher terrain.

Picture from http://www.ibiscycles.com/bikes/ripley_29/

Could this  be the one? Have I found my dream bike at last? Only way to find out – ride one, or at least see one. Sounds simple enough ….