Don’t Buy A Downhill Bike, Here’s Why
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- čas přidán 2. 06. 2024
- This video contains paid product placement for Madison clothing.
Do YOU need a downhill bike in your stable? Or do the latest enduro bikes make them obsolete?
DH bikes are a specific tool to complete a specific job. They are the best bikes in the world to beat the clock when riding at 10/10ths on gnarly tracks. But what about the average mountain biker? Modern enduro bikes have big travel, big wheels and aggressive angles, just like DH bikes! So if modern enduro bikes are almost as capable as DH bikes, do you need to buy a DH bike?
Can you really have 99% of the fun at 99% of the speed on a modern enduro bike? Keep watching to find out…
Do you have a DH bike? Let us know in the comments 👇
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:43 Quick History Comparison
01:25 Suspension
02:08 Wheel size
02:29 Geometry
03:08 Weight
03:48 Tyres
04:19 Components
04:58 Riding The DH Bike
06:45 Riding The Enduro Bike
08:19 Conclusion
09:47 Outro
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Enduro vs downhill bike - which one would you choose for your riding?
Well this might become a long answer...🙈 Firstly I love DH bikes they look cool and they make me feel like I'm a fast and confident rider, which in reality I'm not (and don't really care anymore). Secondly Enduro (Allmountain Bikes) used to be the go to bikes for me (like my 2014 Canyon Strive). But I think that Enduro bikes suffer from, let's coll it "racergitis"... ;-) They have become more capable, heavier and more robust in order to cope with modern enduro racing. But also heavier and less enjoyalbe on climbs and flatter meandering terrain (and my riding is more across with some techy climbs and decents). It reminds me of XC bikes... For some time XC have become synonymous with XC racing where in my mind and XC bike should be good everywhere with a focus on long days epic rides and Efficiency, handing the "need" for "down country". Which, and I'm sure Mike Leavy would agree ;-), isn't really a category in itself but more an XC bike that isn't that focused on racing...
To sum it up (and this might be controversial) I think by build bikes for EWS racing they might be on the way to becoming all most as niche DH bikes... Don't get me wrong they are cool and that is as good a reason to buy a bike as any but I don't think that a modern enduro bike is really the best fit for majority of riders these days...
Cool video and enjoy the ride everyone!!! 🚵💕
an older style of enduro bike which would basically be a trail bike today
90% of riders don't need a dh bike, but 100% of riders want one
lol Speak for yourself, I don’t want a downhill bike😂
Not everyone wants to “SEND IT” I’m 35 with a wife and kids bro, I can’t afford to get injured. I ride for fitness, adventure and fun.
@@joshuaallswang8016 Slap a 180 or even a 190 to it. It'll feel the same as a DH bike. Bike's now are super capable even with less travel
@@joshuaallswang8016I’m 44 with a wife and kids and a full time job, but I have a downhill bike and I love it. I’m far from a badass sender, in fact I still feel like blue trails are my jam, but I feel so much more confident and secure riding semi-fast, and the margin for error is just so much better. I can have more fun at my pace when I feel confident. I certainly didn’t “need” a DH bike, but I’m glad I have one now.
@@lossantoscity3249 I don’t want a downhill bike, not even an enduro bike. The perfect bike for my terrain is a short travel trail bike and a XC bike. I have 140F/120R trail bike and a XC hardtail with a 120 fork. The perfect combo for me. I ride mostly blue/green trails bro. But I do like to ride fast and hard. Just not trying to leave the ground higher then a few feet!💯
I have zero interest in a DH bike because not all of us are hard-core DH riders wanting to get lary on the trails! My 2022 Transition Scout has 150mm up front and 140mm at the rear, and it's a blast to ride!! Super playful, but also very capable, and it looks after me when I make mistakes 😂
A DH is proper and just made to full smash. More rugged, and waaaaay more forgivable. Miss hit or case a jump on both and see which one your knees and ankles prefer.
Totally agree with this! There's nothing like the stability and travel of a DH bike to encourage you to push your riding! I love DH bikes.
~ Will
If you ride lift access bike parks a DH bike is a good choice. Especially when it comes to durability.
Dh bikes are actually making a small comeback, most enthusiastic riders will have two (or more) bikes, with the rise of the “do it all” 160mm e-bike lots of riders are returning to dh bikes as their second bike as a bike to use for lift assisted riding then using the e-bike for everything else….
That’s exactly my thinking too. The perfect 2-bike stable for someone who has lift-served bike parks nearby. If you’re doing a fair amount of park riding, you can’t replace the feeling of security and durability of a proper downhill bike.
@@natepittenger7084 Great comments, I hope you're both right! We're so lucky to have so many great uplift-accessed trails across the globe, and wow are DH bikes fun!
~ Will
Man, you need to put a graphic content warning on the screen before showing us the Pole DH bike..... Now I'll have nightmares for a week.
I got a Santa Cruz Hightower about a year and a half ago and I’ve absolutely loved it for every mountain biking aspect. The high speed downhill trails, long steep climbs, jumps and pretty much every terrain. I’ve considered getting a downhill bike(tbh who doesn’t want one)but I think my Hightower is really all I need, especially with the crazy prices these days lol
I love my Geometron G1, easy to ride, stable. Some complain about flop on slack head angle but proper tyres help. I us Michelin Wild Enduro, they don't have the twisty feel on the side knobs. But all bikes have flop. 170mm travel is enough for me, I live in Norway I use the 170mm travel on the gbarliest stuff, but 150 on most stuff.
A common misconception is that a bike like this is hard to wheelie and manual. It's not. Super easy to wheelie, just have to get weight to the front to initiate but during the wheelie is a dream.
I felt at home the first time I rode it, cornering was great, and upgrading the tyres made it feel perfect.
My bike is 18.14 kg according to my scale, so not super light. Not as playful in the air as a lighter trail or xc bike, but I got used to it and can do everything on it.
Of course on a pump track both a 29er dh bike and enduro bike won't be as fast. But on the trails I ride it's fast.
i have both Enduro (29er) and DH (27.5) , and i love them both, but ive noticed that im more progressed on the DH bike
no substitute for the traction and durability of triple clamp DH bike.
but DH bikes are so cool...
You're SO right! I can't get enough of riding a DH bike 🤘
~ Will
You just can't beat the plushness and forgiveness you get on a dh rig for those gnarlier trails. They swallow up bumps so much better and that makes it so much more fun. Also, those 160m to 180m bikes pedal like crap. A 130m travel bike and a dh bike is a much better combo to enjoy all mt biking has to offer.
Thanks for commenting! Totally agree that they're very different bikes which excel in different areas! Happy riding.
~ Will
dont need a downhill bike but ive recent bought an old nukeproof scalp in size large (small reach bikes). upgraded both suspension and groupset to a more enduro type. hard to keep speed due to soft downhill tyres but its heaps of fun
Bike park Wales isn't the place for a DH bike though, it's mostly flat. Take them to dyfi, and ride some proper DH tracks, and the downhill bike really comes into its own. I've got the privilege of having both, and there's simply no comparison when you're on a tear!
I was in the camp of "you don't need a DH bike anymore" for a while. Like most people I've got a 170mm enduro bike and it feels way better than a 2014 dh bike (the last dh bike I rode a few years ago).
However, after coming back from whistler and riding a V10.8 and a 2022 trek session, modern DH bikes are miles above enduro bikes for smashing downhill.
If your a confident descender, there's nothing like a DH bike and it's a nice treat to do an uplift of a DH bike rather than the enduro bike you ride 3 times a week
Will are you still running the intense in low? I’ve tried but I smash pedals just about everywhere
I think you’ve got mixed up between a trail centre and a downhill track mate.
I wish I had one when I ride Mont St-Anne tough
Have a proper DH bike for uplift days exclusively so it takes the abuse better over long term. riding an enduro in park will be fine but will get battered quicker in comparison and need more work to keep running nice. personally id go DH bike for bikepark/uplift, ebike for trail/pedal making enduro/trail obsolete and a binhead roadie for leaving chained outside the shops.
put a dropper and a wide range drivetrain on a dh bike and you have a downhill focused mtb that can ride anything comfortably and is durable.
Surprisingly decent at climbing, and I weigh over 100kg. Of course I have an older 26in bike, but as long as I sit and spin with the 32-42 it's really not bad. Then run a faster rolling rear tire or stiffer springs and it's even better. All for the cost of 1/4 of a cheap enduro bike.
I used a wolf tooth road link and a newer sram gx rear derailleur.
Sounds like a great idea for a challenge! Thanks for the comment!
~ Will
Can I ride my XC hardtail on hardline?
If the dh bike isn’t entertaining you’re diding the wrong trails.. nothing beats a dh bike on a proper dh track.
I hereby request putting a windscreen on the camera for the pov shots...
I don‘t want a DH bike I want a Freerider with a triple clamp fork. Not 29“ not Mullet, no carbon, no batteries.
And no it’s not the extra travel of 1…2cm, it‘s the space inside the stanchions that allow better air spring and damper design plus the structural advantage of clamping the stanchions above and below the steerer tube.
Has anyone ever seen a single crown motorcycle fork?
How many enduro forks have problems with creaking CSU‘s?
In Switzerland's Mountain region we would consider this (Enter the Dragon) to be a normal Trail-bike "Trail" and many would probably use a Scott Spark or Transition Spur or maybe a Stumpy with 140mm x 130mm ✌😁
The video doesn't do it justice
@@ciprianciprian3252 Absolutely, just like it's often the case on video. :)
Gimme a shout when you want to do that article on my 2004 Bighit 😜
Of course you don’t need a DH bike but if you can afford one why not. Something interesting about mounting biking there’s always suggestion of don’t get this bike get this bike, honestly it’s kinda annoying
This is a bit of a meh topic, you can get short travel enduro bikes like a Stumpjumper EVO and full-on gravity sleds like a Giga. I wouldn't like to take a Stumpjumper EVO down some of the stuff designed for a proper spec DH bike.
The stumpy can have full on gravity sled geo though which is cool
@@kingflynxi9420 yeah its a great bike, but its not designed to so the same stuff that a Demo would be fine with
Mate, thats not even close to a proper downhill track…
Id like to see you ride an enduro bike at a Swiss ixs downhill race and report back ;)
My CF Warden Is A 70 Kmh Bike and My CF Demo8 Is A 100Kmh Bike . Period
A bike that does everything okay. Isn’t the same as a bike that does one thing very well.
that’s like saying don’t get into BMX as you can’t ride it up hill.
The thumbnail says which is faster, but you didn't even time the runs.
buy as many bikes as you can!
Wenn du nur Wald Autobahn fahrst , reicht auch ein gravel bike 🚴
I choose Trail bike every time!🔥
DH bikes need to step it up to 300mm travel cuz everyone want to huck off their roof.
"Modern" Enduro -> a DH bike with a single crown fork, with progressive tunes, a dropper and stupid steep seat tube angle.
With these 'modern' enduros, as they are even longer, steeper, slacker... just like a DH bike, you need to ride them on steeper terrain and at full wack to be able to weight the front end and not feel like a wet noodle.
IF you ride nothing but bike park, and live in the pacific north west, and only ever climb fire roads up, then yes a "modern" 180/A180 enduro is for you. If you ride Park lifts and shuttle... then get a DH bike.
If you plan on being able to ride up anything other than a fireroad, e.g. singletrack, while having very competent descending capability, then the 150-160 side of enduro is for you.
this is why the Notvo Sight is still more popular than the Range, Nukeproof Mega over Giga, Rocky Altitude over the Slayer and on and on.
Also, why racers aren't always riding those big coil'd monsters? The 'more' plush the suspension, the more the forgiveness but not always necessarily more speed. As long as the course doesn't overwhelm the suspension, the more firm the platform to pump (just like pedaling) the more energy is transferred to speed than into the suspension.
Sir, this is a wendys
BikeRadar: "Don’t Buy A Downhill Bike | Here’s Why… everything in the industry is already going . . . downhill!
Look at you
buy a downhill bike, ride it fast af
DH bikes are a joke enduro bikes are the best for everything