[Closed] 29er Long travel trail bike-Ripmo or other?

that new trek fuel?

XL might be the size for you in a Ripmo, If you get up to Ballater in NE Scotland Cyclehighlands can sort you with a demo.

fatgit

I seriously considered riding my Evil Following

If you want something more trail, then why not ride your Following?

I have a large Ripmo and am 5'11"
Not really ridden it much as it is only a few momths since I built it, but here is what I found so far. Rides have been trail centre reds and a few rides out around ladybower in the peaks.

First thing I noticed was that the seated riding position is short, so much so that it felt too small initially. This was forgotten 10 minutes in and I just sat straighter and importantly had to force myself not to shimmy forwards on tight steep climbs.

Riding like this and the bike makes a lot more comfortable and ultimately (relatively) effortless. Just sit and spin away. It has climbed everything I have done on previous bikes (bar a very silly low geared fat bike).

Whether this geometry is a good thing or not will remain to be seen. I've ridden a long time and never really felt the need for a steep seat angle - just slide forwards and hunker over the bars. It could all be marketing to the extreme.

Once the ride goes downwards it is very good. Stood up with the saddle out of the way and the length of the bike is noticed. More like a get out of jail speed machine than a rocket propelled sofa. Things are still felt and it doesn't float over everything, but it is very solid and stable.

Having said that, I'm old and not fit so pretty much a middle aged crisis purchase for me but balls to it, it's a great bike and you only like once.

Hi
Thanks for the feedback so far.
I do use the Following for trail but I fancied something longer travel to complement it and I’ll have all of the bits to transfer over from the Slash anyway.
@twonk-so for sizing would you also say I should get an XL?
Cheers
Steve

Hi
I have had my Ripmo for 3 months now & wish I bought it when first started looking at them last year. I have used for Peaks riding, trail centres, Alps & general trail riding. Would definitely recommend it.
I’m 6ft 2” on a XL.

Following owner here.......
It seems you're going to end up with two very similar bikes if you downsize from the Slash to something else. I tested a Ripmo, nice bike and definitely a little more capable than the Following going down, but would be excessive to have both IMHO. You could combine both your bikes into one with an Evil Offering or similar?

I have a RipMo. Ridden it a lot since last May. It doesn’t feel too much bike until you need too much bike if that makes sense. Definitely not ponderous or lacking agility (although the rider might be!). Very efficient climber, very composed descender.

I’m 5ft11 (short legs) on a L and it’s a perfect fit for me. I like the steeper seat tube, it does seem to make climbing ‘easier’. Rutland have a great deal on them now. Mate just bought one and he absolutely loves it (coming from a Giant Trance which he ragged within an inch of its life).

New Ripley looks nice but I’d still have a RipMo if I was making the same choice today.

184 cm on a Large Ripmo here, with a 40mm stem, it feels a little short seated but once the seats down it feels great, one thing I've found is that the steep seat angle needs a longer dropper, I put a 150mm dropper on to begin with and the seat felt too close but the same post on my Knolly with a slack seat tube was well out of the way. So I went for a 170mm drop

I breifly demo'd a Sb130, Previous Hightower, Foxy 29 and a Wreckoning and went for the Ripmo.

Hotlines are great to deal with and helped me get a demo after I had been messed around big time by the local Ibis dealer.

I sold my Wreckoning for the same reasons you mentioned about the Slash. Demoed a Ripmo and it was a really good bike but I bought The Offering instead as I preferred how it rode downhill. This bike is my favourite Evil to date and is a great do it all bike for UK riding. I still have a Following MB and still ride it regularly as it is a really fun bike. However, the Offering is faster and more composed downhill and I find that it actually climbs better than my Following MB. I would be quite happy with The Offering as my only bike riding in Southern Scotland but I can't bring myself to sell The Following yet.

Stif cycles have some good deals on Hightower LTs just now.

Orange stage 6 may be worth a demo.

It feels shorter travel than it is a lot of the time and is lighter than people expect.

Very different suspension feel to a room though, I'm sure.

New jeffsy also an option?

You could combine both your bikes into one with an Evil Offering or similar?

This... LOTS of this...

I sold my Wreckoning for the same reasons you mentioned about the Slash. Demoed a Ripmo and it was a really good bike but I bought The Offering instead as I preferred how it rode downhill. This bike is my favourite Evil to date and is a great do it all bike for UK riding. I still have a Following MB and still ride it regularly as it is a really fun bike. However, the Offering is faster and more composed downhill and I find that it actually climbs better than my Following MB. I would be quite happy with The Offering as my only bike riding in Southern Scotland but I can’t bring myself to sell The Following yet.

This even more... SO MUCH this...

Those who know me well enough have called me Dr. Evil many times now. At one point my shop was the UK's biggest Evil dealer, many off this forum had V1 Followings off me at the time, and we did a few Insurgents and Wreckonings too. Anyway...

I spent a lot of time on the V1 Following... Superb bike, ground breaking in its own right, it wasn't without its faults (most riders needed to size up, and the short 44mm stroke shock was a bit over worked), but my god what a machine! For 90% of my riding, it was the right bike 100% of the time. The problem only really came when the geometry and attitude of the bike wrote cheques that 120mm of rear travel couldn't cash, which was where the Wreckoning came in...

I spent even more time on a Wreckoning. What a machine! Suddenly here was a trail bike that could take the battle to most DH bikes (on smoother courses and with a good rider at least), yet still pedal its way back up to the top reasonably efficiently (if not that quickly). For the 10% of my riding the V1 Following wasn't enough, the Wreckoning was easily up to the task (and had some in reserve too). But in truth, for 90% of my riding it was a bit too much bike, certainly though it climbed well for a 160mm travel machine, its 33lb weight (my v1 Following was 28lb) and relatively slack angles meant though traction was never lacking, it wasn't the fastest of climbers.

After a brief dabble with a Starling Murmur, then a Whyte S-150, having given up on the fabled 140mm 29er Evil platform that seemed like it was never going to appear, they finally broke cover of the Offering, and... I managed to kid myself for all of about 3 minutes I would be ok without one in my life!

All that you need to know is it's the proverbial "quivver killer" (god I hate cliches, but it really is!). It climbs better than the V1 Following (not just down to the steeper seat angle either), it descends just as fast (if not faster!) than the Wreckoning (yes it's not as plush, but the slightly longer and slacker geometry, especially combined with a 44mm offset fork that I run, inspires more confidence for sure), and it's far more versatile than either! I have 2 sets of wheels for mine, one set a bit more "enduro" fitted with bigger softer tyres and inserts, and another set of lighter more "trail" fitted with slightly narrower/lighter/faster rubber. With the heavier wheels it's just over 31lb (so 2lb lighter than my Wreckoning was) and absolutely flies on the descents (tonnes of Strava PR's in the first few rides!), with the lighter wheels it's 30lb and worries my old XC bike strava times on the climbs, but is barely any slower on the descents despite the lighter duty wheels and tyres!

Just get one, seriously!

Ripmo is 145 160 isn't it?

I've a bergamont trailster 29er
145 160 65deg head angle

It's a beast. Best bike I've owned
Welcome to have a go on it. I know bergamont have a demo as well

Hi again
Thanks for all of the feedback again it’s been useful.
For clarity I have my V1 Following in Large. This is my play in the Woods/trail bike and it excels at that. I don’t use it for longer rides (maybe I should have sized up) as I have a Tallboy LTc for that which is my xc/trail bike and is noticeably lighter.
The Slash was my big bike and if I didn’t already have it and the bits then I probably wouldn’t be asking this question. I would just make do with the other two as they are more than capable of dealing with everything I am.
I’m not looking for one do everything bike-if I was I would be looking at the Offering or the new Hope 130. I’m also not looking to sell the other two as the return would be pointless when compared to how much I’ve spent on them
I appreciate I am lucky having so many excellent bikes but this is my hobby and it’s only money at the end of the day!!!
I would still like a big bike but something more trail orientated hence the Ripmo reference.
I feel that the Offering may be too similar to the Following but I’ll check it out later.
Had a V1 Jeffsy and was a bit meh so not interested in that but the Hightower May be worth a look.
Cheers
Steve

Old post I know, but thought it might be of interest. I've had an Insurgent in the past. Bought a RipMo last year. I'm about to buy an Offering.

Why? Couple of things - despite being 5'11 I have stupidly long legs and find the large RipMo just a little too long. The medium Offering looks like a better fit.
Its a long bike. I have a lot of twisties locally and now have to endo around. I miss the shorter wheelbase (Medium Offering is smack bang in between my Insurgent and the RipMo).
But most importantly I could not get on with the suspension curve. Compared to the Delta, it either felt too hard, or blew through its travel. Even with the updated X2 shock maxed out with volume spacers.

And, the Offering can run a coil.

Having said all that, if you haven't already bought a new frame, checkout the Ripmo AF.

I’m not quite sure what the ask is here. You currently have a big enduro bike / medium travel trail bike and a more xc orientated trail bike. So you want something a little less enduro than the slash, but not too close to the following?

Seems like you really going to get quite a lot of cross over in capability.

Is something like a Bird AM9 less extreme than the slash, but still bigger enough to be different from the following?

I demo'd a Ripmo earlier this year as I'm on a quest to replace my Yeti SB45 with something a little bigger, burlier.

It climbs very well. Very efficient. Very direct. It pedals nicely covering ground with relative ease. It feels fast, is fast on the descents.

It did feel quite harsh though. I initially thought this was to do with the tyre pressure and raised it with the Ibis mechanic but the pressures were OK and comparative with what I run. So maybe it was the carbon wheels? Dunno?

At 6' the large was too small for me. It felt smaller than all of the other bikes I tried in the same size that day. Again, I was informed it would be worth sizing up to an XL. To be honest, I'm struggling with the reduced, shortened cockpit the steeper STA produces.

I'd be up for demo'ing the bike again in an XL but there are other bikes I'm aiming to revisit (SB130) and try (HightowerV2) first. Plus the downside of sizing up is a longer wheelbase, heavier bike

Hi thanks for the extra replies.
Tried to sell the Slash frame but couldn’t get what I thought it was worth so I’ve decided to keep it, along with the others, and save my money for now.
Cheers
Steve