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Has anyone bought / ridden the Atherton Trail bike ?
I'm tempted to buy one and wondered what its actually like on the trails. I'm about to book a demo at Dyfi Bike Park, so will of course give it a go. But that's just a demo, not quite the same as owning for for a few months of varied riding.
I've read all the online reviews, which all say its great (like all reviews do about all bikes it seems). A few said the suspension needed adjusting to provide more "pop", but I would expect to adjust the suspension to suite my needs anyway. One moaned the super sticky DH carcass tyres were spoiling the feel, which is not surprising. I would run the tyres I currently enjoy which are not super sticky double casings.
I realise its an Enduro bike, so it will probably do what my YT Carpa does and I also have a Trail bike for normal XC type riding. I see the Atherton bike as a treat, a bike for the FoD and the black/red runs, that sort of thing. I also expect the geometry to be more capable than my Capra, which is a few years old now, so I'm hoping it will enhance the experience. Sure, it wont turn me into Gee, but I hope it will provide more confidence, enjoyment and fun.
I also like the opportunity to fully spec the bike, so I can pick the bits I want.
Anyone got any experience ?
Ali sort of goes into it a bit here, though to be honest, I'd not expect him to say too much negative having been invited on a riding day and given a load of free stuff 😉
Isn't the point of the bike to allow you to specify your geometry and get it as close to how you want it rather than standard off-the-peg stuff.
If so, it sounds complete overkill for FOD especially with 2 other bikes that would work well there.
Same time, nowt wrong with another bike, but from your post, it sounds like this is more buying for the name rather than why it would be the best choice i.e. sounds like you won't be overly bothered about getting involved in speccing the geometry tweaks.
(Unless something has changed massively with those bikes and they no longer allow you to specify geometry requirements)
Nice looking bikes.
There's not many bad bikes around these days, from reviews it appears to do well, lots of customisation and tweaking of the builds, so you should be fine, it'll cope with anything FoD can throw at it, just keep those super sticky tyres for Staunton and the likes 😁
I know it's a bit marmite, but i would have one tomorrow if i had the money, they seem to have put a bit of work into the old robot bikes design and improved areas that were getting some feedback from riders, price wise, it's a lot of money, but you could spend more walking into stif and buying a santa cruz with lesser kit, so swings and roundabouts.
I'd definitely get a test ride and ask questions, they can measure you up for the right frame, and more importantly, shock settings, always amazes me the amount of folk who will buy a 5k plus bike and put very little into shock setup!
There’s not many bad bikes around these days
People always say this and in my experience it's absolutely not true. Reviewers don't have to live with bikes long enough to deal with fragility, reliability and any proper disasters get swept under the carpet.
Plenty of manufacturers churn out absolute crap. Luckily I don't have to deal with the bloody things on a daily basis anymore.
Sorry I can't help with the Atherton bike, other than to say it looks nice, it's bloody spendy and I'm sure it would be all the bike most of us would ever need. If you want one get down to Dyfi and ride everything you can get your hands on.
Maybe you can take your own wheels & tyres for the demo?
And tell them you want it set up sporty?
Then just make sure you get the chance to try a variety of trails - fast, tight, steep, rough etc. And some uphill, obvs.
I’ve read all the online reviews
Soz ignore me 😛
If I get one then the YT Capra will be sold, as it does the same job.
I regularly take my Jeffsy and Capra to the FoD, but pick the riding spots depending on the bike.
Sure there is some crossover, but generally the Capra does the cheeky death trail stuff like Staunton etc and of course the DH runs, the Jeffsy is for the trail centre, Dowies and that sort of stuff.
I've no idea what geometry works, so there is no way I could spec my own. I want that to have been done by someone who knows what they are doing. I would expect that because they can make the lugs in 16hrs, they can do lots of tweaking before committing. Unlike say some carbon frame where once you have paid mega bucks for a mould and committed to some Far East factory for several containers, its too late to change the geometry.
I will take the YT Capra on the demo as well, so have a back to back experience, probably take the Jeffsy as well.
Also I like the idea / concept and the look of it. That's half the reason to get one. The price is less of an issue as it will be tax free. A Santa Cruz Bronson is 6k and you don't get to spec it.
Plenty of manufacturers churn out absolute crap. Luckily I don’t have to deal with the bloody things on a daily basis anymore.
I'm going to go out on a limb here, but have you had a bad experience with a bike recently 😂
I'd have one in a moment if I was in the market. I think they look great and love the tech - I'm not even bothered by the name on the side.