mtbfan028

they look like a child's bikes with all the colors, and the linkage always seemed like they were trying too hard to be different even at the cost of performance, having the shock that low doesn't inspire confidence, neither does the split seat tube to make room for it. Too much going on.

If things were cross compatible then you would spend FAR less on your stable of steeds, that's NOT what the manufactures want, they want as much of your money as possible, hence all the so called "standards" constantly changing, I mean how many 1 1/8th frames are cracking at the head tube to warrant the change? wheres the trouble with 20mm? The more compatible the parts, the smaller the sales numbers, its really that simple, switch things around to cause our current bikes to become obsolete once a part needs to be replaced, forcing you to replace parts that are in perfect working order, and the industry smiles. If you like your current ride then stock up on any parts that may need replacing in the future, and chances are if you don't need them someone else will and will probably pay good money since they would no longer be available, that's how your gonna get your moneys worth.

Reading racing, sure there is a place for all three, tell that the manufactures though. Trust me, when I'm your age if I'm still able to ride like you ill probably want a 29er to keep the old body feeling good, my style will have changed due to father time and would dictate the style of ride for me, but I'm not that old yet and I'm not done jumping and laying into sharp corners at speed, you know the stuff that made you want to ride a bike in the first place. 26ers are still the most fun by FAR!!!!! This is just my opinion

I have rode bikes since I was a kid, love everything about bikes and have experienced a lot of variety. What I am going to say is my own opinion and nothing more. I've tried all three wheel sizes by demoing bikes and riding them all on the same trails. My take: if you have skill built up from lots of riding the 26" wheel is the most manipulatable size and therefore offers the most fun. When I rode the 29" wheel the feeling made me wonder, was this wheel just created to get people with less riding experience/skill on bikes and increase the market from actual riders to everyone who has a wallet? It just felt like I was along for the ride, not much was required of me the rider, it felt like being in a monster truck driving over a pump track, it completely tamed the trail and made it more like fire road than tech single track. It just rolls over everything and u feel like ur just along for the ride. It makes riding easier, not more fun. So when 26" was the standard, was there just not enough open wallets for the industry? I'm all for marketing and making money, just please don't forget about the people who ride 26" bikes because they ARE the most FUN to ride. I've had a nice chunk of cash saved for my next bike for about 3 years now and have tried a lot of new models/27.5 and 29, my money will go toward a 26", even if I have to buy used because of the non existent market these days. To each their own.