As you may know I am a bit of a convert to the 29′er, although I don’t own one yet, I’m waiting till I find the perfect choice for me. So I’ve got the chance to ride a couple of new ones recently and a chance to make a bit more of a comparison….
MSC WCR 29′er
This is a pretty striking looking bike, albeit in a very ‘euro’ way. If you like all that Cube/Ghost/Lapierre type stuff it’s a sweet looking machine. I got to spend about 45 minutes on this bike riding it round Whiteways after a skills course, one thing is certain from the off, this is one racey machine. It’s light weight and razor sharp handling leave you in no doubt what it’s intended use is. At nearly £2.5K it’s a bit more than the Scott I have enjoyed riding so much. But for a bike of that price there is so much own brand kit on it I think the price may be a bit steep. If I was paying that much I’d certainly expect more from the big companies we’re used to. Ride wise it was a race rocket, really quick up the climbs, and pretty sprightly through the singletrack. Definitely more of a no compromise machine than the Scott though, which I think lends itself to being a better XC / trail bike. I rode a large and it felt pretty stretched out compared to what I’m used to. So as much as I can glean from a quick spin, if you’re looking for something that will convert all your effort in to forward motion in a race this one will do the job nicely, but for me it was just a little too racey for my taste.
Maxlight 29er prototype
So the thing I’ve been really waiting for is a 29′er that has non racey intentions, or what I believe is currently referred to as a ‘trail bike’. Rumours had been knocking about on Twitter of a Kinesis prototype 29′er. When I went to pick my ‘cross bike up there it was in the office, fresh out of a box. Fast forward a few weeks and I eventually persuaded Dom at Kinesis to let me take it out for an evening’s thrashing 
So just to stress yet again this is the first prototype, there will be a few iterations before the final design is settled on. You can read a bit more about that here.
So with a 100 – 120mm fork capability could this be just what I was looking for? Well the short answer is yes I think, the benefits of a 29′er, but with a longer fork (a 100mm one was fitted to this bike). The bike whipped through the singletrack with speed and precision (yes, even with me on it) and was just gagging to be ridden fast. I had to have a word with myself and curb my enthusiasm slightly as I was missing corners and visiting the undergrowth through over exuberance!
The frame feels nice and direct, your effort is definitely going straight to the back wheel, but the curved seatstays mean that this isn’t at the expense of comfort and this isn’t a bike that beats you up. On the off camber ‘tank traps’ trail in Stanmer the extra contact patch size was felt to it’s advantage and I went through probably the quickest I ever have emerging at the other end with a wide grin on my face.
A special mention must go to the wheels. My first time on a set of carbon MTB wheels and I must say the experience was rather nice. Obviously the light weight is a bonus, but the other factor I’d not really considered was the stiffness. I’d say these are easily as stiff as a set of the lush Industry Nine wheels and in such a big wheel off road I reckon that’s pretty good. They were running on a QR fork and the tracking of the front wheel felt good throughout the ride. I usually notice using a QR as both my bikes have 20mm axles on them so it was all good.
So to summarise, they’re off to a great start on this one, I look forward to giving it a go in it’s next test guise with a 120mm fork on it, I reckon that will be spot on for me…..
Conclusions?
Well the Kinesis is probably more the geometry / feel I’m looking for. With so many manufacturers jumping on the 29′er bandwagon for the 2012 model year I reckon there’s going to be lots of lovely bikes to try
Top of the list for me to swing my leg over next has to be the new Whyte 829, that looks an interesting prospect. The Marin Rift Zone 29′er looks quite interesting too, though that is pitched as more of an XC machine.
So many bikes so little time / cash / shed space!
Hummerlicious
