Downhill Mountainbikes

[RichieMK6]

Anyone here into or race downhill ????

[XKALBR]

Tryed it but riding up hills is hard work,
so i just ride my $4000 bike down the beach and look at chicks :-)

[lukey]

My brother does. Download (i mean buy of corse) a copy of Kranked 5 or any of the Kranked vids.

[bindi]

My 13 year old son is mad keen... this is his life plan. He and his two best mates are going to become multi-googaplexionaires (that is 18 zeros, I discovered), travel the world over and jump off things, climb things, and ride everywhere - basically extreme sport his way around the planet. Good plan I say!

He is currently trying to get my to buy him an $8000 bike, with specific stuff he needs for downhill racing... I told him I couldn't get that much for selling his father, but I was more than willing to try :

He is also going to a downhill race this Saturday at Lithgow (not entering, just watching).

He's constantly on eBay looking for a specific type of fork with a certain amount of travel in the suspension, also a particular frame, tyres etc etc... and expecting me to pick up the tab.

ARGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Neeek]

I used to race DH back when mountain bikes weren't motocross bikes without engines - think 1993/1994, but I'm now much more of an XC/Enduro rider and I've gone a bit soft - no more duallies for me unless my back goes. I guess I didn't really have the balls for DHing and as a result, never placed very high in competition. Had a lot of fun though!

And my mountain bike, which incidentally I shall be riding around Mt Cootha this very afternoon, is STILL worth more than my car. Some people just don't get that, and I never tire of telling people that there's as much technology in my front disc brake as there is in their AU.

Mountain bikes are great.

[Psycho Chicken]

I've got a so-soish ($1300 3 years ago) Norco with decent front suspension that I really should use more often. No rear suspension, but I'm not really fussed with that.

More time on walking tracks near the beach (oooh the abuse from walkers!), but it's fun up around Gembrook.

[Dodge]

the only thing going down hill is me, i own a mongoose fully loaded but its like a prado, never leaves the road...

[nomad1089]

Id like to start doing XC this year, got into it when I lived in Canberra. Bout to get a Norco Sasquatch which should be a bit better than my Mongoose

[bindi]

Just as an enquiry, what are good brands of mountain bike to buy? Son is lusting after Giants, Konas, Specializeds etc.

And how little can I get away with spending?!?! It's his birthday next month.

[Neeek]

Originally Posted by bindi

Just as an enquiry, what are good brands of mountain bike to buy? Son is lusting after Giants, Konas, Specializeds etc.

And how little can I get away with spending?!?! It's his birthday next month.

First up, brand is EVERYTHING to the younger generation, sadly. Giant/Avanti/Specialized are all staple stuff - nothing terribly flashy, but they're good value off-the-peg. Don't bother going for a custom build unless you've got deep pockets.

I'm a fan of Konas - they're built well, have a decent suspension design that's well-proven and they look the business too. Not too bad on the wallet, either.

The only advice that anyone should really give when looking at DH rigs is "buy the best you can afford". They're not cheap and the cheap ones are frankly crap. If I was in the market, I'd be looking at 4 grand for an off-the-peg bike. It would need 6-inches of travel at both ends, have fully adjustable shocks (rebound AND compression damping), big hydro disc brakes and solid components. Don't be swayed by an upgraded rear mech (usually XT) - marketing ploy to make you think the spec is better than it really is.

I could go on and on and on. But get down to the local bike shop and ask for their advice - if they're half-decent, they'll steer you in the right direction.

[jjjr6]

I'm biased 'cause I work for Avanti (who are the distributors for Specialized), but the Specialized Demo 8 Pro or Demo 9 Pro are pretty much the bee knees. The Big Hit is also aimed at DH riders, but I'd be looking more at either of the Demo's. Giant's DH bikes are reasonably similar looking as ours, but some of the components aren't of the same quality as our bikes. Ours cost a little bit more 'cause they are specced better.

Konas are pretty good as well. But like Neek said, be careful of bikes that are just specced with a better rear derailleur than the rest of the gear, and you get what you pay for. If you spend $2k on a DH bike and expect it to perform or last as well or long as a $6.5k bike, then you're kidding yourself. I agree with his advice to go to your local dealer and have a chat to them. They will be able to recommend something that will suit your son’s needs best.

Cheers.
JJ

[Psycho Chicken]

Originally Posted by nomad1089

Id like to start doing XC this year, got into it when I lived in Canberra. Bout to get a Norco Sasquatch which should be a bit better than my Mongoose

Mine is a Bigfoot (I think that's what they called Sasquatches at some point), nice simple bike if you're not too crazy about it.

[M14A-Mclaren]

Originally Posted by XKALBR

Tryed it but riding up hills is hard work,
so i just ride my $4000 bike down the beach and look at chicks :-)

Hahaha, Good call.

[Walkinshaw]

Originally Posted by XKALBR

Tryed it but riding up hills is hard work,
so i just ride my $4000 bike down the beach and look at chicks :-)

Ive got a similar priced bike, and at the meer sight of a small rock (say 10mm accross) i can allready feel the painfull shudder up my arms and a lightening of the wallet for a new rim.

[EA_Bender]

Im a big GT fan, maybe cause i have one for those brissy ppl, i used to ride, Mt Gravatt, Daisy Hill and a bit of Mt Coot-tha. Im a lazy **** now tho....

[Steve_T]

I'm into pretty much all sorts of riding. I'm into DH/Freeride but not in an extreme way. My best bike is pretty much XC/Trail ride but I call it an all purpose bike. I use it for anything. Maybe when my skills get beyond the limits of my bike in DH/Freeride then I'll grab a nice big dually but in the mean time I'm still a big fan of tough-built hardtails for everything and XC and general recreational/trail riding is what I do most.

Since it's kinda a DH product I guess this is relevant - Who (if anyone) uses a Rohloff Speedhub (or has tried one)? I built my current bike around one and love it. Has a few minor 'quibbles' like most things but I think I'd find it very hard to switch back to derailleurs.

Steve.

[bindi]

Originally Posted by jjjr6

I'm biased 'cause I work for Avanti (who are the distributors for Specialized), but the Specialized Demo 8 Pro or Demo 9 Pro are pretty much the bee knees.

I told my son and he said, "yeah sure they're good bikes, but Demo's are worth more than your car, mum"... :(

Hey jjjr6, can I claim I'm your best friend : and get some kinda cool deal?!?! I don't have thousands... and he's only 13, why does he need to have $8K spent on him?

I wanna win lottoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo :

[jjjr6]

For that, you should tell him he's not getting anything for being a smart a$$. haha

I can send you to a dealer in your area and word them up you are coming. That's the best I can do I'm afraid.

Cheers.
JJ

[bindi]

Nah it's ok... he's befriended the local bike shop and is talking sponsorship. We'll see. He's spotted a GT on special for $700, and also some other bike he's lusting after for $1800, and that's gotta be better than $8K.

Thanks all

I am also keeping an eye on eBay, you can pick up great bikes for decent prices :voldar02:

[NRG 290]

My 2 favorite things, Fords and mountain bikes. I have a Craftworks free ride bike with 5 inches of travel on each end. Excellent fun bike.
Its an expensive sport though. I felt weird having a bike worth more than my car, maybe that why I got a Pursuit.
Nah, I just wanted the Pursuit and its handy to carry the bike in.

[Neeek]

Originally Posted by bindi

I am also keeping an eye on eBay, you can pick up great bikes for decent prices :voldar02:

One word of caution there - there's a not-so-well-known saying amongst us pedally types:

"Secondhand" and "Downhill MTB" are about as good an idea together as "Margaret Thatcher" and "sex". Basically, a secondhand DH rig is likely to have been thrashed. Aside from the fact that you get no warranty whatsoever, you really don't want a bike to "fail" when you're screaming down a hill at warp 9... does very nasty things like put you in a wheelchair and stuff like that.

No matter how much you think you're saving, NEVER buy a secondhand downhill mountain bike.

[jjjr6]

I second Neeek on that one.

[DJM83]

used to race XC for about 4 yrs attended Mt beauty nationals a few times aswell but is now lookin at purchasing a thrasher/freeride/4X bikes probably an Avanti Manic so i can just go jump some shit and do crazy stuff never really got mountain bike riding/racing out of my blood lol and so my car can gather some cobwebs for a little while

[bindi]

Originally Posted by Neeek

One word of caution there - there's a not-so-well-known saying amongst us pedally types:

"Secondhand" and "Downhill MTB" are about as good an idea together as "Margaret Thatcher" and "sex". Basically, a secondhand DH rig is likely to have been thrashed. Aside from the fact that you get no warranty whatsoever, you really don't want a bike to "fail" when you're screaming down a hill at warp 9... does very nasty things like put you in a wheelchair and stuff like that.

No matter how much you think you're saving, NEVER buy a secondhand downhill mountain bike.

Oops, thanks for the heads up guys! I gotta stop thinking like a cheapskate