Agreed. I may have come across as disliking Specialized, but I don't. They make really good bikes (my brother rides a 26" carbon Stumpy with a Pike, it's a brilliant machine), but my point was really just that they're not the only ones who make really good bikes. I've owned and/or ridden bikes from the stables of: - Nishiki (Alien) - BlueGrass (LeisureLine) - Diamondback (Topanga, Ascent, Apex) - Commencal (Meta 5.5) - Wheeler (7900ZX) - Giant (ATX990, XTC, Glory, Reign) - Cannondale (CAAD3 HT, Super V DH) - Intense (5.5, M3, Uzzi, Tracer) - Kona (Fire Mountain, Lava Dome) - Scott (Scale) - Specialized (Stumpy FSR carbon) - Pyga (current OneTen29) Out of all these bikes, two stand out specifically: - Intense 5.5 - it's a ruthlessly accurate machine, albeit with too much VPP bobbing happiness. - Pyga OneTen29 - the most well-balanced and all-round capable of the lot. It can climb like an XC bike, and descend with almost as much gusto as an AM bike. The above having been said, several other bikes I've ridden have been very good. Each has its own "something special". Being blinded into thinking only one manufacturer makes great bikes (like some of the posters here) is just plain stupid. BTW, I drive a BMW and have several Apple devices, as you know
