So as an average rider I decided I wanted to build an enduro/trail type ride....read all the hype about bikes in my budget and desired. I ended up building a Pyga pascoe ( My Zola bud...taxi yellow ????) Have a like minded mate that rides same kinda bike,travel wise but with 26r wheels... Booooo doesn't he know there dead. He built a meta am with a monarch 150mm Rt3. We have done many rides where we have swung a leg over each other's steeds to see what the real world differance is and see if all the hype that those talented journos write ring true for us mere average joe's. We already had a good idea in our minds as to what the differance is between our bikes,and strangely enough we both had the same perceptions mostly about the pro's and con's . Then he went and did the unthinkable and Threw even more money at his steed and put a mrp stage 160mm 34 mm (previous fork was a rockshox 120-150mm air rct3 32mm)Can accommodate either a 26" wheel or a 650b. And changed his Tyres from purgatory & ground control to wtb Bronson 2.3 front & back. As he has a busted wrist and wanted to know how his brand new mrp felt ,especially compared to the pike on my taxi. He suggested take both bikes out and do the same twisty forest sections and rocky runs and up and down more than a few times straight after each other and see if I could feel the differance in the two forks. Yea of course I laughed my arse of at first ,but after not much debating I was keen to be the test biatch. I did a 58km ride on my taxi on the Saturday and was a little leg weary . This was by far the longest ride I had done on my pascoe and wanted to see how it felt in comparison to my 29r's I had previously owned (the list is long).. I rode in pedal mode fork & shock and it was awesome,until I started to get fatigued 10 Km's from home. Then the weight & fat tyres of the bike took its toll and almost instantly made me feel like I was pulling a trailer behind me. I know this is the same on any bike, but was amazed at how quickly it sapped my energy. But with more xc orientated tyres a lighter wheelset I could do the distance and be a lot more comfortable doing it at the same time. Would I be as fast as a 29r ? Never,but as soon it pointed downwards or got rough I would be laughing my tits of at the 100mm carbon boys. So I meet my mate on Sunday as planed and I have a go at thrashing his new mrp and comparing it to my pike. I ride his meta first and instantly can feel the weight differance in the two bikes. my first thought is if I had to drag that meta over a 60 km route ....well I just wouldn't. Our normal 20-30km rides with stops in between no problem,but there is no ways that the meta could live with the pascoe over flat out distance. And it ain't because of the wheel size . I was instantly comfortable and confident with the mrp and felt like it has transformed his ride. Am also sure the tyres have a roll to play as well but as soon as that meta pointed downhill it was like it was a bulldozer on rails...I was blown away by the mrp / tyre upgrade,and considering it wasn't my bike and a 26r ( there dead aren't they ? ) I had a huge grin and was laughing to myself every time it pointed slightly downwards. Then I jumped on my pascoe and instantly I could pedal quicker...the first part was straight up. Thinking to myself i should be quicker and more confident on my own bike . I hit the first forest section and was instantly at home on my bike. Come out the forest ride along the path and hit the Rocky road section going down,nothing wrong feels like every other time. Pedal up through the rocks and then hit the fun part of the ride,where is starts to wind down though the loose gravel etc. Get to the bottom ride through the forest and it dawns on me the meta's weight disadvantage made it feel more planted coming down. We lower the pressure for my weight and I go again on the meta. This time the fork,tyres and the whole combination of the bike was gob smacking to say the least. It tracked through comers (so much so that I wacked the pedal whilst cranked over going through a fast sweep,in the forest) with such ease that I just kept pushing it harder and going faster. Bombed it down the Rocky road,and flew over the rocks with out thinking,**** I'm on my mates bikes don't bin it. I couldn't wipe the grin of my face. Don't get me wrong I love my Pyga pascoe and had a fat jol,riding both bikes back to back. We also did timed sections through the forest and the taxi was about 10-15% quicker. Was it the tyres size,possibly but I think so it was the weight factor as much as anything else. The pike is a stunning fork,and so is the mrp. Would have no qualms about putting either on my bike. But the biggest surprise was that I couldn't feel the differance in the wheel size. Sure over long flat fire road type of riding the pascoe would ride away from you. But if you want to point something downhill,damn that meta is a sweet sweet ride. And they say 26r is dead...blah is what I say. Already have a meta am lined up for myself. This is only my personal experience and am a very average rider to say the least. I hope in some small way anyone looking to buy a enduro style bike this will encourage them to take the plunge.
