Trek suspension vs Pyga suspension

[Steven Knoetze (sk27)]

Not necessarily, Terry. Anthem's head angle is a whole load steeper than the Trek / Pyga / Silverback / Trance, which means that she's probably going to feel more "over the front" as a newbie / inexperienced rider. I really, really think that something with a head angle in the 66-68 degree range, and with slightly more travel than the Anthem and with a short stem, will be her best bet. It'll just inspire more confidence in the technical stuff. 

 

Regarding the weight - your option of the Trek is already lighter than the Anthem would be, as well as the Silverback. IMO the giant that you should be looking at is either the Anthem SX (which has a slightly slacker head angle thanks to the longer fork) or the Trance 650. Forget about the suspension designs for a moment, as they're all very good. 

 

That Sensor Pro posted above is also a good option. Slacker than your out and out XC bikes, and enough of a trail bike to make her feel a bit more confident. 

 

In the end though - from those bikes you've shortlisted - the Pyga / Trek / Silverback - there's no one bad option. The Trek WILL be the lightest, the PYGA will be the most expensive, and the Silverback will offer the best bang for buck - BUT - you need to let her try them out and see which one she connects with. None of them will be a bad choice. 

 

The steeper the head angle the harder the bike will climb. That's a fact, general woman have less power and would be more prone to grinding up a hill, this is not ideal on a slack geometried bike, IMO.

OP has mentioned Sani2C, W2W, etc. Very much XCM terrain yet, as is the general direction of thehub these days, he is being told to get a AM/Trail bike with 140mm travel or more to be more EnduBro. Yes it may buy you confidence but you could also be over-confident thinking you have a bike that can bomb over/through anything.

I think the Anthem will be just fine (Iride one and can vouch for it's ability first hand), but then again I don't have an engineering degree in the intricacies of pivot systems, so what would I know..........

 

Oh, dropper is awesome not just for narly downhill action but is great for getting started after stopping on an uphill.

I also wouldn't go second hand if I could avoid it purely for the warantee you would get going new. Giant has life-time warrantees on their frames BTW.

[davetapson]

This is a typical bloke conversation, missing the point completely.

 

Buy the pink one.

[Steven Knoetze (sk27)]

This is a typical bloke conversation, missing the point completely.

 

Buy the pink one.

 

with purple tassles......

[Slowbee]

so to stir the mud, a shop has suggested this ..

https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/previews/first-look-2015-giant-anthem-sx-275-r1854

 

at 32K, the angles are not as slack as the trance, the travel less - but for a rider who is not bombing technical stuff, 120mm travel should be sufficient ?

 

what does all knowing hubland think ?

[NukeproofPeanut]

I just feel a bike may buy you confidence, but it definitely will not buy you technical expertise or fitness required.

 

Yes sure certain bikes excel in various areas e.g. making climbing easier, or tackling that rock garden or even just riding down a relatively steep slope. The rider however needs both the confidence and skill to do these things successfully. Basically, just cause my bike can do a drop of 2m, doesn't mean I will (ok I probably would). 

 

 

To put it into context, my gf is relatively new to riding but she managed to do Hakahana on a 100mm HT that I built her. (~R10k an old GT frame that i resprayed + some new components).

She didn't want to try certain A sections for various reasons: confidence, skill, maybe bike?, too many rocks etc. But she rode like a champ and did all the B routes!

As she progresses, I'll look at getting her a nice 140mm trail bike, but not yet, there are still basics to be learnt.

 

So I can't see why we recommending 140mm R50K+ trail bikes for XCM riding?

 

Surely a light 100-120mm (possibly HT) is the better the option?

 

 

EDIT:

so to stir the mud, a shop has suggested this ..

https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/previews/first-look-2015-giant-anthem-sx-275-r1854

 

at 32K, the angles are not as slack as the trance, the travel less - but for a rider who is not bombing technical stuff, 120mm travel should be sufficient ?

 

what does all knowing hubland think ?

^^ This looks like a much better choice to me.

[RockCoach]

so to stir the mud, a shop has suggested this ..

https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/previews/first-look-2015-giant-anthem-sx-275-r1854

 

at 32K, the angles are not as slack as the trance, the travel less - but for a rider who is not bombing technical stuff, 120mm travel should be sufficient ?

 

what does all knowing hubland think ?

Let her ride it and if she likes the look and colour, then it's all good

[davetapson]

so to stir the mud, a shop has suggested this ..

https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/previews/first-look-2015-giant-anthem-sx-275-r1854

 

at 32K, the angles are not as slack as the trance, the travel less - but for a rider who is not bombing technical stuff, 120mm travel should be sufficient ?

 

what does all knowing hubland think ?

 

How long have you been married dude!?  Is it pink? Or lilac or any other pretty colour?

 

If she doesn't like how it looks, it doesn't matter if it's 15mm or 250mm or 60 deg or 80 deg, it's just 'not nice'.

[Steven Knoetze (sk27)]

so to stir the mud, a shop has suggested this ..

https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/previews/first-look-2015-giant-anthem-sx-275-r1854

 

at 32K, the angles are not as slack as the trance, the travel less - but for a rider who is not bombing technical stuff, 120mm travel should be sufficient ?

 

what does all knowing hubland think ?

 

There is a female specific Giant range. Better stand-over clearance, etc. Their Liv range I think.

That looks like a great bike btw.

I run my Anthem with a 120mm fork, slackens the head angle by about a degree or so, so it's basically a SX but 29er. I believe the SX is now only available as a 27.5

[NukeproofPeanut]

I don't quite understand the pricing though? R32,950 You can almost get a Reign for that price?

[Patensie]

so to stir the mud, a shop has suggested this ..

https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/previews/first-look-2015-giant-anthem-sx-275-r1854

 

at 32K, the angles are not as slack as the trance, the travel less - but for a rider who is not bombing technical stuff, 120mm travel should be sufficient ?

 

what does all knowing hubland think ?

Trance = 67.5 Anthem SX = 68.5; Silverback = 68.5 Might notice. Don't know.

20mm travel is 14% (20/140) less on fork and 26% (35/135) on rear (SX vs Silverback). That would be noticeable.

 

Did you see this ad? https://www.bikehub.co.za/classifieds/137411-pyga-120-frame-fox-140160-talasac-race-wheelset/ Pyga 120 frame, AMClassic wheels & Fox 34 Talas for R19k.

[LazyTrailRider]

How long have you been married dude!?  Is it pink? Or lilac or any other pretty colour?

 

If she doesn't like how it looks, it doesn't matter if it's 15mm or 250mm or 60 deg or 80 deg, it's just 'not nice'.

 

I know this is tongue in cheek, I really do, but...

 

If you have a female partner who cares only about the colour and look, don't buy her a nice bike; it's pointless, because she doesn't really care, she's just getting on her bike for your sake.

 

In contrast, my girlfriend (who I bought a nice bike for) has in the last year or so come to appreciate aspects like a slacker geometry, wider bars, changes to low-speed compression damping to prevent unnecessary diving, brake feel and modulation, and crisper shifting.

[banna]

In contrast, my girlfriend (who I bought a nice bike for) has in the last year or so come to appreciate aspects like a slacker geometry, wider bars, changes to low-speed compression damping to prevent unnecessary diving, brake feel and modulation, and crisper shifting.

My girlfriend did the Epic with me and she still doesn't know if her front brake is on the left or right. But she loooooooves her wine red Intense to pieces.... sigh....

[LazyTrailRider]

My girlfriend did the Epic with me and she still doesn't know if her front brake is on the left or right. But she loooooooves her wine red Intense to pieces.... sigh....

 

Hahaha.

 

Fair enough. I guess a wine red Intense has that effect...

[Slowbee]

 

well if colour comes down to it - i am sorted.

 

Just seen this in the bike shop with x9, suntour air in the front cant remember the wheels. WTB frequency DTS 350 hubbs, breaks elxir 5. in for 30K.

 

 

 

 

[Slowbee]

and I have dropped that red pyga dude a pm.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

so to stir the mud, a shop has suggested this ..

https://www.bikehub.co.za/features/_/gear/previews/first-look-2015-giant-anthem-sx-275-r1854

 

at 32K, the angles are not as slack as the trance, the travel less - but for a rider who is not bombing technical stuff, 120mm travel should be sufficient ?

 

what does all knowing hubland think ?

This has been suggested before, T...

 

Re the geometry thing and confidence. It's a fact that slacker geo will help with confidence and skills progression more than a short travel xc bike, as you'll be more comfortable with doing technical sections thanks to the weight distribution (slackers bike puts you more central and less over the front)

 

As for the 140mm thing - why not? The trance and pyga are supremely capable bikes. Why should she not continue on one (bear in mind that her existing bike is a trance 120mm sixer and she's not that confident on that)

 

Yes, an xc bike may be "better" for.multi day events IF you're racing at the pointy end. But for confidence inspiring in a relative newcomer to the sport, they suck