Bike Check: Christopher Blevin's Cape Epic Winning Specialized Epic EVO

[dave303e]

9 minutes ago, babse said:

Isnt the Evo brainless?

I guess I always knew it took less brains to go downhill faster...

 

[babse]

1 minute ago, peepeekaitjie said:

why would you pay so much for a dumb bike?

he in his defence he doesnt pay for it...

 

but probably the sensibly option anyway!

[droo]

2 hours ago, Yyyy said:

No Dropper.............

Pros really know how to shred but i would want one just to descend down jeep tracks

 

EDIT: I see his riding an EVO, wonder what the weight saving would be if it was a normal SWorks Epic with a dropper vs the EVO without one.

Follow him down a hill and see if he needs one?

[jcza]

4 minutes ago, J Wakefield said:

Rather point out the good things about it. Life isn't about finding fault, even as small as a T head spoke. 

Seems to be a common theme these days, finding fault, being triggered and enraged.  

Just be lekker instead. 

[PappaWatTrap]

Huge fan of the guys, not necessarily the brand.
But seeing the bikes with the manual twist lockout makes me happy. Now we just need a budget friendly Epic Evo with deore 12 speed groupset, XT shifter and the twist lockout for those punchy climbs. Then I get to pretend I put out the same watts as those guys and pedal a sick bike at a budget😎. 

 

[dave303e]

7 minutes ago, droo said:

Follow him down a hill and see if he needs one?

hip flexibility and skills go a long way.

[BaGearA]

The epic evo is A hell of a bike , the handful I've had the privilege to ride for short stints have been sublime.

 

Its A great competition for the spark , top fuel and revolver ....even the anthem 

[DieselnDust]

36 minutes ago, J Wakefield said:

Rather point out the good things about it. Life isn't about finding fault, even as small as a T head spoke. 

Good point 

great bike, the pic of the Specialized Epic family. Zero mechanicals all week proved the groupset suspension and frame is now pretty sorted . Even the tyres didn’t let the team down. 
mid venture to say, at last a Specialized I’d like to own 

don’t choke on a  boerie reading that…!

[Yyyy]

3 hours ago, droo said:

Follow him down a hill and see if he needs one?

I thought my post was clear enough to state the difference in skill.....

I need one just to ride down jeep tracks

[DieselnDust]

1 hour ago, Yyyy said:

I thought my post was clear enough to state the difference in skill.....

I need one just to ride down jeep tracks

Look , I even said my first post it’s a nice bike but sometimes it’s easier to just follow the narrative ok 

 

In All seriousness, a dropper isn't a necessity at the level these guys are riding. Its an extra failure point. Lukas Baum was saying before the race that he wants to minimise clutter on his bars because when you're tired you don't want to be pulling drawing in the flaps when you're trying to deploy airbrakes.

For us plebs for sure keep the dropper. No sense in trying to save a few grams only to loose minutes on the downs or get a sphincter cramp from clenching too hard through Armageddon. We should stop looking to the pro's for confirmation of our needs and choices.

Take this Epic Evo. Its probably the best XCO bike Specialized has made but because some weekend warriors ride Brain Epic they  are worrying about the pro's now no longer chosing their bike for Epic (a few of my chat groups). There must be something wrong with the world. If peeps chose to ride a std Epic with Brain then enjoy it. Pro riders have different needs and desires, their bikes need to work at twice the speeds us warriors are riding at. Their entire set up is focused differently. They want speed, we want comfort. They want quick serviceability, we tend to not care so much as long as we get it back next weekend...

 

My comment on the T spokes s based on Experience. If I had the tom for this machine I would change that Hub. I am very detail oriented so it will bother me. For a pro, he won't care because he'll just swap the wheel for a new one. I've had to have a front wheel rebuilt because of those spokes, I hate them,.....R120 per spoke and had to replace 20 + rebuild. For an MTB it would have been x28...

Edited March 30, 2023 by DieselnDust

[tubed]

talking pros, skills and bikes, I found this interview interesting

the opinion (if I read it correctly) is that Nibali had the engine, but not the skills or the Epic experience to follow the top guys

it really points to how the consistent riding at the front of Beers/ Blevins is not simply luck and good form, but its a host of factors specific to the Epic which brings the victory

curious to see if Nibali returns  

Pirazzoli analyzes Nibali's experience at Cape Epic - bici.PRO

[Headshot]

14 hours ago, DieselnDust said:

Look , I even said my first post it’s a nice bike but sometimes it’s easier to just follow the narrative ok 

 

In All seriousness, a dropper isn't a necessity at the level these guys are riding. Its an extra failure point. Lukas Baum was saying before the race that he wants to minimise clutter on his bars because when you're tired you don't want to be pulling drawing in the flaps when you're trying to deploy airbrakes.

For us plebs for sure keep the dropper. No sense in trying to save a few grams only to loose minutes on the downs or get a sphincter cramp from clenching too hard through Armageddon. We should stop looking to the pro's for confirmation of our needs and choices.

Take this Epic Evo. Its probably the best XCO bike Specialized has made but because some weekend warriors ride Brain Epic they  are worrying about the pro's now no longer chosing their bike for Epic (a few of my chat groups). There must be something wrong with the world. If peeps chose to ride a std Epic with Brain then enjoy it. Pro riders have different needs and desires, their bikes need to work at twice the speeds us warriors are riding at. Their entire set up is focused differently. They want speed, we want comfort. They want quick serviceability, we tend to not care so much as long as we get it back next weekend...

 

My comment on the T spokes s based on Experience. If I had the tom for this machine I would change that Hub. I am very detail oriented so it will bother me. For a pro, he won't care because he'll just swap the wheel for a new one. I've had to have a front wheel rebuilt because of those spokes, I hate them,.....R120 per spoke and had to replace 20 + rebuild. For an MTB it would have been x28...

Agree on spokes and other expensive things these guys don't have to pay for when they fail. 

Brain has always been a silly idea to me but surely no brain is more comfy than a brain...even in its lowest setting it still restricts shock movement a bit or are we talking full lockout or nothing on this bike?

[DieselnDust]

1 hour ago, Headshot said:

Agree on spokes and other expensive things these guys don't have to pay for when they fail. 

Brain has always been a silly idea to me but surely no brain is more comfy than a brain...even in its lowest setting it still restricts shock movement a bit or are we talking full lockout or nothing on this bike?

The fox equipped Evo has three settings.

the RS Equipped Evo has two settings , lock out and open. 
my understanding is that the lock out is detuned to firm compression. There are RS shocks available OEM with three position settings and the new twist lock comes in 2 and 3 position units 

I’ve never been a fan of the Brain. It just never worked properly despite the fans claiming otherwise. The Evo is a much nicer bike from many aspects

Edited March 31, 2023 by DieselnDust

[Mtbiker404]

SID > SID Brain. Evo > Epic for marathons. They should have dropped the brain a long time ago.

Cool bikes (non-Brain), great riding, but yes Brain sucks, plain SID is the best.

[PappaWatTrap]

16 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

The fox equipped Evo has three settings.

the RS Equipped Evo has two settings , lock out and open. 
my understanding is that the lock out is detuned to firm compression. There are RS shocks available OEM with three position settings and the new twist lock comes in 2 and 3 position units 

I’ve never been a fan of the Brain. It just never worked properly despite the fans claiming otherwise. The Evo is a much nicer bike from many aspects

I’m very curious to figure out why they have kept the brain, is it so that you are forced to services your bike at a specialized shop at a premium? 

if you have a evo Epic then you can service it at any shop because you don’t have that brain component in the fork and shock. 
 

Most things on my bike I’ll do myself , but not really the suspension. So I wouldn’t buy a bike if it means I need to send it to a certain retailer to get the suspension serviced. So the Evo makes it exciting cause it should be a simpler bike to service in the bigger picture of things. 

[DieselnDust]

10 minutes ago, PappaWatTrap said:

I’m very curious to figure out why they have kept the brain, is it so that you are forced to services your bike at a specialized shop at a premium? 

if you have a evo Epic then you can service it at any shop because you don’t have that brain component in the fork and shock. 
 

Most things on my bike I’ll do myself , but not really the suspension. So I wouldn’t buy a bike if it means I need to send it to a certain retailer to get the suspension serviced. So the Evo makes it exciting cause it should be a simpler bike to service in the bigger picture of things. 

Not only that it’s more active and really good o. Technical climbs. There’s more traction and of course the stiffer 120mm fork is a huge plus. 
 

Specialized keep the brain because it has a huge following with ex golfers and snr management peeps who are the target market for an s-Works. Now that the Evo has won the Epic there will be many Brain equipped bikes for sale in the classifieds as they all swap out to Evo’s.

it appears Specialized is ditching brain for the new soon to launched Epic which would make it more desirable me (if the rear suspension module and fork are not proprietary parts)