Archive for category: Reviews

Commencal provides factory-direct pricing. This is yet another way this progressive company has made their mark on the industry. Commencal offers brand-new, well–made bikes at a fraction of what you would find at your local bike shop. They also understand that kids grow. Correspondingly, the Commencal website includes a second hand section, to make it easier to afford a “new” bike.

My boys have both progressed insanely on the Commencal Clash Jr. Above all, this bike has the strength, structure and sizing to accommodate their type and style of riding. Moreover, they feel safe and stable in all aspects of climbing and riding. As a result, the Clash Jr. has served them well on the technical trails up in the PNW, the flow trails in Colorado and Whistler or desert and high alpine trail riding in our home state of Utah.

Without doubt, Commencal is leaps-and-bounds ahead of the game on junior tech, creating “mini” versions of adult bikes. For kids that range in height from 4’7” – 4’11 the Clash Jr is the perfect fit. In conclusion, the Clash 20 and the Clash 24 are perfect to accommodate smaller rippers looking to progress their skills.

A Long-time Pivot Fan

I’ve been a fan of Pivot ever since the company was founded. My son and I have been riding Pivot’s bikes for years. The DW-Link suspension and amount of engineering that has gone into the brand is among the best in the business. Because of this, my Firebird 29er has a good look to it and it fits me nicely.

After some additional modifications, this bike works very well for me and my style of riding. After throwing on a 27.5 rear wheel that gives me a little more tire clearance in the rear end I’ve noticed improved handling in tight turns.

My soon-to-be wife, Leslie and I have founded the RaceKraft MTB team. It is a gravity focused group of teenagers. Along with the trail and park riding, we also cover off-bike training and mental preparation. It’s great to be riding with this group of kids. Our season finale will be participating at the 2019 MTB Nationals in Winter Park next month.

It’s Father’s day, so let’s talk bikes. If your family is like ours, then you have groms that love to shred the gnar. In order for dad to shred just as hard (or at least try to), you’ll need a bike that’s capable of a lot of things. For me it is a long travel 29er. A bike that you can take to the bike park with the kids, or go on an extended adventure ride, and get out there. The Rocky Mountain Instinct bc edition was the choice for me.

Rocky Mountain Instinct

The Instinct bc comes in two models. The Alloy 50, and the race ready Carbon 90. The Alloy 50 is the obvious choice for me, as it is what I consider a fairly priced mountain bike with a solid build, and great suspension. It’s an aluminum framed machine that comes with some burly fox suspension. A Fox float 36, with 160 mm travel, and grip damper in front. Bring up the rear is a Fox Float dpx2 with 155 mm travel. This my first bike with a piggy back shock, and man are they nice. Sealed cartridge bearings are the norm on all the pivots.

With this bike, I’ve upgraded to the Sram Eagle 12spd, gx build which is just a great advance in bike technology. The dropper is Fox, branded as a Raceface turbine. It’s a well engineered piece of equipment that’s a pleasure to sit on. All of this radness gets you going and feeling loose. That usually means slow down! In order to do so 4 piston Sram Guide RE brakes with some monster truck 200 mm rotors do the trick. Some other bling on the Instinct bc I think is coo, are the DT Swiss rear hub, and the WTB race saddle. Details, details they can get boring, I get it. So then, how does it ride?

For me the Instinct bc rides freaking awesome.

It climbs like you think a 29er should, has a bottle cage inside the frame, descends like a boss, and can hit jumps with the groms. The suspension is plush, and gloss metal flake brown color of the Alloy 50 rocks. It’s something I can pedal the extensive single track in the high mountains of northern Utah, and rally on some of the more chunky terrain in Southern Utah, but that will have to wait for winter. I’m really stoked on the Rocky Mountain Instinct bc Edition Alloy 50 so far, can’t wait to pile on the miles this summer. Hopefully the @huck_it_cru will see you on the trails. The @huck_it_cru would like to thanks Slim and Knobbys bike shop, (@slimandknobbys) our local bike shop for being rad and supporting mountain biking in Heber, Utah.

Follow Jeff and his family: @huck_it_cru | @carson_shreds  | @hurricane_cam_  | @freeformpix

Jeff would like to thank his local bike shop: @slimandknobbys

I have two kids both boys, age 6 and 9, it’s awesome to see what is available now compared to 5 years ago – we finally have some great choices out there for kids. I’m running my daily rider here. It’s more of a team build than stock, but what the heck – it’s just the way I like it. My son’s bike check on his Rocky Mountain Reaper will be published soon.

Rocky Mountain Reaper Stats

• Rocky Mountain Instinct BC large, 155mm rear and 160mm front
• New Coil Fox DHX2 Coil: Hmmm will this make me faster, cause I have to keep up to the kids? Plus the Fox 36 Grip 2, yes harder to dial in, but well worth the effort.
• New XTR: Drive train and brakes. Wow is all I have to say. Yes things do get better, arguably since my 6/7 speed XT and full rigid bike with toe clips circa 1987.
• Race Face: Grips, bars and stem – fatter grips for my dad hands and just cut down my bars to 780. Ran 800 for the last 2 years, but hit too many trees. 50mm stem, keeping things tight and inline.
• Maxxis Tires: Nothing but the best for grip and traction – EXO always and 2.5 WT Minion DHF 3C up front and 2.4 DHR II EXO 3C rear. Grip and traction all day long

But wait, there’s more!

• Fox Transfer Post: Just moved to a 175 because I could and haven’t really found the steeps that are needed. But it’s only been a week, eh!
• Outfit: 7 Mesh Eldorado Top and Glidepath shorts. Love the style and functionality. These guys are dialed. All their products ring with authenticity.
• Smith Session Helmet and Ryder’s Anti-Fog Roam eyewear sitting in a super dorky dad position.
• Shimano AM9 shoes: They’re a little bit soft, but great contact with the pedals – clipped in for sure. Year round comfort – race or ride!!
• Pedals: XTR, again. Yes things get better and better, lucky-us mountain bikers!
• One Up: This is what you can’t see. The EDS tool in the head tube and Tube strap keeping things tight-n-ready on my EveryDay Carry (EDC). Still haven’t plugged the pump in yet. Still thinking fashion, but I carry it in my pocket.

I’ve always loved riding bikes, my parents drove me all over Wisconsin to race cross-country in the WORS series when I was a teen. I had the coolest bike ever, a 1997 carbon-fiber Trek 9800 with an ultralight RockShox SID fork! Fast forwards 20 years, and I live near Seattle, WA with my lovely wife (Judy) and we have two amazing kids (Nory and Elo). Our family is 100% bike crazy.

100% Bike Crazy looks like…

It all started with the kids were tiny, like age 2. At first, Judy and I would run behind the kids to help push them up the hills on Boot Camp at Duthie. When they got too fast to chase, I needed a bike to keep up. I had been away from biking for a while during school, and was totally shocked to see that the local stores didn’t have even one carbon fiber hard tail for sale – hah! All the bikes were full suspension nonsense with long, low, and slack geometry – looked slow to me, but I figured I’d give it a try. I started on a Transition Scout, thinking I wouldn’t need much bike to ride with the fam. It was great, but the kids quickly started going bigger and faster, and got heavy into downhill racing through Sweetlines.

Keeping up with the kids

Now that Elo is 8 and Nory 10, they’re crazy good and I struggle to keep up. To compensate, I upgraded to an Evil Insurgent LB and also built an Evil Faction 2 dirt jumper, although Judy will quickly point out that we technically share the DJ. The Insurgent is a special bike, the back end is super light and stiff, I can float through rock gardens or just pop over them – wow! It sends jumps like a dream too, however not quite as well as the dirt jumper. The Faction 2 is the first bike I’ve ever built from the frame up, including the wheels, fun!

Riding bikes has become our family passion, we spend every free second on the trails and even got a giant van to allow us to spend more time out in the woods. We still love local trails such as Redmond Bike Park, Duthie, Tokul, Raging River, and Tiger Mountain, but our favorite place to ride is Whistler. You can follow our adventures on Instagram @djklein, and maybe we’ll see you out on the trails soon!

Our family has chosen biking to be our bonding time. Ever since I become a dad I knew I wanted to teach my kids to ride bikes and enjoy the outdoors through biking. There has been learning curves to figure out what works and what is best for us as a family as far as bikes go. When I was searching as to what bikes were available for kids and at a price range I could afford I started looking at Norco.

Norco Fluid is great for groms

The Fluid lineup was fairly new but looked like it would be a good fit for Weston. We anded up getting him the Norco Fluid 24 inch full suspension bike. From the moment he got on it things changed. He knew he was on a big boy bike now. He had always been hesitant on jumping bigger jumps with his hard tail he had been riding before, but it was full send time to him now. The bike has real working suspension and a pedaling platform that also worked really well. I was stoked to say the least. West could pedal anything I could. Trails like the crest were possible for my 8 year old to shred now. Me being a huge fan of Norco because of these little bikes opened a door way for us to start working with Norco as a family. I ended up getting a Norco Range 29 which I love. The bike not only pedals and shreds trail well, but it jumps extremely well. It has become my new bike for shredding I street.

Bike packing with kids

Last year we had a goal as a family to do bike packing. We created a video about our experience. It was an amazing time to be biking the backcountry with family and sharing the outdoors with my kids. The experiences of spending time with your kids in the outdoors is irreplaceable and I am so stoked to have it as a tool to parent.

Although biking is not cheap and getting kids nice bikes is something hard to justify sometimes, I am a huge believer that the experiences you have riding as a family will create strong bonds that can’t be broken. Our family is super close. Its because we have chosen to spend our time in the outdoors together.

Follow Steve and his boys: @lloydboys

Steve would like to thank: @norcobicycles | @sweetwoodsmokehouse  | @peakrefuel  | @envecomposites  | @demonddirt

I got my first mountain bike in 1989 during my senior year of high school. It was a Trek 820 and the word “Antelope” was on it somewhere. Other things I remember about the bike include its rigid frame, cantilever brakes, straight-up geometry, pink plastic water bottle cage, infinite gears and yes- even a Blackburn Mtn. Rack. I believe I picked it up for around $800. A quick inflation rate check makes that about $1,600 in modern USD. Shortly after I got my bike, I got to go over the bars on Moab’s Slickrock trail. It was wonderful. That trail was the Studio 54 of 1980’s mountain biking.

Santa Cruz Megatower

Fast forward a few decades and it’s amazing how much bikes have changed. Materials and components have resulted in high-performance machines that cost thousands of dollars more than a suitable car. Don’t get me wrong – I’m thankful for these modern two-wheeled accoutrements. They’re all on display with the 2019 Santa Cruz Megatower.

This bike is way beyond my abilities but I can still enjoy it. The geometry is comfortable and that makes for suitable pedaling. My 12 year old just said “It’s magical an looks good”. I agree. The magic is in the suspension and dropper. The Eagle drive train makes the 29inch wheels go round. The Megatower’s brakes are pretty cool, too.

The mountain bike has been a big part of my life for over 20 years. When my wife and I started a family we wanted a big family and I wanted the mountain bike to be a part of our lifestyle. So since they could saddle up on a strider they have been riding some kind of 2 wheel magic. Building a fleet of bikes for my kids has been a moving target for the past couple years, trying to adapt to growth spurts and phases. Until a certain height, with a growing family it was hard to find extra money for more than department store bikes, but they have always had a bike to ride. A few years ago as the market shifted verily quick from 26” inch to 27.5 inch wheels, I was able to get 26” product on closeout just as our oldest son was getting into the XS 26” sizing.

The family quiver

The line up now consists of a Pivot Mach 5.7 alloy 26” in XS (fits my 11 YO son), Pivot Mach 5.7 Carbon 26” in Small(15 YO just grew out of it, will be passed onto the next one), Comencal Meta HT 24” (Fits my 10 YO son), and the latest add is a Pivot Mach 4 Carbon 27.5 for my 15 year son. He just completed his first full season of XC racing and really enjoyed it and wanted a bike geared more towards that end to pursue it further.

Pivot Mach 5.5 Carbon

I am currently riding a Pivot Mach 5.5 Carbon with Fox Live. With so many bikes in the house already, I want to have one mountain bike that is fun while riding with my kids on greens but can turn around and rally with friends on the more technical black trails of South Mountain. The M5.5C does all of it, and does it with a smile on its face and mine. With the Fox Live suspension, its capabilities are further expanded in both directions, with even more XC pedaling capabilities and a plusher feeling from the constantly active rear shock. I chose Shimano XT for the drivetrain and Reynolds carbon/Industry 9 wheels with Maxxis Minion F&R for tires.

With the first child we decided to drop some coin on a little Giant strider – knowing more kids would get to use it! Well the drunk lady who drove through the yard and ran it over had different ideas. After pulling it out of the ground and un-bending a few parts, we adding some trike handlebars to it. That fixed it! That strider has now been passed on to the third kid! Worth EVERY penny.

The moment they can glide – they can pretty much pedal with a few tries on a pedal bike… in comes the Spawn. Same thing; cost a ton of coin but they hold their value, have decent brakes, and are quite light which was the most important thing on our list. This bike has gone through 2 and will soon be passed on to the third child (plus still sell it when we’re done for a decent amount).

My feeling on bikes is you put into it what the kid’s going to get out of it, not what your money says you can buy. Sure there are $2000 bikes out there for my 6 year old, but she’s not into it that much… yet. She likes to ride occasionally with me and push herself with her peers around, so we opted for a well priced Norco that has good disc brakes and a little bit of travel to keep her from fatiguing too quickly. She also has plenty of gears that she still isn’t super sure what to do with!

Pivot Mach 6

My Mach 6 is next level. Definitely the smallest bike I’ve owned minus the DJ. It’s an XS and feels pint sized! I LOVE IT! Its built a bit tough for most because of the style of riding we do, but it could be built up extremely light and be an XC killer and handle some seriously technical steeps no problema! It is a good family bike as well for growing kids. I’m 5’3″, 115lb..and not growing! It can fit the older siblings and be passed down for sure! It’s a bit of an investment, but for the person who loves to ride, ride comfortably, ride aggressively, and likes to progress… it’s a sure fit!

Kaylee would like to thank: @rideshimano | @pearlizumiofficial | @officialleatt | @guayaki | @ridewrap | @cushcore | @schwalbetires | @marzocchi_mtb | @industry_nine | @pivot_cyclesusa | @ryantgibb for the photo credits

I can’t wait to get back in the bike park with my 7 year old daughter! Her little brother is progressing with the bike stuff as well, but skiing may be his true sport. Cleo got a 20 inch Norco Fluid and she really likes that thing. She’s learning the reality of having a full-suspension kid bike with the squish, but having to pay for the weight on the climbs.

Transition Sentinel Carbon GX

My new bike day was just a over a couple of weeks ago and I ended up with a 2019 Transition Sentinel Carbon GX. At first I didn’t want a 29er, but after I demo’d it for a few hours, this was a quick upgrade from my Patrol. I can’t get over how well my bike corners – even at high speed. Every moment where my brain screams, “You’re going to slide out!”, I mentally and physically prepare to adjust my body position and weight, but the bike never lets go. Even through long, big, loose corners. I keep pushing it and pushing it, but the bike won’t give up. All the normal attributes of a 29er are prevalent, but the Sentinel’s performance on technical terrain and jumping were initially surprising. It took me a few rides to dial in the suspension and now I’m pretty much in love.

Courtney would like to thank: @transitionbikes and encourage everyone to donate what you can to the WMBC (Whatcom Mountain Bike Coalition). They’re the trail organization in Bellingham responsible for tracks including Unemployment Line, Evolution, and several more.

Kona Hei Hei

I’ve been riding the Kona Hei Hei since 2013, and really enjoy the current iteration that I am on, the 2016 Hei Hei Race DL. For me, the bike suits my needs because it is a cross-country, endurance-oriented bike, but is also confident and playful on the trail. I stated riding mountain bikes in 2010, and there was a time when I enjoyed a bigger bike for hitting jumps, steep lines and pushing my skill limits. But these days I feel fulfilled with a “low air diet” and really value getting out for longer missions or short and fast outings between work and family obligations.

Set-Up Details

I ride a size medium frame, with 120mm travel up front and 100mm in the rear. The wheels are 29” diameter, and since the bike is already so light (carbon frame and nice components), I like to run heavier tires so that I feel more confident on the trails. It makes for a fun combo – a zippy little bike with good grip. For gearing, I run a 32-tooth chainring up front with a 11-46 cassette, which gives me plenty of gear range for most climbs. Finally, I have a dropper post that gets the seat out of the way for riding downhill or across rough terrain.

We are expecting our second child in August, so I’m currently using this bike as my so called “gravel commuter” to continue to enjoy time in the woods. As with baby #1, my bike serves as a motivator for getting back in shape to enjoy all the fun trails in Bellingham.

Sarah would like to thank: @konabikes

I ride a Canyon Spectral AL 6.0. It’s pretty perfect for me. The geometry and setup is versatile and can handle everything from single track to chasing my crazy boys at the downhill park. The bike worked well for me right out of the box. I haven’t really done anything to it other than swap out the saddle for a Terry saddle. The bike can go anywhere I want it to go – it’s a jack of all trades. And it’s got a sweet blacked out paint job. It’s like my little black dress, if I could wear my little black dress in the mud. I love it!

Sarah and her family run Prevelo Bikes. Please visit their website. You can also follow Prevelo Bikes through Instagram @prevelobikes.

The best thing about riding a bike is getting to be outside and enjoying time with people I love most. The bikes I ride and enjoy the most are the Trailcraft Cycles Big Mesa and new Trailcraft Cycles Maxwell 26 Plus. The Big Mesa is a hard tail its light and with its 1x 28T on the front and 11-42 on the rear this allows me to tackle most the mountains around here in Colorado. Mostly I just try to keep up with our kids that are getting faster and faster every year!

Trailcraft Cycles Big Mesa

I enjoy the versatility of the Big Mesa which can be ridden with 27.5 or 26 Plus tires. I prefer the 26 Plus wheels for the extra stability and traction they provide cornering on the loose granite or dry blown out trails that happen end of season. I’m not an expert rider and the bigger tires give me more confidence on the trails.

Trailcraft Cycles Maxwell 26 Plus

Th Maxwell 26 Plus full suspension is awesome and a lot of fun to ride – it’s going to be my new Moab bike for sure! I ride this bike in a size small and love the Maxxis DHF and DHL tires for extra grip, MRP Ribbon 140mm fork and it has a Fox Transfer dropper. Its super sweet and very plush to ride.

Best wishes for a fun Mothers Day and Happy Trails Ladies!

Ginger and her family run Trailcraft Cycles. I thought she’d be riding a different brand of bike because we’ve done reviews for the Maxwell line. When I saw her on one of her bikes for this post, I needed a little more detail. Ginger said she is 5’4″ tall and added “Our small size Big Mesa and growing Maxwell line fits riders up to 5’6” so it’s a perfect bike for growing teens and Moms”. Please follow Trailcraft Cycles through Instagram @trailcraftcycles.

Mountain biking has allowed my family to go to spectacular places over the last several years. From red rock deserts of the American southwest to the loam of the BC, we have been able to ride together a lot as the kids have been growing up.

Yeti SB100

I like the Yeti SB100 because its climbing ability isn’t compromised by its suspension set up. That being said, it’s still a capable bike on mildly aggressive downhill terrain. This 29 inch wheeled mountain bike allows me to ride how I want. I enjoy undulating desert single track and challenging climbs. Certainly, this bike’s carbon frame and 1x GX Eagle drive train fit my style very well. If you were to place this bike on a spectrum ranging from hard tail XC racer to all-mountain thriller, it would definitely lean towards the latter. However, if the terrain gets a bit technical, the dropper post lets me easily put my weight over the rear of the bike.

The stock Maxxis DHF tire on the front is a little more burly than XC rubber, so it helps maintain traction and steering control on loose trails. For a full-suspension bike, I think the weight is reasonable. The medium sized 2019 Yeti SB100 weighs in at 29lbs with pedals and a water bottle cage.

Traci’s family runs the Mountain Biking With Kids website. She would like everyone to get out on bikes with their families and support your local trail organization through dig days and/or financial contributions.