I made up a geometry comparison chart. Hopefully it posts correctly below. In retrospect, I think they gave me an XL Yeti SB100. That’s the only thing that can explain why I felt what I felt. One thing to keep in mind is that the festival opens at 9:00am and the first 30-45 minutes is sort of chaotic with lots of people clamoring for bikes. Today was especially chaotic since everyone was trying to beat the rain.
Looking at the geometry of the Canyon Neuron compared to the others here, perhaps they ran that bike with a lot of sag which would explain why the suspension felt so forgiving and I had so many pedal strikes. That was also the only bike I ran with “their” pedals which were thick Shimano pedals (I’m running flats out here since I’m unfamiliar with the trails and terrain).
Looking back on the bikes I’ve ridden so far, I felt most “at home” on the Specialized Epic because that was the closest to my current bike (Cannondale F-Si) from a geometry standpoint. However the short suspension and lack of a dropper made it inappropriate for these trails. The balanced suspension bikes like the Fezzari Signal Peak, Canyon Neuron, and Scott Spark felt the most in control over fast rocky stuff, through rock gardens, and down ledgy descents. I don’t think this had so much to do with balanced front and rear suspension as it did with just having more rear suspension. I’m bike shopping right now so, at the moment, I’m pretty sure I’m going to end up with something with 120-130mm of rear travel.
If things dry out tomorrow morning I’m going to try to ride a couple more bikes before I fly out.
BikeFezarri SignalFezarri CascadeSpecialized EpicEpic EvoCanyon NeuronScott Spark 920Giant TranceSalsa SpearfishYeti SB100Sus Front120mm140mm100mm120mm130mm120mm130mm120mm120mmSus Rear120mm140mm100mm100mm130mm120mm115mm100mm100mmHeadtube Angle6866.469.568.567.567.266.567.867.8Seat Tube Angle757574.7573.874.573.874.574.374.1BB Drop35mm34mm39mm39mm38mm43mm39mmWheelbase1182mm1192mm1151mm1159mm1190mm1182mm1196mm1186mm1174mmChainstay430mm432mm438mm438mm440mm438mm435mm433mm437mm
Edit: ugh, chart didn’t post correctly. I’ll take a screenshot later and post it.