Is purchasing a pure DH bike worth it?

O

onawave

Squid
Morning all,

Got a trip coming up the whistler this year - and have been advised that having a bigger dh bike will make the trip that much better in riding the park.

What I'm trying to understand is the state of DH in Victoria and Australia in general.

My observation is that the closest and best "park" is Maydena or Thredbo. After that its pretty much slim pickings unless you goto Queenstown.

In saying this i do have a bigger long travel 29'er. So is the investment for a DH actually worth the $$?

thanks in advance.
 
O

onawave

Squid
yeah the "more bike" solution is like a trip for the family to ride bikes in tassie etc.

good problem to have though.
 
moorey

moorey

call me Mia
Having ridden Maydena and Derby, unless you’re aiming for the Maydena double black trails, I’d much rather a solid enduro bike that you can pedal a bit.
 
clockworked

clockworked

Like an orange
Downhill bikes are great if you dont NEED to pedal at any point to get to the bottom.
I ride maydena fairly regularly.
Used to have a 27.5 150mm knolly warden with 34mm stanchion forks and a 26 iron horse sunday downhill bike. The sunday is great, but is a hassle transitioning between tracks
I've got a 27.5 170/160 craftworks ENR with fox 36s that i ride everywhere now.

Tl;dr I'd hold onto your long travel 29er and invest in dh tyres or even a heavy duty wheelset and forks before i bought a full downhill bike
 
caad9

caad9

Likes Bikes and Dirt
DH bikes are reliant on uplift.

That is not easy to organise for every single ride you do
 
Dozer

Dozer

Heavy machinery.
Staff member
A downhill bike to ride in the park in Whistler will be ace, you'll manage just fine with a long travel 29er but that place is a big mountain, lots of fatigue kicks in pretty quick and if you're hustling a little bike all day, you'll feel it.
If you have an option to get a downhill bike and ride whistler, do it. You'll have such a bloody good time.
 
O

onawave

Squid
caad9 said:
DH bikes are reliant on uplift.

That is not easy to organise for every single ride you do
Click to expand...
yeah it would defo be a everyone once in awhile bike. the majority of riding i do is definitely enduro.

in saying that my enduro is a bit of beast. i run dh casing, cushcore, fox36 with smashpot and a coil in the back.
 
tkdbboy

tkdbboy

Likes Dirt
Your long travel one will be fine. As mentioned above, get some DD/SG tyres.
On top of that, get some tyre inserts and thicker grips if needed.
Also worth getting more in tune with your suspension. Experiment with settings, see what feels and works better. Easier said than done but definately worth it.
All of the above help alot with park fatigue (plus not death gripping ... took me a while to get this down pat haha)
 
moorey

moorey

call me Mia
tkdbboy said:
Your long travel one will be fine. As mentioned above, get some DD/SG tyres.
On top of that, get some tyre inserts and thicker grips if needed.
Also worth getting more in tune with your suspension. Experiment with settings, see what feels and works better. Easier said than done but definately worth it.
All of the above help alot with park fatigue (plus not death gripping ... took me a while to get this down pat haha)
Click to expand...
  1. He has inserts.
  2. Death Grip is simply not touching the brakes...surely helps with fatigue ;)
 
Ultra Lord

Ultra Lord

Hurts. Requires Money. And is nerdy.
I can’t believe these people! You need a dh bike mate. No questions asked. Big endurbro rigs are cool and all but they aren’t dh bikes.

those commencals look schweet.
 
slowmick

slowmick

38-39"
Would you expect riding the park for an extended period would shorten the life of an enduro bike? Mine has just done the hardest 10 days of it's life and for much of it the poor thing felt like she was going to be shaken to bits. I hate to think what the damper oil currently looks like.
 
safreek

safreek

*******
onawave said:
Morning all,

Got a trip coming up the whistler this year - and have been advised that having a bigger dh bike will make the trip that much better in riding the park.

What I'm trying to understand is the state of DH in Victoria and Australia in general.

My observation is that the closest and best "park" is Maydena or Thredbo. After that its pretty much slim pickings unless you goto Queenstown.

In saying this i do have a bigger long travel 29'er. So is the investment for a DH actually worth the $$?

thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Found this, in canada as well. How could you go wrong.
I guess if you are trendy hipster you prob need something more modern but same price, or dearer ;)
360708
 
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