Excerpt from 'Dirt Rag' Magazine interview with Wes Williams of Willets Cycles, one of the guys behind the 29” scene:
Dirt Rag: “Who do you see as potential customers for 29”?
Wes Williams: “I think the potential customers are the more intellectual ones. In other words, smarter people are going to be buying these bikes. Older, smarter people. Because it is a more intelligent concept-it works better. It's the stubborn, dumb guys that won't get it”.
The world of mountain-biking is full of anecdotes & everyone has their own preferences. With a pile of their hard-earned dosh tired-up in their hunk of metal, riders will ‘debate till the cows come home’ why their chosen ‘steed’ is superior to someone else’s chosen ‘steed’.
So I’m putting my cards on the table up front – I run a 29er, have done so for four months.
It’s the most expensive bike I’ve ever purchased and the only one I’ve bought ‘brand new’.
Salsa ‘El Mariachi’(8 speed)- which I even cleaned before I took the photo, now that’s a first in itself!
Before that, I had a Specialized Stumpjumper, which I’ve given away to a mate & we still have a 26” M/B in the household – my son’s Gary Fisher ‘Hookooekoo’ (who the hell names these bloody bikes?)
So I’m going to give you my own humble opinion, about owning & riding a ‘two niner’ bike so you can chew it around, spit it out or swallow it, as you so please.
THE PRO’S OF 29”
- Rolls over everything & I mean everything!
- Smoother ride.
- On shitty, muddy tracks with the increased ‘tire contact’ the 29er has better grip – even more so if you employ a set of larger gnarly tires.
- Perfect for typical Kiwi ‘back country’ dusty shingle roads.
- You have a bike that’s ‘different’ – rebellious.
THE CON’S OF 29”
- Slow off the mark.
- Wheels are heavier.
- Not as nimble on single track
- Next to no one else in this ‘back-water’ called New Zealand owns one, so even getting tubes can be an issue. In ‘The Molesworth Muster’ out of the 800 odd competitors only two of us were running 29”ers and there were only 4 ‘non-suspension’ bikes – that I spotted at least.
- Anyone else who runs a 26” thinks you’re a freak, and this is a passing fad.
- You risk being left with a ‘beta’ video-player when everyone else is running a ‘VHS’
- Riders need to be more conscious of the sizing and get the right set-up
Important:
You need to ride a 29er first before forking-out the $. May be -it’s not for you. Seek out as much info as you can get and don’t just rely on what your mate or ‘the guy in the shop’ has to say.
Never forget, that every bike-shop on this planet, has a vested interest. They want to sell you their ‘nominated brand’ over the rival outlets ‘nominated brand’ & if their brand doesn’t have a range of (29” etc) bikes you want – then they’re not going to promote it and even, sadly,slate your potential option, based on their need to make a living.
So the golden rules are - shop around - go for a test ride.
A great 'traditional' bike-shop in Christchurch with a good variety of bikes of all types (mountain, road, urban, single-speeds, 29ers etc) is Grind on Manchester Street. They also do coffee as well, which is a bonus.
That’s not to say you won’t get a good deal elsewhere – but do your research.
The 2009 Buyers Guide in 'New Zealand Mountain Bikers Magazine' [December 08/January 09] is a great starting point, without you having to drive all around town first, but even with 45 pages of bikes, from what I can see, they only display models from their own advertisers - not every one available to the buying public of New Zealand.
A fab site which offers reviews of bikes from the owners perspective, rather than the marketing departments at some cycle company, or a magazine which relies on advertising dollars from the very same companies products it’s reviewing - is MTBR.com.
So there you have it - my ‘warts & all’ opinion on the ‘two niner’ bike and a bit of friendly advice, thrown in.
To read about the history of the 29” mountain bikes have a gezz here.
