Paul, just re-reading your post & looking at the pics. The G-Ones? Is that your tire of choice for the trails you ride? I expected something more aggressive but I bet they roll fast?
Sent from my iPhone > On Oct 20, 2022, at 11:43 AM, Paul Clifton <paulgclif...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > I ride my Gus as my primary mountain bike. I have ridden a Rosco Bebe, and > MTBubbe, a Jones and a full suspension Knolly Warden on the same trails for > several years. All of then except for the Jones use 27.5 wheels: max tire > sizes = MTBubbe and Rosco Bebe 2.35", Jones 29x3", Knolly 2.5", Gus 2.8". I > didn't measure those, that's the nominal size of tire I run on them. > > Of them all, the Gus is my favorite for everything short of black diamond > downhill. I also don't jump or drop anymore (or for the time being) so on > blue/black flow trails, I brake over the table tops and roll around the gaps. > > The Rosco Bebe and MTBubbe are similar to a Clem L in a lot of ways. The Bebe > has shorter chainstays, a 68 degree seat tube, and a longer effective top > tube, so it requires Bosco bars. The MTBubbe is a relatively short bike in > terms of modern Rivs, and it's extremely agile, yet stable. Like an old > school MTB but without the endo potential and twitchy handling. They are both > totally capable of handling all trails, and I've even ridden plenty of black > downhill trails on the MTBubbe with the seat lowered a bit, and I've take a > few good sized drops on it. It's all around just a really good mountain bike. > It's super agile and feels like riding a skateboard sometimes, because it's > so small. It fits me; it's just a little bike and I love it. > > The Jones basically just rolls over anything without question. The huge > wheels really change the way I approach the trails. Which leads me to my > first big point > What size Gus/Susie would you get? wheel size > 29er wheels vs 27.5 is a legitimate concern when thinking about a mountain > bike. I know I like 27.5 wheels better, but a lot of modern trails assume > you're riding a 29x2.5 to 29x2.8 tire and the size of the rocks and rollers > is engineered with that in mind. And bigger wheels just roll over more stuff > easier. For me, it's easy to let the Jones (and Knolly) get out of control on > descents, and on the Jones, it's harder to reign it in, because the wheels > just keep going. That's a rider thing, but my fat 27.5 Gus rolls over > everything, just without being completely unphased. It experiences the bumps > more, and therefore, so do it. > > My second big comment is about dropper posts - I would also like to have a > dropper post on my Gus, but I don't actually think it matters much. I still > like the Gus more than my Jones or Knolly that both have them. When I get to > the trail, I lower my seat about 2 cm and usually just leave it that way. > Short of really gnarly downhill stuff (and I do mean really gnarly), I'm able > to get my butt back far enough to handle it. I just bought a QR seat post > bolt, so that should make my life even easier. > > Which brings me to my third point: handlebars > Riv put Boscos on the Gus and Susy. That makes for a great upright riding > position, but IME, they are bad for mountain biking. They hit my legs when I > go around switch backs and the wrist angle makes it hard to hang on properly > when I'm getting my butt back to go down steep stuff. I put a 35mm stem and > Tumbleweed Pursuader bars on mine and it changed the ride for the better in > nearly every possible way. The mostly straight bars still sometimes hit my > legs on the sharpest downhill switch backs, but I think that's a me problem > and not a bike problem (a dropper would prob help that though). > > Handling - The Gus handling is very responsive - like the best modern MTBs, > it's really easy to change the direction of the front wheel, to quickly > correct a line or keep it from flopping over when you hit a rock the wrong > way. Unlike modern MTBs, it holds its line extremely well, on rough stuff AND > when cruising. The length of the bike keeps it rolling smoothly, even when > the chunk tries to throw it around, so, unlike a full suspension modern MTB > with short chainstay and a steep seat tube, it's stable on more than just the > fast descents, ... > > so there's Climbing - The Gus is the most fun I've had climbing on an MTB > ever. It is hard to get the front wheel up over ledges, but the back wheel is > always completely planted and when it grabs a rock, the pedals just keep it > rolling. Tubeless 27.5x2.8 tires just kind of squish into any surface and > push the bike on up. It's hard to describe, but it's really wonderful. As has > been mentioned, I also climb easier and faster on it than a lot of people on > modern MTBs around here, especially full squish, which I'm more and more > convinced gives up a lot in the climbing department. > > I would absolutely choose my Gus for my single bike. The only reason I > haven't sold the Jones yet is that I want to get the Gus out on a singletrack > bikepacking trip, just to see how it compares loaded. I'm sure it would make > a great camping bike, especially on forest service roads, but I do wonder > whether the 29er wheels on the Jones are better for loaded singletrack. > > My only other comment is about terrain. As others have mentioned, where you > ride makes a huge difference. In NW Arkansas, we have lots of roots, rocks of > all sizes, narrow trails, steep grades, and plenty of places where some basic > trials skills are required. I do walk some sections of some trails on any > bike I ride. We also have plenty of black diamond downhill trails that take > you rolling down vertical rock slabs and off washed out ledges. No bike that > performs exceptionally on that stuff is going to be fun riding on a paved, > flat, multi-use path along a creek for very long. If you doing shuttle runs, > get a full suspension bike. If you're doing long mixed terrain rides (MUP to > gravel to single track and back) something more versatile is obviously the > move. And even when I drive to the trail, I like the Gus better than a modern > MTB with slacker head tube and steeper seat tube - it's more comfortable and > just as capable. > > I'd love to see photos of everyone's terrain. Here are a few of my Gus that > show some of the gnarlier stuff I rode on a 20 mile single track and path > ride a couple sundays ago: > https://www.pandastuff.net/nextcloud/index.php/s/teREsXEdGSErnGk > > Paul in AR > > >> On Wednesday, October 19, 2022 at 9:39:49 AM UTC-4 rmro...@gmail.com wrote: >> Greetings all. First, does anyone recall reading in one of the updates about >> additional Susie / Gus bikes becoming available? >> Second, who is using their Susie / Gus as their primary mountain bike? >> Third, is anyone able to comments on a direct comparison between a Susie and >> a Clem L? >> My Clem never ceases to amaze me. It is, without doubt the most comfortable >> bike I have ever owned. I am so ingrained to my position on the bike that I >> am now uncomfortable on my dedicated singletrack bike - a full suspension >> bike with relatively strait handlebars. The Clem is really good off road and >> on mild singletrack, but its weight and flexibility have kept me from giving >> it a go on some of the rowdy, rock and root strewn tracks I like to ride on >> the full squish bike. >> Now, I have no illusions about any rigid bike being as plush and capable on >> these trails as the suspended bike. But I do have some experience riding a >> rigid bike with big tires (Jones 29") and I liked it. The notion of a bike >> that puts me in the exact same position as my Clem but dedicated to >> singletrack has me more than a little intrigued. >> Appreciate any comments / thoughts. >> > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/5d6c7803-e42c-45c5-b10b-524578973701n%40googlegroups.com. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/98EB260A-CC13-4097-8381-C523977115E8%40gmail.com.
