What’s your favorite? (Pic thread)

[Wendy]

What is your favorite mountain bike you’ve owned? And why?

For me, it’s my current bike, a Yeti hardtail. ARC carbon. Aftermarket Selle Italia women’s saddle. I can take this anywhere, except really technical stuff, which I don’t like anyway. (I’m kind of a chickenshit with sharp rocks). It excels on climbs and I’m one of those weirdos who likes to go uphill. There’s a couple double track trails nearby that connect to the AT and are long steady climbs. Riding up them on this bike is awesome. It’s also fun on smooth twisty single track (which I love). However, my daily early morning ride is a foray on my neighborhood dirt farm roads and grass tracks through fields and orchards, and this bike lets me take them fast, and handles the surprise groundhog holes well.

 

[Tom K.]

For overall riding, I have to admit I still miss my 2016 Fuel EX. I've never owned a better endurance racing bike. My current 2018 version is probably a better all around, non-racing bike, but still.............

Please address artistic photo composition complements to my better half!

 

[Tony S]

Seriously? I have to wash my bike now? Sheesh.

 

[scott43]

What is your favorite mountain bike you’ve owned? And why?

For me, it’s my current bike, a Yeti hardtail. ARC carbon.

That's a nice bike.

 

[Tom K.]

Seriously? I have to wash my bike now? Sheesh.

When Trek started helping me out a bit with my endurance racing illness, one of the requests was to "keep your bike reasonably clean".

I almost walked!

 

[Philpug]

You never forget your first...

Specialized Rockhopper A1 FS Comp in the mid 90's. That bike just fit. From there I went to a Stumpjumper M2 which was better in eveyway but it wasn't the same. From there it jsut eas never the same, I haven't had a bike that has been one with me since. The list is as follows...Cannondale M900, Trek Fuel EX8, Speciialized Epic 29, Giant Trance...right now I am bikeless thinking about why I haven't been happy with any of my past decisions and gun shy going into another bike relationship.

 

[Tricia]

Seriously? I have to wash my bike now? Sheesh.

No, Dirty bikes are happy bikes.

 

[Tricia]

My favorite is my first "real" bike.
A Trek 4900 Hard Tail. That bike got me started.
I found a picture that someone took after a ride back in 2006.
phone cameras sucked back then.

 

[Wendy]

For overall riding, I have to admit I still miss my 2016 Fuel EX. I've never owned a better endurance racing bike. My current 2018 version is probably a better all around, non-racing bike, but still.............

View attachment 48877

Please address artistic photo composition complements to my better half!

I was going to comment on the zinnias, etc in the background.....then I remembered I took a ride once to go pick them....

 

[Wendy]

That's a nice bike.

Thanks! Too bad I don’t have the skills to really justify it. It still gets ridden nearly every day and loved just as much.

 

[Wendy]

You never forget your first...

Specialized Rockhopper A1 FS Comp in the mid 90's. That bike just fit. From there I went to a Stumpjumper M2 which was better in eveyway but it wasn't the same. From there it jsut eas never the same, I haven't had a bike that has been one with me since. The list is as follows...Cannondale M900, Trek Fuel EX8, Speciialized Epic 29, Giant Trance...right now I am bikeless thinking about why I haven't been happy with any of my past decisions and gun shy going into another bike relationship.

My first was not a beloved bike. It was a 1994 Cannondale Delta V 600. Had one of those weird Head Shoks. The top tube was too long, which is strange, because my torso is long. The bike just never fit me well and it was always awkward. I replaced it with a Stumpjumper M3 that was heaps better. I just donated the Stumpjumper to our local Bikeworks charity, that teaches low income/at risk city kids how to work on bikes (then they keep the bike).

The Cannondale looked like this...(not my actual bike). Geez, that thing was weird.

 

[Wendy]

Seriously? I have to wash my bike now? Sheesh.

No! When I took my bike I to the shop the other week to get a brake lever replaced, they bitched at me because the bike was too clean.

 

[Wendy]

My favorite is my first "real" bike.
A Trek 4900 Hard Tail. That bike got me started.
I found a picture that someone took after a ride back in 2006.
phone cameras sucked back then.

You had disc brakes on it back in 2006? Wow!

 

[Ken_R]

Hands down my current bike:

Santa Cruz Hightower LT

Hands down one of the best bikes made for long days on big terrain which is plentiful around here.

 

[4ster]

I have been pretty happy with every mountain bike I have owned. I rode my stingray on the dirt a lot when I was a kid but my first real mountain bike was a Peugeot, circa 1986ish. The thing probably weighed 40 or 50 pounds and I don’t think a whole lot of thought went in to the design. IIRC, I had a Scott mountain bike after that with Suntour components that seemed to be constantly in need of adjustment. Next was the RD which I came across in town a couple of summers ago...

...I added the Manitou front suspension & bar ends. Other than probably new tires & a different saddle I think everything else was how I rembered it from the early 90’s. I think it was $600 new.
After the RD came full suspension on a K2 branded Pro-Flex around the turn of the century. I remember a single spring Norleen front shock with a steep angle that really helped me improve my technical riding on a lot of trails that really weren’t designed for mountain biking.
The lightest MTB I’ve owned was my first Trek, a Fuel 100. This was before the added weight of disc brakes & weighed in at around 20lbs. I wish I had kept that one. 2006 I moved on to a Fuel Ex, replaced the cracked frame in 2010, then jumped on the 27.5 wave & up to my first carbon bike in 2014. It is a Trek Remedy which I added carbon rims to in 2016 & am still riding now.

I am not a gear junkie like many of the good folks on here. I tend to keep & use most of my stuff until it is dead or severely outdated, ie. “I wouldn’t by a used car from this guy”

Lately I’ve had my eye on the Strider & the simplicity of its design.

 

[Tricia]

You had disc brakes on it back in 2006? Wow!

I bought that bike in 2003, so I was on the cutting edge, dontcha know.

 

[Lauren]

Hands down this little lady...

 

[Tricia]

Hands down this little lady...

View attachment 48915

I have not tried a Scott yet. I need to.

 

[Joel]

My favorite bike is my latest, Ibis HD3. it just feels right for all the types of riding I do. Mostly climbing and single track back down. I bought the frame set and did the build myself. Very happy with it.

 

[scott43]

First bike? Nope, don't miss it!

Current bike..my favourite that I've owned...