Ibis Ripley AF- first ride on Galbraith

[@ShreddyPrugger]

Spoiling us with all this content over the last few days! It's always fun to watch you ride and I always seem to learn something. After lots of watching and learning I finally got my first mountain bike back in August and I think I gave myself a sentence of life behind bars. Thanks dude!

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Congrats on the new bike Cody!!! Mountain biking is super fun, super healthy, and quite addictive. Hope you can make some good riding friends!

[@el_cap_i_tan]

Been searching for my first hardtail for almost two months now, but feels like years lol. Currently in the watching and learning stage while the search continues.

[@JeffKendallWeed]

@@el_cap_i_tan Right on Nathan! I started riding MTB on a Costco hardtail when I was 11. About 1.5 years later, in January 1998, I bought a 1997 model year Bontrager on closeout. It was an XT bike and had an MSRP of $1700, but it was marked down to $1000. It was expensive for my family, but I was pretty dedicated to bikes by then. That bike was my main ride until ~2003. So I'd highly recommend a hardtail!

[@jddallager1699]

Jeff: You are body/bike separation personified!! World class! Many thanks!

[@maritimeshreds2049]

Holy crap Batman, lean that bike in those turns. Looked like you were scraping bars and pedals in some of the turns. That was so much fun to watch

[@teddysthaiadventure2534]

Miss riding in Galbraith. Amazing trail system

[@candooo]

Waiting for my Ripley Af for 5 months !! hope it gets here soon !

[@justinramage9204]

They finally made it!!!!

[@williamkerr8836]

Hey Jeff! New to Bellingham and love seeing the local trails. Have you ever thought about putting a quick note on the video of the trail as you enter it? Probably more work then its worth since most folks aren't local, but it would be rad to help discover new ones :)

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Hey Will welcome to town! I stopped posting trail names as I want to let a little guesswork to have to happen. There are so many good trails on Galbraith, just download Trailforks and see what ranks highy, then start checking trails off. You won't be disappointed that way- you'll ride it all, and you'll find MANY good options!

[@williamkerr8836]

@@JeffKendallWeed make sense! Using TrailForks and naturally discovering trails has been amazing :)

[@benefiet]

damn you are lucky having these trails close to home...

[@micheandmikey]

I had an owl come down and try to take me away on Olly about 4 weeks ago, it was crazy! I'm typically popping out of Karma around 7 or 8, Bob's it is dark, even with two lights!

[@JeffKendallWeed]

WHOA! That's awesome Mike! Was it a big grey owl?

[@micheandmikey]

@@JeffKendallWeed yes! Did it come after you too? Just before it happened it was soaring down the trail for 30ft. I was in awe, and then realized I had better pay attention to the trail!

[@Bjoern_the_Baer]

Crazy. The angle of your bike the corners. How do you do that ? I'd consider myself a good rider but these angles look unreal. I'd loved to have your skill. Keep it up love your videos. Very interesting to watch and my jaw drops everytime :)

[@dunin.majewski]

I was watching and literally leaning my body while you were cornering...

[@ChristopherBloom]

Three years later and I still do this on his videos.

[@dennispikephotography]

For this single bike folks, what do you think for an all arounder? Not necessarily specific bike. But travel and size wise. Smaller and more nimble is fun and super useful, but you point out a few of the short comings in this video even. But I’m also never going to be smashing a bike around like you, no matter how much i want to. We all want an inexpensive quiver killer, right?

[@jonathanrussell8011]

3:02 you are completely horizontal...how do you not fall off? :)

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Inertia!

[@themtbguy9496]

Right? Lol let's how low/sideways you can go!

[@chrisstahler3463]

Jeff, I've been considering getting my long-term girlfriend a new frame and fork. She's been on her Santa Cruz Chameleon for a year now; and I really feel like she has exhausted the potential of the bike. She is ripping around on fairly steep, rooty and rocky terrain in western NC on the regular basis. I feel like she would benefit from the additional fork travel, rear suspension, and slacker/ longer frame geometry. She has ridden my Yeti SB130 a bit, and she doesn't seem to like how aggressive it is. Meaning, she feels like the bike it a bit cumbersome at her skill level and speed, she can feel that it wants to be pushed really hard through corners and the like. So my question to you is: would this frame be something that she would actually enjoy riding? Or is this frame like my SB130 and a bit too aggressive for her riding style. Thanks a ton for all the content recently. I'm from Wenatchee, but currently living in Charlotte NC. I miss the riding back home in the PNW a ton. So I've taken to living vicariously through you. Have a great weekend, and happy trails! -Chris Stahler

[@blambmtb6189]

Can you do a short cornering video if you haven't already

[@50mtb44]

TIRES? Jeff, you really lean that bike over. So cool. What TIRES are you riding - that you can trust the side knobs with that kind of grip?

[@emilmeade3799]

I really like your content and probably will buy a bike from your recommendation. For a semi beginner, would you recommend this or the Occam for 95% natural trails such as this one and maybe 5% manmade flow trails? Trails here are often characterized by repeated short, slow, high torque, full power mini sprints to get up difficult trail features.Thanks!

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Hey Emil, thanks for the note! The Ripley that I'm riding here is a great bike, very beginner friendly, as is the Occam. Both are great- Occam is better for rougher, more technical trails, Ripley better for a little mellower stuff. But for a beginner, I'd recommend a hardtail before either of those FS bikes. If you start to build your riding habits on a hardtail you'll be able to learn more quickly, as correct technique is not masked by the suspension- and the same goes for incorrect technique. I had been riding for 7 years before I got an FS bike. No need to wait that long, but hardtails often get overlooked. I still have one (Chromag Stylus) that I ride often. Thanks again!

[@johnnykramolis7469]

Nice trails.

[@MotoErgoSum]

Are you on superview with the gopro? You're dancing around waaaay more than the footage would indicate. Looks flat, but you're clearly going downhill from all the manuals and crazy lean angles.

[@erocjunk]

Keep ‘em coming Jeff! Love the rapid fire videos last few days!! Out of curiosity - how would you describe the ultimate “Galbraith Bike” for the average rider to truly enjoy the entire mountain to its fullest? (Not necessarily specific brand/model) just in general.. would you say one of these new shorter fun trail bikes has enough oomph for a Galby one bike quiver? Too many choices these days 😁 thanks!

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Thanks for the note Eroc! Man, my "ideal Galbraith bike" changes all the time. I've been stoked on the Altitude out there though. However, now that Happy Hour has been logged, and possibly devil cross, I might end up riding my Ripmo more. I'd suggest something 140-160 travel, 29er. But that's just me!

[@06mkmartin]

Who is a good candidate for requiring a volume spacer? Why did you decide to add it? Thanks

[@reefwade]

So how did that bike climb??

[@kodakv603]

I thought that trail gets about in the winter

[@vovomtb]

What audio recorder do you use and how do you synch it with all the clips?

[@suranko1]

Would you throw a shock with a piggyback on it like the dpx2 or would that unnecessary?

[@danielgrafik]

Nice ride-a-long! Question, if you don't mind, in terms of stack/handlebar height, do you aim to have it set the same for all your bikes (or as close as possible), or do you take front travel or generel size of the bike into consideration and change it up per bike? /cheers

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Thanks Dan! I don't have a go to height in mind, I just sorta shoot for about 25mm of spacers so I have room to adjust as needed. I Have fond that steeper seat angles do well with taller handle bar heights though.

[@locaraguips1176]

Subscriber from Cebu, Philippines

[@eightlivesdownmtb]

Hey Jeff - great video! With your pace and the noise of that hub I had to keep checking I wasn’t watching an ebike in action. You mentioned about keeping your weight back for a swb bike in corners. Can you expand briefly on that or did I misunderstand? Thanks mate.

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Hahaha no ebike in this vid! I did a cornering tutorial here that might be helpful: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aojRh2d8rMqXgLM

[@eightlivesdownmtb]

@@JeffKendallWeed Thanks Jeff - off work with the Covids right now, so I’ll get into it ASAP. Stay safe!

[@MrBrady691]

You are a beast, you are just chatting to us doing that track easily 2x as fast as I could on my 160mm bike with all the practice left in time.

[@scarpa12]

I was really interested in your description of setting up the bike differently for high speed flow vs slow and rocky. I ride a mojo3 on mostly xc-ish socal trails with a little stiffer suspension than stock recommendation and it's a really fun, playful bike. Lately been exploring steeper stuff and feel way more underbiked than I expected. Would you recommend a softer setup with volume spacers for those kinds of trails? Just starting to feel like I have enough skill/experience to justify messing with setup but it's all so overwhelming right now.

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Thanks for the note- love the cat photo youve got! Haha! Tires make a huge difference- if you're in a gnarlier area, some really grippy 2.6 tires help a bunch. I'm partial to WTB, but there are other good brands too. I used a tad more sag in the rear on the Mojo 3, along with a volume reducer ($20 and makes a BIG difference) to keep from bottoming, and that worked well! The Mojo 3 handled a ton better for me when I threw the 140 travel 36 fork up front- and I did a whole build vlog series around that. Any 36 27.5 can be adapted to 140 travel with a $43 air spring kit- I did video on that, too!

[@scarpa12]

@@JeffKendallWeed Thanks! Maybe you inspired Ibis because I got the last model year mojo3 and it came with 140mm 34 fork. I do run the wide tires already, my issue seems to be on higher speed chunk. Maybe it's a fitness issue ;) I will experiment with softening it up when I know I'm going to ride gnarlier terrain.

[@operumfragmenta5496]

curious--what size and how tall/inseam are you.

[@k9motofamily12]

Nice!👌

[@jwjw2731]

Do you think they will sell this also as a frame only?

[@thewhaleylife3013]

I've been eyeing this bike for a while but am afraid I will outgrow the 120mm suspension. On trails like these, would you prefer the Ripley or the Occam?

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Great question Whaley. The Occam and Ripley feel very similar- ignore the “150mm” number of the Occam, the shorter and steeper geometry has it feel like a smaller bike. This also means it’s better on more natural trails. These trails on Galbraith are bike park/flow trail style and the more slack geometry of the ripley AF is actually a better fit for 25+ mph trails. However, When I’m heading out for a 3 hour trail ride loop on more all purpose/hiking trails, I do prefer the Occam. Occam has more traction than Ripley, and feels easier to maneuver at lower speeds.

[@thewhaleylife3013]

@@JeffKendallWeed thanks so much. Sounds like the Occam is a better fit for my local trails

[@Assburgersaretasty]

@@thewhaleylife3013did you keep your ripley?

[@PoppoBikes]

Didn't mention volume reducers. Maybe why you bottomed out the rravel?

[@andymtb3212]

He mentioned volume spacers at the beginning, no?

[@djblackmon64]

JEFF how do i know if i need a volume spacer in my rear shock

[@VolvoSurfer]

Nice weather, the same as in the Netherlands! What brand of fenders are you using to keep so clean??

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Cheers Martijn! The rear is a Mud Hugger, the front is an RPR ProGuard that bolts to the Fox crown.

[@VolvoSurfer]

@@JeffKendallWeed Thanks Jeff! Mudhugger, I already suspected that. Thanks for the confirmation! Keep up the cool stuff it is really enjoying to see you ride with that style!

[@MagpieManny]

@@VolvoSurfer Hij heeft echt een vette stijl van rijden, ofniet? Ziet er zo vrij uit

[@VolvoSurfer]

@@MagpieManny absoluut, ik wou dat ik zo kon rijden.

[@sham8723]

What audio recorder do you use?

[@BikeLifewithRob]

🤘🏽

[@personthatsnamestartswitha6545]

Are those xtr brakes? Are they any different between all the others like xt, Slx, deore?

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Hey A, thanks for the note! I am not sure how these XTR brakes are different besides the swankier lever blades and color. They work well though, and since I had them in a box waiting for a bike, they were my choice for this build!

[@Gamebit450]

your ridding reminds me of a deer running in the woods lol!

[@heady4127]

talking about someones lights while ur having a bell on ur bars :D

[@JeffKendallWeed]

The bell is used on almost every ride! I had a light on my bars last night, too.

[@baddriversofcolga]

@@JeffKendallWeed Having a bell was one of the best upgrades I've made to my bike. haha

[@jrldude8719]

People always hear my bell when I use it on the trails. They only hear my "coming up behind you" about 1/2 the time.

[@mrvwbug4423]

And this is where the people not from the PNW go "why would you need long travel on a flow trail", since "flow trails" outside the PNW tend to be just smooth trails with no big g outs or steep sections

[@roadlesstraveledd]

is there any noticeable flex in the frame that feels different compared to the carbon ripley?

[@sjcrawford42]

yeah, is it as noticeably flexy as you said your ripmo af was at the beginning?

[@ethanbenton6676]

9:25 Jesse Melamed :O

[@JeffKendallWeed]

LOL YES!!!!!!!

[@daily_pocket_review]

Yess more wet and muddy riding

[@JeffKendallWeed]

That's all there is around here! Thanks Josh!

[@josh_on_bikes]

You manual a ton, can you show us how to manual?

[@JeffKendallWeed]

We are editing that video now- stay tuned! Should publish in a week or two.

[@josh_on_bikes]

@@JeffKendallWeed Yes!!! thank you so much, I see in your vids and the intro you manual like a god, and I am like, "how the heck does he manual so well?" great videos dude

[@mustaghisnoor7939]

nice

[@csweet207]

Impressive handling skills, son.That is not nearly enough bike for you.

[@aidenmtb5784]

Sorry but #ripmoaf for life.

[@johnnydoe66]

If your Wife even rides half as good as you, your daughter will be a Pro by the time she's 10 yrs old.....

[@GeeCee-rr5hk]

Early!

[@JeffKendallWeed]

Hahaha hi George!

[@123Mahid]

Hey Jeff, I really would love to know your camera setup on your chest. Please share your secret? :)

[@romkaerdel961]

a

[@romkaerdel961]

r

[@NoahTasha]

Quiet bike.