Which bike is faster (sessioning our favorite trail)

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This video is sponsored by Shokz. If you want to be able to listen to music while you ride and still hear your bike, other trail users, cars, etc, go check out Shokz' range of bone-conduction headphones. We especially love the OpenRun Pro and OpenRun Pro Mini with enhanced audio quality (including bass boost), 10 hours of battery life and an IP55 water-resistant rating. Check them out at: shop.shokz.com/sydandmacky
Although we raced a ton of really fun events this year, one thing we missed was the opportunity to really study a trail and try to figure out how to go faster on it the way you do for an enduro race. So, now that the off season is upon us, we're heading out to our favorite trail, Quemazon, to work on lines, and dial in equipment, to see if we can improve our times. This is an interesting trail -- it isn't steep -- but it sure is rocky. So, the big question -- which bike will be the fastest? Trail bike or big travel?
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[@outtheremtb7704]

“Go fast, have fun, I LOVE YOU!” No better words ever spoken to a loved one on a bike. Macky, you have my utmost respect, sir.

[@bburnsey]

Friend I ride with says, "the faster you go, the smaller the rocks"

[@mrvwbug4423]

Maybe not so much on 120 travel, I think we need a rim ping counter from Macky's run on the Jet haha

[@loganmumma3337]

I've watched this channel so long that I can't even count how many times I've hear Macky explain the geology and history of Quemazon

[@sydandmacky]

😁

[@michaellangfitt2077]

LOVE the dual screen comparisons. Your detailed descriptions are very helpful.

[@harrygrimley4352]

Nice to see you guys. Looking good. Glad to see you out syd. Thanks for sharing this with us.

[@michaelmurphy6335]

Love this video! Quemazon is such an efficient trail for endurance climbing and descending. Thanks for the thoughtful presentation of your thought processes in picking the lines 🤙🏽

[@Cycle9568]

Thanks for doing all of the pedaling to compare the different bikes! I’ve come to the same conclusion as well when it comes to bike sizes. I’m currently riding a Trek Fuel 9.8+ Project One that I picked up used a couple of years ago. Bike is currently 140mm up front and 130mm in the rear. Probably the funniest bike I’ve ever owned.

[@beerenmusli8220]

Thank you so much for including Celcius, and I really appreciate your insight on how the bikes felt on the trail, would Really like to see more of that!

[@waynecallister2236]

Great video, I especially liked the first rule of going fast!

[@jasoncarson3390]

Footage looks great guys! Keep it up!!

[@micheandmikey]

Great content! Fun to see the comparison between the different Niner's. I used to flat Maxxis all the time and then I switched to Michelin's. I haven't flatted in 2.5 years and over 4,000 miles since switching. Thanks for the video!

[@jamminhunter]

Listening to this on my shokz headphones! They’re perfect!

[@nodbag6301]

As ever a brilliant episode

[@Tozzie29]

You guys rock. From Australia

[@graffix11us]

Wind chill is a killer!

[@mikieson]

some good riding guys. sometimes i miss cycling off and on road..but then i remember the pain LOL!..stationary bike life!! hehehe

[@JasonFoxLCB]

The video's great and all, but I was most excited to see the Shokz discount -- one gift down for my wife. Woo-hoo! Happy Thanksgiving, you crazy kids.

[@edwinlarsen7942]

Macky was ripping on that second session. I've ridden that trail a bit and it was fun to see it from someone else's perspective.

[@senditindustries]

Sick

[@jeffretey]

I’m no where near you guys in fitness, but I’ve done back to back testing of bikes and tires on some tech trails and found similar results with different style bikes. Weight matters on the quick corner transitions to and carrying speed on the next sections. I think that is where the time is found for my cases. Being able to “yank” the bike or pop it to one side or another to get on a better line is far easier on the lighter bike. I too will bottom out the fork occasionally. I found coil shock in the rear better for my case also, but I’m a heavier rider so that may play a role. Hard to be scientific, but I did enough runs without knowing the results to feel confident the efforts were similar and the results were consistent.

[@1pho3nixmatt]

Ok so I loooove my current little bike (SC blur - 100/120). It's so light and fun. But you're totally right, I generally think it was a little more "fun" on my previous Banshee Prime (135/140). But saving like 7 pounds is totally worth it - I need something in the middle of those maybe haha

[@LastAphelion]

Did you figure something out? Kinda stuck looking for my next ride around the same area of trail to xc, it's hard to find sub 30 trail bikes unless you're rich and opt for basically top XC components on one of the few trail bike frames out there seem able to keep their total weight at 30 or under. Like the Ripley or Spur. Not sure what else to look at

[@lawrenceokane1678]

Got my Shokz this week.

[@Dan_Kornfeld]

"Which bike is faster?" The answer should always be, "which ever one I'm riding! 😜👍! Keep doing what you do!

[@chaseadventure]

Macky can't look dumb, he rides too fast no one can keep him in site! 🤣

[@MikeK02048]

I just found out that there is a bike store in the Boston area that carries Niner bikes. As you can see from my comment below, I was focusing on Specialized. But you guys seem to really like Niner, so I checked them out. Like the Stumpjumper vs Stumpjumper EVO, Niner offers the RIP 9 RDO 29 and the Jet 9 RDO. I'm 64 years old and looking to get back into mountainbiking after 15 years of focusing on road cycling. So I'm not deluding myself into thinking that I'll be tearing up the trails or setting any speed records. The trails in New England are rooty, rocky and pretty technical, with short punchy climbs and technical descents. I want a single bike that will be fun, have pretty stable climbing characteristics and will be able to soak up the bumps going downhill. Seems like I'd be better off with the RIP 9 RDO 29. Whichever bike I choose, it'll be a 3 or 4 star build. Being so familiar with Niner, what are your thoughts? I hope Niner realizes the impact you have on the mountainbiking community and your marketing reach. I never even heard of Niner before watching your videos. Thanks!

[@sydandmacky]

If the shop does demos, we'd highly recommend you try both bikes to see which you prefer! If that isn't an option, since it sounds like you're looking for a single bike to do everything and will be doing more pedaling than riding bike parks, we'd recommend the JET. It feels bigger than its 120/130mm of suspension and both pedals and descends extremely well! That being said, the RIP pedals quite well too. Good luck!

[@frantic299]

I recently picked up an XC hardtail with a full XT setup and crazy light wheels on it. I was really surprised to see that on our local XC loop thats about 9 miles that on a single full out loop I was still faster on my trail bike which weighs 11lb more (25vs36lb). Only a minute but still surprised. Then I did two hard laps, my second lap only 3 minutes slower on the hardtail, on my trail bike I lost 13. That 11lb just gets more and more tiring to pedal around. I was also waaayyyy more fatigued after the 2 laps on the trail bike vs the hardtail despite being a full 10 minutes faster on the hardtail during that second lap. Im sure the more fit you are the less that difference is but I assume some advantage no matter how fit you are and at a given distance exists.

[@karllued]

She can't see it Clark, her eyes are frozen.

[@richardkaz2336]

Except mobile numbers are 10 digits. The ITU have set the maximum at 15 digits. But you are right the average person appears to only be able to remember a maximum sequence of 7 however they can rattle of a multiple strings of 7 digits sequences.

[@Flux_Flow]

Climb, climb, and sprint climb. Then sprint climb some more.

[@bikeguycody]

QUESTION: CAN YOU PLEASE MAKE A VIDEO ON CARDIO AND STAMINA IM HAVING A HARD TIME FIGURING OUT HOW TO GO LONGER AND HARDER FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME

[@valeriesorrells]

wow, never had a gopro freeze.

[@MrRunner10]

So fast!

[@CJinsoo]

at 21:20 even the shadow is ripping

[@BeniKenesei]

You can clearly hear that all your bikes with 4 piston shimano brakes have a rattling sound when not braking. And Sid's xc bike with 2 piston brakes doesn't have this issue. Put some tape inside the caliper or a thick tape under the cooling fins of the pads and every bike will be a lot quieter.😁

[@frankapple4130]

Or use MTX pads

[@TM-ev2tc]

Can you do any trail maintenance to the trail you are riding. Just curious

[@sydandmacky]

It depends on what kind of maintenance. Some raking and clearing rocks, yes. Any reroutes or significant changes, probably not.

[@walterwalter1092]

Would be a great experiment with the same tires on both bikes

[@mrvwbug4423]

An enduro bike would probably feel vague and squirmy on Rekons, and scary when trying to corner, you usually push harder into corners on big bikes and Rekons are not a tire you can really lean on in corners. I can attest to this first hand while demoing a downcountry bike on Rekons and tried to push it into a corner like I would on my Ripmo which has an Assegai up front, that was a little puckery haha

[@gabrielmarias972]

Hi! What tires do you use in the jet for this kind of agressive XC, marathon, or BC races? Good cornering+good rolling:) Thanks a lot

[@sydandmacky]

We raced the new RKTs for those races since it's a bit lighter and more efficient and ran Rekon Races

[@gabrielmarias972]

@@sydandmacky you mean you use Rekons over Rekon Races or Rekon front rekon race rear or F/R rekon race?:) One of my friends is happy with new 2.4 forekaster front and Rekon Race rear. Thanks

[@sydandmacky]

Rekon Race front and rear and we raced our Niner RKT bikes, not the JETs.

[@oldkayakdude]

My guess - the ebike! lol

[@MikeK02048]

I've been trying to decide between the Specialized Stumpjumper and the Stumpjumper EVO. The EVO is a bigger bike with longer travel in front and rear. What you said about people choosing bigger bikes seems to resonate with me and what I'm seeing in the bike reviews. Although the regular Stumpy is a bit lighter and more agile, the EVO is more fun and you can just rip down technical trails in kind of a plushy way. Love your videos!

[@JoshTaylor]

The normal Stumpjumper rips hard. Don't think because it's not 160mm that it's not a killer.

[@mrvwbug4423]

It comes down to what you like to ride. I consider the Evo to be a quiver killer bike, it will do everything from mellow XC trails to bike park days, good choice if it's going to be your only bike. I wouldn't feel quite as comfortable taking the 130 travel Stumpy on bike park Blacks and double blacks, but up through blues it would be fine, and it would be fine for most black trails outside of a bike park.

[@sydandmacky]

Yeah, really depends on what you plan to use it for. In terms of a single quiver bike I would vote non-EVO if you like to do a lot of XC and trail riding and the occasional bike park day and the EVO if you do a lot of bike park and don't do much climbing.

[@JoshTaylor]

@@mrvwbug4423 you need to ride a well setup 21+ Stumpy, then. 130 rear travel with 140mm front and the frame is rated to a 150 fork if you choose. It pedals better than the Evo, is lighter than the Evo, more comfortable than the Evo, and is 90+% as capable on the downs.

[@philr696]

@syd and Macky. Can you talk directly with the head phones or do you just phone each other?

[@sydandmacky]

Just phoning each other! Haha sorry if I made it sound like magic 😂

[@86BREAL]

What bike rack do yall use? I need I new more stable one, mine wobbles too much.

[@sydandmacky]

One Up equip-d double. We love it!

[@burtrando1974]

I see you are running the 1up bike rack. How are you liking it?

[@sydandmacky]

We love it. Have had it for 3 or so years now and it's been great!

[@jddallager1699]

I've had a 1Up bike rack now for 8-9 years. Love it! Worth every penny!

[@sapinva]

Just for speed, and zero comfort, a steel hard tail w/ 140 up front would be way faster on something like that. But I'd probably choose a short travel trail bike unless there was a very significant cash prize.

[@mrvwbug4423]

I think even the short travel FS will keep the back wheel on line better than a hardtail, wheel deflection on the back of hardtails definitely slows you down. In this case the short travel would seem optimal if hard on the rims. As a flattish trail the short travel is going to likely recover more energy off the trail as it's running right in its sweet spot, where the big bike is not really getting into its sweet spot without any big compressions to really pump off of.

[@johncarrington8612]

I am totally guessing but as a lighter rider I think I can get away with faster rolling lighter tires, less tire pressure with no inserts, and less travel on the bike than a larger person.

[@mrvwbug4423]

Yes. the tradeoff is us big guys get more help from gravity and more energy from pumping, but a light rider can float over stuff easier. Lighter riders are also easier on equipment, way less rim pings and bottom outs. Macky was riding that Jet at 11/10ths on that run and I'm not sure how many runs like that the Jet's rims and/or tires would survive.

[@nolanott7707]

I love lightweight xc bikes, number one rule - go fast!

[@ostankovalex1176]

well... you have a big difference in travel (120 vs 180) also, lots of bikes are different. not saying WFO sucks, bit it's kind of not an enduro bike :) it's more of a freeride fun machine there are lots 160 travel bikes that are very stiff and are insane at pedaling the point of this video is that you are not comparing different travel bikes in general, but the Niner bike range. basically, Niner may just tune their suspension differently, so you can't really compare it to such bikes as Canyon Strive, or Yeti sb150, or Rocky Mountain Altitude, etc. I'm pretty sure Orbea Rallon or Stumpy EVO would've smoked that WFO easily. P.S.: I assume it's the comparison of not the suspension but the tires. You just can't compare DH/Enduro tires to XC/Trail ones. Of course XC would be faster. If you want to make a more fair comparison, just equip DH tires on your XC bike, and XC tires on WFO :) and make a test (or swap wheels :)

[@jlmferrer]

alguien puede darme intimidad privacidad. prepaga, licencia. recursos.. en ves de estar en manos de unos juguetones chsitosos graciosos que me cagaron la vida personal, laboral y mi pasado presente y p futuro?

[@cgriggsiv]

Young man I'm going to say that you bottomed out that front fork at least nine times that I was able to hear not to mention you bottomed out your rear suspension at least 18 times that I was able to hear it may have been faster but you are definitely slightly underbiked So your fork and your rear suspension is going to be taking up more damage not to mention your rims that I've heard creaking and tinging technically it was a spokes but both of you did damn good job going down and going up and young lady I agree it was quite cold very cold I understand about freezing my hands off like that exit video from the both of you take care and one day I'll race against you just for s**** and giggles I expect to lose but that's the fun of it

[@cgriggsiv]

@@Michael-fi6ve Thank you I did not realize that bottom out did not go in that sentence

[@cgriggsiv]

@@Michael-fi6ve If you see any more mistakes just let me know I'll be glad to change it and hoping that the change stays