Hello.
I am looking to buy a XC bike...Probably full suspension, something that can be raced if I want to. I don't really know anything about mountain bikes since I just ride road bikes all the time. I am not looking for shit. Probably looking to buy something from craigslist. Not exactly sure how much money I want to spend. Planning on selling old race bike, probably will get about 2k for it plus might sell off some race wheels and an extra power meter I have so maybe around 3k? What should I be looking for in an XC bike. The specialized epics look nice. I think I need full suspension because I have a past disc injury.
I am a cat 1 road racer by the way so I do notice performance differences.
pic semi related. my current road bike.
>>952944
>I am a cat 1 road racer by the way
As a navy SEAL, I completely understand your need for the best
>>952945
I mean it's just to note that I have become accustomed to nice things on my bike and I don't really like stuff that doesn't work well. When you ride only DA for a long time it's hard to go back to something else.
>>952946
Gonna need to see a timestamped license
Rear suspension isn't so your back is more comfy. I had an L4/L5/S1 discectomy and I race on a hardtail including some long races like Tahoe 100k and Leadville 100, never had a back issue except when I was running crazy drop with a negative stem for a while. I'd stick with a hardtail in that price range, any full suspension used for $3k is going to be not a great bike or really clapped out.
>>952948
drop doesn't actually seem to bother my back...my back issue is an old overuse injury from my previous sport. Won't a hardtail limit what I can ride? Or will it just force me to take the right lines instead of ride over everything?
>>952947
here's a pic from last year before I upgraded. best you're gonna get since they don't do actual copies of them anymore unless you pay more.
>>952950
>Sex
>M
Dropped. This is a feminist website you know. Get lost CIScum
>>952949
If it's trail that you can ride seated & pedaling, it's probably smoother than most road riding anyway.
Um... it seems like bike handling skills may be pretty new to you. You might get better results buying a mid-level bike and budgeting the rest towards skills clinics somewhere cool with a good coach.
Competitively most XC is raced on HT's although there is a few tracks around that will see a a varying amount of the field dragging out the full suspension bikes. If being low weight high overall speed is the most important thing then get a HT. If your willing to carry some extra grams in exchange for getting away with the occasional screw up and having more line choice available then get a FS.
Other bikes to look at would probably be Giant (Anthem or a Trance if you want something more trail friendly) or something in the Trek Fuel series, or whatever Scott are calling thier stuff now(Genius?). Depending on location there should be reasonable amounts of these available 2nd hand as people trade up to more travel/more carbon,
>>952949
It's not whether or not it has rear suspension or not, the geometry determines what you can ride. An Epic with a steep headtube is less capable than a hardtail with a 66 degree headtube on rowdy trails. You should just go to demo days or do factory demos if you can in your area, mountain bikes aren't like road bikes, they are all really different, even a different link design on two bikes that are otherwise similar setup/geo can feel way different.
>>952954
I mean I've mountain bikes a handfull of times. I have plenty bike handling skills when it comes to road racing...I can successfully navigate nrc crits but I do understand that mountain bikes are a lot different.
How tall are you? I you're anywhere over 1.75 I'd say get a 29er. It's a lot faster than 26 or 27.5.
>>952944
pinkbike.com/buysell
Better than Craigslist for this kinda thing. The Epic is a nice bike.
Go to some bike shops and test ride their mountain bikes (of course don't tell them you plan to buy used; if they know that, they might not want to 'waste' their time letting you test ride). Go to demo days/factory demos/etc too. Test ride a bunch. Then when you know what you want, look for the type of bike you want on pinkbike.
>>952956
>mountain bikes aren't like road bikes, they are all really different
Confirmed for someone who has never ridden different road bikes.
>>952944
>I am a cat 1 road racer by the way so I do notice performance differences.
>>952946
>When you ride only DA for a long time it's hard to go back to something else.
This reads like a bait thread but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.
>>952949 Rear suspension isn't to make the ride more comfy, it's so you can hit bigger drops and bomb over rougher terrain at higher speed.
I ride an '06 Epic with 2.4" tires and a fully rigid vintage build with skinny 1.8" tires and drop bars. The rigid bike makes me think about what I'm doing a hell of a lot more and be careful about picking a line, whereas I just point the Epic at a rock garden and hold on - and the Epic is pretty far on the XC end of the spectrum for a FS bike.
The rigid bike is no harder on my back because I'm only in the seat while climbing or on smoother flats. It's an impressively good trail bike if you work within its limitations, and it's a ton of fun.
The newer 29er Epic is definitely a nice buy for an XC bike. Also look at the 2014 or newer Salsa Horsethief (but not the older ones, they had shit suspension geometry)
>>954377
> Thinking the spread between road bikes comes remotely close to mountain bikes.
Confirmed for someone who has never ridden different mountain bikes.
>>952944
>Probably full suspension
you're gonna want a garbon hardtail for xc.
1x crankset, good rear deraileur (sram x0 or better/equivalent), 29er, clipless, longer stem (100mm), rigid fork is my preference but that one's on you.
make sure you have some moderately aggressive tires without going full-retard knobby. something like a racing ralph is right where you want to be.
