Meh. With all the other 650b options, why support a company known to be the bully of the bike world? Give me something from Norco, Santa Cruz, Devinci, etc... The Big S can keep their ugly, overpriced bikes for their "team" riders.
Of course they are, no matter how much the 'engineers' said they saw no value in a 650b bike, the 'marketing' guys saw dollar signs going out the door. It's not about innovation, it's about money.
I wish I could find the MTBR thread where one of the Specialized spokes holes goes off on 650b. They make good bikes, but they really need an attitude adjustment. Pride always comes before the fall.
lol, corporate is evil, right?
as google, facebook or any other company, they will just follow the mula, got to pay those investors.
I bet they will have pretty soon all kind of 650b bikes, from the ladies to their top XC extending to DH.
Of course. A business, by definition is for the purpose of making money.
However, the business has the choice of how it conducts itself, just as the consumer has a choice on how to spend it's money.
Specialized has decided to market itself and protect it's intellectual property in a way that has turned off a segment of the market.
While I don't care for Niner either, which may to a degree have backed itself into a corner with it's name and product line, at least they have stuck to their guns...so far.
When you have the slogan "Innovate or die" and then just follow market trends, swear off a wheel-size with 29ers, only to go all in AFTER it is clear that it is more then a fad, and when you sue someone over using a legendary placename you somehow patented (or use the patent for) you lose credibility. Sorry.
I don't need to spew hate for them on the interwebs (though it can be fun); I just don't buy any of their stuff.
I totally agree reformed roadie, there are definetly better ways to run things, is sad and very harmful to look at others in the same industry as competition an not as a community that shares the same passion for bikes. The consumer at the end will tell who will survive and who will not.
Lol i'm sure Niner already registered the 27.5 or 650b term as a new company, i wonder if they will call it sixfiftybee or something like that; any ideas?
Lol i'm sure Niner already registered the 27.5 or 650b term as a new company, i wonder if they will call it sixfiftybee or something like that; any ideas?
If I can get me a meeting with Mike Sinyard, I will tell him face to face that I won't buy a 650b Specialized because his company said 650b offers no benefit.
Who in the world would buy a product from a company that said that their product offers no benefit? Specialized fanboys I guess, as long as it has a big S on it they will buy it.
What I've been waiting for isn't the 650b bikes we all new Spesh would be forced to produce, but rather the marketing spin that they would have to put on it in light of their aggressive anti-27.5 rhetoric of the past year. They didn't disappoint!...
So, almost every paragraph in a 7 paragraph press release introducing "this rad new 650b bike" is dedicated more to extolling the virtues of their 29er's, effectively saying that "look, we were right all along, but we'll go ahead and make these for you if you insist"... The 2 bullet points that are ostensibly about the virtues of their 650b bike say 1) it "MAY feel more nimble"..but our 29ers are still better; and 2) "some riders, particularly newer riders" are intimidated by big 29" wheels.
So, if you're a delusional rookie pnssy, enjoy the 650b bike we got dragged kicking and screaming into making just for you. Haha! Got to hand it to them....there's consistency in their marketing message. Question is, can they still sell a sh!t ton of bikes that they advertise half way and basically call inferior to their other offerings. I suspect they probably will, because the larger market doesn't really care about this stuff we all spend too much time debating, and because the wheel size is so legit that their b bikes will probably ride really well.
My favorite part is how they finish off the press release with the classic favorite passive aggressive jab of the mid-sized-hater......It's NOT half way between 26 & 29, it's closer to 26, so we're not going to mislead you by calling it 27.5...So there! Wow, thanks for being such saints, guys. But if you measured the diameter of the wheels with their own tires on them they would be almost exactly 27.5 on the smaller tires, and closer to 28" on the Butchers....so what's the f'n point, other than just finding another way to say, "yeah they still suck and we're still right, but here ya go anyway."
This is not big deal....Specialized is just acting like many of our politicians who say..."I was for the bill before I was against it." Nothing to see here folks just keep moving along.....
Most people can't ride for **** and call 29" clumbersome etc so 29" won't sell to the average squid. But the Speialized dealers weren't going to order 26" no matter how good the bike so they had no option to throw together a hack 650b for the marketing wheel size fans.
They pick the frame of the 29er Stumpjumper and build a new rear end. Just look at that spacer under the headtube to get proper high in the front...
The geometry is also very wired with 327mm bb high and 678mm stack high on the large frame. HEad angle is also very steep with 68,4° on a 650b EVO!
Shame on you Specialized! I hope no one will buy these bikes!
You know the Big S is going sell a crap load of them, not because they will be the best bikes out there, but because you have people that believe that they are the best and can do no wrong. Look at most people who ride the Big S now, they wear shows, helmets, gloves, socks, glasses, etc with the Big S brand, they are so sucked into the brand, it blows me away...good marketing?, it's very similar to the typical Harley rider, while probably not the best motorcycle, everyone of the riders has several things Harley.
That is true for some riders. But don't act like S is the only brand w/ rabid fans that buy any piece of gear available. If you see more of them, it may only be because there are plenty of people on S bikes to begin with.
That press release makes me sick lol. What a bunch of jerks lol. It makes me feel better that the last bike I bought was not from big S.
I think it's so funny how they tout the 29 as the big stuff, and the best and fastest....
MEANWHILE...
You know who wins World Cup XCO overall on you know what 2 years in a row. Jerome Clementz wins EWS overall on a 26er, and will possibly be moving to 650B. DH is still dominated by 26ers (though this is just starting to swing a little to 650B).
I know this really all boils down to the rider/engine... but it's still funny to throw out there lol.
Also my Scale has shorter chainstays than the Hardrock, Rockhopper, and Crave (formerly Carve).
In addition, I primarily ride a 29er that I really enjoy (when it is not creaking at me). And I also really enjoyed the S-Works Stumpy HT I demoed.
You know who wins World Cup XCO overall on you know what 2 years in a row. Jerome Clementz wins EWS overall on a 26er, and will possibly be moving to 650B. DH is still dominated by 26ers (though this is just starting to swing a little to 650B).
I know this really all boils down to the rider/engine...
I was disappointed they didn't release a Camber 650B though.
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