I'm in Whistler right now and I've just rented a 2013 Aluminum 970 Instinct in order to decide if I liked the way the bike rides, in anticipation of a new 2014 carbon Instinct in the spring. The only size available was a size too small for me (a medium), and the seatpost wouldn't go high enough for proper leg extension. Also, I pretty much had to jump on the seatpost to get it to drop. These issues are what comes up when you ride a rental bike in Whistler at end of the season and they've been beat on all summer, and I expected to have some issues.
I rode it today, after a lot of rain, on a ride I've done many times before on my Element that involves a bit of climbing, then part of Comfortably dumb, then down Jeff's trail, which I thought would give me a pretty good idea how the bike climbs, handles technical singletrack, and descends.
My feelings about the long rear end were not really that accurate. I thought the rear end being about an inch longer than my 26 inch wheeled Element 70 MSL would make it feel sluggish. The instinct definitely rode differently than the Element, but I wouldn't call it sluggish. It feels more "planted" to the ground, and I'm sure the chainstay length and not just the 29 inch wheels contributed to this. Even with wet roots and some Conti tires that I really dislike, it felt like it had more traction than my Element with 2.35inch tubeless minions. I was very impressed. Both climbing and descending seemed more predictable. I was easily able to manual the bike off any raised root or rock along the trail. It feels playful, just in a different way than my Element. And the traction I have to mention again because I was really just blown away, and that's with a lot of rain, crappy tires and tubes. I think with a bike the correct size and real tires setup tubeless, the climbing would be incredible.
I've head people criticize the lack of any bracing between the two seat stays on the Rocky frames, claiming it would cause significant frame flex. I couldn't detect any abnormal flex there, and I'm sure the carbon would be stiffer anyways.
I can see an Instinct 999 in my future this spring.
My one reserve is the water bottle cage. The aluminum model I rented only had one cage, and to put a bottle in the cage involved smashing the lockout switch on the rear Fox shock. I actually had to stop every time I wanted to get a drink. I'm sure if I owned the bike it would only be a matter of time before I broke the lockout lever off. It looks like Rocky has added a 2nd water bottle cage for 2014, but can anyone chime in if they've fixed the placement of the existing cage? I can't imagine they'd leave it the way it was on the 2013 models.
Overall I was really impressed with the handling, climbing, and descending of the Instinct. I'm glad I was able to rent one to alleviate some of my concerns prior to dropping some significant cash on a new bike. My decision now will be whether to save for the 999 model, or build up a frame. That decision may hinge on what information Shimano releases over the next few months!