i currently have a 05 Trek fuel, with new parts, it is a nice bike, but i think it only has 80 mm of rear travel which is not enough, i haven't hit that point, but i know it is comming. i get a good deal on specialized bikes and i was thinking about getting a 08 Epic expert carbon or 08 stumpy expert fsr, i live in houston texas and most of my riding is CC and i race, but only for one more school semester. i also like to go to lake tahoe once a year to ride. will the epic do ok in Tahoe? i never really had a problem or noticed any limitations with the fuel last summer, and the epic has (i think) 20 mm more travel.
from what people told me, i say its better to get the stumpy. the epic is purely for racing. it gives up alot of comfort and crap to be completely effcient. also from what i hear, the rear shocks tend to blow when you leave them in lock. the stumpy seems to be the better choice for you in this situation. what kind of riding do you plan to do in tahoe? the free ride courses or just straight XC. in either case tho, i say get the stumpy. its the answer i got when i asked a similar question. if you want something that has free ride and XC capabilities you might wanna look into an enduro. as for me im set on getting a stumpy. it was either that or an enduro. read the thread that i made, itll have alot of answers on the stumpy. people also compare it to their epics as well on another one i started.
i have an 08 epic and i love it, i use it for xc riding trail riding commuting and just getting around going places road and offroad, the trails here are very rocky and the epics rear shock is naturally stiff so its not as comfortable as a stumpy when the going gets tough, if the trails you ride arent full of rock gardens though its a nice bike,
i got one because of the efficency, i built it very light its very hilly here and it just gets me everywhere fast, as an epic rider i urge to go for the 08 stumpy, its just a far more versitile bike that you will have guaranteed fun on
from what people told me, i say its better to get the stumpy. the epic is purely for racing. it gives up alot of comfort and crap to be completely effcient. also from what i hear, the rear shocks tend to blow when you leave them in lock. the stumpy seems to be the better choice for you in this situation. what kind of riding do you plan to do in tahoe? the free ride courses or just straight XC. in either case tho, i say get the stumpy. its the answer i got when i asked a similar question. if you want something that has free ride and XC capabilities you might wanna look into an enduro. as for me im set on getting a stumpy. it was either that or an enduro. read the thread that i made, itll have alot of answers on the stumpy. people also compare it to their epics as well on another one i started.
around where i live the trails follow creeks, so they are slightly hilly but mainly full of roots, kind of made for HTs, in Tahoe we usually do high speed, but nothing that the fuel ever had problems with, for anything bigger, i bring out the DH bike. Is the epic harsh because of the geometry of the suspension. I am afraid that the Stumpy is too much bike in the way of travel and weight. the bike that was replaced by the fuel had adjustable suspenion from 3-5 in, but also weighed ~31 pounds and had horrible pedaling efficiency, and i just don't want a heavy bike again.
I use my Epic at Memorial Park all the time - yesterday as a matter of fact. There are quite a few Epics out there. I think its an incredible bike. You should keep in mind that you'll be on the Anthills 51 weeks a year and Tahoe one. Man, I love Lake Tahoe.
So you shouldn't get more bike then you need, just to go over tree roots.
I take my Epic on the ski lifts of Vail every year and it does great. Do I wish I had more then 100mm of travel for that one week? Absolutely. Keystone was too much for it so I'm going to rent a DH bike this year.
around where i live the trails follow creeks, so they are slightly hilly but mainly full of roots, kind of made for HTs, in Tahoe we usually do high speed, but nothing that the fuel ever had problems with, for anything bigger, i bring out the DH bike. Is the epic harsh because of the geometry of the suspension. I am afraid that the Stumpy is too much bike in the way of travel and weight. the bike that was replaced by the fuel had adjustable suspenion from 3-5 in, but also weighed ~31 pounds and had horrible pedaling efficiency, and i just don't want a heavy bike again.
from what i was told, the epic is leaned over alot and its not a very comfortable position to be in for a very long time. not too sure on the exact weight of the stumpy, ive heard everything from 23-27. but in the 20's range. the 08 stumpy should have 120mm in the from and back.
from what i was told, the epic is leaned over alot and its not a very comfortable position to be in for a very long time. not too sure on the exact weight of the stumpy, ive heard everything from 23-27. but in the 20's range. the 08 stumpy should have 120mm in the from and back.
Well whoever told you that doesn't know what he or she is talking about. Why would Specialized intentially build an uncomfortable mountain bike. Its called an "Epic" for a reason - as in an all day epic ride.
I'm on mine for 5 hours at a time and I feel just fine.
Check out the SJ Expert closely - I think you'll find it to be very efficient. It all depends on how you plan to use it. An FSR Expert is a great all rounder that can be dialed to be very efficient. Keep in mind that Ned Overend said that on rougher XC courses he would actually choose to race the SJ over the Epic as the weights aren't that different and the SJ can be dialed in to be more efficient. Of course he's comparing two S-works carbon bikes, but the same comparison could be made of two Expert level bikes.
I've ridden an Epic demo bike a good bit and was suprised at how versatile it can be. It is a super efficient ride, but if you dial the brain out it can be fairly active. The question is weather or you feel like you need 4 or 5 inches of travel. If 4" fits the bill, then go with the Epic.
You can switch to a wider riser bar to get the position to be a little more upright. The geometry is a bit quick, but a wider bar will serve to slow things down a bit. It can be done, but it will take some fine tuning and may require a bar or stem swap to add a little trail stability at speed.
If your local shop isn't, then find a dealer that is a demo center (see the dealer listing on the S web site) and spend some time on both bikes. The demo bikes are Expert level bikes so you'll be able to make a direct comparison of the two. The demo program allows you to take the bikes out and ride them on trails that you know. If you take a back to back lap on each bike you'll learn alot about them. Just be sure you take the time to set the suspension up on each bike before you ride and take a shock pump with you so you can fine tune if needed. Just don't want poor bike setup to confuse the comparison - and some shops will just send you out the door without setting the bikes up for you. I took a friend with me so that we could check both bikes out and swap back and forth several times - even stopped at certain trail sections and rode them back to back on both bikes to compare. Was interesting to hear his impressions too.
I ended up picking up the SJ just for the versatility. I loved the ride on the EPIC.
It really came down to the wire for me... and I think I'll always be wondering if I made the right choice.
But since I tend to brake things, I decided to have a little more travel under me.
The epic is probably more versatile than people give it credit though.
That's a toughy...
....good luck either way your on a good bike.
:thumbsup:
Speaking as an Epic and now a 08 Stumpjumper Carbon Pro owner...
I agree with what Poppy Project says, i also think the Epic is underestimated on it's capabilities, that said it's down to how serious you take your XC races. Take the UK scene where i race, most of the top guys race Hard tails or Epics (or somin similar) so in that instance if you put XC and your training well up there go for the Epic.
Don't rely on our opinions though, i went out with a mate on an Enduro SL and when i rode it was really impressed on the downhill capability of that bike over the Epic, it changed my opinion alot as ive always sworn by my Epic, but i longed for that easy surefooted downhill buzz i got from the Enduro. I couldn't settle for the Enduro though due to the size of it on the climbs i always felt i was peddling a motorbike up the hills.
So i accepted @ 37 im never gonna be battling for 1st in the Super Masters league and instead of replacing my aging Epic for a new one i opted for the Stumpy Carbon Pro(and the flex in my Ally Epic always bugged me) and at the same time decided to improve my fitness/shed weight to compensate the shortcomings on the climbing efficiency of the stumpy over my Epic.
Saying that the first time i rode my Stumpy at a XC race i actually beat some of my oponents i usually didn't, even though i thought i was slower, so by now means that bad for XC either.
Fyi i think my stumpy weighs in about 27lbs and the Epic about 24.
Bottom line go and ride a Stumpy or even an Enduro SL just for comparism, because on those freeride days they supply a huuuuge grin factor you just can't quite manage on the Epic.
I have an '07 epic and ride it mostly in the foothills west of Tahoe. We have a lot of variety - tight single track, fire roads, rocky climbs, rocky descents, etc. The Epic can be a little hairy on very steep descents, but climbs like crazy regardless of the situation. I love my Epic, and I'm finding that as I make minor tweaks to the suspension and test ride them, I'm getting the bike to be very plush while still letting the brain be stiff and do its job.
If I were you, I'd test ride both and see which worked better for me, especially if you have the option to rent the bikes.
Exactly nachom my sentiments entirely, on the descents it's all a bit lively at times on the Epic!! Try the same descent again on a stumpy or Enduro and you'll just glide down..
Exactly nachom my sentiments entirely, on the descents it's all a bit lively at times on the Epic!! Try the same descent again on a stumpy or Enduro and you'll just glide down..
The Epic is an XC bike, not a downhiller. In my utopia, I'd have a bike that automatically went to a full lockout with no sag climbing, and immediately went to a full open 5" or 6" suspension on the downhill. The Epic sure is a good compromise though! If you're still deciding though, the absolute best thing you can do that trumps all the "advise" all of us on this forum gives, is to go to your local Spesh dealer and test ride both. You can get on specialized.com and find the dealers which have test bikes as it's my understanding that some do not. I would certainly test them both if I was unsure.
I think i will go with the SJ pro, because the weight diffrence form a SJ pro to a Epic marathon is only about 1 pound, I rode an 06 stumpy fsr in tahoe two years ago and it was a blast, and since both bikes have the brain, the SJ should be pretty efficient
Good deal. Let us know when you get it. We'll do a comparison with the Epic at Memorial Park.
I had a blast last night testing out my new wheels out there Did the yellow and orange twice, followed by the obligatory blue / red combo. I now have 2 sets of Mavic Crossrides. 1 for the street and 1 for the trails.
I think i will go with the SJ pro, because the weight diffrence form a SJ pro to a Epic marathon is only about 1 pound, I rode an 06 stumpy fsr in tahoe two years ago and it was a blast, and since both bikes have the brain, the SJ should be pretty efficient
Probably a good call. I didn't have the budget for the brain equipped stumpy, so I didn't bother riding it (I didn't want to risk finding a way to 'expand' my budget). I don't know if it would have made a difference though, I really like the feel of the Epic, both in the seating position and the ride.
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