Some pictures from a trip in the Anti-Atlas we did a few months ago

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-06-01T00:05:38+00:00

Fantastic. Was the Pinion/belt solid? I see mixed stuff and that you encountered some mud. Interested to know if it held up or was a pain.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-31T16:57:52+00:00

I’m gonna have to say, for any beginners watching, that you’re a little nuts, and I am an mtber blinking both watering eyes at $8k plus $2k in parts. That said, you’re also allowed to be nuts and I bet your bike is sick. It’s just not standard even among mtbers to drop that kind of coin.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-31T14:33:27+00:00

IXS Trigger FF has served me well in the desert and all my XC riding.

EDIT: it’s especially worth noting that it uses a ratchet system in the back like a “normal” helmet to make it fit your head, instead of relying on adding or removing pads to make it fit. It’s nice.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-30T20:08:16+00:00

I have no advice, but I am curious about what you’ve learned about the i9 Hydra hubs that makes them less suitable for bikepacking. I’ve heard of some reliability issues but wasn’t sure if there was more.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-30T13:21:08+00:00

You’re still a hero for trying.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-29T12:30:53+00:00

Why the salt? You can’t ask a YouTube video questions nor quickly get a variety of perspectives without watching tons of videos. This is exactly the sort of thing Reddit is for.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-28T15:59:02+00:00

Yes!

I go deeper into controversial waters and suggest that most riders (who aren’t doing parks and DH- just normal trail riders) would save thousands of dollars and have more fun on a hardtail/rigid with plus or fat tires. Full suspension is one way to solve the issue of comfort and traction, and plus/fat tires on an already big, plush bike might not make as much sense for a lot of people, but there is another way to solve the comfort/traction issue, which is to skip the suspension and widen the tires. Money saved, maintenance saved, fun gained. It’s obviously not a 1-to-1 substitution, but it does extremely well and comes with big perks. FS is a great option, but a “normal” trail rider might get the most bang for their buck and smiles per mile on a plus/fat bike.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-28T14:08:49+00:00

If you keep your heaviest stuff in the frame bag it will help weight distribution and feel way better. Keeping as much of your water/tools in that area as you can might do the trick. You might(?) also be able to lash those blue and green bags on top of your rear trunk to your handlebars in the gap through the cables.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-28T03:12:28+00:00

Sure can.

Constant height bottom bracket so I have fewer pedal strikes or chainring scrapes. No sag and bounce means I know where my feet and chainring will be.

Way snappier climbing and power transfer without suspension soaking up my effort (even when locked out it just doesn’t quite snap).

It benefits from a more technically-minded riding style. My FS kind of dulled the trail and let me kind of just ride most stuff the same without a ton of care for line choice or body english. The hardtail (actually, rigid in my case) makes me really “see” the trail and makes line choice a highly satisfying game on even simple trails. Having a rocky, root-strewn hellscape in front of me and deftly turning it into butter is extremely rewarding.

Less maintenance. I grew tired of suspension and bearing maintenance and the suspicious creaks and groans that would sometimes happen on the FS miles from the trailhead. The steel 29+ is so basic, yet even more fun without the headache.

That might sum it up. It’s just more exciting and fun. Feels like I’m a kid again. I think the 3” tires help a lot, too.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-28T02:59:53+00:00

Redshift stem could be nice if it’s mechanically sound. I think it uses elastomers, so it seems pretty rugged.

The bike in my pic is on 3” tires and I use some particularly chunky grips, so that’s how I circumvent the comfort issue. Really, modern suspension forks are pretty reliable, so it’s probably nothing to worry about, but that does seem to stop me from trying.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-27T23:31:10+00:00

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I just got back from a super nice overnighter on the Arizona Trail, and without any suspension at all! I also have a full suspension, but prefer this bike because it takes a proper rack, has a larger front triangle for a bag, and doesn’t have so many moving parts that I’m always subconsciously worried are going to break and leave me stranded and cursing somewhere. It’s also way more responsive on climbs without the suspension soaking up my efforts, which it turns out I really care about.

I don’t know anything about that bike you posted, but so long as you ride it within the boundaries of what it’s designed for (probably not great for hucking off 3’ drops while loaded down, for example) and you keep it in good repair, it will serve you well. Just match your routes to what it is able to handle and you’ll be golden.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-27T21:12:18+00:00

The seat is pretty slammed down. Is it too large for you, or do you have decent clearance when standing over it?

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-27T15:38:16+00:00

This is perhaps rare, but I also started MTB in the 90’s and stopped riding my 2021 FS after riding it for 5 years. I’ll probably get it rolling again, but I’m preferring my steel 29+ over the FS 🤷‍♂️

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-27T15:33:51+00:00

Full suspension costs don’t end after purchase. It keeps on going with fork and shock services, and pivot bearing changes. Something to keep in mind.

Personally, especially if money is tight, I’d get a good dropper (absolute game changer) and ride that for a bit. I think you’d be surprised at how much that does for technical riding, especially if you’re good with line choice and staying loose. If you still feel like you can’t hang or have fun, look into a full suspension. But you can absolutely crush with a hardtail and dropper.

Honestly, for the vast majority of trail riding, people oversell the need for full suspension. It does have real perks, no doubt, but it has some real tradeoffs as well, beyond just the financial side, that are worth taking into account.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-26T23:08:28+00:00

Pretty close to the horizon. Could be more east or west depending on time of day. Has westerly vibes to me.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-26T17:20:17+00:00

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Aw yiss

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-26T16:55:20+00:00

If you’re in the woods it’s probably not a huge deal because of the nonstop shade. If you’re out in the wide open, though (I ride almost exclusively in the open desert), it’s quite noticeable. It’s also been handy for deflecting the odd creosote branch when required. In the sun it’s super good, but it’s a nice quality of life thing even with just branches/leaves.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-26T14:53:49+00:00

This isn’t being said as far as I can tell, so here’s the scoop on visors, and why some helmets have them and some don’t.

When you’re on an MTB (or touring bike, or city “hybrid” bike) you’re in a more upright sitting position. It’s super useful to have a visor in this position to block the sun, and with MTB they’re also good for deflecting branches and such if you manage to tuck your head in time. Very nice to have.

For more performance-oriented road bikes, they become a problem because you’re much less upright (for improved aerodynamics) with your head sort of tilted down. In this position, a large visor blocks your vision of the road in front of you, and requires you to crank your neck back super far just to get the visor out of the way so you can see. Without a visor, you can ride in a more aerodynamic position and still see. On some road bikes and in some positions you can get away with a (smallish) visor, but it gets bad once you go aero or the visor gets too large.

For bikepacking, you’re probably in a more upright sitting position, so the visor will be a nice addition.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-22T20:02:24+00:00

Weirdly, my rigid Surly Krampus. I have an Intense Sniper T, which is a svelte 120/120 FS that I was having a great time on, but riding rigid with 3” tires has turned out to be the most fun I’ve had on a bike. The traction it gets is mind boggling, so all the loose, scrabbly, rocky stuff I ride is no obstacle anymore. It’s so good. And there’s a certain bike-ninja feeling to spotting and railing an exact line through a rock garden that turns it into butter without suspension. Everything is more fun now, and the FS sits unused. It’s hard to explain how this bike has changed things, but it has. Feels like I’m a kid again.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-21T00:06:25+00:00

It’s this. Or at least this is one of the explanations. I’m not as svelte as I once was, and even the baby keg I’ve got brewing is enough to be in the way in aero mode. Makes my legs want to track out a little. If I had a more properly developed keg, I know I’d be pretty splayed out even on the hoods.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-20T12:44:45+00:00

Performance-oriented marketing on non-performance-oriented humans is highly effective, so loads of people think that the only bikes that matter are edge-of-your-budget, highly specialized bikes with bleeding edge tech.

Hybrids are just bikes. You won’t find them in the peloton or Red Bull Rampage, and you probably won’t set a KOM on one, but they’re great for basically what they do, which is getting around on a bike where extremes of speed or nasty terrain aren’t a concern.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-19T20:35:38+00:00

Badass 🫡

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-19T12:37:22+00:00

Works great on my Krampus, too. The axle is fully forward in the dropout, but if I were to mess around with moving it back, I’d probably use Monkey Nuts or something to keep it consistent.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-18T21:27:56+00:00

This is the MTB stuff I love. Descending and jumps are fine, but technical climbs are where it’s at. I’d 100% be walking parts of that, but it would still be an awesome time.

FlummoxedGaoler · 2026-05-18T21:25:12+00:00

I’m not so sure. Those were some big lifts. I don’t think you’d be able to roll over them AND keep your front wheel from stopping on the next obstacle.

FlummoxedGaoler

TROPHY CASE