Ride before you buy part 2

The second bike tested at the Tokai edition of Bicycling's Ride before you buy was the Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Expert EVO 29. The bike could best be described as a Stumpjumer FSR on Performance Enhancing Drugs with the specific aim to provide a true trail experience all be it with wagon wheels. There are some subtle differences. The Head tube angle is slacker at 68Degrees, the BB has slightly more clearance and it sports a 140mm Fox Talas fork that can be adjusted more or less on the fly to 110mm travel for those longer climbs. The Fox Talas fork also have 34mm stanchions. The 130mm float has 32mm stanchions. The 34mm Talas provides additional stiffness which combined with the more robust Roval Traverse 28mm rims opposed to the 26mm rims on the Stumpy FSR. The handle bar is wider at 720mm and it also sports the Comand Seat Post, Specialized's proprietary dropper seat post system. Having not ventured into the deep dark underworld of true trail riding and the thought of doing more Gravity orientated riding has not even entered my mind before, this bike gave me brief glimpses of what would be possible. While being nervous on the technical descent on the Pyga, I was looking forward to the section on the EVO. The EVO made light work of the technical section and being able to carry much more speed into the section meant a much more enjoyable experience overall. I enjoyed using a dropper seat post for the first time and can truly see the merit in investing in this technology regardless of bike choice where bikes come with more than 120mm travel. The EVO really tickled places that was not tickled before while mountain biking and would be a worthy choice, provided that the buyer is willing to drop R50 000. It is definitely tempting though. Design: 8/10 Value for money: 6/10 Suspension tech and feel: 9/10 Overall 8/10 The overall experience was a surprisingly pleasant one in that the bike does what it is supposed to do very well, with the capability to bite off a lot more than what I am willing to throw at it right now. If my skills were of the nature that I was confident in doing more Gravity oriented riding this bike would have been a very strong contender for BC Bike Race.