GF Roscoe II

[BackLoafRiver]

Anyone ridden a Fisher Roscoe II? At a visit to a bike shop in Old Town yesterday, they had a 2009 for $2500 brand new. (and did I mention the only one they had was in my size?) Got to ride it around the lot and liked it but that doesn't tell you anything about how it will feel out on the trail.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. I've been flirting with the idea of getting a FS bike for a few months and there have been a lot of positive reviews on the Roscoe.

 

[BackLoafRiver]

Bump for advice....

So, looks like I have some $$ to spend on the new ride. Problem is, I am now inundated with choices and few opportunities to demo.

Within my price range, here is what I have found so far:

GF Roscoe 2 - 2009 leftover.
Trek Fuel EX 8
Santa Cruz Heckler
SC Superlight
Rocky Mountain Altitude 30
GF Rumblefish 1
GF Hi Fi Delux
Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp

I am sure there are others. The biggest problem is I can't find a place locally to demo any of them. Most places just let you ride them in the lot. That is totally useless. Especially since some are 29" and others are 26". Anyone have thoughts, opinions, other? Feeling pretty overwhelmed.

 

[marcski]

I think you need to figure out what you want a little bit more. Do you want a 29'er or a regular 26? What are the things you like about the 29's? Do they outweigh the advantages of a std. 26 for you? (Personally, I hear good things about the 29'ers...but I'm not in the market for a new ride at this time).

Do you want a trailbike, freeride or XC? What type of riding will you be doing mostly? I mean you have a SC superlight and a Heckler on your list. Those are 2 very different bikes.....

 

[BackLoafRiver]

Yeah, when I re-read that post, it is pretty vague. Sorry about that.

Riding is pretty varied. It runs the gamut of rocky and rooty, to buff and fast. I don't race and am not planning on getting into it so carbon fiber is not necessary. (and it is way out of my price range) I know it knocks quite a few pounds off the bike while keeping it quite sturdy but, again...quite a bit out of my price range.

In all my reading, it seems like the trail/ cross country line has been blurred a bit.

The 26 vs. 29 thing is still up in the air for me. I have been on a 29er for the past year and it was the first bike I have owned. A lot of people say, if you have "drank the 29er Kool Aid" you should stay with it. I don't know. It would be interesting to see the difference between the two.

 

[MR. evil]

Aside from the whole 26 vs 29er thing, you need to decide what type of bike you want (xc, trail, all mountain). For example you have both the Santa Cruz Super Light and Heckler on your list. Both have 26" wheels, but very different bikes. The Super Light is their light weight FS bike while the Heckler is the original do all trail / all mountain machine. From your list I would go for the Heckler as it's the most versitial bike listed. The Fuel Ex would be 2nd.

 

[Philpug]

Just went to the Specialized Demo Day at Kton..29ers are great. Now..Epic or Stump is the question.

 

[BackLoafRiver]

Narrowed Down

Got it narrowed down to 3 bikes...

2009 Gary Fisher Roscoe 2 - http://fisherbikes.com/bike/archivemodel/466
2011 Santa Cruz Blur LT - Rock Shox Revelation with SLX package including Jucy 3's
2011 Trek EX 8 - http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/mountain_full_suspension/fuel_ex/fuelex8/

The Trek won't be out for a few weeks. (or so says the shop) Ideally I would get the LT with a fox, XT setup and Elixer R's but that puts me way into the $3500 price range. An EX 9 would be awesome too but it is over the $3k mark as well.

Thoughts?

 

[MR. evil]

The Blur and Fuel EX are both great bikes. For the money you will get a better build with the Trek. But you really can't go wrong with either.

 

[Greg]

Can't speak for the other bikes, but I was on a 2009 EX7 for a year. Great bike, great climber, and pretty capable on rockier/gnarly descents. One thing to caution you on - get the right size. Trek has 17.5, 18.5, 19.5 fame sizes. If you're in between, go larger. My EX7 in 18.5 was small, while my 19.5 Remedy felt large at first, is actually perfect. That one inch makes a huge difference. I probably would have liked my EX7 more in a 19.5".

Speaking of Remedy vs. Fuel. See if you can find a leftover Remedy 7. Probably not much more than the '11 EX8 and a lot more bike.

 

[BackLoafRiver]

Thanks for the replies. I will see if I can find anywhere that has a remedy in stock to check out but it is looking grim. As I am sure most of you know, Trek under-produced for the 2010 season so bikes are in high demand but VERY low availability.

Mr. Evil - Thanks for the thoughts on the Trek vs. SC. The trek seems to have a better build (I like the fork and brakes much better) and is about $500 less than the Blur.