The Fuel EX vs the Intense 6.6--CONTEST INCLUDED!

So here is my trusty steed, my beloved ride that has taken me through many a weary mile and many a thrilling descent. It is a machine I purchased at a time when cycling was just a an idea in my mind--a fantasy that still needed to be lived out. Now, two years later and thousands of miles of trail conquered, I am ready for a complete upgrade.

Problem--the variety of quality bikes out there right now is simply staggering! The choices can make your head spin if you think about it too much--which I inevitably do. Which brand? Which model? How much travel do I need? Should I go lighter? Should I get the same type of bike or something in a different category alltogether? What do the terms 'all-mountain' and 'freeride' mean anyway? And it always happens that just when I think I have narrowed it down the THE bike, I learn something new and I change my mind again.

Part of the solution, I think, is what some of my friends have told me: rent a bike you like to see if you will actually like riding it and then decide. Taking such sagacious advice to heart, I rented out an Intense 6.6. I took pictures of both bikes from the same angle so you could compare the angles and such. Some cool features of this bike are: 6.6 rear travel; Fox 40 fork with travel reduced to 7 inches; shimano XT brakes, shifters, and crank with bashguard; Shimano '07 XTR rear derailleur; DT Swiss wheelset.

I would tell you how much it weighed but I want you to guess. Take a stab at it and post it in a comment. Guess down to the tenth's (e.g. 30.8 lbs) place. The winner will get to go on a ride with me! (And the pride of being right!)

I took this machine out on two rides: ST Park and Demo. I will discuss the latter. I guess I should discuss the ride chronologically. Here is what I was thinking on this ride. The real test of the usefulness of this bike would not be the climb to the top, but rather the climb out of the vally and back to the car. Would I be able to complete the 6 miles to the Demo trailhead (Ridge Trail) with relative ease, fly down Braille, and then climb out without resting, walking, bonking, or dying? hmmmmm....Let's recap the whole thing shall we?

The Conditions--Wow! The weather was great! It was the first time in three months that I felt I could ride in shorts, one shirt, and one pair of socks. The trails were 99% dry and very soft, but not dusty. In other words, it could not have been better. There were no downed trees across the trail either.

The Climb--SO I started up the road right before another group of guys who were also on some pretty big bikes. None of them had a dual crown fork though. To my surprise, I never saw them again, even though I expected them to pass me on the climb up. One of them looked around 18 years old! I vividly remember his look of amazement as I took off from the lot. It was probably because I was on such a kickass bike and I had my helmet strapped to the back and my grey locks were blowing in the wind. I bet those two things did not seem possible to him, and he probably thought I was much older than I am!

As I continued up the road I came across a group of three riders--two young guys and one older guy. Two of them were on hardtails and one of them did not even have a helmet! The other dude was on a 40 pound bike! They had never been there and were dumb enough not to come with some sort of map, so I told them they could follow me but that I would not be slowing down. The older guy dissappeared almost instantly and the other two were suffering. I gave them some quick directions and left them eating my dust, so to speak. I wonder if they ever found Braille?

I got to the top without too much strain. In fact, I felt pretty good! I am sure that my imagining the downhill run on such a bike is what gave me the adrenaline to make up relatively quickly.

The Downhill--There are few words for this experience, but I will try. All that travel! The speed and control I had as I tackled the first part of Ridge trail was shocking. Rocky sections were smooth, but not so smooth as to take out all of the feeling of the trail. In fact, the faster you go, the more you feel. I soon realized that, with the front so far out ahead of the cockpit, the steering is far more accurate. This gave me great control in the corners.

Braille--Oh shizzle! I bombed down the whole thing without stopping once. Crosscountry bike riders watched in amazement. Hardtail riders drooled. Some fell to their knees and gave thanks. Most just jumped out of the way with their eyes bugged out and their jaws dragging on the ground. Every jump was at least twice as big as on my Trek (peace be upon it), and every drop was magnified by my preloading the suspension. I hit drops I have always been afraid to do and my jumps probably extended out to at least 10 feet long. Maybe more! I never stopped to check. As for pedalling, I was able to keep my momentum up quite easily. I was a little bummed when I hit the last stretch of the trail. It just felt like it was too soon.

The Climb Out--Ok, now for the real test. After all that fun and adrenaline would it be possible to climb out with relatively little fuss? Naturally, one would expect it to be harder, and it was harder. I got to know the granny gear very well. However, I never walked and I never rested. There was no pain, though I could tell there was more of a strain on my muscles. I would not have been able to keep up with myself had a clone of mine been pedalling the Trek. Finally, even though I was alone, I reached the lot sooner than expected, and I felt I still had some power left in me, but definitely not for another loop.

Final thoughts--The bike inspires confidence and makes it easy to use the skills you know you have and yet are afraid to try them because you feel unsafe doing so on your short travel bike. It is so fun! The bike greatly increases both the thrill and the overall safety of the ride. The control it gives you helps you to get set up for whatever stunt or obstacle is comming up. If you check out my last post on Demo, you'll see that there was a log that no one wanted to roll over or drop off. I decided this time to roll it (since I was alone!) and it went so smoothly I almost went right back to drop it!

So is a bike like this worth the extra weight? It only weighs....oops, I almost told you! In my opinion, if you live for the downhills and the stunts, if you are a strong climber and want to be even stronger, if you don't mind your friends waiting for you a bit (but not too much) on the climbs (because you'll be waiting for them on the downhill!), then big is the way to go! I felt like I could ride the bike all day long, just about. And I did 30 miles on two rides in less than 24 hours!

Worth it? Youbetcha!

Don't forget the contest!