Specialized Rockhopper 29er Disc

[The Llama]

Well, I Won this bike at CLIMB's Fat Tire Fest this past September!! what a fun bike!! I always wanted to ride a 29er!!

I love this bike, but i probably wouldn't recommend it to anyone here in the east......

the bike in general works fine, but, the first thing I noticed was the tires were not well set for the new england weather and terrain.  If you are riding Just hard pack all day then you might like these, but any moisture make them grab everything on the trail into the treads and you'll be riding on slicks. also sand.. WOW it kicks it up onto your legs and sand blasts you like no tomorrow!! major ouch!!

The next big issue is the cables running bare down the front tube facing the tires... Now I know this is the "old" way it was done, but anyone with half a brain knows unless you are running in dry conditions 100% time these things are going to get coated in major crap!! I have already run a new solid housing cable to the rear derail because it kept miss shifting if I didn't stop a few times a ride and clean them off at the bottom bracket!

I love this bike though.. but I can only give it maybe a 5 out of 10 for this area... just not really suited for New England

[mudnuts]

I test drove one of the rock hoppers but didn’t really like the feel.  I am positive that it could have been set up to fit me better though.  It was a large and even though I am 5’11, I usually feel cramped on a large.

Looks like a lot of bikes these days are coming stock with tires that are better in dry conditions.  What tire was on the rock hopper?

I see a lot of the fisher 29ers are coming with the Bontrager XDX, (or something like that) and I don’t think I could use that tire in PA for fall winter or spring riding.  Maybe summer or road riding.  I read it’s a fast tire though.

[The Llama]

Looks like a lot of bikes these days are coming stock with tires that are better in dry conditions.  What tire was on the rock hopper?

I see a lot of the fisher 29ers are coming with the Bontrager XDX, (or something like that) and I don’t think I could use that tire in PA for fall winter or spring riding.  Maybe summer or road riding.  I read it’s a fast tire though.

It came with specialized "Fast  Trac" tires.. they kinda sucked for anything other than rock face, or pavement.  Sand was bad because the sand blasted your legs REALLY bad, and basic New England trail they just loaded up and turned into a leaf slick.  They are probably the best thing going in a bike Park or out in the mid west riding the big spans of rock cliffs... here.. not good.