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Last weekend Quest had their annual demo day. I love these days for two reasons: 1) I get to ride my bike all day and chat to lots of new faces, as well as the familiar ones, & 2) I get to try lots of nice new bikes.

I'd decided this year I had a sort of mission, as far as my day to day riding goes I'm totally sorted, Between the Hei Hei and Stiffee all bases are covered. But next year the intention is to do the Mega Avalanche and for that I need something a little more impractical! It was time to try some suspension bikes and see what was on offer.

I don't want a true DH bike as I feel it would just get used too little, but something a bit more freeridey, although it would be a pig to ride uphill, could at least be used for jaunts up to Pitch Hill, Chicksands and the Esher Shore. So although not everything I tried fitted into that category there were a few surprises in store for me..........

Scott Gambler DH10
What I really wanted to try was the Gambler FR20, more in my price range, single crown forks, double chainring set up. But unfortunately they didn't have one :-( So the DH10 was the only option. It was a 'short' not a 'long' which is what I'd need and with triple clamp Fox 40's, a single chainring with guides up the front and a close ratio block it was never going to be an easy ride!

Gambler DH10

My god what a lump of metal! At around forty pounds this bike was never meant to go uphill and that fact soon became very apparent. Like I say I really want to try the freeride version and I soon wished I just hadn't bothered. This bike is so heavy and has so much travel there is just nothing steep enough round here to get it moving. In reality it was probably the slowest ride of the day for me, downhill as well as up. It's a shame, I've kind of crossed the Gambler off the list now, unless I get the chance to ride the FR and love it I can't see me getting one. If you live in the Alps or even Wales then great, but around here it's too much bike!!

Kona Kula 2-9
As an antidote to the Gambler I needed something light to help me regain my composure! As a lover of the Kona brand I decided (on Deadly's recommendation) to give the 2-9 a go. I guess you need to be a particular kind of rider for this bike. Aside from the fact it will suit a larger rider better, I think if you like tight, techy singletrack the sheer length and height of this will put you off a bit.

Kona Kula 2-9

Well the one place it really will excel is on the wide open tracks of the South Downs. It was a bit of a revelatory experience to be honest, once you get it rolling it's so stable it's really good fun. Out of all the bikes on offer I think I rode down the hill fastest on this one! However my love of tight singletrack and technical riding means this bike doesn't really suit me. But it was a good fun experience to see what all the buzz about 29'ers is about.

Marin Wolf Ridge
Well if the other's left me feeling slightly deflated this bike may as well have had "Jimbo's Bike" written on the side of it. I absolutely loved everything about it. As soon as I tweaked it to my usual set up and set off it was apparent that it would be a lot of fun :-)

Marin Wolf Ridge

It felt just like stepping onto my Cove Stiffee, but with a large slice of rear travel. I was immediately at home and with 140mm of travel at my disposal each end it didn't kick me to death like the Stiffee sometimes does.

I love this bike and although I will be trying it's 'big brother' the Quake I reckon it goes straight to the top of the pile for me and the style of riding I enjoy. It's just a shame it's such a naff colour! (Who says blokes don't care about this sort of thing!!)

Turner RFX
OK, so I actually rode this bike a whole week later, but I did get to spend the whole day on it so it got a really good try out. Unfortunately it was a little too big for me, I could have done with a medium really, and at times did feel a bit like I was a passenger perched on the top.

Turner RFX

This was fun to ride, nice relaxed angles and quite light for what it was too. After the pull up the first hill I got warmed up and noticed the weight a bit less and got on with enjoying the ride. While the size didn't exactly help I was more un nerved by the tendency of the rear suspension to extend on braking, especially on the steeper descents and technical bits. It was a little scary at times, especially as the tendency is to go a bit faster than you normally would on a bike like that.

Conclusions?
Well for what it's worth I'm sure my opinion means absolutely jack to most of you, but I was looking for a freeridey type bike that will get me to the end of the Mega Avalanche and still be well mannered enough to ride round these parts and indulge in some mild 'huckage'.

The Gambler was just too much bike, OK on a really steep rocky downhill (in reality probably excellent for the Mega Avalanche) but too much for riding around these parts. The Kula was a diversion while I recovered really, if you want a bike for bashing out the miles and not get into really technical situations with I suggest you give one a try, it was really good fun. The Turner was OK, but the braking behavior scared me a bit and the fact I could get the whole Marin for not a whole lot more than a Turner frame knocks that out the running.

For me the hands down winner was the Marin, I *loved* it!! Next on the list then is the Marin Quake, see if it is as well behaved as the Wolf Ridge, if so I reckon that'll be the one! But also I need to give a Kona Stinky a go as well. Though as it's a similar design to the Turner I'm not sure how that will feel.

Watch this space..................

Jimbo