thinking of getting a new mountain bike.

sorry, need some special attention here and didnt want to glam onto the other mega-thread.

three bikes i am leaning towards..

Trek Flex EX 9..(maybe a Remedy 9 $$)
Santa Cruz Blur LT
Specialized Epic comp. 29er

i like aluminum frames..i only ride cross country. no downhill stuff for me, besides what i get for riding uphill

i ride my ancient (2000) Specialized FSR now daily. i do it to relieve stresses of work, and help my hypertension. it is working. my doc is happy for me. i went into a store to buy tubes and patches..and they sell all three brands. they only had a Flex onsite, but they said their other location as more of the others.

man..any recommendations? i have been out of bike shopping for so long! it is insane..only 2 front chainrings?!!! who would have thunk it?

wife is about to let me pull the trigger!!

 

I'm not a clown wheeler fan, but the spec may be your best bet for xc performance especially if you are on the tallish side (over 5'11" ish).

By Flex, do u mean Fuel by any chance? Not real familiar with Treks.

The Trek and SC lean more toward aggressive trail/all mountain.

 

Duh. FUEL. Wrote a letter about frame flex. Had flex on the brain.

 

Yeah, stick with a 26er or even try one of the new 27.5ers unless you're on the tall side. I am 5'9" and my 29er frame is super small which makes everything feel weird. Plus, I don't necessarily dig being farther from the ground. I need to switch to a 26er.

 

Check out the website I run. Lots of info there. If you register, PM me here and I'll tell you who I am there.

http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php/26-Mountain-Biking

 

I was behind a 10-year old girl during a race this summer, she was all of 80 pounds and was riding a Niner 29er and was fast. My fastest riding buddy is about 5'9" and hauls butt on a 29er. That said, I have one of each, and I love my Fuel EX 9. I have the 2011 components with the DT Swiss M1800 wheelset, it is sweet.

Ride one of each, and take advantage of any demos in your area.

 

Yeah I'm definitely gonna look at 27.5/650b wheel size when my time comes for an upgrade.