My $1,300 Mountain Bike! Bike #1 from the Vault
I've ridden this bike on over 1,000 miles worth of XC trail, finished 4 endurance races on it, and I absolutely love it. Here's why...
Introducing my Specialized Crave SL 29er Single speed MTB. It has Shimano Deore hydraulic disc brakes, a 32t-16t drivetrain, Shimano XT SPD pedals, skin-wall 29er Maxxis Ardent tubeless tires, a Rockshox Reba fork with 100mm of travel, and it weighs only 22 pounds.
Why no gears you ask? Because 22 pounds (10kg) that's why. Without the weight of the derailleur, cassette, shifter, and cable I'm able to save at least 1-2 pounds and it makes the bike more fun anyways!
This has to be the lightest, fastest XC race bike for your money. Any comparable bikes in the same weight class cost upwards of $3,000 and are made of carbon fiber. If any mountain bikers are currently reading this and have never tried a single speed XC bike, I 100% recommend it.
This is the first bike I'm posting about from my "Bike Vault". I decided to have a feature post for each of my bikes since I have so many and love them all! So stay tuned for more of my favorite things in the world.
Awesome stuff. How did you go in the endurance races? What's it like on the fast, flat sections - can you keep up with your geared competitors?
I always placed relatively in the middle, never been on the podium but it's all a great time anyways.
On the flat sections between technical trails, I just had to allow my gearing to set my pace and try to not get ahead of myself trying to keep up with everyone else. I had to take it as an opportunity to rest a little and know I'll pass them back on the trails through the trees.
Someday I'll be able to expand my own bike vault to have a mountain bike as well. I love single speeds / fixies so I'm sure this would put a fat grin on my face!
Yeah! When it comes to spending money on bikes or other stuff, I try to think if the other stuff would make me happier than I would be on a bike.... And I think you know the popular answer there!
nice bicycle! I am looking for a mountain bike as an extension to my road bike but I don't know where to start :D
I'd definitely start looking at a hardtail XC bike! You can get the most bike for your money with those, especially if it's pre-owned.
Awesome bike man and respect to you for riding a single speed. I don't have the leg strength to even attempt it.
Thanks man! It really isn't all that hard to do, the name of the game is momentum conservation.
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