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The KootenayBike Top 3 DH Bikes for 2011

It’s that time of year that we start to think about putting away the bikes for another winter. The snowline creeps lower and lower every day, and your thinking about scraping the rust off the edges and maybe doing some stretches to prepare for the winter shredding season. That’s Fall in the Kootenays, but in the bike industry Fall is the launching point for the next years gear.. Eurobike, Interbike, whateverbike.. These shows give a chance for the industry to show what’s new and improved.. We’ve waded through the noise and are making a slightly biased call on a few bikes that you might want to start saving your penny’s for in the spring.

Intense 951

Refreshed for 2011 comes the Intense Cycles 951. A popular bike last year, I know a few people who have last years rig and rave about it, but this year Intense decided to bring the price point down a bit into the realm of other DH bike offerings. Hand-made in the U.S. the new 951 looses the adjustability it had in last years model with the G3 dropout being swapped out for a fixed dropout that pretty much was the middle setting on the old G3 dropout. The down tube changes ever so slightly but the bottom line is a more sticker friendly bike. Other than the lower price, the bike uses the 2nd generation VPP suspension system that peddles pretty well and has a predicable progressive suspension curve and handling characteristics that make it pretty versatile being able to handle flowy jump lines to steep, technical terrain, and being adept at both aggressive and maybe less aggressive lines. The versatility of this bike alone is why it’s high on our list of bikes for next year.

Transition TR450

Not much changes on the Transition TR450 from last year to this year, other than some colour changes.. I’ve heard it’s coming in a Kawi green for next year which will undoubtly look pretty sweet. The TR rocks a single-pivot suspension design, that’s solid and dependable. It’s low down attitude helps it rail corners and handle the burly sections. It’s fairly slack and low which is nice for the steeps but if your looking for a slightly more nimble ride, look towards a Transition Blindside or even the new TR250 which is a smaller tighter handling version of the TR450.

Devinci Wilson

The newest bike in this bunch is the Canadian made Devinci Wilson. Boasting the new split-pivot system which is supposed to separate the brake and suspension forces is getting loads of good initial feedback out there on the web. The bikes low down weight, balanced riding characteristics and bottom-less feel are why we love it. Throw in a solid component kit at all three model levels and you’ve got a pretty sweet complete ride.. this is not easily said about some bikes that come heavily loaded with in-house brand components. One thing we’d like to see is an Elka option for the rear shock.. that would put this ride near the 100% mark.

Why these bikes made our list

There are plenty of solid bikes out there that will no doubt provide an awesome base for some Kootenay shredding. These bikes simply caught our eye whether it be pure clean line design, nice build kits, and being from somewhat local companies. The Intense bikes are hand built in the U.S.A. – I can support that, same with the Devinci bikes coming straight from Quebec. Transition is practically Canadian being situated in Ferndale, Washington – that’s about 10 minutes south of the border. These aren’t climbers, and there are other bikes out there better suited for finding your way to the top of a run under your own power – but for those looking to keep it pointed downhill… these are a solid bet.

Agree or Disagree? Leave us a comment to let us know!

Posted by Smitty on Oct 29, 2010   |  

Tagged as: Bike Reviews, Devinci, Intense Cycles, KootenayBike, Transition