Rr has better grip as a front tire than the Aspen is the reason I ran them that way
I got the Evo comp on super sale and I think it was around 28 pounds stock. Swapped my Fox 34 120 step cast fork, swapped xx1 axs cassette + rear der + shifter, added my rotor inpower crankset, and the largest weight savings was my old Stanās Valor carbon wheels. I plan to swap the dropper soon to the Fox sl, get rid of the brakes for Sram Level Ultimate, and eventually dial in the bars/stem. That should get it under 25.
+1. Did the same with mine. Put on Roval Wheels, swapped tires and shaved off 2 pounds on just the front wheel alone.
This seemed to be the combo at the Pisgah Stage Race this year as well, and the conditions were wet and muddy.
Hump
I raced the Epic Evo (7) Pro for the first time yesterday, sorry if this has been done to death but what a bike. After setup rides on my local trails - the same setup I used in the race - I felt it was perhaps a bit too āsoftā and I veered into Trail bike rather than Race bike, but with power on the pedals and at race pace it felt firm, fast through singletrack and more control up front with the F34 that the F32SC on my 2018 Spark. A clever bike, because once done and riding through the event field again it was " soft".
Setup was Fox DPS & F34 Factory in Medium mode with both black compression dials in the middle. Not sure of this would equate to the āmagic middleā on the Epic 8.
Climbing was laborious and felt like an anchor, but I suspect thats me and my health related power issues rather than the bike. I donāt even think I want to bother trying the High chip position TBH.
in my n=1 I found the fox float dps to feel plusher with better small bump compliance than the SID Luxe that youād find on an Epic 8, but I find the bike that I currently have a SID Luxe on to feels way more efficient on the climbs. Thereās other variables in my case besides just the shock, but my gut feel is that you arenāt going to come particularly close to replicating the āmagic middleā tune that the Epic 8 has on the SID with a Float DPS.
Extrapolating, if you look across the industry youāll often find bikes differentiating between their more XC race oriented models and their downcountry / evo style models with RS on the former and Fox on the latter. Maybe itās all marketing? but it reinforces my perception that RS is firmer and more efficient and Fox is generally plusher but less efficient on the climbs.
āmagic middleā is what marketing thought up to sell the middle mode of a three-position damper. In this case, it does look like they have tuned that middle mode more specifically to the Epic. Scott has had the traction mode on their models for the past few years that even decreases effective travel, Trek had RE:aktiv in the past with some trick damping. https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/inside_trek/reaktiv/
Yes of course itās marketing, itās just a higher compression mode to add a platform to the shockā¦
ā¦which is what I did to setup my DPS. It may not be the same, but the principle is. And yes Iām assuming thatās what the RX XC tune is on the paperwork, an Epic specific tune - as many other do which thier bikes - to suit the leverage ratios and intended use.
My previous (well, itās still in the man cave waiting to sell) was a Spark RC, I used the middle aka Traction most of the time.
Anyway it doesnāt matter, the best thing vs the Sparks is that once set I never felt the need to change it during the race.
Anyone got a neat solution for when that Epic cable guide falls out of your head tube during a raceā¦ ?
The weight difference is the damper between like for like Factory vs the lower levels. The FIT4 was 75gr lighter than the basic GRIP. The GRIP damper is the better unit, the FIT4 is just lighter.
2024 unweighed (Fox says 60gr lighter than FIT4): https://r2-bike.com/FOX-Suspension-Fork-2025-29-SC-Float-34-F-S-120-Step-Cast-GRIP-SL-Factory-Boost-shiny-orange-Kabolt-SL-15x110-mm-tapered-44-mm-Offset
Prior FIT4 Factory: https://r2-bike.com/FOX-Suspension-Fork-2022-29-SC-Float-34-F-S-120-Step-Cast-3-Pos-Adjust-FIT4-Factory-Boost-shiny-black-Kabolt-15x110-mm-tapered-44-mm-Rake
Prior Performance Grip (note lever on TA): https://r2-bike.com/FOX-Suspension-Fork-2025-29-SC-Float-34-P-S-120-Step-Cast-3-Pos-GRIP-Performance-Boost-matte-black-15QRx110-mm-tapered-44-mm-Offset
When you start putting in more miles and hours on the mountain bike, so you change to a different shoe?
Iāve been running SWorks Recon SL shoes, and they feel pretty great until about hour 3. The feet start to ache, maybe the feet are swelling.
Iāve wondered if getting a set of the new Recons that flex a bit or something else would help.
Iāve always wanted to try Shimano, but never had.
Can sitting too low cause issues with your feet?
I know itās a lot of questions, just trying to figure this out. Iāve had many times where my feet stop be from riding longer and not my legs.
Does keeping your shoes looser help? I keep my shoes on the loose side, and it accommodates any foot swelling for quite a while.
I have this problem with my SIDI gravel shoes. They feel great until about hot 3, when my left smallest toe starts to hurt. I think itās a fit problem - not sure if it has to do with swelling or not because I donāt have that problem with my XC race shoes (also SIDI). Can you adjust the different boas differently? That might help if you start the ride with a looser fit as another poster suggestedā¦
I can adjust, Iāll see if that gets me past that point.
I had the same issue on long mtb rides (4+ hours) and no issues on gravel rides. The more technical the terrain the quicker they would get sore (Iām assuming because I drop my heels a lot more on steep/gnarly descents?) Different insoles with more arch support resolved the problem for me.
Exactly, road and gravel donāt seem to cause issue
I would try Shimano. My xc9 donāt give me any issues. 6 hour plus rides multiple times and I donāt even think about shoes
I have the Shimano XC9 MTB and RX8 gravel shoes and they are really stiff. Iāve been having hot spot pain under the balls of my feet on hard rides over 2 hours long and just moved my cleats back to see if that would help. My first ride with new cleat position was today and right at 2 hours. No pain under the balls of feet so that was good. If I ever buy another Shimano MTB shoe I think Iād go with the XC7 as it may be less stiff.
The SWorks are also stiff. Thatās why I asked about maybe something that flexed a bit.
If you can go farther or longer, then it would be worth it.
anybody been getting time on the nextie alpha wheelset? I know some people recently ordered / received. but donāt remember hearing feedback on those yet, reviews are non existent