Can’t compare my Epic 8 to a Trek, but I am right about your height and I chose the medium. I have had every generation of Epics for the last 15 years. I had always ridden large Epics, but as you probably know, the bikes just kept getting bigger and bigger with each generation. And that was usually just offset by a shorter stem, but I finally reached the point with the Epic 8 that a large just felt like too big of a bike for the tight trails I ride. Have had it for 6 months and don’t regret my decision at all.
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Sad day, but I’m going to have to sell my Epic 8. Kind of an abrupt job change has me moving a few states south and there’s just no good trail riding near me. At least none that look appealing. The upside is that there’s tons of gravel so I’ll likely be trading the MTB riding for long gravel rides. Just wanted to post my baby and have a moan before having to list it.
From last winter:
Epic 8 Expert with a Flight Attendant upgrade and XX SL crank/power meter upgrade. Just threw the summer race tires back on, too.
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Bummer, but better to see it go to a good home if you aren’t able to use it. Almost my exact build, I had to go check my garage to see if my bike was still there.
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Great minds, lol.
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Medium? How far south you moving?
Large. Coastal SC. Literally called the Low Country for a reason.
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Ahh… well at least you don’t have to go too far west to find some good riding (Greenville).
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You can always ride “The Hulk” in Myrtle Beach, and FATs isn’t a long drive compared.
Also, SC isn’t that long of a state, you can literally drive from the Upstate to the Coast, spend time at the beach and then drive home.
I’d keep the bike and explore new terrain.
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Driving 2 hours to ride my MTB is wishful thinking at best. At least for me. Maybe if it was a bike park with downhill trails or something, but I’m not driving a few hours each way just to ride some trail. I guess I got spoiled having riding spots right out my door or a 20-min drive at the very most. If it’s 2-3 hours away, I can tell myself I’ll do it one day but the likely scenario is that the MTB sits in my garage untouched. Not when I have hundreds of gravel miles right there. I’m just being realistic.
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What part are you moving to?
Does SRAM XX SL powermeter reads too high for anybody else?
yes!
compared with Assioma Duo pedals the XX SL reads about +4 - 4,5% more watts, at least in my case
the old Eagle XX1 spider powermeter was worse…i had one with +6,5%, and another with +8%
You can adjust the slope to match any other power meter. I have 3 Quarq PMs and adjust them relative to my trainer as a baseline.
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Hey hey…I have a super technical stage race coming up with endless angry rocks so I’m going to run 60TPI Rekon Races front and rear. I was wondering if anyone has any thoughts on a Tubolight insert in the rear potentially being overkill with the 60TPI tires.
PS…Titanium hardtail.
I’d opt for better tyres than the rekon races before I turned to an insert
But inserts are a good idea generally. I find the vittoria one a similar weight and more robust than the tubolight having used both.
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I also went with a discounted Epic 8 Evo frame and built up a 120 Epic.
I swapped the shock for a Float SL with a lockout, and this bike can do literally anything. I love it!
I’m not sure why Specialized always discounts Evo frames/bikes, but it doesn’t bother me since they’re the same as the Epic. 
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All acoustic and Shimano!! Oh yeah.
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Im pretty sure in 2 years or so we will all be racing bikes like epic 8 evo
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looks good! Nice to see other people riding mechanical on their Epic8. I bet it was 1/3-1/2 the price of the s-works build and you’d be hard pressed to tell the difference when riding the bike.
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Based on a lot of reading and my experience riding/racing in CO, There is no better XC race tire for angry sharp rocks than the 60TPI Rekon Race. The best solution for me has been to break up the course into sections:
PUSH - uphill or downhill - I can go hard here with little risk of flatting/crashing. I am racing.
Chill PILL - sharp rocks, etc. I am not racing. My goal is to dramaticly reduce the chances of flatting or crashing and I am comfortable loosing a bit of time.
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