so i was all set to buy a transition syren (probably still am) but a friend of friend has a contact in zumbi cycles in poland.
Anyway i can get the frame custom built for my height and the shocks for pretty much the same ball park figure as the syren.
However, I know nothing about this bike (id be getting the f-44 dh spec).. all i know is stuff from the net and a non biking person vouching for them. I think the f-44 was used for world cup biking so thats a plus!!
anybody ever ridden this bike? I'm only new to dh so am i mad going all out for a full dh? The thoughts of a custom built bike is tempting though given my height!!
don't go on Irish Dh, Miriam. Its full of kids talking drivel. If anybody can help you it will be Al in The Bike Rack, hes a serious DH Bike Geek..apparently hes on international forums geeking out of him..
don't waste your time with DH Sesame Street !!
a big ****in expert !! Shut up Micky !
Richie is right the is a wealth of DH knowledge in the club. Don't bother with Irishdh you'll end up buying a Kona stinky :)
My advice would be to take a bit of time on this one. There is a lot to finding a bike that suits you.
A custom set up by one manufaturer may well be the same as an off the peg from another.
It's all that maunfacturer's guestimate on what will suit you.
Best to work that out for your self.
Throw your leg over all the fast girls bikes at a races and try find out the top tube lenght of the one that feels the best.
Arm your self with this first.
There's a lot more like head angles, bb heights and if you want to get really geeky about it chainstay lenghts to worry about but these really relate to how it will handle rather than the size it will feel.
A good six inch bike will get you started and racing especially with smaller riders so don't rule them out.
Hey Miriam - The bike Tony was on at the weekend was the F44. If you wanted to drop over and have a look at it you are more than welcome. It is a bit of a beast of a bike and personally I would probably go for the Syren over the Zumbi to start off with. It is easier to push up for one and a six inch bike like the Syren is good to start off with. Anyhoo let me know if you want to have a look at it.
It will be a totally different bike to the syren as it has nearly 9" of suspension travel vs the 6" on the syren. Youll have to match that 8" travel forks which might work out to be pricey enough.
I will say that the service from Zumbi is excellent, if you have any questions the owner and designer of the bikes is the guy who gets back to you. Plus they all are hand built and have a 2 year warranty's which they actually honour.
What price did they quote you if you dont mind me asking?
hey Miriam,
what are you on now?
Most of us started on all mnt like a prophet or sth and it's pretty sufficient for a lot of stuff. Unless you wanna do DH a lot & maybe race. But the weight factor as Silvia & others said already is a huge issue in a country without chairlifts!!!
It's tough to push the full DH yoke up all the way all day long & bike handling is easier on a smaller bike too. A lot of us ladies (me included) don't have triple clamps, I wouldn't want them, my totems are fine for all the stuff, so I am happy to save the weight.
I can't do wednesday nights but you are more than welcome to try my bike if I see you around soon.
Thanks all for the advice.... well my mind is pretty much still set on the syren.. the f-44 was just a last minute thing today cause a guy in work knew somebody associated with zumbi.. what they were offering was frame and forks so i would have to get the rest done in ireland.. Because i'm so small the thoughts of a frame built to suit my height was appealing and hence the post about peoples opinion of the f-44.. i'm way off racing..well competitive racing anyways so a custom built dh bike is bit much now i really think about it!! At the moment i have a cannondale prophet which is perfect for starting out and does it all for the dh i want to do but its just a bit big... just want to get the right bike this time round!!
are you anything like the height of Carol, she has a Cannondale Prophet that used to be Nats, she absolutely loves it, its a small/petite !! I'll put it together and you can have a go on it.
Carols only 5 foot herself !
Hi Miriam.
It must have been you I saw up at the Glen on Sunday so. You had Profet that looked a tad too big for you. I was the non biking camerman wannabe.
The size of your frame will definately make life a little harder although the profet is a great bike to start out on.
The Siren will do the job for you well on the down hills especially if you fit a coil shock. You could also consider a small SX Trail or even a Big Hit. The Giant Reign X as suggested earlier. There's a few. Bare in mind though none of these will be all that handy peddling up hill if it's to be used for more than DH.
