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You've got that backwards, It is a class 3 ebike with the option to turn on a 20mph speed limiter. That is the only way to logically treat this bike, and it is definitely a bad idea. Be prepared for land managers to not allow any specialized ebikes because of it.

My god, the class 3 thing is a nightmare locally. We're going through a major US forest service recreation plan "re-work" and eBike access is a huge sticking point. The local MTB advocacy group was for opening up class 1 access but not class 3 because no one reputable made them. Thus implying that class 1 was as far as mtb eBikes would go. But that argument is moot now. As for my two cents? I don't honestly care all that much personally, but the access can-o-worms in the US at least makes me want to puch everyone at specialized...

I am personally very concerned about the ability for the user to toggle to class 3 and the higher speed cutoff. Specialized just opened a can of worms with access issues and ebikes being lumped in with electric motorbikes. Going to be interesting to see how this plays out.

Hope v4's are the best of all the brakes I've tried, which is pretty much all them now. They'd be a 10/10 if you didn't have to fluff around with the resi lid when bleeding. Worth a shot!

I'm aware, and have an understanding that 90% or more of riders have no business touching high speed compression or rebound knobs. There are many suspension company's making fantastic stuff for cheap. Suntour, Rockshox, Marzocchi and X-fusion all knock it out of the park with close to $500 suspension products for every day riders from XC to freeride. I love my Z1 and rarely do I find it unable to keep up to my 38 Factory while it does double duty on a hardtail on the same trails. And the Domain has been a reliable smasher of a park and...

Unfortunately, they have already been dealing with this.. Chinese companies were setting up shop in Mexico and assembling products made with Chinese parts to try and side step the tariffs on Chinese goods by saying "Made in Mexico ". Didn't take long for customs to figure out that game...

Got to give it to them, Specialized know their market! They are purely catering to the rich old guy here, the kind that always buy the latest S-Works Levo and get secretly frustrated when they’re on the trails and the friendly blue collar guy rocks up on his comp or expert and reminds him that he has pretty much the same bike for nearly half the price. Mr superior works will be please that now he can really set himself apart from the plebs.

I think it's fair to say that any and all illusion that this is a bicycle is now gone.

we have an "off the bike" forum area if everyone wants to go deeper w/ broader, non-bike topics https://www.vitalmtb.com/forums/VitalMTB/Off-the-Bike,3

I know better than to engage with this, but no, that won't fix the problem. I've put a lot of time into actually trying to understand what this might do and what it really means. There are loopholes in the current tax system that should be closed, no question. Those loopholes unfortunately do not add up to anything close to the deficit. Everyone out there going "wealth tax" or "tax unrealized gains" has no idea what they are saying. Its equally as dumb as the tariff thing, because it will have second and third order impacts we all aren't willing...

As a former recipient of the award, I hereby nominate TEAMROBOT for 2025 VitalMTB Commenter of the Year.

California and the west coast has long been known for having trail access issues. The implementation of e-bikes have increasingly complicated matters in recent years. Our trail advocacy organizations have fought long and hard for more access by building relationships and trust with land owners. Specialized had long been a big proponent of trail access with programs such as Soil Searching until they recently axed the program due to budget cuts. Now allowing e-mountain bikes to go 28mph on our local trail networks will lose the trust of current partners and kill the possibility of opening up new land to...

https://www.instagram.com/p/DH9Ha1XMorz/?img_index=8&igsh=ZGY5OHd6cmFmd… Cduro is prototyping a High Pivot frame, these bikes are quite fascinating in real life, the frame construction is amazing

Slightly off topic maybe, but this past week I've been looking for a new enduro bike/frame after I discovered a big crack in my Nukeproof Mega (obviously no warranty on that anymore) and I've tried to contact a few brands with specific questions about bikes; often asking what is the max seatpost insertion on a frame, cos they left this off the geometry chart. I've been surprised by the complete lack of response from some brands and retailers. Given that I have money waiting to be spent on a new bike and the current state of the market, I thought...

And yet entirely in keeping with the overall industry ethos. My biggest initial reservation on ebikes was around their potential implications for access. Rules vary a lot and in their quest for sales I can't recall any company providing any sort of guidance on potential "ethics". I recall one manufacturer taking a fleet of Ebikes on a dealer demo past a "no motors" sign in Whistler..... The implication that users will self police themselves is naive at best and disingenuous at worst...

I heard a rumor that this new ebike from Specialized can toggle between class 1 and class 3. If true, this blatant disregard for land and recreation managers from one of the United States' biggest sellers is pretty sh*tty.

I would love to try it. 26" with modern geo. It looks quite good too!