One Year Later: Intense 2951 29er DH Prototype 26

Anyone have the lowdown on how JD's run on the 2951 at Fontana SRC Pro DH went? I only know of his result for sure, but rumors are that JD was a bit out of shape and it was a pedally course and he could've easily got a few extra places if he had a bit more aerobic ability.

I rode the Intense 29r at Sea Otter last year. Really loved the bike. Super fast but still hard to accelerate and manual on. The manufactures are really missing what I see as the common sense evolution/ solution for big wheeled dirt bikes, the 650b.

I am a lit bit comfuse. The 2951 is the same frame to 951 and the only difference is that there is a dorado with a 29er wheels in front?

As an Engineer, years ago I predicted that many people would make this logical transition to 29ers for DH use. I was going to buy a Beefed up Tracer 29(like shown above) or a 951, but have been waiting for the 2951 love child to make its debut (hopefully soon??) I am eagerly waiting with $$$ in hand, am exited for the end product. Please, lets see this come to pass. If not, how close is the geometry to the Tracer? I have taken the pictures and done some analysis from the "visual" bike specs. Please stop dangling this AMAZING Carrot in front of us. Especiallly the blue Doug Henry/Yamaha colors, are you trying to kill us from Bike Lust??? I don't know if I can take it much longer.... Oh, and I like the idea of having the option for a 26" on the rear for certain conditions as well.

The larger wheel makes sense for DH (esp in the front) I would suggest INtense tries a 650B (27.5") approach, you get the benefits of the larger footprint, dont give up all the wheel strength (spokes only 7mm longer), and they dont feel as big or sluggish as the 29ers in steering. I have been running these for over a year on my trail bike with good results. (I just built up a FR bike with 650bs as well. Good stuff.

This bike is flat out sick! I would love to throw a leg over her!

I am a believer. Bigger footprint, more traction thus more railing. I am not ready to switch out my 26 DH... But if I could afford 2 big bikes, I'd be all in

Ahh some things will never change, eh? People who don´t like 29ers (and probably haven't even tried one in their size and correct setup) seem to feel an uncontrollable urge to diss the big wheels. I ride a 26" DH bike and a 29er XC bike, and feel more than excited about the prospect of trying a DH 29er.
Props to Intense for keeping their minds open, unlike some people here.

Before the 29er haters go thinking we gone all 29er crazy, be reminded we currently one have ONE 29er in our lineup of 10 bikes. We haven't gone completely batsh1tcrazy.

Heck...you did see these m9's we did right?
http://www.vitalmtb.com/photos/member/Formula-One-Lotus-Tribute,1743/oct292010_intensepix19,12573/intensecycles,2130

http://www.vitalmtb.com/photos/member/M9-Formula-One-tribute-Pt-2,1770/Intense_Renault-1,13003/intensecycles,2130

Thanks to vitalmtb for sparking some good discussion and thanks to all the commenters on keeping the dialog rich.

Watching that vid, I'd be a little worried about gnurling my nads on the rear tire if I got too far back off the saddle. Could be a painful learning-curve!

Seriously, though...interested to see where this thing goes. I could see it having some advantages in certain types of courses.

God Andrew VanZuyen is such a beast. There's really no other way to put it. He's nothing less than the sexy love child of a one-night-stand between a male bear and a male werewolf. not too shabby on a moutain bike, either.

I'd love to take one of those 2951's for a spin down a few trails here in Colorado! I'd love to see how someone like myself who's 6'1 230 would handle a bike with 29er wheels. I've noticed that Maxxis is now offering more tires in 29". Nothing in the DH range like Minions or high rollers or any DH casings. but more XC like Ignitor, Crossmax, Ardent, Ikon, & Beaver. Also now offering welter weight tubes 29x1.9/2.35. I'm guessing that tire technology will catch up in the next 2 years for 29er DH casings if we start to see other companies following suit building frames and more companies like Marz, Fox & Rock Shox making forks for the big wheels. It's interesting and I think there is definitely a nitch for it.

29 inch tires = more rubber on the ground at all times, as well as more rotational weight

on the surface it seems like these bikes cant be good for racing, but it will be interesting to see how companies respond to the faults of a 29 inch wheel in designing their frames and components. however this doesn't mean that these bikes wont rip...we'll see soon enough!

personal niner feelings aside, props to intense for your speedy retort and rich history of progression in mtb.

Zach Morris...

'ummmm'
We started Intense Tires in the late 90's, but turned our focus to bikes again and soon sold the licensing rights to Toby Henderson who has ran the Intense Tire and BMX brand for us, for almost 10 years. We can't directly control what tire models are produced...that being said, Toby has begun a proto EDGE Intense tire and we should have them soon.

Some of you haters might think this is wack, but we are just playing around with it, seeing where it is better. Just wait till we get on the '29er DH Tandem' craze and the '29er Fixie' craze.....sick

Tires are still the biggest limiting factor in a competitive downhill environment.

umm... aren't you a tire brand, intense?

29 inches? Why? I'll never buy one, sure...

I haven't laughed that hard in a while. Classic and on target for 95% of those attracted to 29in bikes. That being said, fat, rockered powder skis received the same reception years ago. Take a look at the 2011 ski product lines this year. Nick is spot on in that some instances, larger diameter wheels may be beneficial on certain courses. Would I trade my 26in dirt jumper for a 29in dirt jumper? No. Doesn't make sense. You could argue that 26in is too large based on how good the 20in community is when riding trails/park. When trying to go down a mountain quickly, and putting aesthetics aside, 0%-10% faster times for myself made me take notice. I approached it logically by systematically timing runs (n=3 per bike) down the same course throughout the day on the two bikes I feel very comfortable on (My 26in Specialized Demo versus 29in Lenz Sport PBJ - both weigh in just under 40lbs). It made a believer out of me. 0% on Silky Johnson (which is a testament to turning ability..at least I wasn't slower), 5% faster on Cheese It/Tron, 10% on Cougar and around 5% WP downhill course. Perhaps faster riders wouldn't see this advantage? In the few races I've done, I'm about 20% off the fastest course times as a gauge. I still have a lot to learn, wagon wheels or not .....

Brandon

@bturman's youtube vid: "are those the same friends that wear fanny packs and sandals with socks?" LOL

HAHAHAHAHAHA. Just found this randomly. Entertaining response (not mine) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ecwpBNSE6w