CONTACT US
Specialized Stumpjumper Evo Short Term Review
The Specialized Stumpjumper Evo had been on my radar for a while but with little to no stock globally, it wasn't a bike I thought I'd be able to get my hands on. That was until one day while randomly checking Stumpjumper Evo ETA's, I discovered not only were their frames coming, but they were already on the boat headed to NZ. A quick call to Specialized and my name was down for an S4 Frame!!!
Once the frame arrived it was quickly RideWrapped and built. The build was a breeze, with the frame's internal cable routing channels making life easy. All the parts from my previous Forbidden Dreadnought frame went directly onto the new bike and boy did it look good all built up. I set the bike up in low BB height and the middle head angle option. I did leave my Fox 38 at 170mm rather than changing it to the 160mm recommended on the Stumpjumper Evo, which slackened the bike out a little more. Leaving the fork at 170mm was for a combination of reasons, one of which was definitely laziness and another was the belief that being slightly over-forked isn't necessarily a bad thing.
My first ride was at Mt Vic, which I felt provided a great testing ground due to its variety of terrain and tracks that I knew well. What I noticed straight away was how easily the bike accelerated and how efficient it felt both climbing and descending. I was impressed by how comfortable I felt on the bike from the start, although it took some time getting used to how different it felt to corner compared to the high pivot Forbidden Dreadnought.
Having now spent some time riding the bike on a variety of trails, and getting my setup more dialed I can only say good things about this bike; it climbs extremely well which is a must for Wellington and so far has handled everything I've thrown at it. I still need to spend some more time on the bike before I can give a more in-depth review but so far so good. The Stumpjumper Evo seems like the perfect bike for Wellington, due to its climbing efficiency and downhill proficiency.
- Joe
Leave a comment