Bontrager Race Lite Tubeless Wheelsystem + New Race Lite cranks | Superlight RockShox SID SL w/ Climb-It control | The lightest single pivot low maintance dual suspension
Submitted by
Mel
a Weekend Warrior
from Santa Clara
Date Reviewed: September 30, 2011
Strengths: Light, handles great, climbs like a monster and flys downhill
Weaknesses: So far - only the rider
Bottom Line:
First bike in 10 years after bailing on my 35 lb Nishiki hardtail while listening to the Sex Pistols. Love the look, rides like a dream and takes a thrashing like a beast. Full suspension can be manipulated to be hella cushy or rigid as *uck! It wants to go bigger and badder and I know its only weakness is my overthinking that next blind curve.
I would recommend this bike to anybody that wants to get a good feel for a bike and then grow into something newer
Favorite Trail: Alum Rock Park North/Southrim Trail
Duration Product Used: 6 months
Price Paid:
$950.00
Purchased At: Through Craigslist
Bike Setup: Chris King headset and hubs, Fox Shok, XTR gears / cassette, raceface, XT crank and chain, Mavic X517, Origin8 carbon seatpost and Wolverine 2.2 WTB tires
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Submitted by
Jeff
a Cross Country Rider
from Longmont
Date Reviewed: September 28, 2002
Strengths: Great ride, smooth climbing
Weaknesses: Durability
Bottom Line:
Nice ride if you like to climb with just enough travel for descending.Biggest problem is durability. After some average spills I cracked the carbon swingarm. The rep couldn't do anything for me.If you ride aggressively and occasionally take some spills I'm not sure this frame will hold up.
Submitted by
Aquila
a Weekend Warrior
from Maui, HI
Date Reviewed: April 10, 2002
Strengths: Weight, handling
Weaknesses: um....no place to store my pipe
Bottom Line:
This bike is awesome. I had a Supercaliber before this, and the extra 3/4 pound is more than made up for by the ride. I ride XC and don't do huge drops etc so I can't vouch for it taking that kind of abuse, but if you want a bike that handles like a hardtail but grabs the dirt better and is easier on your hurtin' bod, this is your ride. Gary's the man!
Bike Setup: Race Face everythig except XTR brakes, shifters, hubs
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Submitted by
Henry
a Cross Country Rider
from California
Date Reviewed: January 27, 2002
Strengths: ACCELERATION! This baby hooks up! I just switched from a hardtail to the sugar 1 and the 2.5 inches of travel in the rear are sweet. I love the on the fly lock out on the sid sl. I use it all the time on steep sections of trail. Remember this is a XC full suspension bike not a DH bike so don't be dissapointed by the small travel in the rear.
Weaknesses: Are you kidding me?
Bottom Line:
The best full suspension cross country bike, PERIOD!!!
Bike Setup: Chris King Threadless headset, Race Face Next LP Isis Crankset, XTR rear casette, XTR levers and pods, shimano 858 pedals, sachs PC-99 chain, Race face XC Isis bottom bracket, Avid mag v-brakes.
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Submitted by
andrew bost
a Cross Country Rider
from dallas, texas, usa
Date Reviewed: January 17, 2002
Strengths: This is the best fitting bike I tried. It is very confident and nimble on the rough and technical downhill sections and has allowed me to climb sections of trail that I had not previously conquered.
Weaknesses: Literature for rear shock (cane creek cloud nine) was completely misleading about initial setup but once dialed in it is an excellent ride.
Bottom Line:
Overall this is a great bike and has handled my aggressive yet sane style of riding very well. It is quick and efficient as well as comfortable. The custom build was also great, giving me a unique package that is still top notch - thanks to the guys at Bicycles Inc. for the build using my components on the frame I bought from them.
Similar Products Used: Trek Fuel 100, Trek Suspension Track 9200
Bike Setup: 2002 sugar 1 with xtr shifter/levers/cranks/cassette, race face seatpost/chainrings/sySTEM, cane creek dc5 brakes/s6 headset/cloud nine shock/ergo bar ends, mars cl fork, easton ct2 bar, king hubs with D521 rims, michelin comp s tires.
THIS IS THE FASTEST MOST EFFICIENT XC RACING BIKE THERE IS PERIOD. ALSO THE THE TREK AND KLINE COPYCATS ARE GOOD. FISHER HAS BETTER GEOMETRY. THE REAR SHOCK DOES NOT HAVE LOCKOUT =YOU DON'T NEED IT THE REAR SUSPENSION DESIGN IS MORE ABOUT FUNCTION THAN COMFORT.MANY TIMES I RACED THIS BIKE WITH THE FORK LOCKED OUT THE RIDE WAS SMOOTH THE WHEEL KEPT GOOD TRACTION ON CLIMBS AND CORNERS. I WAS ABLE TO STAY SEATED AND SPIN THROUGH ROUGH STUFF=SAVING ENERGY A++++++++++
Submitted by
john stevens
a Racer
from bryant arkansas usa
Date Reviewed: December 12, 2001
Strengths: everything - this is one great bike. Has stood up to a years worth of racing our local norba series
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
you need this bike! It has propelled many racers to the top of their class, and you could be next. I was finishing mid pack with my old hardtail, untill I hopped on the super sweet sugar. Soon I was finishing at the front of my field. The guys over at Bicycle Outfitters of Bryant deserve a pat on the back for helping me choose the perfect bike... www.bike-oufitters.com thanks Scott
Submitted by
Bob
a Cross Country Rider
from Melbourne
Date Reviewed: December 3, 2001
Strengths: Light weight Looks good Extremley comfortable
Weaknesses: Rock Shox SID SL Bontrager Bontrager and Bontrager
Bottom Line:
A fantastic bike as far as the frame goes. Very fast and agile (Spat me off due to too much tyre pressure, not bikes fault)but happened very quickly. The strength lies in the fact that the rear end feels as though it does nothing, but is in fact soaking up the big hits and vibration, making the ride less tiring over 50-60km. Very little to no bob-depending on how smoothly I pedal, and the handling is awsome and precise, even when compared to my old hardtail. BUT why, oh why Gary did you spec the finest bike around with Bontrager? Cranks creak, chainrings flex. I have two unwanted friends who ride with me constantly. Their names; chain suck and poor front shifting. Funilly enough, all of my buddies with Bontrager specced bikes (Trek, Fisher etc)have the same constant companions. Difference being that they have lower specced bikes and therefore chain suck and poor front shifting hang around a heap more with them. The Bontrager bits that are good are the Wheel set (Excellent), seat post and handlebars (on my request the bike shop swapped them from flat to riser, a great loss of quality and gain in weight to me. Not a fair swap. Ta!) And now the Forks. Brand new ride, and the forks were as loose as a hookers um, morals. Went back to the factory to be fixed, returned and yes still doing a good impression of a prostitutes money making attribute. Morals of course. Over $1000.00AUS for SIDs' and dont work properly. Next forks will be Marzocchi's(Have a look at the Hall of fame on this web site). The SIDs' are hard to set up properly-both front and rear. Anyway, Sugar 1 is one sweet ride, infact so good that I am willing to forgo the Bontrager whinges untill I can replace them, which I will. If this bike was specced with XT-XTR (are you listening Gary) it would be 5 flaming Chillis from me. Unfortunatley.....
Bike Setup: 2002 rockshox Duke Race race face next lp crank race face bb race face sl headset xtr shifters xtr chain xtr v-brakes xtr brake levers xtr cassette xtr hubs mavic 517 wheels easton monkey lite riser bar easton carbon ct2 seatpost specialist mens saddle xt rear derailuer(xtr 9 spd is crap)
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Submitted by
andrew bernard
a Cross Country Rider
from geneva
Date Reviewed: October 8, 2001
Strengths: light, strong, superb suspension
Weaknesses: some dodgy components when buying 'off the rack'
Bottom Line:
Still, in my opinion, the best FS cross country bike there is. The rear just does not move under pedalling, yet allows very fast descents.
My question is this - the bolts and bushes that hold the rear triangle / shock / pivot together are very heavy steel items. Does anyone know where you can get relacement titanium parts? This would save a significant amount of weight, in a weight critical area (i.e. an area that moves). Any help appreciated.
Submitted by
andrew bernard
a Cross Country Rider
from geneva
Date Reviewed: October 8, 2001
Strengths: light, strong, superb suspension
Weaknesses: some dodgy components when buying 'off the rack'
Bottom Line:
Still, in my opinion, the best FS cross country bike there is. The rear just does not move under pedalling, yet allows very fast descents.
My question is this - the bolts and bushes that hold the rear triangle / shock / pivot together are very heavy steel items. Does anyone know where you can get relacement titanium parts? This would save a significant amount of weight, in a weight critical area (i.e. an area that moves). Any help appreciated.
Strengths: Good ride,light wieght,great frame and forks,nearly everything really.
Weaknesses: Those god damn Michelin tyres-doin' my head in !!!
Bottom Line:
Frame and forks are excellent,climbs like a hard tail,but the suspensoin's there when you need it.Don't expect huge amounts of travel,it just takes the sting out of things and gives a good forgiving ride for enduro events especially.Its an XC race bike,its light weight ,don't expect to be doing big drop offs and stuff its not made for that,but for XC race,as its intended,its excellent. The forks are great,the lock out is very useful,they've been used in some very wet Welsh forests for 5 hrs and were still plush at the end of it,as was the rear shock-so no probs there. Drive train is good,no complaints,very smooth rear shift,the cranks are good a reliable and give a good shift.The shifters,as with most Shimano stuff are smooth and reliable,you kinda forget they're there,Avid brakes are very powerful and feel good on the ceramic rims,some people say they sqeak,but mine don't at all.The stem,post and bar aren't that amazing but do the job,I had to cut down my bar. The wheels are good in most aspects.Very light,strong,if your not that heavy like me (10 3/4 stone)hubs are nice and smooth.Main problem is the Tubless tyre system.The Michelin tyres are absolute crap,I'm never buying a michelin product again-I'm fed up paying large amounts of money for crap products.The tyres are way too tight and the rim tapes on the wheels are very teperamental.If you can manage to get your dealer to swap the tyres before you buy do so.I've had to use metal tyre levers to get mine off and it badly scatches and chips the ceramic rim.Why do companies spec products that obviosly don't work?And why can't the industry have a proper industry standard for tyre and rim sizes-its a joke. Overall,I'm highly satisfied with the bike,especially as I only paid trade price for it,its just those crap tubeless tyres that let it down.I feel i've been slightly let down by The Fisher rep',he agreed to get new rim tapes as he admitted that the seemed type had produced problems.He wouldn't admit the tyres were a problem,he said they were awkward and even went on to say you could get them off with no tools at all-I'd like to see him try!
Submitted by
Brian Buell
a Racer
from Keller, Texas
Date Reviewed: September 10, 2001
Strengths: They don't call this bike SUGAR for nothin'.. soooooooo sweet
Weaknesses: BRAKE SQUEAL!!!.. I built mine up from scratch it mine did it.. BUT!! I have a remedy.. I called up bontrager and asked WHAT THE HELL!!!!.. one.. clean your rims with alcohol, sure they're new, do it anyway, second, the Ceramic coating on teh racelite rims is NOT.. I repeat is NOT Shimano brake pad compatible, I'm using Kool Stop Cearmic THin Lines, no sqeal except for when you have to clean the rim, but no problems but the rims do take a bit of maintenece just for cleaning the rim a dremel and polish attachment works wonders for cleaning the ceramic coating
Bottom Line:
I built it up from scratch after getting a SWEET deal on a SWEET frame, broke the trek frame.. worth 400 bucks.. I work at Grapevine Bike Center, so we cut a deal with Fisher... since Trek owns Fisher.. got 400 dollar credit on my 800 dollar cost of the frame and got it for 400 bones.. HELL YEAH! So anywayI LOVE this bike if i break it I"LL GET ANOTHER!! this thing climbs like a hard tail, corners like a hard tail, and descends like a dual suspension, soooo sweet. If you like the ride of a hard tail but don't like the punishment and you don't want a super squishy 4+ inches of rear wheel travel the sugar with it's 2.5" of travel is just for you. Do you know where Trek *BLAH* got the Idea for the Fuel???? SUGAR! look at the rear triangle, but the shock is placed differently yes, that's cuz Trek can't match Sugar's Pure instinct. ohn yeah seent eh New Klein for 2002.. look at the Sugar.. Go ahead get the original. And for those of you wanting more than just 2.5" of travel, for 2002 Fisher is making in all sugar but the 1 a variable travel rear linkage and looosing a 1/4 pound off teh frame alone, so you can get either 2.5 OR 4.1" of travel.. now the sugar is even better I"M GETTING A NEW ONE! Go ahead Bring sugar home, soooo sweet
Similar Products Used: only hard tails... '98 Trek 8900 SL... broke it... '97 Trek 850 Mountain Track..... Broke that too... '95 Specialized hard Rock......YUP! you guessed it.. broke that too
Bike Setup: custom... race face cranks, time pedals, CT-2 H-Bar, Sram levers, XTR brakes, XTR Ft and Rr der., LX Shifters, ended up builidng up my 2000 Race Lite to the 2002 Tubeless version since I beat teh hell out of those literally super strong rims, can't bust 'em... unless you like doing trials at low pressure... oops!
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Submitted by
Phil
a Cross Country Rider
from Houston
Date Reviewed: August 21, 2001
Strengths: Fast, great handling, climbs like a goat
Weaknesses: Michelin tires
Bottom Line:
This bike is so SWEET!!!!! No wonder they call it SUGAR!!
I've been riding the Sugar 1 for nearly 8 months now and have had zero problems. It's super quiet (after the brake squeal stopped when it was new). Super fast and like all the Fisher genesis bikes climbs great. I don't know how many hundreds of hours I've had on it but the tires are now nearly bald and I need new brake pads so it's been quite a few
I'm 6'5" and I fit on the XL great. If I could find a longer seatpost I'd buy it 'cause I'd about another inch there. But I love the cockpit, the fit there is perfect for me
Submitted by
Mark Eagleston
a Weekend Warrior
from Katy, TX, USA
Date Reviewed: August 5, 2001
Strengths: Handling, light weight and stretched out feel.
Weaknesses: I tested a Sugar 2 and, if I had to say there was a weakness with the Sugar 1, it would be that it has a little livelier rear end due to the carbon fiber, but I'm still getting used to the bike.
Bottom Line:
It's much quicker than what I'm used to. Quicker up hills, quicker on the flats and smoother and quicker on downhills. Fast turning, almost twitchy, but I love it. Haven't had it long enough to break anything yet and I'm still playing with the shocks (still waiting on my manuals that didn't come with the bike). When I was ready to buy, I definitely wanted DS and tried a lot of bikes. This Sugar was the best ride. However, I did not actually try the Trek Fuel or the Giant XTC. There seemed to be less that could go wrong with the Sugar re: pivots, brakes, etc.
Similar Products Used: My last mountain bike was a Motobecane 650 with a lot of boing in the back and almost none in the front, quite different (inferior) from the Sugar, and about 10 pounds heavier. Also tested DS bikes from Trek, Specialized, Cannondale and Klein.
Bike Setup: Stock except I swapped out the Bontrager pedals for the Time pedals the bike used to come with.
Is anyone selling a rear shock that meet these specs?
2000 and 2001 Sugar 1 Gary Fisher
1.5 stroke
6.5 length (eye to eye)
1/2" and 7/8" width
6mm and 15.08mm eyes
I am willing t Read More »
Hello there,
Can anyone tell me how I could run disc brakes on the rear of an '01 Gary Fisher Sugar 1 Frame? If there are adapters involved can you tell me how well they work? Read More »
Large sugar 1 frame for sale on e-bay 19" 2001 in great shape!!!
It has the cloud nine 2005 upgrade. I just bought another bike and do not have time to ride this one....
Just Read More »
Hi everyone,
I'm racing a 2001 Sugar 1 that has an 80mm SID SL fork on it. I can't stand this fork and have decided to change. I'm wondering if any of you have experience with f Read More »
