Now that I read your further description I'm kinda leaning hard on the new Firebird for you. It was built to handle National on South Mountain which, despite what anyone might tell you about "flow", is all massive rocks with sharp edges, tons of drops and you absolutely need the ability to climb with it. Is the absolute best bike for that? Eh, who knows, I can only tell you that it is great for it and that it was built exactly for what you describe so it definitely fits the bill.
I guess my main detractors on the Firebird are 1) I'm really focused on going noticeably "bigger" than my go to, which is 150/160. If I was going to replace that, I'd 100% go with a Switchblade. But, if I'm going to spend all the money on another bike, I want it to really let me feel comfortable pushing beyond where I'm at now, and a bike that will let me grow as a rider and push things without it being overtly sketch (like I'm feeling it is now).
And 2- The cost! Man, when I spec out similar competitors, they're coming in around $2k-$5k less. As awesome as Pivots are, that's just too much of a premium for me to stomach.
I have been watching this thread from the sidelines. Although on the east coast, we ride primarily singletrack with some of the gnarliest rocks you have ever seen. Maybe not huge drops but rock tech up and down that most people can’t ride. Mainstream bikes aren’t built for it and bad suspension setup just plain stinks.
I have had a ton of bikes and settled on both the Druid v2 and Dreadnought v2. I know you don’t want or maybe don’t understand or maybe have some other aversion to high pivot but for this type riding it’s difficult to beat. However I have tuned suspension on each (Push forks, Elevensix shocks, and have the stock air shocks tuned for me and the bike) I change the setups when I ride different tracks which between these two bikes and the convertible suspension covers my bases well.
Note - the rear suspension of these bikes make a normal fork look bad. Pair with a properly tuned and high quality fork.
The Dread pedals better than expected with the higher anti squat. The Druid is oh so capable. Probably 5 foot drops and higher speeds is what separates the two.
The key to these drivetrains is simple keep clean and well lubed. Otherwise once setup it’s somewhat maintenance free. I have been waxing for years but have found Silca Synergetic lube the quietest through all conditions. But sandy stuff temporarily causes some grind.
Not pushing the these bikes but I can tell you for what you describe they check a lot of bases.
I've never ridden one to be honest, but assuming there's not some giant marketing conspiracy, I totally believe what people say and have no doubt that in terms of suspension performance, that's the best option. But I really hate dealing with extra complexity. And extra things breaking. And the extra weight climbing (I'm old school, and can absolutely not be convinced that "weight doesn't matter" that's just not in my dna lol.).
Canfield One or Knolly Delirium/Chilcotin? If you’re in Vegas you’ll see tons of Knolly’s at Bootleg.
I’m definitely sympathetic to the concerns with Transition, but my Spire has been flawless, and with a coil the rear end just disappears. A Cascade Link will bump it up to 180 as well.
The Megatower is another option, and with the Cascade Link you can bump the travel up to 190, so that’s another solid option!
Edit: adding an ochain or Rimpact also makes a significant difference in calming things down in the higher speed chunk.
Ya, Bootleg and to a lesser extent Cowboy (for people that don't know, those are the two more gnar systems in Las Vegas) is what has me on this kick. I've pushed the bike to about the limits, and while I kill the all-mountain stuff and climbs, it feels like running the razor's edge going fast on the downhills, even with inserts. O-chain- I have the poor-mans solution: Use an 18T ratchet hub lol. (Seriously though, it works, sucks for climbing tech, but it works).
Lee Canyon bike park is also a fun day trip, although with my current bike I don't feel especially under-biked (brakes excepted) on any of the trails, except when I mess up a jump. There's obviously way less margin for error, but running the new double black is fine (again, for those that aren't familiar, that's probably a Whistler blueish black).
I looked at the Megatower. I wish I could demo one, but nobody has any out here. I guess why I haven't considered them is that compared to the competitors they consistently get bad remarks about pedaling. Cowboy is 100% a pedal up, Bootleg has the shuttle, but only on the weekends, so if everything else is equal, I'm going to favor the more efficient climbers in the shootout.
