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Yeti 575 & Titus Moto-Lite demos at Sea Otter
Sea Otter was more awesome than ever. Faster riders, more very pretty girls (faster too), better course designs, and more new bike innovations than ever before.
This was the first time I spent any time on the RP3 shock. It's a very nice air shock with three levels of platform, almost none (very coil like), moderate platform (softer than Propedal), and firm (firmer than Propedal, but appropriate for climbing with longer travel older suspension designs). There was no lockout setting on the RP3's I rode.
I prefer coil shocks but coil would be impossible to set up for many rider weights and size for a demo bike. So could only imagine the added buttery feel of a coil DHX on the bikes I demoed.
First ride was the Titus Moto-Lite set up with 5-inch travel. The Moto-Lite is very light, 6 pounds for frame and RP3 air shock. It also has a 4-inch travel setting at the shock bolt mount to the swing link, for more efficient climbing and sport racing. I test rode a medium that felt like a good fit for my 6'1. I?m used to steeper steering and seat geometry on my large 24 inch top tube Intense Tracer set up in a steep adjustment for much climbing. And the slacker 69 or 70 degree steering made the Moto-lite feel stable with about a 1/2 inch shorter top tube. Handling felt quick but not too quick for 5 inch travel, designed to handle downhill without easy over the bar crashes. The Moto-lite designer Chris Coclius was there and said it was designed to also work with a coil shock if desired. Chris has lost a lot of weight, I barely recognized him. Congratulations! if you are reading this.)
The Moto-Lite pedaled like butter when seated in through smaller to medium bumps with a moderate amount of bob with the RP3 set to lowest platform. When standing while pedaling it firmed up slightly for a very snappy acceleration and climbing feel compared to most other longer travel trail bikes. The 5.5 VPP is more acceleration efficient but relaxes less when climbing in bumps and stalls the pedal cadence more than the Moto-lite.
Braking was very stable and tracked the ground better than the floating brake IC geometry would imply, When rear braking only without front brake, the rear suspension extends mildly like most Horst links into a lighter spring range for very good bump compliance and traction. The 575 monopivot Yeti I rode had less free extension when rear braking (but nearly as good braking behavior). This evidence shows that IC mapping of leverage is not the tell-all for braking behavior.
There is a rear tire size limitation of the Moto-Lite to 2.25 Chris said they are addressing for future production runs to allow 2.4 sizes to fit. Fit and finish is at the highest level that is typical of all Titus bikes.
The Yeti 575 masters monopivot (very near) 6-inch travel trail bike design. Its very light, a 6-pound frame with RP3 air shock. It pedals with surprisingly little bob with the RP3 shock set with least platform damping, when seated or standing due to initial falling rate shock linkage, climbing steep loose inclines like a goat. Pedaling while climbing felt identical to the Ellsworth Truth, very buttery with little squat, excellent for 6-inch travel (only OK if for 4 inch travel compared to the many better climbers than the Truth.). The 575 climbs better with much less squat and bob than the Id. The Moto-Lite pedaled with a bit more snap but was not as plush as the 575, probably due mostly to travel differences. The factory rep that set up the demo for me said that the 575 is warranted with duel-crown use. So the bike could be set up for a heavy-duty use bike. This was surprising to me given the very light 6-pound weight of the frame, I doubt it would hold up to massive hucking, but would hold up to very rough big drop downhill use. The bike felt very low-flex.
The 575 braking is very stable and modulation of the rear brake is easy without lockup. There are a few better rear-braking bikes, but not by much.
The large felt stretched out for me, having a 24+ inch top tube. At 6'1 I'd get a medium for trail bike use for more nimble handling that is still very stable. A very tall rider about 6'4+ would fit the large 575 well. The steering was similar to the Moto-Lite with 69-degree head angle and about 73-degree seat. The BB height was fairly low at 13.5 for so much travel, but since it didn't pedal bob much that should be fine for good pedaling clearance.
Looking at the total package, including frame- w/shock-only pricing barely over $1,000, both bikes are superstars in the trail bike world now. They are light at 6 pounds. Few $2,000 frames are as light with as much travel. The 5-Spot is 1/2 pound heavier with the same shock. Having ridden the also very light Intense 5.5 EVP and if money were no object, I'd choose the 575 for it's superior big bump pedaling leverage compliance, unless I wanted to race too because the VPP is quicker. Perhaps I could get used to the stiffening VPP action when climbing in rocks, but add the price difference and the more extreme use longer travel 1 degree slacker steering geometry, the Yeti wins my choice.
There is only one longer travel bike I'm still very curious to test ride now, the Iron Horse Mkiii, but at over a pound heavier, the most efficient DW-Link pedaling may not be enough to surpass the 575 in all around climbing and handling. Rumor is that the Mkiii will be lightened up next year to compete better with these long travel trail bikes that climb like they have half the travel.
- ray
Sea Otter was more awesome than ever. Faster riders, more very pretty girls (faster too), better course designs, and more new bike innovations than ever before.
This was the first time I spent any time on the RP3 shock. It's a very nice air shock with three levels of platform, almost none (very coil like), moderate platform (softer than Propedal), and firm (firmer than Propedal, but appropriate for climbing with longer travel older suspension designs). There was no lockout setting on the RP3's I rode.
I prefer coil shocks but coil would be impossible to set up for many rider weights and size for a demo bike. So could only imagine the added buttery feel of a coil DHX on the bikes I demoed.
First ride was the Titus Moto-Lite set up with 5-inch travel. The Moto-Lite is very light, 6 pounds for frame and RP3 air shock. It also has a 4-inch travel setting at the shock bolt mount to the swing link, for more efficient climbing and sport racing. I test rode a medium that felt like a good fit for my 6'1. I?m used to steeper steering and seat geometry on my large 24 inch top tube Intense Tracer set up in a steep adjustment for much climbing. And the slacker 69 or 70 degree steering made the Moto-lite feel stable with about a 1/2 inch shorter top tube. Handling felt quick but not too quick for 5 inch travel, designed to handle downhill without easy over the bar crashes. The Moto-lite designer Chris Coclius was there and said it was designed to also work with a coil shock if desired. Chris has lost a lot of weight, I barely recognized him. Congratulations! if you are reading this.)
The Moto-Lite pedaled like butter when seated in through smaller to medium bumps with a moderate amount of bob with the RP3 set to lowest platform. When standing while pedaling it firmed up slightly for a very snappy acceleration and climbing feel compared to most other longer travel trail bikes. The 5.5 VPP is more acceleration efficient but relaxes less when climbing in bumps and stalls the pedal cadence more than the Moto-lite.
Braking was very stable and tracked the ground better than the floating brake IC geometry would imply, When rear braking only without front brake, the rear suspension extends mildly like most Horst links into a lighter spring range for very good bump compliance and traction. The 575 monopivot Yeti I rode had less free extension when rear braking (but nearly as good braking behavior). This evidence shows that IC mapping of leverage is not the tell-all for braking behavior.
There is a rear tire size limitation of the Moto-Lite to 2.25 Chris said they are addressing for future production runs to allow 2.4 sizes to fit. Fit and finish is at the highest level that is typical of all Titus bikes.
The Yeti 575 masters monopivot (very near) 6-inch travel trail bike design. Its very light, a 6-pound frame with RP3 air shock. It pedals with surprisingly little bob with the RP3 shock set with least platform damping, when seated or standing due to initial falling rate shock linkage, climbing steep loose inclines like a goat. Pedaling while climbing felt identical to the Ellsworth Truth, very buttery with little squat, excellent for 6-inch travel (only OK if for 4 inch travel compared to the many better climbers than the Truth.). The 575 climbs better with much less squat and bob than the Id. The Moto-Lite pedaled with a bit more snap but was not as plush as the 575, probably due mostly to travel differences. The factory rep that set up the demo for me said that the 575 is warranted with duel-crown use. So the bike could be set up for a heavy-duty use bike. This was surprising to me given the very light 6-pound weight of the frame, I doubt it would hold up to massive hucking, but would hold up to very rough big drop downhill use. The bike felt very low-flex.
The 575 braking is very stable and modulation of the rear brake is easy without lockup. There are a few better rear-braking bikes, but not by much.
The large felt stretched out for me, having a 24+ inch top tube. At 6'1 I'd get a medium for trail bike use for more nimble handling that is still very stable. A very tall rider about 6'4+ would fit the large 575 well. The steering was similar to the Moto-Lite with 69-degree head angle and about 73-degree seat. The BB height was fairly low at 13.5 for so much travel, but since it didn't pedal bob much that should be fine for good pedaling clearance.
Looking at the total package, including frame- w/shock-only pricing barely over $1,000, both bikes are superstars in the trail bike world now. They are light at 6 pounds. Few $2,000 frames are as light with as much travel. The 5-Spot is 1/2 pound heavier with the same shock. Having ridden the also very light Intense 5.5 EVP and if money were no object, I'd choose the 575 for it's superior big bump pedaling leverage compliance, unless I wanted to race too because the VPP is quicker. Perhaps I could get used to the stiffening VPP action when climbing in rocks, but add the price difference and the more extreme use longer travel 1 degree slacker steering geometry, the Yeti wins my choice.
There is only one longer travel bike I'm still very curious to test ride now, the Iron Horse Mkiii, but at over a pound heavier, the most efficient DW-Link pedaling may not be enough to surpass the 575 in all around climbing and handling. Rumor is that the Mkiii will be lightened up next year to compete better with these long travel trail bikes that climb like they have half the travel.
- ray
