Tony was before my time, but I'll contribute this to the topic.
The first time I saw an Ellsworth bike, was also the same day I met Dave Turner in the flesh. I just happened to roll by by some event back in 2011 Aug 13, in my DH gear on a carbon XC bike and DT waved me down and chatted with me, while he measured my bike's dimensions.
I think I demo'd a Sultan that day. I recall it being a ground hugger that leveled bumps, which was pretty interesting, but not any better suited for Snow Summit bike park trails than what I had. Later demo'd a Turner later at JensonUSA, but didn't know why people were so excited by Turners in general. I was a drooling for a Yeti instead.