The Following has been up to its top tube in hype, with rumours that it could be one of the best 29ers on the market. Could it ever live up to such high expectations?We hit the trails to find out.
The frame
At the heart of The Following is DaveWeagle’s Delta System suspension platform. This single-pivot set-up with linkage activated shock ofers up 120mm (4.7in) of supple yet supportive rear travel, controlled by a RockShox Monarch shock. Set-up is simplified by a neat built-in sag meter.
All the expected frame features are present, including a tapered head tube, 142x12mm back end and ISCG tabs, housed within some of the most lustworthy carbon lines we’ve seen in a long time. Flippable links let you change between ‘high’ and ‘low’ geometry settings, and Evil claim there’s clearance for a 2.4in rear tyre.
The kit
At 7200$, The Following sits at the pricier end of the trail bike spectrum. Fortunately, the build kit is well thought out and solid. A 1x11 SRAM X1 transmission (driven via Race Face Turbine cranks) gives a wide enough range of gears for just about any trail, while their Guide R brakes manage speed efectively. Race Face take care of much of the finishing kit, including the wheels, which, with an internal rim width of 21mm, are a touch narrow by today’s standards.
The ride
Corner schralping, gas-to-flat hucking, of-camber holding and ludicrous line choice are what The Following delivers, and by the bucketload. Our bike came with a 140mm (5.5in) travel RockShox Pike rather than the listed 130mm fork and was already in the ‘low’ geometry setting. This meant the head angle was a slack 66.2 degrees, ofering a huge amount of confidence on steep and technical terrain.
At just over 13kg, the Evil accelerates with ease and winches up fireroads with minimal efort. Combine this with the short back end (432mm in the ‘low’ setting), low BB height (336mm) and progressive suspension, and it’s an astonishingly good ride. The 140mm fork does slacken the already relaxed seat angle to 72.2 degrees, requiring a bit more of a weight shift to keep climbing eicient, but this is by no means a deal breaker.
Our only real niggle is with the relatively narrow and flexy Race Face Turbine 29 wheels. They’re just not as capable as the stif frame they’re slotted into, which is a shame.We also had some bearing wear problems on one of the two The Followings we’ve ridden, but Evil assure us that was a one-of. These issues aside, it’s a real ripper of a bike that’s just as happy churning out the cross-country miles as it is hammering the DH runs.
Not cheap, but one of the fastest, most capable 29er trail bikes we’ve ever thrown a leg over
FRAME Unidirectional carbon fibre, 120mm (4.7in) travel
FORK RockShox Pike RCT3 Solo Air, 130mm (5.1in) travel
SHOCK RockShox Monarch RT3 DebonAir
DRIVETRAIN SRAM X1 w/ Race Face Turbine Cinch cranks (1x11)
WHEELSET Race Face Turbine 29 wheels, Maxxis High Roller II EXO TR 29x2.3in (F) and Ardent EXO TR 29x2.25in (R) tyres
BRAKES SRAM Guide R
BAR/STEM Race Face Turbine 35, 760mm/Race Face Turbine 35, 50mm
SEATPOST/SADDLE RockShox Reverb Stealth/WTB Silverado Team
WEIGHT 13.1kg (28.8lb), medium size without pedals
PRICE 7200$ (complete bike)
