Do you fat bike?

Here's how The Mayor looked when I rolled it out of my basement in December of 2018. Ellsworth carbon fork, 26" carbon wheels with 26" x 4.7" Bontrager tires. The snow arrived late in 2018/2019 so I got a few dirt rides in on this setup before installing my studded tires.

During the winter of 2018/2019, I picked up a Rockshox Bluto fork for some early season rides. That dry mud was from an April ride at the Trails at Jakes Rocks. The Bontrager 26" x 3.8" Hodag tires rolled surprisingly well with really good grip in the wet spring conditions.

In the fall of 2019 I decided that I was "29+ curious". The mega tire clearance allowed the 29" x 3.0" tires to fit with the axle sliders positioned all the way forward. I eventually switched to single speed with this setup. I liked the big 29+ wheels but not the long chain stays and big Q factor of The Mayor. I bought a Trek Stache frame and rode that in the summer of 2020.

After the winter of 2019/2020, I decided that I wanted to try 27.5 fat wheels and tires. Thanks to the versatility of The Mayor, I only had to invest in new wheels and tires. I rode it in some late fall/early winter dirt with these 27.5" x 3.8" tires. It was apparent very quickly that larger wheels and tires offered greater rollover and speed.

The 27.5 wheels were so much faster that I found myself riding beyond my ability to control the bike with a rigid fork. After a long search, I found this Manitou Mastodon Comp EXT version. Paired with the 27.5" x 4.5" tires, this bike flies and has changed my opinion of how good a fat bike can be!