Evil Following

To me you’re exactly describing that downcountry category, so I’d say take a look at Specialized Epic Evo, Yeti SB115, Revel Ranger, Evil Following, Santa Cruz Tallboy, and definitely a good hard look at the Transition Spur.

Evil Following,. Ibis Ripley (I’ll be honest on this one....

I'd be very honest with yourself about what kind of riding you're going to do and start there. Don't let the couple of park days and who you were as a rider influence the best bike for who you are now. That said, there are plenty of great bikes in the trail category that do a little bit of everything. The Evil Following is the only bike of the bunch I'm very familiar with and the Mach 5.5 I considered but passed on.

I recently sold both the HT and the Wreckoning and bought a 140mm Evil Offering in an attempt to find the sweet spot. So far, I'd say the Offering climbs better than the Wreckoning and I really don't notice much difference on the DH. I think it really depends on the kind of riding you do. Most of my riding is effectively enduro with long climbs and technical/chunky DH, so I want more than 120mm of travel and a more slack geo than I'd get on an XC bike.

The Evil Following would be a great bike. Have ridden it at Mt Bachelor Bike park on pretty much anything there save for the double black line. MASSIVELY capable descender and the geo will be good coming from a HT as it is a very quick handling bike. The anti-squat is really high so it climbs amazing as the chain tension stiffens the shock.

Bike is tons of fun. More capable than you'd think with 120mm rear travel. The overall feel is light and poppy, but when you drop the heels and dig in it will power through. If it had room for a longer dropper, I'd say it was about perfect.

Handling in particular is amazing - I credit the ultra low...

After riding the Following More Betterer (V2) for 3 years, I was originally disappointed in the new version with the Superboost 157 rear spacing. I love the Evil design and ride feel though and finally gave in and got the new V3. I'm glad I did. it was really hard to locate one given the supply chai...

Soooo much fun. Built for climbing. Super fast down and responsive. Cannot say enough. Have been living off exit 27 since I got it. In love and it's getting serious. If ordering online, FedEx will take a little longer then they say. But it's worth the wait. Dude. Get it.