Yeti 4X for all-around love?

Hi Lee – wondered if I could ask your advice on a bike?

At the moment I mainly ride a hardtail – I’ve worked backwards from a really big bike, and have got to a point where I just ride a chameleon, with a pike fork, and i LOVE it! This change came about from your advice about riding bikes that are too big for the job – it’s SOOO right!

I’ve been offered a good deal on a YETI 4X – I know you do some work for Yeti, and wondered if you thought this would make a good all-round bike – just a bit more capable than the hardtail? Or is it too focused to use for anything other than 4X?

Also, is a FOX 36 set to 130mm overkill?

Thanks again for your help Lee.

Best wishes – Chris

PS – It’s cool to see how things have settled down for you – I’m glad you’re happy!!

Hey Chris,

Thanks man. Life is rocky singletrack. Pick a direction, adopt a neutral attack position and let it roll! I remind myself of this every time my front wheel pings toward a tree …

The Yeti 4X is a sweet bike. You can use it for all your hardtail stuff, plus more trail riding. It’s analogous to a Specialized SX, another 4X/DS bike that rips pretty much everywhere. Because these bikes have interrupted seat tubes, they’re most versatile with telescopic seatposts.

The 4X is designed for a 100mm fork. With a FOX F100 or Rock Shox Argyle, you get a 69-degree head angle and a 13-inch bottom bracket. Perfect! Your 130mm 36 will slacken the head angle and raise the BB, turning this cunning carver into a ponderous pooper. Run a 100mm fork.

You’re not trading your hardtail are ya? Keep both bikes …

— Lee