Tonight will be the maiden voyage on a 2010 Specialized Epic Marathon Carbon. This bike is bone stock and weighs about 24 lbs with SPD pedals. The idea behind this bike is simple: go fast for a long time. 4" of travel is only activated by heavy impact, so the bike rides very rigid on most terrain. I'm guessing that the rugged trails will be pretty bouncy on this bike, but anything close to hardpack terrain will be at the rider's mercy.
I kept the bike for about 3 or 4 rides and then sold it. It only handles flat and bumpy terrain really well. I need to also be able to go very fast downhill. The 70 degree head angle and 100mm front fork prevented that.
My friend Chris rides this bike with a 160 TALAS with 15QR and it actually is a really fun combination. I loved it on 45 miles of norcal single track this weekend!
