Rumblefish
The fact that I bought a Rumblefish came as a bit of a surprise to me. I’d always been one to go for agile small-travel bikes. Started on a hardtail. Moved to an Epic. Loved the Epic. That hasn’t changed. So I tested the HiFi, the Superfly 100 before Trek renamed it “Superfly 100”. I liked it. The price was good. But I waited, because I needed to try other bikes too.
After all, I had lots of bikes to try.
- The Specialized Camber
- The Epic 29er (of course!)
- The Stumpy 29er
- The Giant Anthem X
- The Trek Rumblefish
All very good bikes, all quite competitive with each other, and all at about the same price point. However, since I use B&L for most of my service, I wanted to try the Treks first. And I wanted to ride on Moscow Mountain. There’s not much point in riding a bike if you can’t see how it behaves in the wild. It would be like test driving a car in a parking lot. I’ve done that, it’s a mistake. Trust me.
Anyway, Brice got the 2013 Rumblefish in on Wednesday, Sep 12. By Thursday it’s built. On Friday, I take it home, and on Saturday I ride it. I was blown away. It handles nearly as well as the HiFi (and my Epic) on sweet flowing bits (but admittedly, doesn’t handle the tight corners nearly as well). It devours trail. It looks bloody amazing.
So a journey that started with me wanting to replace my very good race bike with 26” wheels ended with a big squishy trail bike. That’s not what I expected.
Specifications
| Serial Number | WTU199G6016G |
|---|---|
| Frame | 21" frame size. Alpha Platinum Aluminum w/E2 tapered head tube, Active Breaking Pivot, magnesium swing link, G2 Geometry, 120mm travel |
| Rear Shock | Fox Evolution Series Float w/DRCV, climb-trail-descend damper, rebound tuned by Trek 7.25x1.875". |
| Fork | Fox Evolution Series 32 Float w/DRCV, climb-trail-descend damper, rebound, E2 tapered steerer, 15QR thru-axle, G2 Geometr with w/51mm offset, 120mm travel, tuned by Trek. |
| Headset | FSA NO.57SC, E2, semi-cartridge bearings |
| Stem | Bontrager Rhythm Comp, 31.8mm, 7° |
| Handlebars | Bontrager Low Riser, 31.8mm, 5mm rise, 9° sweep. |
| Tape/Grips | Specialized BG Contour XTC, Green/Black |
| Front Brake | Shimano SLX BR-M675, SM-RT86 rotor (180mm), F01A resin pads |
| Rear Brake | Shimano SLX BR-M675, SM-RT86 rotor (160mm), F01A resin pads |
| Brake Levers | Shimano SLX BL-M675 |
| Front Derailleur | Shimano SLX FD-M671, direct mount |
| Rear Derailleur | Shimano RD-M786-SGS XT shadow plus, direct mount |
| Shift Levers | Shimano SLX SL-M670 |
| Cassette | Shimano XT CS-M771, 10 speed, 11-36 |
| Chain | KMC X10SL (silver), 10 speed |
| Crankset | Shimano XT FC-M785-L Double, 38-24 |
| Bottom Bracket | Shimano XT, press-fit |
| Pedals | Speedplay Syzr Stainless |
| Front Wheel | Bontrager Duster 28-hole TLR rim, 15mm FCC front hub |
| Rear Wheel | Bontrager Duster 28-hole TLR rim, Bontrager 142x12 thru-axle rear hub, DT Swiss Competition 14ga spokes |
| Front Tire | Bontrager 29-3 Team Issue Tubeless ready, tubeless using Bontrager sealant |
| Rear Tire | Bontrager 29-3 Team Issue Tubeless ready, tubeless using Bontrager sealant |
| Saddle | Specialized Body Geometry Avatar |
| Seat Post | Specialized 2nd Generation Command Post Blacklite, 100mm travel, 31.6mm diameter |
| Computer | Cateye Padrone analog wireless |
| Other Goodies | Chain stay/seat stay protector, owners manual, Bontrager shock pump |
Geometry (21"):
| Effective seat tube angle | 72° |
|---|---|
| Seat Tube | 529mm |
| Seat Tube Angle | 73.6° |
| Head Tube Length | 135mm |
| Head Angle | 69.8° |
| Effective Top Tube | 626mm |
| BB Height | 338mm |
| BB Drop | 32mm |
| Chainstay | 452mm |
| Offset | 51mm |
| Trail | 82mm |
| Wheelbase | 1179mm |
| Standover | 789mm |
| Frame Reach | 452mm |
| Frame Rise | 632mm |