Longbow First Thoughts

So I have ridden this beast of a bike twice now and everytime its harder and harder to give back. I have a picture above but I will sum up the major parts,

• OG Longbow 19" PROTO



• King HS



• XT Wheels



• Elka Stage 5



• Kowa 1600SS



• ITS 909 front, spike rear



• SLX drivetrain



• Crank Bros Joplin

To start let me tell you, if you ever get a Longbow you better know your facts about it. Because they are so new and rare I got tons of strange looks and even more questions. Now having the Longbow combined with an Elka shock and an even rarer Kowa fork, let me tell you everyone and their mother had questions. The Longbow is the best feeling full sussy I have ever ridden, for comparison i have ridden a SC Nomad, Ibis Mojo, Specialized FSRxc, Yeti something or other i cant remember the model, SC Bullit, SC Blur 4X (Syndicate team edition), and a Transition Bottle Rocket. The Longbow has a bottomless suspension feel to it, not once did I feel like I was coming close to the end of the travel and the travel is so smooth that you dont even feel it, it is that smooth!

The Elka Stage 5 does an amazing job of eating up the bumps, and paired with the Moto*GP linkage is absolutely flawless. The Kowa fork is exactly the same, unlimited travel adjust from 0mm to 160mm, and you can place it anywhere between. The CB Joplin does an amazing job at keeping the seat out of the way when you need it to, just hit the lever, put some pressure and its down. My only problem is lifting the seat with it down can burp the system, but that is a minor issue.

Overall the Longbow got me so stoked to ride and I cannot wait to build my own.