Okay, so why in the world would a site like Twenty Nine Inches do a post on a 26″er full suspension bike? Well, you’ll have to hang on for a minute on that. The meaning will become clear here in a moment.

First of all, you might want to keep in mind that the same trails I rode the 69″er on weren’t used for the Hi Fi, as we got a bit off track and took what turned out to be the perfect single track for testing this bike. Called the “Braille Trail”, this Nisene Marks State Park gem is full of jumps, structure, and fast twisty descending. The full impact of this trail put the Hi Fi in an element that it was designed for.

Riding a 26″er again, it took me a bit to get in tune with the old skills and handling traits of the 26 inch wheels, but memory finally awakened and I managed to pilot it down the track unscathed, even hitting a few of the jumps at the end. The bike handled the constant hits with aplomb, feeling composed at all times, even though speeds at times were approaching 30 plus miles an hour on some of the longer straight sections. It’s a very neutral handling bike, it didn’t take long for me to feel confident with the steering. G2 geometry may have had a large part in that, but I haven’t ridden a 26″er for so long I can’t really make a judgement on that.

The focus here is on the chassis, which in my view is really well done, feeling stiff laterally, especially in the bottom bracket and head tube/ down tube area. It’s hard to say much about the swingarm at this point, but I can’t say there were any glaring problems with it, other than being a bit wide to the point of rubbing my legs on it from time to time. The arms have a wide stance and this might bug some folks. To be honest, I noticed this in the parking lot, and out on the trail, the sensation never bothered me.

The reason I am posting on this bike is that it’s supposed to be translated into the 29″er format for ‘08. I think this bike has huge potential with 29″er wheels mated to it. If Fisher can figure out how to translate the stiffness of the main triangle over to the bigger wheeled bike and avoid flexiness in the swing arm, this bike will be a killer trail bike for 29″er fans.

The possibilities are tantalizing! I can’t wait to throw a leg over one of these big wheled Hi Fi 29″ers some day soon.