note: links in this article are affiliate links to my partner, Jenson USA, and any purchases from Jenson will directly help support my website. Thanks to all of you for your business with Jenson, it really helps keep these bike reviews going! Jenson sponsored this video above, and is a dealer for Evil Bikes. In addition to Jenson, I’m also supported by PNW Components, Industry 9, and Shimano.
The Evil Offering is a 140mm travel 29” trail and enduro mountain bike, and after several super fun months on this bike, and many great questions from all of you. I wanna share a little of what I’ve learned about this bike- and whether or not it makes for a good mountain bike.
Before we get into detail about this bike, let’s back up for a second…What makes for a good car? Computer? Cell phone? We’re gonna tie this in to the Evil Offering, and it’s important, so bear with me. A good car might be one that simply turns on when you start it, for others, it’s one that absolutely invigorates your morning commute, handling corners with a flat stance and no signs of torque steer. For many, a good computer sends emails and checks up on the exes on Facebook, but for others, it’s a machine that can render an 8k video edit before your pop tarts are ready. A good cell phone might just send texts and update Instagram, but for others, it’s one that can shoot a cinematic 8k video in a flat color profile. With that in mind:
What makes a good mountain bike? That’ll depend heavily on what you’re looking for. This question is a great example of suspension versus geometry.
The Wasabi Green frame uses a Float X2 rear shock. For the rest of the build, it’s sporting PNW Components Range bars cut to 760mm, a Range 45mm stem, PNW Components Loam dropper with 200mm of drop, the Loam grips, and the Loam Lever. For a proper Super Boost wheelset, I’m using the Industry Nine Enduro 315 carbon wheels with 32 aluminum spokes front and rear. I’m running a Shimano XT M8100 groupset, with 165mm cranks, M8120 brakes, 203mm rotors, and a WTB Pure saddle with a set of WTB 2.6 tires.
Now, my general impressions of the bike:
This is where we tie back into that original prompt of what makes a good car, computer, or phone.
My tastes and needs as a rider are somewhat different than the average rider. As I always say, I’m a terrible bike reviewer as a result of this. But it seems to me what makes the videos and articles fun for so many of you, is that you’re downright curious to hear about my own experiences- and you’re not really using my videos to help with your own purchasing decisions. That’s fantastic, as it means I can really keep from guessing what most average riders will and wont enjoy about a particular bike, and instead give some real feedback of what I experience.
With the Evil Offering, I found myself doing quite a bit to find a set up that really meshed with my own riding style. To me, the front end of the Offering is a little on the short side. Feel free to look at the numbers and tell me my feelings are wrong, but the front center certainly felt shorter than the Altitude and the Ripmo. Heck, if you do look at the numbers, the wheelbase is a full inch shorter than the Altitude. But I think what I was really feeling was that the head angle of the Offering was steep. These two traits really remind me of the HD3. The solution is to ride the bike in a way that uses this as an advantage. I know many of you loved the HD3, but I had to do a few similar things to get it to work better for me as well. To get started, I’ve been running about 35-40% sag, which is more than what I normally do, and it seems to get the bike past the more progressive initial bit of the suspension and into the more linear meat of it further down.
The bottom bracket of the Offering is really low. The X2 shock, even with both low and high speed rebound all the way out, and what appears to be a maximum amount of volume reducers, keeps the rear wheel more glued to the ground than any of my other bikes. I need to work harder on this bike to get airborne off roots and rocks. Bottom out resistance is good, but it could still be better.
The Offering really excels in flow trails and jump trails. With the low BB, short wheelbase, and steep head angle, I didn’t find myself overly confident on steep and rough terrain. But when I did find the jumps, this geometry keeps the Offering ready for the next hit.
– Jeff Kendall-Weed
I find myself preferring to pedal on the SB130, the Ripmo, the Altitude, and even the Occam. The Offering doesn’t pedal poorly, it’s just that the rider position doesn’t seem that upright, and the short front end can get hung up on rough steep sections. I still made it up the waterfall at South Mountain on the first or second try on this bike, but I did cheat by putting clipless pedals back on for a day.
I did try riding the bike once with clips. It felt like cheating- fun at first, then I was disappointed with myself. But seriously- this is a great bike to ride with flats. The way the rear end feels on the trail, any efforts to lift the rear of the bike are easy enough to do with flats, and clips aren’t needed. The less control of the geometry means that flat pedals are rewarded with plenty of dabbing opportunities. Overall, this bike inspired me to get creative, and have fun!
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