Tested: Niner R.I.P. 9 29-Inch Full Suspension

NINER R.I.P. 9 $1,549 (FRAME ONLY)

If you believe half of what’s been printed about the R.I.P. 9, you’d think this bike could magically gift riders with the ability to scale Everest in 10 pedal strokes and descend Whistler’s nastiest trails.

But let’s not swallow all the Kool-Aid just yet.

The R.I.P. 9 does, in fact, climb as well as any XC bike on the market. I rarely used the platform modes on the Fox RP23 shock. Credit here goes to Niner’s Constantly Varying Arc (or "CVA") suspension system, which looks and performs a lot like Giant’s Maestro and Dave Weagle’s DW-Link designs. As with the aforementioned designs, the Niner’s rear triangle is one solid unit attached to the front triangle by two links. The design benefits are also similar: minimal pedal feedback, little to no brake-induced suspension lock-out, and natural anti-squat under pedaling.

In fact, the R.I.P. 9 rides a lot like a 29er version of a Giant Trance. The main difference (aside from its obvious big-wheeled advantage in rock gardens and log-overs) is that the Niner features a more progressive spring rate. Even with the recommended half-inch of sag and the rear shock run in the "open" mode, the R.I.P. 9 feels less responsive over small trail chatter than Giant’s Maestro bikes. But in exchange, the Niner accelerates with less suspension bob.

The R.I.P. 9 also features amazing standover clearance—28.6 inches on a medium model. I truly appreciated the extra crotch clearance in tight conditions, which, incidentally is where this bike truly shines. With a higher bottom bracket, the bike can get somewhat tippy in tight switchbacks, but the short (17-inch) chainstays give the R.I.P. 9 an uncannily surefooted feeling in twisty singletrack.

Even with 29-inch wheels and short chainstays, the bike has great mud clearance, and I rode the 2.2-inch Bontrager Jones AC-X tires through miles of mud with plenty of wiggle room to spare. Nor were there front derailleur issues, another common 29er sore spot.

The folks at Niner call the R.I.P. 9 an "all-mountain" bike. Sure, you can run a 5-inch-travel fork if you like, but the back end of this bike feels decidedly crosscountry. Its 4.5 inches of rear suspension feel like a very firm 4 inches to me.

Quibbles aside, the R.I.P. 9 is a well-designed rig that more than holds its own against some of the best suspension designs on the market.

[Editor’s note: Since we started testing this bike, Niner has unveiled two new models, the JET and WFO, with 3.1 and 5.9 inches of travel, respectively.] --VERNON FELTON

HIGHS: Great standover clearance, oodles of mud clearance, climbs like the proverbial scalded monkey

LOWS: Harsh on small bumps, tippy on switchbacks, love-it-or-hate it color scheme

MORE INFO: 877-646-3792; NINERBIKES.COM