Sunday 17th July saw the 4Play Cycles gang head out with our rep Jason from Greenover to trial the new Rock Mountain Pipeline. We were an eager bunch, ready for a good days riding, and a chance to see what all the fuss is about this new bike. The day began the usual 4Play way, with a stomach filling, energy fuelling tea, coffee and cake start! Our chosen route was a typical lake district loop designed to throw up a mixed bag of terrain, but with a definite rocky technical bias to allow the bike to be thoroughly put the test, and display its strengths to the max.

So what's different about the pipeline? A few points...

Its probably worth noting that this bike has been reinvented from the ground up. It is NOT a rehash of an existing frame model. Every detail has been planned and developed from scratch to be a plus size.
It has 27 + wheels; a normal 27.5” wheel with a colossal plus size tyre, which takes the outer diameter of the whole wheel to 29”. Coupled with a 2.8-3” width means these tyres are BIG!
Higher bottom bracket : The altered frame geometry places the bottom bracket slightly higher, to avoid crank strike on the ground or rocks as you travel.
The bike runs with the so called “boost width” at the front and rear meaning 110mm fork axel width at the front and 148mm at the rear. Providing that added stiffness factor to the frame for improved precision riding.
It features Rocky Mountains famous 'RIDE 9' system, allowing the ultimate fine tuning of head angles and suspension preferences.

So what did we think?

When Rocky Mountain first introduced the Pipeline we had our doubts that there was a place or requirement for this bike in our mountain biking world, especially in the lake district, and especially because we are already so in love with our Rocky Mountain Thunderbolts and Altitudes. BUT from the minute we set off from the car park it was absolutely striking how much fun his bike was to ride. The shorter top tube and tucked in rear wheel made it a dream to wheelie and flick around, much to our delight. Down to business on the trail and the bike shone. The larger tyres made short work of any climbs with phenomenal amounts of grip, even on the loosest materiel.

Our initial concerns about the extra weight of the wheels soon disappeared, once you're riding the bike it became obvious that this wasn't an issue, and the weight factor never entered our thoughts again!

The bike proved faultless on the descents. Accurate bike geometry providing a superior ride, and the ability to fall off little (or big) rocky drop off's with no crank catching at all. The 130mm rear and 150mm front travel meant the bike never felt out of its depth and could just keep on giving all day. Nothing was too much for this bike..it glides over all muddy, wet, gritty, rocky, tree routey terrain with ease, throwing up endless mud from its plus sized tyres!

It certainly pushed and encouraged our riding style, always looking for more daring drop off's and rocks to keep pushing the bike to its limits. Fun, fun, fun, and very inspiring to ride.

Any downsides?

There's no denying that this bike is heavier. It's going to be with the amount of rubber on it. But as we said earlier, this concern soon disappeared once we had the chance to properly ride the bike, and allow it to do what it does the best.

The verdict?

The perfect bike for someone who doesn't take their riding too seriously or want to be 'pigeon holed' into a particular box when it comes to mountain biking. This bike is fun with a capital F, and nothing is too much for it. This bike gives you maximum enjoyment from a day in the saddle. It pushes and breaks new boundaries, and allows you as a rider to do the same. We loved it!