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The bike industry is constantly evolving with wider wheels upping the ante in overall traction and control, especially when you're rallying across trails with formidable roots and rocks. Accommodating these ever evolving wheel standards, Ibis set out to reincarnate the Ripley LS Carbon 3. 0 XO1 Eagle Complete Mountain Bike for the current crop of wide volume tires on the market. It retains the balanced handling and descending composure of the previous Ripley LS, making it a worthy trail rig for riders clawing up steep climbs, only to rip down across jarring rocks, sweeping berms, and undulating rollers. The third gen version of the Ripley, now referred to exclusively as the Ripley LS, retains the nimble handling that leaves you with an ear to ear grin on the trail, but with a stiffer rear end and the ability to accept 2. 6 inch tires. Because 2. 6 inch tires fall short of the 2. 8 and 3 inch behemoths donned by 27. 5 rigs, you'll find they strike the sweet spot between supple bump compliance and aggressive grip without feeling overly vague or squishy on the trail. To properly support this wide volume rubber, Ibis kits out this Ripley LS build with a 34 millimeter Ibis 938 Very Wide Aluminum Asymmetric Wheelset. Ibis achieves a stiffer rear end and increased tire clearance with a reconfigured chassis of its dual eccentric DW Link suspension. The upper eccentric link is wider than before for increased stiffness when you're tracking across the rough stuff. There's a new swingarm and clevis mount as well, which is moved backwards and down to clear the 2. 6 inch tires. Best of all, the reconfigured chassis and swingarm don't affect the praised suspension kinematics of the previous Ripley LS. This means you won't notice a difference in the pedaling efficiency or square edge compliance from the DW Link suspension. Other than its notable upgrades in rear end stiffness and increased tire clearance, the Ripley LS retains the praised geometry of the last version, namel...
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