Niner RIP 9 RDO 3 Star XT Complete Mountain Bike 2017

Niner's RIP 9 RDO 3 Star XT Complete Mountain Bike got quite the facelift for 2017. It now boasts a deeper suspension, slacker head tube, steeper seat tube, stubbier chainstays, and a longer top tube, helping it span the gap between its trail heritage and your enduro aspirations. Kitted out with Shimano's XT drivetrain, a dropper post, and Stan's NoTubes hoops, the RIP 9's newly found all mountain versatility takes its much loved predecessor's capabilities to an entirely new level. In addition to the geometry tweaks, the new RIP 9 owes much of its versatility to the introduction of Boost axle spacing. By bumping the rear axle out to 148mm, Niner was able to buy enough clearance at the bottom bracket to shorten the chainstays and sharpen the seat tube angle by 11mm and two degrees, respectively. These subtle changes make the rear triangle that much more responsive to input while also pushing the rider's engine up over the pedals. The stubby stays also keep the bike agile, but with a 67 degree head tube and 160mm of Lyrik forgiveness up front, it's just as happy to try flattening everything in its path or at least bailing you out when your lines start to get a bit too ambitious. The RIP 9's longer top tube and short stem keep handling on point, despite that low head tube angle, so you can always fall back on those stubby stays to navigate stretches of especially technical terrain. There's clearly a lot of new radness with the RIP 9, but two things remain pleasantly unchanged: the Race Day Optimized RDO construction method and the Constantly Varying Arc CVA suspension design. RDO involves a dual compression process that eliminates resin pooling and allows precise control over wall thickness. Reducing imperfections makes for a more structurally sound frame, and the targeted control over lay up and wall thickness lets Niner buttress that structure where appropriate and reduce material where it'll save weight without sacrificing stiffness. The result marks the n...