Ibis

Ripmo AF SLX Mountain Bike

Carbon weight weenies may rejoice every time grams are shed, but some of us prefer a little bit of heavy metal. Ibis' Ripmo AF SLX Mountain Bike builds off of its carbon Ripmo sibling, with slacked out geometry that's as capable as it is willing, but it omits the lightweight carbon for a reliable aluminum build that can take the hard knocks of your shuttle packed afternoons and lift laps. Aside from the alloy construction, the only major difference you'll find between the AF and standard Ripmo is in the head tube, which stretches out a single degree slacker for just a touch of extra confidence when you point it downhill into rock gardens littered with suspension-gobbling boulders.

Like its ritzier carbon sibling, the Ripmo AF continues the trend of mashing together the big-hit craving Mojo HD4 and its livelier cousin, the Ripley. The result is a steed that rolls on 29-inch wagon wheels that soars through technical chunder, but with the longer, slacker geometry that crushes steeps with steady confidence. Geometry wise, you'll find that the Ripmo AF sits close to the Ripmo, only stretching out slightly with the head tube that delves deeper to 64.9-degrees from the 65.9-degrees of the Ripmo, which still pairs up with a 44-millimeter offset fork that feels planted and steady at high speeds through rowdy terrain. Ibis chose this custom fork offset to increase the bike's trail, which makes it a bit slower to respond to steering inputs, subsequently making it more stable at the higher speeds you'll experience while enduro racing and aggressively pummeling down steep trails. This way, Ibis was able to design the Ripmo AF with the stability of a bike with an even slacker head tube angle, but without requiring a drastic increase in wheelbase figures, which would compromise its ability to get around hairpin corners and tighter sections of trail.

Ibis crafts the Ripmo AF with a steep seat tube, 76 degrees, which shifts your weight forward. This way, you won't feel like the bike's front end inhabits an entirely different zip code while you're climbing and cornering, which is something that's plagued slacked-out enduro rigs since their inception. This steeper seat tube angle places you in an optimal position to place power down on climbs, allowing this enduro machine to get back uphill better than its slack geometry and longer travel figures would suggest. And because you're shifted further forward with a steeper seat tube, Ibis compensates with longer reach figures, as to not disturb the bike's stability or roomy cockpit. You'll find 147 millimeters of DW-Link travel out back for a bit more pedaling efficiency, paired with a longer 160-millimeter fork to soak up bigger hits and rowdy trail sections up front.

Besides being an increasingly slack and longer 29er, the newest Ripmo AF is designed and spec'd with a host of useful features for the aggressive trail rider and enduro racer. Shimano's rugged and capable SLX 12-speed drivetrain offers wide-range gearing with smooth shifting. The DVO shock and fork, paired with the Bike Yoke dropper, offer plenty of suspension for technical trails and jump lines, while the Ibis wheels and Maxxis rubber keep you firmly planted when in motion.  

*Due to a high demand in the global supply chain and bike industry since the start of the pandemic, material weight and exact components are subject to change. We are working diligently to keep tech specs updated, and any adjustments will be of equal or better spec level. If you have any questions, reach out to a Gearhead by chatting online or calling 1-888-276-7130.