Introducing The Bikes In Our Trail Bike Test! (Ultimate Trail Bike Buyers Guide 2025)

Updated: Dec 6

There has never been a better time to be a mountain biker! Mountain bikes have come such a long way and the geo of today has us doing things on trail bikes that once were only reserved for downhill bikes! However these new 140-150mm travel trail bikes still offer insane climbing platforms and give you the option to trade in the multiple bike quiver for one bike that can truly do them all!

With that being said there are a lot of great options on the market and our job is to help break down each bike to help figure out who they are for and make the purchase of your next bike a lot easier! Over the last few months we tested 11 of the best trail bikes on the market and are ready to present you with the Ultimate Trail Bike Buyers Guide!

And who are we? We are Mo and Hannah and we run Awesome MTB, and independent mountain bike media company bringing you bike reviews, opinion pieces, and travel guides! Stoked to meet you and hope you stay for more!

Happy Trails

-Mo and Hannah

Introducing the bikes:

Transition Sentinel: This 150mm travel 29er with Giddy Up suspension is Transition’s most recent update to their lineup! With a more “all around” mentality to geo, this bike is insanely versatile! https://www.transitionbikes.com/Bikes_Sentinel.cfm

Yeti SB 140: One of the fastest bikes in the test, the SB 140 features Switch Infinity and little adjustments. Yeti is confident you do not need them, and after riding it the last few months we tend to agree! Name of the game is speed and you will have a lot of it on this bike! https://yeticycles.com/en-us/bikes/sb140

Specialized Stumpjumper 15: The Stumpy 15 was one of our most exciting submissions as not only was it highly requested by you guys, but it also has a brand new shock, developed by Specialized! This might be a strong contender for best overall but will it win? https://www.specialized.com/us/en/stumpjumper-15-expert

Ibis Ripmo: Besides being named after Mo, the Ibis Ripmo holds a special place in our heart because we have ridden every iteration! Will the new one live up to the hype?

https://www.ibiscycles.com/bikes/ripmo

ARI Delano Peak: What happens when performance meets amazing price points? The ARI Delano Peak was a favorite amongst our testers! One of the more playful trail bikes of the test, this one stole Hannah’s heart! https://aribikes.com/products/delano-peak

Giant Trance X: Maestro suspension and Giant Bicycles kind of feels like peanut butter and jelly! The Giant Trance X was quietly updated recently and more people need to be talking about this bike! Strong contender especially if you are an XC racer looking to step up to enduro! https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/trance-x-advanced-1

Evil Offering: Evil Bicycles knows a thing or 2 or maybe 10 about how to make bikes insanely fun! The Offering is a 141mm travel trail ripper with their classic Delta Suspension design! With how amazing the suspension feels, will the Offering rise to the top? https://www.evil-bikes.com/products/offering-ls?

Rocky Mountain Instinct: Rocky Mountain is a staple of BC mountain biking and if you have ever been to Vancouver and had a chance to ride your mountain bike you know, mountain biking is a few levels higher up there! The Instinct is a bike designed to tackle all the tech you can throw at it while staying pedal friendly! Bonus points, the Instinct is very customizable! https://bikes.com/en-intl/collections/instinct

Pivot Cycles Switchblade: South Mountain is home to Pivot Cycles and if you have ever ridden out there you know sketchy has a new meaning! The Switchblade is a do everything trail bike designed to tackle all of the chunky fun you can throw at it and get you back to the top as fast as possible! With DW-Link suspension and a stiff frame to match this is one fun bike! https://global.pivotcycles.com/bikes/switchblade

Cannondale Habit: Cannondale was one of the winners of our XC buyers guide and so we are stoked to have them back in the mix for our trail bike guide!! The Habit is a no nonsense do everything trail bike that has a very impressive rollover and ability to make chunky sections feel easy! How will the Habit do in this test? https://www.cannondale.com/en-us/bikes/mountain/trail-bikes/habit/habit-carbon-lt-1

Propain Hugene: What happens when a gravity oriented brand makes a trail bike? You get ultimate traction and a pedal friendly set up! The Hugene was a blast on the downhills but how does this trail bike perform all around? https://www.propain-bikes.com/us/product/bikes/enduro/hugene-cf/