We totally feel you on the love for Rocky Mountain bikes! We knew they were good bikes, but the bikes legitimately surprised us with JUST HOW GOOD they were to ride. They are wildly impressive bikes and we can't wait to see what new bikes are coming from them!
They pack a lotta value, too. Including actual Shimano shift housing (super rare, but sooo worth it!), spare bash guards, adjustability that works, etc.
I was going through 2-3 bikes/ year for 4 years trying to get a bike to handle in a way that made me comfortable (I have a superbike racing background so I think my feel requirements are "off"). I got a RM Instinct because it looked good on paper and it was one of the only bikes I could get with Live Valve (which I already knew I loved from test riding a Pivot Mach 4SL). I knew that the Instinct was what I had been looking for for years within the first mile of riding it the first time. It's almost two years later and I love it even more. Everyone who rides it falls in love. There is something just soooooo right about the geometry.
Agreed! And I think the geometry plays well with the suspension design, too. I found the Altitude to be incredibly well balanced. The Instinct Power Play here really surprised me with how fun and capable it is, I'm legit excited to ride it some more!
I have been riding for 25 years. Done 2300km on my Powerplay so far. Hands down my number one favourite bike of all time. Somehow lets you ride out the rough out of control fast sections and makes you keep on asking for more speed.
Kids swing advice (and current RM owner / fan) -- When my kids were little I got a used truck tire and hung it horizontally with 3 eye-bolts and a carabiner to a long rope to a branch. It was also on a slope so at one end of the pendulum it was close to the ground and easy for kids to get on & off. At the other end of the pendulum it was "so scary" because it was about 12 feet off the ground. Very quickly it became the neighborhood hang out for all my kids little friends. That was quite a few years ago, but still an RM rider that pedals for my elevation gain. I'm more cautious about the drops now which pisses me off, but that's like. Cheers...
Thanks for the note PL1!!! I have a second rope swing on a hill like that, and it's awesome, but it requires someone to push it. The idea with this swing was that the rider could pump and do it solo- but the unequal length ropes kinda wreck that...
Very cool. I am familiar with this trail (yet have not ridden it) as that's what we did during covid, watch biking videos LOL. I met Eric & Yuka when theu were in town riding with Danika one day, they were headed up to ride Mohawk. Great job on this Jeff! Also, thanks Jenson!
Thanks for watching, Mike! This shoot was what zonked me out so bad for the day that you flew past me going up Tough Love!!! This is only about 1/3 of those shots, more to come soon!
I am on the fence and need some advice. The end of 2021 I bought an Altitude Powerplay with the Dyname 3.0 motor. Then a few months later Rocky completely changed completely everything! I love my Altitude and can't get enough of ludicrousing up a 7% average 3-mile road grade on a local loop at around 19mph! That motor is sweet! I am 5'6" and 130lbs and an xc guy at heart. Speed point to point has always been my thing. But since I can only legally ride fire road/rec path where I live, I am wondering if the new fork on the altitude is too much at 170mm for my size. I also don't want to be under biked descending 25 degree + in sections, jeep road at 13,000 feet. I eventually want to take one of these 100 miles in one go. Is 170mm of travel like the 108nm of torque... there can never be too much torque! or.. with my size, will 170mm be over my head? Thanks for the awesome video! Congrats on the new Instinct.
This bike was high on my list for 2022. One small detail that makes the Instinct different than Altitude in addition to the fork travel, shock and shock mount is a spacer under the headset. I was thinking if you ran the Altitude shock mount you could run a slightly longer shock for ~150 out back and put 160 up front.
Yeah Altitude and Instinct are mostly the same bike, and I don't see any advantage for Instinct over Altitude- but this is what Rocky had available, so I said SEND IT, I'd love to try it! No regrets at this point. But if I had a choice, I'd go Altitude for a bit more travel.
If your trails dont demand long travel the short version i think would be 'funerer' especially when you get in size XL...things get quite muted on LT super long wheelbase.
I could buy the a70 today but wonder if at this price level it makes sense to go carbon. Interesting point rm service pointed out is that if you ride this hard the alloy frame deals better with cooling the motor. But i also wonder if i really will feel the difference between 55pounds or 52.5. I jump and i try at least to ride hard. It would be my adventure vehicle or for easy training days.
Well, it's a "mid-high pivot." It rides awesome! Yes, it has some rearward movement, but not so much that it's hard to manual or handle the bike. But it's enough that the shorter travel feels like a bit more. I did not ask Rocky if the pedal bikes would have this design one day.
36 ebike fox forks have 34 internals, so basically stanchions are thicker and siffer + the crown is stiffer so, you shouldn't feel the flex or anything, as the bike weight is pretty small compared to a rider weight (if you weight like 90kg compared to a 70kg rider) - it's more of a placebo thing that 36 not being stiff on an ebike :)
I've never heard that before, thanks Alex, I'll have to follow that up with more research myself! The Rock Shox fork on the Niner was a bit noodly, but the Fox forks have been solid.
@@JeffKendallWeed yep, you are totally right, as RS suspension is identical for ebikes and acoustic ones :) Fox has a different approach, at least it was before like that. With frequent updates you can't be 100% sure :)
You seem to be a huge fan of most Rocky Mountain bikes. I’m looking to upgrade my scott spark to an all mountain. What do you recommend from Rocky?. I need it to climb as well as it descents
Do you think the Altitude would feel that different than the Instinct? 140 vs 160. Will there be that big of. Penalty to pay on the 160 Altitude for trail riding?
Yep, Profile 2 on the Rise makes a big difference. My one buddy was going to sell his Rise to get a full powered eMTB until he made that switch to access the full torque (well the 60 Nm anyways, not the jailbreaked 85).
@@IDoBlues I tried the full 85nm/500w on a couple rides. Used 30-40% more battery for a 10% gain on a long fire road climb. Not worth it at all. The RS 60nm/300w is a much better overall setting (Profile 2 turned up a bit)
Agreed, the Rise has such a small battery that it performs best with lower power. Rise offers just enough power that really loose, rocky climbs become rideable rather than walkable. It'll never be a total masher.
you have a lot of control over the bike, you are a machine, you had the wtb tires as your favorite, after trying maxxis, or scwalbe, which set of tires for dry terrain and a lot of loose stone do you like more?
Hey Joan, thanks man, the WTB 2.6 tires were AMAZING in the super loose stuff- more traction and flotation than the 2.5 WT Maxxis. But when things get wet, the Maxxis has a touch softer rubber. Both designs are good, but they excel in slightly different places.
The previous rocky had a great rolling noise of the chain and when pedaling you could hear a kind of vibration on feets, this new one is said to be quieter, is that it?
Hey Solferino, great question. While I've never ridden the prior generation, on two occasions, I joined people who did have a gen 1 for rides. Zenya in Whistler and Dr J in Pittsburgh. Neither one of those gen 1 bikes made any weird noises. As for the current Instinct/Altitude platform, it's ever so slightly more noisy than a bike without an idler, but on the trail I've never once noticed it. It sounds similar to a Forbidden or Norco Range, nothing that I'm worried about in the slightest. My i9 hub is FAR louder.
What’s the method for jumping E-bikes, just go faster and pull harder? I have the reign 0 E+, and it feels like it drops out of the air like a heavy rock and comes up short
Basically, yes, but it's also more key to pre-load the eMTB correctly if you need to get height. I also land more rear wheel first on the heavier eMTBs.
Best timing for this great video! Looking to replace my YT Decoy by a RM, probably the Altitude. Thinking the Instinct is too fragile to take air and have some hard landing. As you didn't broke it, I sure this is not a blocker 😄 Did you test the PP Altitude ?
@@estimateparagonI rarely use all the travel of my 160-150. Not sure than 10mm more (Altitude) or less (Instinct) will change radically my ride. I am more concern about the geo and the weight distribution. Leaving in bad location in France to test these 2 bikes in real situation.
Hey Sylvain, thanks for the note! Are you riding the more rugged trails in the alps? Or more bike-park style stuff? Altitude PowerPlay and Instinct PowerPlay are the same bike, but the Instinct has a shorter shock/different mount, a shorter fork, and a spacer. As a result, Instinct PP has less travel. 100% I'd recommend the Altitude over the Instinct. After absolutely sending it on the Instinct the last 2 months (more videos to come!), I wouldn't hesitate to hit all kinds of jumps with it, but the main limitation with eMTBs and big jumps will always be the bike weight.
@@JeffKendallWeed thanks for your answers Jeff. I am more a natural bike park guy. Lot of wall ride, table jump and drop. But I'm a bit heavy 95kg with all the stuff. 160-150mm are enough for me most of the time but with 3 spacers each. DD or similar is my ideal casing. And I am more confortable with a low flip chip
Far fewer action shots tell me it's not a bike that falls naturally into your style or riding style, and the levels of enthusiasm are muted compared to usual. Always good to watch though, thank you.
I was trying to downplay my enthusiasm since I was so pumped on this bike I didn’t want to come off as gushing- “favorite eBike of all time” is 100% true! Next video will not include an unboxing and will be 100% riding and travel footage! 🤘🤘🤘
The Powerplay battery is easily removable and nothing is more capable than the Powerplay. 108nm of torque with the Dyname power delivery is second to none…hands down!
Lance, I do prefer this to the Rise. I have a Rise Hydro here, and it's only 4lbs lighter than this, but has 1/2 the battery capacity, nowhere near as dialed geometry, and barely fits a 150 post. Instinct/Altitude fit a 200mm post. The carbon Rise would be more fun on traditional MTB trails, but at that point, I'd personally ride an analog bike instead. Even lighter, and even more range.
@@JeffKendallWeed Thanks for getting back to me! Really appreciate it. Gives me something to really think about. I am in the market for a new emtb and both the Rise and the RM are at the top of my list.
Thanks for the note man! Yea, as an aging BMXer, x-ups were so easy and simple that they seem a little cheesy. But eMTBs arent great for tricking jumps with, so that's not super relevant to the intended buyer of this bike. I have thought about brushing up on barspins again, but the whole idea of tricks and getting hurt is kinda in my past now! Thanks for the note, sorry if I'm raining on your x-up parade, but glad you're enjoying them!
This isn't a motorcycle, it's a 1hp electric moped. A 2 stroke, petrol powered moped would have tons more power, and would realistically be a cluster f*** on the trails.
thanks for coming up!
Dude your trails are a blast!!! And are more friendly to eMTB than ours.
We totally feel you on the love for Rocky Mountain bikes! We knew they were good bikes, but the bikes legitimately surprised us with JUST HOW GOOD they were to ride. They are wildly impressive bikes and we can't wait to see what new bikes are coming from them!
They pack a lotta value, too. Including actual Shimano shift housing (super rare, but sooo worth it!), spare bash guards, adjustability that works, etc.
Just bought one from you guys. Can’t wait to get it!!!
Can wait to see more on the ride4 settings and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing your ride with the legends 😎 So good!!
Thanks Sjaan!!! I’m really enjoying this rig!
I was going through 2-3 bikes/ year for 4 years trying to get a bike to handle in a way that made me comfortable (I have a superbike racing background so I think my feel requirements are "off"). I got a RM Instinct because it looked good on paper and it was one of the only bikes I could get with Live Valve (which I already knew I loved from test riding a Pivot Mach 4SL). I knew that the Instinct was what I had been looking for for years within the first mile of riding it the first time. It's almost two years later and I love it even more. Everyone who rides it falls in love. There is something just soooooo right about the geometry.
Agreed! And I think the geometry plays well with the suspension design, too. I found the Altitude to be incredibly well balanced. The Instinct Power Play here really surprised me with how fun and capable it is, I'm legit excited to ride it some more!
I have been riding for 25 years. Done 2300km on my Powerplay so far. Hands down my number one favourite bike of all time. Somehow lets you ride out the rough out of control fast sections and makes you keep on asking for more speed.
Rght on Jaco. Power play first or second generation?
Kids swing advice (and current RM owner / fan) -- When my kids were little I got a used truck tire and hung it horizontally with 3 eye-bolts and a carabiner to a long rope to a branch. It was also on a slope so at one end of the pendulum it was close to the ground and easy for kids to get on & off. At the other end of the pendulum it was "so scary" because it was about 12 feet off the ground. Very quickly it became the neighborhood hang out for all my kids little friends.
That was quite a few years ago, but still an RM rider that pedals for my elevation gain. I'm more cautious about the drops now which pisses me off, but that's like. Cheers...
Thanks for the note PL1!!! I have a second rope swing on a hill like that, and it's awesome, but it requires someone to push it. The idea with this swing was that the rider could pump and do it solo- but the unequal length ropes kinda wreck that...
Sick bike
Thanks Kanu, I really like this one!
Shopping for a instinct powerplay alloy 30 right now and cant wait to get my hands on it !!
Very cool. I am familiar with this trail (yet have not ridden it) as that's what we did during covid, watch biking videos LOL. I met Eric & Yuka when theu were in town riding with Danika one day, they were headed up to ride Mohawk. Great job on this Jeff!
Also, thanks Jenson!
Thanks for watching, Mike! This shoot was what zonked me out so bad for the day that you flew past me going up Tough Love!!! This is only about 1/3 of those shots, more to come soon!
@@JeffKendallWeed I wouldn't say "flew" past you. Let's just call it a gentleman's ride up. LOL Cheers Jeff!
just found your channel! good content & editing!!
New Sub.
Nice video Jeff !
Thanks!
@@JeffKendallWeed 🙏
FYI. All the chapter titles refer to the Mondraker 😀
Thank you for that!!! Knew I forgot something lol 😂
BCPOVs series on building that trail is fantastic!
Erik and Yuka are good people!
He's like Forrest Galante's mountain biking brother 😊🎉
I am on the fence and need some advice. The end of 2021 I bought an Altitude Powerplay with the Dyname 3.0 motor. Then a few months later Rocky completely changed completely everything! I love my Altitude and can't get enough of ludicrousing up a 7% average 3-mile road grade on a local loop at around 19mph! That motor is sweet! I am 5'6" and 130lbs and an xc guy at heart. Speed point to point has always been my thing. But since I can only legally ride fire road/rec path where I live, I am wondering if the new fork on the altitude is too much at 170mm for my size. I also don't want to be under biked descending 25 degree + in sections, jeep road at 13,000 feet. I eventually want to take one of these 100 miles in one go. Is 170mm of travel like the 108nm of torque... there can never be too much torque! or.. with my size, will 170mm be over my head? Thanks for the awesome video! Congrats on the new Instinct.
Could you do some tire reviews? Or like a tire shootout? That would be wicked!
ruclips.net/video/9dtDvSlC1uk/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/sNl1QMzzwjI/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/-Js4mRh7Sa8/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/txPzYiAI-ms/видео.html
This bike was high on my list for 2022. One small detail that makes the Instinct different than Altitude in addition to the fork travel, shock and shock mount is a spacer under the headset.
I was thinking if you ran the Altitude shock mount you could run a slightly longer shock for ~150 out back and put 160 up front.
I am also interested in the options to do this on my instinct.
Yeah Altitude and Instinct are mostly the same bike, and I don't see any advantage for Instinct over Altitude- but this is what Rocky had available, so I said SEND IT, I'd love to try it! No regrets at this point. But if I had a choice, I'd go Altitude for a bit more travel.
If your trails dont demand long travel the short version i think would be 'funerer' especially when you get in size XL...things get quite muted on LT super long wheelbase.
I could buy the a70 today but wonder if at this price level it makes sense to go carbon. Interesting point rm service pointed out is that if you ride this hard the alloy frame deals better with cooling the motor. But i also wonder if i really will feel the difference between 55pounds or 52.5. I jump and i try at least to ride hard. It would be my adventure vehicle or for easy training days.
High pivot on a RM, interesting. I wonder if this might be a preview of the next generation of the Instinct, Altitude and Slayer?
Well, it's a "mid-high pivot." It rides awesome! Yes, it has some rearward movement, but not so much that it's hard to manual or handle the bike. But it's enough that the shorter travel feels like a bit more. I did not ask Rocky if the pedal bikes would have this design one day.
36 ebike fox forks have 34 internals, so basically stanchions are thicker and siffer + the crown is stiffer
so, you shouldn't feel the flex or anything, as the bike weight is pretty small compared to a rider weight (if you weight like 90kg compared to a 70kg rider) - it's more of a placebo thing that 36 not being stiff on an ebike :)
I've never heard that before, thanks Alex, I'll have to follow that up with more research myself! The Rock Shox fork on the Niner was a bit noodly, but the Fox forks have been solid.
@@JeffKendallWeed yep, you are totally right, as RS suspension is identical for ebikes and acoustic ones :)
Fox has a different approach, at least it was before like that. With frequent updates you can't be 100% sure :)
@Jeff Kendall-Weed your chapters are mixed up, I think you accidentally put in the Super Foxy ones.
Great video though as always :)
Thanks Felix, I tried to delete that!
My big question would be Rocky Mountain Instinct PowerPlay or Norco Sight VLT --- I'm also considering a Giant Trance X E+
You seem to be a huge fan of most Rocky Mountain bikes. I’m looking to upgrade my scott spark to an all mountain. What do you recommend from Rocky?. I need it to climb as well as it descents
Do you think the Altitude would feel that different than the Instinct? 140 vs 160. Will there be that big of. Penalty to pay on the 160 Altitude for trail riding?
I like his parenting style.
Hahaha thanks Gabriel!
Wouaaah Nice
Did you switch the Rise into profile 2? How noticeable was power difference then.
Yep, Profile 2 on the Rise makes a big difference. My one buddy was going to sell his Rise to get a full powered eMTB until he made that switch to access the full torque (well the 60 Nm anyways, not the jailbreaked 85).
@@IDoBlues I tried the full 85nm/500w on a couple rides. Used 30-40% more battery for a 10% gain on a long fire road climb. Not worth it at all. The RS 60nm/300w is a much better overall setting (Profile 2 turned up a bit)
Agreed, the Rise has such a small battery that it performs best with lower power. Rise offers just enough power that really loose, rocky climbs become rideable rather than walkable. It'll never be a total masher.
you have a lot of control over the bike, you are a machine, you had the wtb tires as your favorite, after trying maxxis, or scwalbe, which set of tires for dry terrain and a lot of loose stone do you like more?
Hey Joan, thanks man, the WTB 2.6 tires were AMAZING in the super loose stuff- more traction and flotation than the 2.5 WT Maxxis. But when things get wet, the Maxxis has a touch softer rubber. Both designs are good, but they excel in slightly different places.
The previous rocky had a great rolling noise of the chain and when pedaling you could hear a kind of vibration on feets, this new one is said to be quieter, is that it?
Hey Solferino, great question. While I've never ridden the prior generation, on two occasions, I joined people who did have a gen 1 for rides. Zenya in Whistler and Dr J in Pittsburgh. Neither one of those gen 1 bikes made any weird noises. As for the current Instinct/Altitude platform, it's ever so slightly more noisy than a bike without an idler, but on the trail I've never once noticed it. It sounds similar to a Forbidden or Norco Range, nothing that I'm worried about in the slightest. My i9 hub is FAR louder.
What’s the method for jumping E-bikes, just go faster and pull harder? I have the reign 0 E+, and it feels like it drops out of the air like a heavy rock and comes up short
Basically, yes, but it's also more key to pre-load the eMTB correctly if you need to get height. I also land more rear wheel first on the heavier eMTBs.
I now understand why people always change the stock wheelset out! It only took me 3 weeks to destroy the stock wheelset on a norco range vlt!
oooof! The heavier bikes take a toll on all the parts.
Best timing for this great video! Looking to replace my YT Decoy by a RM, probably the Altitude. Thinking the Instinct is too fragile to take air and have some hard landing. As you didn't broke it, I sure this is not a blocker 😄 Did you test the PP Altitude ?
An Instinct can be easily converted to an Altitude with a new shock Mount, shock and air spring in the fork. I bought one and am loving it so far.
@@estimateparagonI rarely use all the travel of my 160-150. Not sure than 10mm more (Altitude) or less (Instinct) will change radically my ride. I am more concern about the geo and the weight distribution. Leaving in bad location in France to test these 2 bikes in real situation.
@@SylvainLasnier I have 2 other ebikes and it’s much more balanced. I did swap a Zeb with 160 mm travel on it and ride it most of the time.
Hey Sylvain, thanks for the note! Are you riding the more rugged trails in the alps? Or more bike-park style stuff? Altitude PowerPlay and Instinct PowerPlay are the same bike, but the Instinct has a shorter shock/different mount, a shorter fork, and a spacer. As a result, Instinct PP has less travel. 100% I'd recommend the Altitude over the Instinct. After absolutely sending it on the Instinct the last 2 months (more videos to come!), I wouldn't hesitate to hit all kinds of jumps with it, but the main limitation with eMTBs and big jumps will always be the bike weight.
@@JeffKendallWeed thanks for your answers Jeff. I am more a natural bike park guy. Lot of wall ride, table jump and drop. But I'm a bit heavy 95kg with all the stuff. 160-150mm are enough for me most of the time but with 3 spacers each. DD or similar is my ideal casing. And I am more confortable with a low flip chip
Far fewer action shots tell me it's not a bike that falls naturally into your style or riding style, and the levels of enthusiasm are muted compared to usual. Always good to watch though, thank you.
I was trying to downplay my enthusiasm since I was so pumped on this bike I didn’t want to come off as gushing- “favorite eBike of all time” is 100% true! Next video will not include an unboxing and will be 100% riding and travel footage! 🤘🤘🤘
@@JeffKendallWeed fair enough, enjoy the channel immensely.
@@zed5129 please try and make sense.
🤘🏽
Cheers man!!!
Do you like it better then the Rise? I am really looking at the Rise though not being able to remove the battery easily is concerning.
Should check out the new incoming Pivot Shuttle SL too, looks a bit more capable but also frustratingly without a removable battery as well
The Powerplay battery is easily removable and nothing is more capable than the Powerplay. 108nm of torque with the Dyname power delivery is second to none…hands down!
Lance, I do prefer this to the Rise. I have a Rise Hydro here, and it's only 4lbs lighter than this, but has 1/2 the battery capacity, nowhere near as dialed geometry, and barely fits a 150 post. Instinct/Altitude fit a 200mm post. The carbon Rise would be more fun on traditional MTB trails, but at that point, I'd personally ride an analog bike instead. Even lighter, and even more range.
@@JeffKendallWeed Thanks for getting back to me! Really appreciate it. Gives me something to really think about. I am in the market for a new emtb and both the Rise and the RM are at the top of my list.
At 4:05 ....did you just say that X-ups are lame tricks? Very few riders near me do 'em and many are pretty impressed when I do.
Thanks for the note man! Yea, as an aging BMXer, x-ups were so easy and simple that they seem a little cheesy. But eMTBs arent great for tricking jumps with, so that's not super relevant to the intended buyer of this bike. I have thought about brushing up on barspins again, but the whole idea of tricks and getting hurt is kinda in my past now! Thanks for the note, sorry if I'm raining on your x-up parade, but glad you're enjoying them!
Eric & Yuka @Van girl Yuka.
I'd rather have a 2-stroke moped than that motorcycle.
This isn't a motorcycle, it's a 1hp electric moped. A 2 stroke, petrol powered moped would have tons more power, and would realistically be a cluster f*** on the trails.
JORTS JORTS JORTS
Life is jort!
First view
Nice bike but always wear a helmet, even for test rides