First Look: Ibis Mojo SL Special Blend - Long Termer

At the end of last week a pretty special and large cardboard box arrived at MoreDirt HQ. We teased you on our Facebook with a sneaky peak but now is the time to really give you a first look at our Ibis Mojo SL Special Blend long term test bike.

We do like a good tease post on the MoreDirt Instagram...

Granted the name is somewhat of a mouthful and you may have to pause for breath half way through, but this bike is a thing of beauty. The Special Blend is a full build from the American Carbon Fibre bike specialists, Ibis that is squarely aimed at fantastic value. How many other £2499.99 full build Trail/ All Mountain feature a solid carbon fibre monocoque frame, shock and swing arm that weighs in at ony 2400g.

It maintains this great price point by using a combination of Shimano SLX and Deore 10 speed drivetrain, Mavic CrossRide wheel set and X-Fusion's Velvet RLX 140mm travel air fork and 02 RLX air shock alongside Ibis's own Bars Stem, Saddle and Seatpost to keep the purse strings tight.

I have been out on the "Special Blend" over the past weekend and during the tail end of last week after its arrival at the office and have so far really enjoyed my time on the bike. The lack of weight makes it really lively and playful on the downhills and in the corners yet it still flys up the hills like a mountain goat. Once I got the got the correct ammount of sag and rebound dialled in on the shock and fork I found the Ibis to pedal efficiently but still eat up the lumps and bumps for breakfast.

I really didn't get on well with the Super Skinny 660mm handlebars and foam grips the bike was supplied with. The front end felt twitchy at low speeds when climbing and very unstable and at sometimes pretty scary on the downhills. In future I think I'll be looking to put something a little wider and flatter in the bar and stem department, but apart from that the bike rides amazingly and looks even better. It really is a pleasure!

Raw carbon fibre frames just scream sexy and expensive!

I can't wait to get back out there and tear up some more single track! Stay tuned for an update of what we get up to on our Ibis long termer.

Ibis are distributed in the UK by 2pure.