Ibis Ripley AF- Custom Build

Words by Miriam: 

Hello, hello! I am coming up on 2 years of riding and if I can help other women just starting out with the sport, I am happy to. So, thank you Mia and the Women’s MTB Network! It can be overwhelming as far as choosing your first bike, etc. Read my custom build of the Ibis Ripley below, along with the other bike checks listed!

Where I ride:  I mostly ride in Southern Arizona, Tucson, to be exact!  The trails I ride are mostly chunk (rocky) with some flow and a lot of climbing!  Every now and then I go ride Mount Lemmon which offers cooler temperatures in the summer and some downhill riding or in Catalina at the 50-Year Trail. I have also been to Sedona, which is a mountain biking mecca! I will be taking my Ripley to a bike park soon and yeah, it might not be built for a bike park but who cares? I’m going to ride and have fun! I say that now, but I will have to let Mia know how the Ripley does. 

Why the Ripley:  When I was first searching for my first full-squish I had tons of questions, 29er? 27.5? Mullet? What brand? So I fell down the internet hole and took other people’s recommendations. Unfortunately, we all have at some point, right? Demoing a bike was out of the question because I had just started out and didn’t know many people. So I made an expensive mistake and went with what I thought I should ride, a 27.5 bike. Besides, since when is new bike day a mistake? I did like that bike but when it came to some of the bigger chunk, I wanted a 29” wheel up front. So, I sold that bike and made sure to demo my next bike before making a purchase.
Enter: Ibis Ripley!!! I demoed about 6 bikes in 2 days at a bike festival and without expecting to ride an Ibis, the Ripley was poppy, fun, playful and oh, it climbs like a beast! I loved custom building the bike because I got to choose exactly what I wanted and I learned a lot throughout the process. The Ripley is a very capable bike, I have been extremely happy with how this bike rides and feels. 

My recommendation: If there’s anything I learned, it is to demo your next bike if you can. It would be nice to have an arsenal of bikes for every occasion but for some of us, it’s not possible. I thought I’d want a bike with a lot of travel or a certain brand of bike because everyone I talked to said it was an awesome bike. As I mentioned, I wasn’t even planning to ride an Ibis branded bike and it turned out that it was one that I loved the most. The Ripley went up against some very reputable brands like; Revel, Rocky Mountain, Santa Cruz, Pivot and Specialized. But again, this was the bike of choice that felt good to me. So, ride or choose a bike that suits your riding style, needs and ability. Who cares if Nancy has an enduro bike, a hardtail or a mullet, find a bike that makes YOU smile! 

If you have any questions for Miriam directly, about her bike, or ever just want to ride in Tucson, you can contact her via Instagram @tierradelsolmtb

Ibis Bikes- Check out Ibis’ site for all the geo info- https://www.ibiscycles.com/bikes/ripley-af