Yeti Cycles

SB5 Carbon X01 ENVE Complete Mountain Bike - 2015

Pretty simple thing you’re looking at up there — it’s essentially the best of the best in nearly every way. Yeti packed its Switch Infinity suspension design into a carbon fiber super bike (that’s what the SB stands for), and then threw on a set of ENVE hoops to sweeten the deal. Not only that, but they upgraded where it mattered, and spec’d a second-tier groupset because the returns diminish so quickly on the top-end shifty bits. We like to see that from a company that’s built its name on building bikes they want to ride.

The Switch Infinity system gets the most press here, but for all the wrong reasons. The mini-stanchions at the BB look a little odd, but they’re mimicking Yeti’s long-tenured rail system, found most recently on its 303 DH bike. It provides a super-linear spring rate for a progressive feel throughout the suspension stroke, and no odd bumps at midstroke. And, they may look fragile, but Yeti tested them to well over a million compression cycles while submerged in mud. Your day might feel like that sometimes, but Yeti actually did it.

We mentioned the X01 drivetrain, and Yeti rounded out the parts kit with FOX suspension, Shimano’s dead-reliable XT brakes, a Thomson stem and post, and, of course, the ENVE M60 Forty wheelset.