In recent years, the PUSH Industries ELEVENSIX rear coil shock has made a name for itself transforming the burlier, longer travel bikes on the market into even more confidence inspiring rigs. The shock had the ability to improve handling to the extent that most riders could not recognise or believe the real capabilities of their bikes. Little surprise then, that the ELEVENSIX has found a rabid fanbase across the globe.
So what delicious newness do we have here?
Seemingly zapped with a voodoo ray, this box fresh and more compact ELEVENSIX Micro can (finally!) slide into the 120mm Evil Following's Delta Linkage and in doing so, also renders the Following itself, a curious beast. Would it be a bit like layering rich, foie gras on a low calorie brown rice and baked salmon bowl? A bit "luxe-too-far” on a lean recipe? And for all Evil Following fans, the question is: "Should I?"
We swapped out the stock Rock Shox Super Deluxe air shock and took the bike out for a ride around the Bukit Timah Trail- Here are some post-ride thoughts.
If you have not experienced the ELEVENSIX before, then rest assured, all the goodness of its bigger brother is present and counted for in the Micro version. Trundle over the entrance rock garden at the start of the Bukit Timah trail and be greeted with unfamiliar traction. Find the same going the long way round ‘Cliffhanger’, with almost no chatter over the rocks and with more grip on the berms as you feel yourself loading the pedals with reassuring consistency. Weave through the trees further into the trail with newfound precision; the bike seems to be going where you want, not where you're bucked to. With a less hectic bike under you, you find yourself focusing more on your lines, and even instinctively finding new ones. You brake less and move more on the bike to eke out mechanical grip, working the tyres into the ground with more confidence. Gone is the chunder thunder and with that, ‘Double Drop’ is taken faster and goes from 'crunchy' to 'deep roasted and smooth' with barely any uncomfortable, ramped up, bottom out harshness. But with this new-found sophistication, has the Following lost its fun, fidgety edge? You get to your first kicker and you launch off with more unctuous pop than you've ever recalled. All is great with the world!
Instead of stiffly managing dead feeling skitter across most terrain, you'll find yourself shifting around on the bike and deliberately playing around with your weight balance with all the supple grip you have. You can finally apply the things you've gleaned watching endless MTB skill videos in lockdown, in the real world.
Say you like your trail friendly Evil Following, but you've been thinking about a new bike switch, well... just because. Consider this: Swap out your stock rear shock for an ELEVENSIX and get a new feeling and more capable steed; and while the price of the ELEVENSIX may seem to be a relatively large investment, it is still smaller compared to the spend on a new bike and all the attendant temptations that come with that.
So smooth bro, bottles don't fly off. Stop single use $20 plastics!
Okay, let's pause for thought. Fundamentally, coil shocks will weigh more than their air shock counterparts given the nature of the hardware; but look at it this way - the smoother your bike is, the more comfortable and less jarring it will be over any given distance. You will feel less rattled and that's hardly a bad tradeoff. As for old-school pedal bob, that seemingly uncontrolled, energy sapping rear end movement with each turn of the crank, it's an issue solved with the ELEVENSIX's hydraulics being precisely engineered for the EVIL Following's Delta linkage; the bike just pedals level, easy and efficient.
The Evil Following has, and will continue to be the short travel bike that has been famously misused in far larger ride situations. The PUSH Industries ELEVENSIX pushes those capabilities further into that rowdy territory; and yet with a simple lever flip between 'Bump' and 'Efficiency' modes, made possible by the dual overhead compression valve (that big metal cloud shaped thing at the top), you can ride to the trails on a firmer, more efficient rear end, and then let rip from the start of the trails in the grippy and plush 'Bump' setting; What we really might be looking at here then, is a convincing contender of that elusive, mythical, "one bike quiver".
So if you love your Evil Following or are even thinking of getting one, but your mind has lately started to think that you need a longer travel rig; and at the same time, you're torn about getting something too big for our local trails, the PUSH ELEVENSIX could be the magic bullet. On top of its fun and poppy reputation, you're going to discover a whole new depth to what this bike is capable of!
To find more about the PUSH ELEVENSIX for the Evil Following V2 & V3, and all other supported bikes, drop us an e-mail or give us a call.
