Alright, team, today we’re looking for the best all-mountain MTB so we’re talking Transition Sentinel, Santa Cruz Hightower, and the Ibis Ripmo. Welcome to the 2024 All-Mountain Showdown. We’re diving into the ins and outs of some of this year’s top all-mountain bikes. We spent a week in Moab riding these three back-to-back on some of the world’s best trails. We then scored them in a bunch of categories to see which one came out on top. This article is going to rely on you having watched the video. So, just go watch the video and come back here to see all the scores laid out in an easy-to-read format.
We’ve reviewed each of these bikes individually. We’ll provide some quick details here, but if you want an in-depth review of each bike, hit these links to read and watch.
All-Mountain MTB – THE Reviews
transition sentinel
The Transition Sentinel V3 combines refined suspension and steeper geometry, delivering a lively, efficient climb and confident, responsive handling on technical descents.
| sentinel 3 (XL) | |
|---|---|
| Travel | 150/160mm |
| Wheel size | 29″ or MX |
| Head tube angle | 64° |
| Reach | 505mm |
| Chainstay length | 448mm |
| Wheelbase | 1302mm |
ibis ripmo
The Ibis Ripmo V3 masterfully blends climbing efficiency with descending prowess, featuring updated geometry, and enhanced suspension kinematics.
| Ripmo 3 (L) | |
|---|---|
| Travel | 150/160mm |
| Wheel size | 29″ or MX |
| Head tube angle | 64.5° |
| Reach | 506mm |
| Chainstay length | 438mm |
| Wheelbase | 1286mm |
santa cruz hightower
The Santa Cruz Hightower 4 excels with plush suspension and balanced geometry, offering exceptional descending prowess and solid climbing efficiency.
| hightower 4 (XL) | |
|---|---|
| Travel | 150/160mm |
| Wheel size | 29″ |
| Head tube angle | 63.9° |
| Reach | 500mm |
| Chainstay length | 442mm |
| Wheelbase | 1296mm |
All Mountain MTB – The scores
Here’s how we scored these all-mountain bikes. We used a scale of 1-5 in the following categories: climbing performance, descending capability, suspension performance, handling, versatility, and the intangibles. We see the intangibles as things like build quality, warranty, looks, frame stiffness, all those things that are hard to quantify — you get the picture. We scored each bike against all other bikes in the category, but mainly relative to each other. We wanted to see how these three stack up specifically. Now, keep in mind, on a scale of 1-5, 3 is right in the middle. We are using that as “average” in the category. Average is not bad — in fact average these days is pretty damn good. So if you see your favorite bike get a three, don’t get sad — be happy it’s that good in such s competitive game.
Climbing performance
| Opinion Haver | Transition Sentinel | Ibis Ripmo | Santa Cruz hightower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zach | 4 | 4 | 2 |
| Conor | 4 | 4 | 2 |
| Joey | 4 | 4 | 2 |
| Ranking | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Descending capability
| Opinion Haver | Transition Sentinel | Ibis Ripmo | Santa Cruz hightower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zach | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| Conor | 4 | 3 | 5 |
| Joey | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| Ranking | 2 | 3 | 1 |
suspension performance
| Opinion Haver | Transition Sentinel | Ibis Ripmo | Santa Cruz hightower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zach | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Conor | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Joey | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Ranking | 3 | 2 | 1 |
handling
| Opinion Haver | Transition Sentinel | Ibis Ripmo | Santa Cruz hightower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zach | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| Conor | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| Joey | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Ranking | 1 | 2 | 2 |
Versatility
| Opinion Haver | Transition Sentinel | Ibis Ripmo | Santa Cruz hightower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zach | 4 | 4 | 2 |
| Conor | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| Joey | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Ranking | 1 | 2 | 3 |
intangibles
| Opinion Haver | Transition Sentinel | Ibis Ripmo | Santa Cruz hightower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zach | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Conor | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Joey | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Ranking | 1 | 2 | 2 |
overall scores and rankings
| Category | Transition Sentinel | Ibis Ripmo | Santa Cruz hightower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Climbing Performance | 12 | 12 | 6 |
| Descending Capability | 10 | 9 | 15 |
| Suspension Performance | 8 | 12 | 13 |
| Handling | 14 | 10 | 10 |
| Versatility | 13 | 11 | 8 |
| Intangibles | 12 | 10 | 10 |
| Total points | 69 | 64 | 62 |
All Mountain MTB — overall rank
1. Transition Sentinel – 69pts.
2. Ibis Ripmo – 64pts.
3. Santa Cruz Hightower – 62pts.
Now, this overall rank is very subjective. And it’s a blended score of all the characteristics of each bike. What we’re trying to say here is that each bike has its own merits and strengths. This overall rank shouldn’t be the reason you choose one over the other. Look at the individual qualities of each bike and use that to find which bike mostly closely aligns with your priorities.
Thanks for joining us for the 2024 All-mountain MTB Showdown. Keep in mind that we are splitting hairs here. All three bikes are exceptional options. You can’t go wrong with any of these.
Sentinel // Ripmo // Hightower
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