When the Timp Peak first released last year, there were many recognizing this bike and giving it awards prizes as if it were a fancy wrestler who gets daisy's and fancy creams and lotions. So when I got the chance to throw a leg over the newest rendition of the Timp Peak I had high hopes for this 170mm front and rear travel full power e-bike. Would it live up to some of the hype? Would it outperform my beloved Specialized Turbo Levo that I had spent the past blissful year with? More on that later. But let's get into the Timp Peak and talk numbers and parts spec first.
Geometry -
Geometry is about right where you would expect a modern 170mm travel enduro bike to be. Seat tube angle is 77.5 degrees across all sizes putting you into a great climbing position, especially on steeper climbs. Head tube angle is 63.5 which should be slack enough to feel confident of steeper descents. 510 reach on the XL frame size I rode felt perfect. Chainstays measure the same across all sizes. I felt like 437mm length on the XL felt pretty balanced. They were short enough to give the bike a sporty playful feel and made cornering easy and precise. Climbing tighter switchbacks was fairly calm and the rear end came around without too much fuss. This will be a personal fit thing and if you are buying a bike from Ari they will help with something like this during the purchase process, but the one thing I felt was a just a bit off was the stack height. If I were keeping this bike for my own I would have thrown a bar on with a bit more rise or have about 10mm of spacers added under the stem.
SPECS -
Introductory Pricing
Sale $7,599 - Reg $7,999
Frame - Ari Timp Peak CleanCast™ Carbon TetraLink™ Full Suspension, 170mm travel
Fork - Rockshox ZEB Ultimate RC2, Charger 3 Buttercups, 170mm travel, 15x110 Axle, 42mm offset, tapered steerer
Rear Shock - RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate RC2T, 230x65, Custom Tuned
Drivetrain - SRAM X0 Eagle Transmission, Wireless, 12-Speed
Wheels - DT Swiss HX 1700 Spline, Tubeless ready, Carbon wheels upgrade available at checkout
Brakes - SRAM Maven Silver, HS2 200/200mm
Headset - Cane Creek 40 Series ZS ZS56/ZS56
Shifters - SRAM AXS Pod
Rear Derailleur - SRAM X0 Eagle Transmission, 12-Speed
Cassette - SRAM XS-1295 XO Eagle, T-Type, 10-52t, 12-speed
Crank - Shimano EM600, 160mm
Chainrings - SRAM XX T-Type EAGLE 34T EMTB 104BCD
Drive Unit - Shimano EP801 W/ Custom Ari motor mapping
Battery - Darfon 635Wh Group B for EP801/EP6, removable battery
Chain - SRAM X0 Eagle Transmission, T-Type, 12-speed
Handlebars - Ari Team 35, width 780/800mm, 25mm rise, 9° back sweep, 5° Up sweep, bar-customized sizing through
Stem - Ari Charger CNC 35 stem
Tape/Grips - Ergon GA2
Saddle - Ergon SM10
Seatpost - PNW Loam Dropper- customized sizing through 23-Point Custom Setup
Rims - DT Swiss HX 1700, 29, Tubeless ready
Hubs - F: DT Swiss 350 E-Specific, Disc, 15x110 thru axle, R: DT Swiss 350 Ratchet System 24 E-Specific, Disc, 12x148 thru axle, XD
Spokes - DT Swiss Hybrid 1 Straightpull
Tires - F: Maxxis Assegai 29x2.5WT, MaxxGrip, DD, TR Protection, Tubeless Ready. R: Minon DH-R, 29x2.4WT, 3C, MaxxTerra, DD, TR Protection, Tubeless Ready
Chainguide: MRP 1x
One thing I have been super impressed with from Ari is the parts they are putting on their bikes over the last couple seasons. They aren't just picking out the cheapest or easiest available specs on their bikes. They are carefully picking out the best part for each bike and where it will most likely be ridden. I rode the pro build with the above listed spec. I am a huge fan of the Rock Shox Zeb Ultimate Fork and Super Deluxe Ultimate Rear Shock. They are buttery smooth and easy to set up. I found myself running about 31% sag in the rear and around 33% sag up front. I slowed up the rebound all but one click up front and in the rear. I ran a 4 clicks of LSC on the front and 3 clicks in the back. And I ran 3 clicks of HSC on the fork. This set up felt super plush for me but gave me enough midstroke support to still pop off some trail features when I wanted to.
The DT Swiss HX 1700 wheels were flawless and the proven DT Swiss 350 hubs are always on point. One thing I mentioned in the video was that the bike seemed to roll or coast a bit slower than other bikes I have been on lately. I rode a bit more after my video on some harder packed trails and I am thinking it was just the super deep moon dust dirt up American Fork Canyon that was making things feel slower.
Like the Nebo Peak I rode a few weeks back, the Timp Peak came set up with Srams newest star player in the brake game, the Maven's. This time instead of 180mm rotors it was running 200mm rotors which I made me a happy boy. The steeper terrain up AF Canyon calls for bigger rotors. I am such a fan of these new brakes from Sram. The Mavens have plenty of modulation but you never feel under powered with these things! They are by far the most powerful brake on the market right now. I would like to give the new Magura Gustavo Pro's a go, however Magura is saying the Gustavo's are not more powerful than the MT7 Pro's.
The only thing I would have changed on this build are the grips, just because I like to run a thicker diameter grip, but that's an easy swap and I usually have to get new grips with any new bike.
Climbing -
Climbing the Ari Timp Peak is what climbing with an E-bike should be. Easier and faster than not climbing on an e-bike. But there is more to the Timp Peak than that. I felt like the bike was quite calm during climbing. I kept the motor in boost the entire time except on a couple flatter sections where I just wanted to play around a bit with Eco and Trail. The geometry was very well suited to the steep, punchy and loose climbs of AF Canyon. The suspension stayed active enough to give lots of much needed traction through all of the loose softball sized rocks kicked loose from motos, as well as roots and 6 inch deep moon dust in some places. The front end never wandered or wanted to lift off the ground, and I never had to shift to the nose of the saddle to keep the front planted. The Shimano EP801 motor had plenty of power to help my 265 lbs of dad bod up the mountain but I never felt like it was giving too much power where it would cause me to loop out or lose traction. The power comes on very smooth and felt super predictable and natural feeling. I would say that my Turbo Levo felt like it had a bit more power but the Shimano motor delivers it's power in a more controlled and smoother manner. The suspension always felt active, yet supportive and very efficient. I feel like this is the type of bike was made for places like AF Canyon. I would pick this bike over the Nebo Peak up AF Canyon for sure. So if you are looking at the Nebo and Timp Peak and you are riding up AF Canyon or places like it where 8 miles of riding feels like 20 because of just how brutal the terrain is, then for sure go with the Timp Peak.
Downhill -
Turning the Timp Peak downhill quickly put a smile on my face. The bike felt confident blowing through, rocky, rooty, chunky, loose terrain. I always felt stable at high speed and felt like I had traction in spots where a lot of bikes would have struggled. The suspension felt extremely plush through the bumps. Small trail chatter was non-existent and in bigger bumps I felt like the Timp Peak was a trophy truck the way it soaked them up. It was exactly how I felt a 170mm travel bike should feel in stuff like that. I attribute some of the planted feel to the fact that I was on a big heavy e-bike, but suspension kinematics has something to do with that too. There were times the bike felt playful and had enough mid-stroke support to pop off some trail features but I feel like the Timp Peak is more on the bash and smash side of the coin. The bike does corner quite well and gets through tight corners very well. Where some have said it's more of a playful bike than a plow bike, my experience was a bit different. I felt like my Specialized Turbo Levo was more on the playful side of things. Perhaps that was due to it's mullet set up vs. the full 29er on the Ari.
Battery Life -
For reference I weigh 265 lbs. and on my ride I went around 13 miles and did 2,360 in elevation gain and I burned through most of my battery.
Conclusion -
If you are someone who is looking for a full power e-bike and are looking for something that can handle bigger days in some bigger terrain the Timp Peak is a great pick.
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