Because in his hands is the new Reba 29er with 140mm travel. This beauty was at the Niner Bikes tent at Sea Otter. Niner will be selling it with a Tapered steer tube and a 20mm Maxle axle only. I have not heard if any one besides Niner will be selling these at this time.

Now I want another WFO9 with this fork on it!

I wish I had more info and hope that Chris or Steve from Niner bikes will chime in on our comments page but it seems that Rock Shox thinks we are to small to waste their time on.

Congratulations to Niner Bikes they are willing to push their bikes design and then follow up with manufacturers to get cool new products for us 29er junkies to enjoy. One more reason 29eronline likes to promote Niner Bikes. More on Niner bikes in a day or two to show off the New Jet9 and the Niner Bikes booth at Sea Otter.

Its been a long wait for this fork to be released. Marzocchi used to make a 29er fork but discontinued it a few years back. I was not impressed with the old one so the removal of it from the market place was not too heart breaking. Fast forward to 2010. With the introduction of the Niner WFO9 Marzocchi released a Niner Bikes  exclusive fork. That is how I ended up with  it.

I believe the fork is dubbed the Marzocchi 44 tst micro. It has a 1.5- 1 1/8 inch tapered steer tube. A 15mm qr front axle helps out with the nice stiff feel of the fork. The crown is husky but not over built. It is an air shock.

The weight of the Marzocchi fork is 4 pounds 9 ounces. That isn't bad for the travel and abuse this fork is rated for.

The appearance is nice. Nothing too crazy just good old fashion black with a little brown flake in it. It matches the WFO9 Milk Dud Ano finish nicely.

The fork is fairly easy to set up just put air in one chamber based on your body weight. The manual that came with the fork has the recommended air pressure buried in it, you just have to take the time to look for it.

sort of side view.

Things I did not like. First and foremost, The 15Qr axle was a little to long. On my first ride it came loose on me the whole time I was riding. Marzocchi is aware of the problem and has already sent the part out. The warranty tech's were friendly and didn't use the classic "that's the first time we have heard of that" phrase that is all to common in the bike world's warranty departments. I appreciated the responsibility of just fessing up to the problem and remedying it. Thanks Marzocchi.  If you shipped it on the day I spoke to you and not a week later(since I know you had the part) I would be really happy.

Second is that the rebound just doesn't get fast enough on this fork. It does not feel nearly as lively as my yesteryear Marzocchi's did.  I have owned about 6 Marzocchi's in the past and have sold dozens of them(probably close to a hundred in 5 years). This does not feel like the Marzocchi's that I used to love. I'll spend more time playing with it when I get the bike back, hopefully I'll get the fork to feel right. If I have to change the oil in the first month of owning this fork so that I can get it to feel right I will be really disappointed.

Third, for a fork that is made to be on a burly bike, what's up with the 15qr. Why not go with a 20mm qr. A 29er with 140mm travel is not the greatest application for a 15 qr. I cant even get a DT Hugi 440 hub with a 15 qr axle. I had to Franken wheel and not match my front hub to my rear hub. That is really tramatic! I am crying.  I almost went and bought Chris King hubs so I could match or Industry 9's. That would have  ruined my street cred with my local shop. WHY!!! Just make a 20mm option please.

Ride report's will follow .

Check out prices and some more user reviews on a bunch of different 29er forks here.

I have never owned a Manitou Fork before this one. I have sold quite a few, and generally thought that Manitou made a good product. So I guess my bias towards them is neutral. I was expecting a solid all around fork, nothing too fancy, just something that worked.

At the suggested retail of $633.00 I think that the expectation of a good fork is reasonable. This is not an inexpensive offering(relatively). I just have to say it. Its not good enough to ask that much money. First things first. I don't think I have seen a time when this fork was not on sale. That is a plus for this fork. I would say if it was not on sale  most people would not buy it and be happy with their purchase.

Is it that horrible? No, the Manitou Minute 29er is not a horrible fork, Its just not $633.00 good. Its performance is very average. On the small bumps it's fine. I would say it is on par with Fox and Rock Shox 29er offering's. Definitely not better, but as good.

It is not as stiff in the 9mm axle format as Fox and Rock Shox. I found it flexed more then Fox and Rock Shox. It is not unbearable, but definitely not what I expect.

The weight is about the same as the other brands so that's respectable. The look and finish is nice. The Cable routing on the reverse arch and provided guides preity much suck. One good thing is that it is easy to set up. Just put air in it set the sag correctly and ride away.

The lock out/SPV dial is very well made . However beyond the first couple of clicks it really serves as a lock out. I messed with it quite a bit and decided it would be used as a lock out or not at all. Does anyone use this feature? If you do please write a comment and let me know, I am trying to figure out besides a total lock out why bother with the steps in between. I know it's supposed to create a platform to resist pedal induced"bob"with the capability to control how much force it takes to "blow off" and absorb bumps.  I am just saying that it seamed almost worthless.

I think the real weakness to this fork is when you drop of the back end of a ledge or rock, or do a steep roller, or hit the breaks to hard on a down hill, or wheelie drop anything, the Minute 29er blows thru it's travel like no other fork I have ridden .Riding this fork aggressively was a little nerve racking.

Most forks dive into their travel when doing the above mentioned activities. If they did not then they would not be able to do the job they were built to do. Most forks just ramp up their spring rate a bit earlier then the Manitou 29er fork. The Manitou is just to linear for any sort of riding more then perfect bench cut trail.

I am aware that many people are riding this fork through rock gardens and off drops etc. Blah Blah Blah. Seriously this fork  is under gunned. I think, so far the saving grace of this fork is that wisely Manitou offers a 20mm thru axle. Besides the 20mm option the damping of the fork needs work. But look at the price !! The tune ability of the Rock Shox Reba with the Maxle lite offering makes it in my opinion a better fork.

So I'll be riding the Manitou Minute Fork more over the next few weeks, but as of now, unless you get a smoking deal on it and are running the 20mm version, look else where. On the plus side Manitou is updating their fork internals in the near future.

Compare prices and get more user reviews on a bunch of different 29er forks here.

Very exciting news .I have finally received a 2009 Rock Shox Reba Team suspension fork for testing . In addition to the Reba team , I have received a 2009 Manitou Minute 29 super . These forks will be going head to head with our bench mark fork, the Fox F29 rlc.

Stay tuned for the initial reactions in the near future . I am personally very excited to try the Reba Team . It has been completely redesigned for 2009 . I feel that this is the fork to compete with the Fox F29 in every category including stiffness.

The Manitou Minute 29 super is by far the coolest looking fork between the three. Every one who has seen the three side by side comment on the looks of this fork .

I have heard mixed reviews about the Manitou . It seems that the only real complains are with quality control . I am however very optimistic that these problems have been resolved . All the things are what I heard , I have not actually have dealt with these issues for myself .  If this fork rides as good as it looks,  I think we will have a winner . Unfortunately the relashionship between looks and performance  have little to do with each other .

The Rock Shox fork is a little homely looking . I am not impressed with the appearance at all . Fortunately that plays in really little in the over all rating this fork will get .

Just for the record , The majority of the testers are using Fox forks . Fox has been the choice of all of us before this website even became an idea . So that is our bias . I am personally open minded about the Fox fork being replaced on my bike . The rest of the testers ...I wouldn't hold my breath . I think that the Reba and Manitou will have to be a lot better then the Fox before the other testers would be willing to give up there forks .

So let the testing begin . I will do a write up of the three forks separately (Fox, Rock Shox, and Manitou ). After we have time on the forks we will write up a comparison and note the overall favorite .

RockShox 08 Reba Race 29er 80mm Blk w/Pushloc disc only - RockShox 08 Reba Race 29er 80mm Blk w/Pushloc disc only