Specialized Rockhopper Elite 29 review

The Rockhopper Elite 29 has proven itself to be a winning companion for long days in the saddle

This competition is now closed

By Sarah Bedford

Published: June 16, 2023 at 12:00 pm

The Rockhopper Elite 29 (which uses 29in wheels, as the name suggests) and its 27.5in counterpart represent the second tier in the Rockhopper line-up.

A short-travel suspension fork, fast-rolling tyres and an impressive 13kg weight (size small) all add up to create a bike that’s certainly not worried ticking off the miles quickly.

It helps that it has a zippy, direct feel when you apply the power, meaning you’ll be in for a treat every time you hit the trail, even when pointed uphill.

Considering the spec, it’s somewhat of a bargain, too.

The frame is made from Specialized’s A1 premium butted alloy, featuring hydroformed top and down tubes.

The rear brake hose and gear cables are hidden in the down tube before exiting the frame and running neatly along the underside of the chainstays.

A full-length chainstay protector – something often overlooked on budget mountain bikes – is massively appreciated and helps to quieten down unwanted chain slap.

In keeping with the brand’s sleek aesthetics, rear mudguard mounts have been placed discreetly on the seatstays, while the cross brace behind the bottom bracket shell doubles as a kickstand mount should you want to fit one.

Up front is the RockShox Judy TK fork. On the size-small bike, it delivers 90mm of travel (the extra-small size gets 80mm, while medium frames and above feature 100mm of travel).

The Judy offers a lockout, rebound-damping adjustment and an air spring, which can be altered easily to suit rider weight.

Shimano supplies its MT200 brakes and Deore 11-speed gearing with a single chainring at the front to help keep things nice and simple.

The cassette offers a wide range, with sprockets ranging from 11-51t paired with a 30t chainring.

Own-brand rims (with a 25mm internal width) are wrapped in rapid-rolling Fast Trak tyres, both of which are 2.35in wide, using Specialized’s T5 rubber compound and its light Control casing.

There’s also a host of other Specialized kit bolted to the Rockhopper Elite 29, including the comfy Bridge saddle and lock-on grips.

Smaller frame sizes get one set of bottle bosses located on the down tube (fitting a second set on the seat tube would limit how far the seatpost can drop in the frame), while sizes M-XL get additional bosses on the seat tube.

I tested the 29er version of the Rockhopper Elite throughout the Glentress trail centre, including the jump park, and on sections of trail used in cross-country racing. I also used the bike for commuting.

The Rockhopper shares a very similar geometry with the Specialized Epic hardtail so, unsurprisingly, feels equally fun and whippy on the trail.

While the Rockhopper Elite 29 has a relatively steep 68.5-degree head angle (though very similar to many others in the Budget Bike of the Year test), the steering doesn’t feel twitchy, and its low front end makes it easy to keep the front wheel weighted and pointed where you want it.

I did have an issue with the fork getting sucked down into its travel, though, which meant I had to run a higher pressure than recommended to keep it propped up. However, that meant I could only regularly achieve 60 per cent of the full 90mm of travel on mellower trails.

If you were to buy the bike, this would be something the shop could fix easily enough.

If it’s climbs you love, the Rockhopper Elite 29 will put a smile on your face thanks to its lightweight frame, fast-rolling tyres and steep seat tube angle. I measured it to be 74.5 degrees, one degree steeper than the quoted figure on the geometry chart – which helps to sit you in a very strong pedalling position.

There are 15mm of spacers fitted to the fork steerer, giving you the option to raise (for a more upright position) or lower (to create a more stretched, cross-country focused position when seated) the bar height as you see fit.

Add the wide-range cassette and 30t chainring combination, and the bike has a way of making you want to pedal harder for the reward of speed. It will rarely leave you struggling up hills.

With its 90mm-travel fork, our small size was less forgiving over rough ground than its closest rivals, the Jamis Highpoint A1 and Cannondale Trail SE 4. This made tackling technical blue and red trails a little more fatiguing.

However, of all our Budget Bike of the Year contenders, the Rockhopper Elite 29 felt the most efficient and comfortable to spin along the flats and up the climbs on.

This makes it a perfect choice for riders who plan on long days out in the saddle on mellow graded trails.

Specialized has managed to pack some serious clout into the cross-country orientated Rockhopper Elite 29.

The RockShox fork, reliable Shimano gearing and some quality own-brand kit help it to feel like a safe bet from the first pedal stroke.

It’s eagerness on the climbs and all-round capabilities make it an appealing proposition for the money.

While it’ll handle more technical trails, the short-travel fork up front means it’ll be down to you, the rider, to soak up the heavier hits should you venture off the green and blue trails where the Rockhopper Elite 29 excels.

More affordable mountain bikes are the best they’ve ever been.

These wallet-friendly machines give an insight into all the thrills and spills that mountain biking has to offer, along with being versatile enough to handle the commute or a quick pedal to the shops.

The best budget mountain bikes should combine up-to-date frame features, geometry and componentry that will feel confident and capable everywhere from the towpath to the trail centre.

In an ideal world, the frames will enable you to upgrade to even more capable parts when you inevitably get hooked on the sport.

All eight bikes in this test challenge the preconception that ‘budget’ is a code-word for ‘not very good’. The overall standard and quality on offer mean you’re in for a good time no matter which of these you select. But there could only be one winner.

With that in mind, we selected a wide variety of trails in Scotland’s Glentress Forest, where we could put the bikes through their paces, before reporting back to you on the wisest purchase when it comes to quality, performance and value for money.

After weeks of back-to-back testing on increasingly technical tracks, we were able to whittle down which bikes were most capable of taking on ever gnarlier trails where, despite what the price tag might suggest, they felt more than at home.

Thanks to our sponsors Crankbrothers, FACOM Tools, MET helmets, Bluegrass Protection, Supernatural Dolceacqua, Le Shuttle and BikePark Wales for their support in making Bike of the Year happen.

Contributor

Sarah’s been riding MTBs for 20 years, across the UK and abroad. She has honed her skills on the varied terrain of Scotland’s Tweed Valley, host to the UK’s round of the Enduro World Series and 2023 MTB World Championships. Although Sarah’s passion lies at the more extreme end of the mountain biking spectrum, where she prefers to ride enduro, with the number of miles she puts in she’s got the fitness of an XC racer. Being out on the trails more often than not makes her the perfect person to put any product or bike through its paces.