The Lowdown: Ellsworth Epiphany 27.5 Enduro
The Ellsworth Epiphany 27.5 is a trail bike with some all mountain intentions, yet it sports the 'Enduro' name. It has a 50mm stem but the top tube is not quite long enough and it's shipped with trail-ready Kenda Honey Badger tires. It has a dropper post but it doesn't quite know how to handle all that cable movement. But it does climb and corner well, as the ICT suspension does a good job of keeping the rear tire on the ground on rough terrain.
So we took our time with it and made some customization adjustments that helped expose the best qualities of the bike, including the active ICT rear suspension. On the rockiest climbs, one can simply sit and spin. The bike will claw its way up the hill without losing traction. On rutted or choppy cornering, the bike also maintains traction quite, the rear wheel staying firmly planted on the ground.
But this bike is not without flaws. It's simply not on par with the descending abilities of the new breed of 27.5 or 29er all mountain bikes. It's also pricey at $2500 for the frame that's aluminum with external cable routing. The look of the frame is a bit dated too with the massive swingarm extending all the way back to the middle of the rear tire.
Bottom line, it climbs well and can provide enough plush to handle most rider's descending needs.