Playful, Aggressive, Yet Affordable AF: Ibis Ripley AF Review

The Ripley AF is Ibis’ beloved short-travel Ripley MTB, only in aluminum, with more aggressive geometry than its carbon cousin, priced under $3,000.

If you’ve had your eye on Ibis’ Ripley but couldn’t pull the trigger on a $4,200 to $10,900 carbon bike, now you can get the complete ride of your dreams for under $3,000.

In short: The Ripley AF is Ibis’ short-travel, snappy, playful, fast-and-light, versatile 29-inch trail bike. It features modern geometry with ultra-efficient DW-link travel. It’s a bike designed for an epic ride, but it’s also a bike that can handle technical terrain and a more aggressive rider.

Ibis’ Ripley AF

The Ripley AF uses the balanced geometry and suspension of the carbon Ripley, translated to an AF (aluminum frame) instead of a carbon frame, with slightly more aggressive geometry. Snappy, fast, and fun, the 120mm rear travel, 130mm front travel Ripley rides bigger than it’s suspension numbers convey.

The trail-friendly 65.5-degree head angle (a degree slacker than the carbon version), a short (44mm) offset 130mm fork, and 29-inch wheels all give this bike a super-planted but still playful, precise, and nimble front end. The 76-degree seat angle channels rider power straight into the pedals. And the short chainstays and the pedal-friendly, DW-link kinematics will keep you from pogoing around while climbing.

Ibis’ 15-year collaboration with bike-suspension guru Dave Weagle has yielded yet another bike that promises superb climbing efficiency and tractability. Ibis says that incredible snap and responsiveness are its trademarks, and a whole mess of plush, chunder-eating, downhill-crushing goodness gets thrown in for good measure.

Great Price for a Great Bike

We’ve said it before — bikes are expensive. And cost can be a dealbreaker. But it’s not worth dropping a chunk of change on an “affordable” bike that will dampen your stoke instead of feeding it. To make sure you have a great ride, Ibis kept the bells and whistles of this bike’s pricier carbon cousin.

Details include boost spacing, a threaded bottom bracket, ISCG 05 compatibility, space for 2.6-inch tires, a post-mount rear brake, 203mm rotors, a low standover, and a seat tube designed to accommodate a longer dropper post.

Rubber chainstay protectors will keep the drivetrain from clanging on rough terrain. And the bike comes with a 7-year frame warranty and lifetime bushing replacement. The metric 190 x 45mm shock leaves room inside the front triangle for a water bottle.

The Ripley AF is Ibis’ second aluminum-frame model. It follows on the heels of its Ripmo AF, which Ibis introduced just last year.

Our advice: Get it while you can. Ibis’ Ripley AF is available today. And if the last year of bike sales has been any indicator, it’s likely to be sold out soon. Happy riding.