Mullet
A bike with a 29′′ front wheel and a 27.5′′ rear: the big wheel rolls over the trail, the small one keeps the back end agile and out of your way on steep ground.
Also known as: mixed wheels, MX, mullet bike, mixed wheel size
Key facts
- Origin
- the haircut: business in the front, party in the back
Why mix sizes
- Front 29′′: rolls over roots and rocks, holds speed and gives the front tyre grip.
- Rear 27.5′′: more room between the tyre and your backside when you get low and back on steep descents.
- The smaller rear wheel also turns in more readily and is stronger for its weight.
Who rides it
Downhill racers first, then enduro riders and eMTB makers. It also suits shorter riders who find a full 29er's rear wheel too big. The name is a joke borrowed from the haircut.
Related articles
- Electric mountain bike (eMTB) — A mountain bike with a pedal-assist motor and battery. The motor helps only while you pedal, so you climb more, ride further and spend the day descending.
- Wheel size — Mountain bikes roll on 26′′, 27.5′′ or 29′′ wheels. Bigger wheels roll over obstacles more easily and carry speed; smaller ones are quicker to turn and throw around.
- Enduro — Racing the descents and riding the climbs: timed downhill stages linked by untimed transfers you pedal up yourself. Also the name of the long-travel bikes built for it.
- Downhill (DH) — Racing one steep, rough track from top to bottom, against the clock, on bikes with around 200 mm of travel. A World Cup run lasts three to four minutes and is decided by fractions of a second.
- Frame geometry — The angles and lengths that decide how a bike rides: stable or nimble, easy to climb or eager to descend. Every model publishes them in a geometry chart.