First Ride Review: The New Ibis Ripley V5

Now into its fifth version, the Ripley is one of the iconic Ibis full suspension bikes. In many ways the successor to the original Mojo, it has always been the XC friendly, general purpose bike in their range. First launched way back in 2013 when trail focused 29’ bikes were still a rarity, it was built to cover distance efficiently and quickly, but was still able to take on the descents with more confidence than a full XC race bike, sporting both slightly slacker angles and a little more travel. 

Most of the earlier versions stuck to that original design ethos, with around 120mm travel at each end and slightly shorter and steeper than average geometry, creating light, quick handling and responsive bikes. Those Ripleys built a loyal fan base who used the bikes for everything from multi day bikepacking, to fast cross country and trail riding and even marathon racing. Over the years, the Ripley gradually changed with the time, gradually slackening and lengthening but always kept that same basic character, prioritising nimbleness, climbing speed and weight over maximum downhill capability.

More recently in 2021 Ibis launched the Exie. A bang up to date world cup XC race bike, it combined a 120mm travel fork with a 100mm rear end to make for a super fast and relaxed race bike, with surprisingly slack angles compared to the norm at the time. Very well received it could happily tackle much more than just XC racing, also making a blisteringly quick singletrack riding bike. The only issue with it was that with similar angles and ride character the Exie and the Ripley now sat a very close to each other, with the Exie doing almost everything the Ripley V4 could, but even faster. 

With Ibis now overhauling their entire trail bike range it was only a matter of time till the Ripley saw its next revision and this summer we are treated to the new V5. The most drastic adjustment the Ripley has seen so far, it changes everything from suspension travel and geometry to frame layout and repositions the bike as a true all rounder, moving it a solid step away from the Exie and its XC bias of old with more on trail capability than ever.

Visually the frame is a complete change, ditching the curved tubeset of the older version and sharing its lines with the new Ripmo and HD6. Bigger and beefier than previous versions, the larger straight tubeset hints at the extra capability now built into the bike. 

Rear travel from the well established DW link platform has increased by 10mm to 130mm, with the bike now designed around a 140mm fork and the head angle is much slacker than any previous version now sitting at 64.9’, compared to the 66.5’ of the V4. Overall length has also grown, with the Medium Ripley V5 now sporting a 1211 mm wheelbase, 4mm longer than that of the old Large! Reach numbers are fairly generous, going from 440mm on the size Small all the way to 545mm on the XL and a new ‘Extra-Medium’ size has also been added to reduce the jumps between sizes. 

All Ripleys still ship with dual 29’ wheels, but for the first time there is also the option to switch to an MX wheel setup, thanks to a flip chip on the seatstay which provides geometry correction without affecting the suspension kinematics.

Chainstay length is no longer fixed, growing from 436mm to 442mm throughout the sizes, which along with custom seat angles from 77.4’ to 77.9’ help to keep rider weight in front of the rear axle no matter which size the bike is. Possibly uniquely to Ibis BB height is also adjusted by frame size, with the larger bikes rising by 3mm per size to help offset the effects of the longer wheelbases and prevent chainring and pedal strikes.

Elsewhere, the frame is covered in sensible details and well thought out features, the most obvious new addition being the new ‘STOW” storage compartment in the downtube. Here, a solid and well executed door flips open to reveal a decently sized compartment, complete with two padded Cotopaxi frame bags included to silently store your on trail essentials. Well made (from fabric offcuts) they are an especially nice touch being both water resistant and neatly sized to fit the compartment securely. 

Seatpost insertion is unusually good, which is especially helpful for riders on smaller sized bikes and all the sizes come with longer than normal dropper posts to make the most of the design. Cables run tube in tube for easy installation, the BB is a regular threaded affair and the headset uses traditional press in cups for durability and the option to fit angle sets. In a world of frustrating proprietary components it’s refreshing to see a bike with such a sensible and owner focused set of standards.

Despite all the added capability, the new Ripley is still a relatively light bike. Our Shimano XT test bike weighed in at 13.7kgs, which is not bad considering the burly set of 35mm internal width aluminium Send wheels the bike comes with. Just a change of wheels and tires to a more XC setup could easily take total weight under 13kg for riders keen to build a leaner version closer to the outgoing V4, so while the new Ripley is for sure more of a trail bike than ever, it hasn’t forgotten its lightweight, pedal based heritage. 

Riding the new Ripley V5

We’ve been very lucky to have the new Ibis Ripley for a few weeks through its launch, with Neil, Tom and Innes all getting some trail time logged across a good mix of the local trails from the jumps of Glentress to XC epics and even some of the steeper Golfie tracks.

With the Ripley well known as an exceptional climbing bike, the new version has a lot to live up to in that department. Happily, despite the slight bump in weight compared to the V4, the Ripley is still extremely willing to head uphill. The seated climbing position is excellent, with the rider well positioned to put power down and the relatively low stack keeping a decent amount of weight naturally on the front wheel for steep climbs. 

On technical terrain, the DW link does a decent job of holding the bike up in the travel while still allowing suspension movement over root and square edges under pedal torque. Traversing low angle terrain is also dealt with well, with the bike carrying speed and cleanly turning rider effort into forward motion. Our test bike came with a sturdy, trail focused, set of Send 35 rims and relatively grippy tires, but a move to a lighter wheelset and a faster rolling tire set would increase climbing and traversing speed even more for an XC biased rider. It may not be a sharp XC race machine, but it’s still a bike that’s at the efficient and pedal friendly end of the trail bike spectrum.

It’s when it comes to descending that the V5 really stands apart from the previous model. With drastically slacker angles and 10mm more travel compared to the V4, the new Ripley can be comfortably ridden through much harder terrain than was previously possible. No longer a beefed up XC racer, the Ripley 5 is now a proper trail bike, and able to ride just about anything you might come across. With a chassis shared with the new Ripmo, this should maybe be no surprise.

On smoother trails it’s absolutely in its element, pumping and generating speed well, with the new geometry giving it a calmer character at pace than the outgoing bike. Larger hits are handled well with plenty of bottom out resistance and it’s easy to generate height on jumps. Innes spent a good chunk of time sessioning on the new Black freeride sections at Glentress and really liked the Ripley there, finding it super responsive and poppy compared to his regular HD6 enduro bike.

Faster singletrack is a similar story, with the V5 accelerating quickly, generating speed from the trail well and switching direction quickly. Much calmer at speed than before, while it may be a longer and slacker bike now on paper, it still has a lively feel, reacting quickly to inputs and allowing for easy line changes and hops. It’s on this kind of terrain that Neil liked the bike best, feeling it was perfectly suited to a rider who spends their time on faster, lower angle trails (like most UK trail centres) where a manoeuvrable and quick bike is a real benefit.

Pushed into harder technical trail, the limitations of the 130mm chassis do finally begin to appear. All our team rode the Ripley through ground it’s not really intended for, and while the slacker geometry lets it go anywhere, once the speeds and impacts start to pick up the shorter travel and quicker handling does become more apparent, with the Ripley noticeably more nervous than the Ripmo, requiring more input from the rider to keep things on track.  

Innes still really liked the bike on the off-piste trails, riding it fast on New York New York and feeling it kept him on his toes, while Neil and Tom both felt that while the Ripley handled technical ground decently well, there was an upper speed limit that could be achieved before things started to get a bit wild. Ultimately, riders who are looking for a bike to excel at this type of riding will simply be better served by the Ripmo and the extra travel it brings to the party.

Overall then, the new Ripley V5 adds more cushioning and stability compared to the previous version, but hasn’t completely lost its old place, still being biased towards faster, smoother trails, distance rides and efficiency. Much like the Ripmo, it’s one of those models which could be an excellent only bike, but where the Ripmo is an Enduro bike which does a surprisingly good job in more mellow terrain, the Ripley is a great all round trail riding bike, which can either be pushed into chunkier ground, or a more XC direction with no more than a switch of tires. For someone who likes trail centre riding, smoother singletrack and open hill epics, it could be almost perfect.

We’ve limited stock on the new Ripley V5, give us a call or message if you’d like to see one in person or don't see what you're after on the website.

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