It’s been a while since we posted a proper review – three years maybe?  That said, I’ve been riding my custom-built Revel Ritual enduro bike for the last three months and thought I would put my thoughts together, as it’s potentially the perfect bike for our BC trips in 2026 and I’ve received quite a few questions on the forums and social media about the bike.  Could this be a sneak peak into next year’s demo bike partnership?  Possibly, stay tuned.  😉

While I do have a connection with Revel from working with them in the past, I bought the Ritual with my own money and custom built the bike from the frame up – no industry hook-ups here, and these are my honest thoughts.  I have had the bike since late August (3+ months at the time of this writing) and have ridden it on trails in BC, the PNW, and here in Colorado both in the high country and on the Front Range with both steep and rowdy trails.  If you’ve seen my reviews in the past, you’ll know that I like to keep things pretty simple and straightforward – if you want tech details, there are plenty of other places to find those!  (I highly recommend the Blister review, they always do a great job)

About the Bike

Ever since we partnered with Revel back in ’21-22 and I rode the Rail 29 – their first take at a longer travel bike – I’ve been waiting for them to release a proper CBF-equipped enduro bike that could handle steeps.  To me, the Rail was a bit twitchy and more of a longer travel trail bike… the Ritual is not that.  The Ritual has modern geometry to match just about any enduro bike on the market, and for my style of riding it’s near perfect: 77* STA, 64* STA.  The steeper STA helps you settle in on long climbs, and the CBF suspension platform is like a magic carpet when the trail starts getting technical.

One thing I want touch on that’s not mentioned in many reviews:  the build and paint quality of the most recent Revel frames is second to none.  Pictures and online reviews don’t do justice to how beautiful this frame is in person.  The paint job is immaculate, and the finishes are right up there with the best in the industry.  When I pulled the frame out of the box for the first time, my jaw dropped.  They recently moved their production to a new facility in Taiwan and have a more hands-on approach with the manufacturing process, and you can tell.  This bike is dead sexy.

My bike is a full custom build of parts that I personally like – to me, it’s the perfect balance of weight, performance, and durability.  As-is, the bike weighs 32.1 lbs without pedals, which these days is pretty damn light when it comes to an enduro bike capable of handling legit steeps and tech.  I’m 5’11” and have a large frame, although I could probably ride a medium as well (I’ll touch on that more down below). Here are some of the highlights:

• Frame: Revel Ritual, size Large
• Shock: Rockshox Vivid Air
• Fork: Rockshox Zeb Ultimate
• Brakes: SRAM Maven Ultimate w/ 200mm HS2 rotors
• Drivetrain: SRAM X01 Eagle (mechanical)
• Wheels: Roval Traverse SL II front, HD rear w/ DT Swiss 240 hub
• Tires: Specialized Butcher T9 front, Eliminator T7 rear
• Dropper: BikeYoke Revive 185mm
• Stem: Industry Nine A35, 50mm
• Handlebar: TrailOne Carbon 780mm

Climbing

Now remember, this is still a full-on enduro bike:  I’m not going to exaggerate for the sake of the review and say it climbs like a 120mm travel XC whip.  It doesn’t.  That said, the Ritual does climb as well as any other long travel bike I’ve ridden in the last 8-10 years (which is a lot of bikes).  The steeper STA and CBF suspension do well to keep things active but supportive, and I have zero complaints.  I’ll touch on the two main aspects of climbing: overall efficiency and tech.

All of my riding with this bike (and any enduro bike, for that matter) typically entails long, extended climbs followed by long, extended descents.  When it comes that overall efficiency, the Ritual is a top performer.  I’ve done 4-5000′ climbing days at higher elevations (8-12k’) and not once was I wanting more.  It feels like the effort you put into the bike is what you get out of it, vs something like a high-pivot where it leaves you wondering if you’re losing something with drivetrain drag or a wallowy suspension.  With my relatively light setup, I had zero issues on hour-plus climbs and most of the time I forgot I was on a 165mm travel enduro bike.  On fire or logging roads, I always use the climb switch – and for the Ritual, it was no different.  “Locked out” with the Vivid Air isn’t truly locked out, so you can potentially even use the climb switch on smoother singletrack, although anytime I was on an actual trail the rear shock was wide open.

Speaking of shock wide open, when it comes to technical climbing the Ritual stands at the top.  Tech climbing turns into a fun challenge, and there’s not much this bike can’t handle if you’re willing to put in the effort.  The CBF suspension platform (check out Worldwide Cyclery’s video for an in-depth explanation) gives the rear-end all the traction in the world without feeling like you lose efficiency.  For me at 5’11” on a large, the slightly longer wheelbase feels like it adds even more stability and traction when things get really tough.  Are super tight switchbacks more of a challenge?  Sure, but honestly I can’t remember a single time that was an issue on the trails I ride.

Descending

This is why you buy an enduro bike, right?  Whether you’re riding casually, pushing limits, or full-on racing, I think the Ritual can be the perfect bike for a lot of riders.  With a Zeb up front and the ground-hugging Vivid-supported rear end, this bike feels planted in tech and stable at speed.  I’ve ridden the Ritual on a wide variety of enduro-style trails and legit BC tech, and not once have I been wanting more.  FWIW, this is the bike I’ll be riding on both our Whistler and Revelstoke trips in 2026.

BC (Squamish, Whistler, Pemberton): Dark Crystal, Rusty Trombone, Hueso, Value Added, Bush Doctor

PNW (Tiger Mountain, Raging River): Predator, Reverence, Physical Therapy, OTG, EBAD

Colorado (Front Range): White Ranch, Left Hand OHV and some secret stuff I won’t mention

Is it playful?  Compared to other long-travel bikes I’ve ridden in the last few years, I’d personally rate it as middle-of-the-road.  That said, for the type of trails I personally ride, I don’t need/want my bike to be super playful.  I want it to be “manageable”, and the Ritual is that.  Additionally, at 5’11” with shorter legs, I’m pushing the shorter end of the size large frame and the Ritual tends to run a bit big with a longer measured reach.  With this bike I’m very mullet-curious: if I size down to a medium, I can run a MX setup… which would likely give me a bit more of a playful feeling along with the Ritual’s other traits.  But would I sacrifice a bit of the efficiency, roll-over speed and stability of a full 29 setup?

The suspension took a bit to suss out with so many adjustments on the Vivid Air and Lyrik Ultimate but now that it’s dialed, the bike almost feels effortless to rip downhill.  I ended up adding one click of HSC both front and rear to help with harsh G-outs and bigger hits, and my LSC compression was about 30-40% closed to give me the support I like when pedaling and pushing into hard corners.  While not quite the ground-hugging feel of a high-pivot, the Ritual is not far off.  I will say that on more mellow trails (such as Engineer Mountain in Durango), riding the Ritual can feel a bit like the proverbial “gun to a knife fight” as it’s not the right tool for the job.

Random Thoughts

• Is this a one-bike quiver?  No, it’s a proper enduro bike, and a damn good one at that.  If your home trails tend to be pedally without full-on tech or if you’re looking for a playful, efficient trail bike, it’s definitely not for you (I recommend the Rascal).  I’ve got it paired with their downcountry shorter-travel Ranger, and I have all my bases covered without any overlap.
• How has the bike held up?  Overall, great.  I haven’t had a single issue with any of the components and the frame is dead silent.  No creaking to mention.  Too silent, maybe.  I’m used to riding I-9 wheels with their infamous “killer bee” hubs, so with a DT Swiss 240 out back and the super-quiet frame, all I hear is the sound of rubber on dirt and rock.  One concern I’ve read online is how the cables are run under the bottom bracket- and while I see how that can be mentally unnerving, I haven’t experienced any issues (including the Rascal and Rail 29 I’ve previously ridden for hundreds of miles).  I built the bike up myself and Revel’s lack of proprietary specs made it a breeze.
• Is there anything I’d change?  About this actual bike, I don’t think so.  I hand-picked the components so no complaints there- you’ll have to make those decisions if you pull the trigger on one of their existing builds.  As I mentioned above, I am mullet-curious about sizing down to a medium, but that’s more of a personal curiosity vs wanting to change the bike itself.  You probably noticed I only run a 185mm dropper post… that’s because I have shorter legs, not because the frame can’t fit something longer.  I’m also a little coil-curious, but I’m not sure I want to deal with the extra weight and going through the setup process.  But putting a Push 11-6 on the back could be a game changer.
• Where does it stack up?  Near the top of my list, TBH.  My previous favorite enduro bike was the Forbidden Dreadnought V1, and I think the Ritual edges it out overall with its combination of overall performance, stability, ease of maintenance and build quality.  There have definitely been more efficient climbers that have a bit less travel, but I personally like the Ritual better when it comes to descending and overall ride experience.  I’m willing to work a bit harder on the climbs if it means a party on the downs.
• Who is the bike for?  As I started the review off, I think this is for anyone looking for a proper enduro bike for terrain that matches its capabilities.  If you spend a decent amount of time on steep, rowdy, technical trails or you dabble in enduro racing, you should give this bike a look.  Can it be a park bike or a shuttle rig?  Sure, but there are probably better options if that’s all you ride.  If you’re spending a good amount of time pedaling to earn your descents, I don’t see many better options on the market (especially at Revel’s new lower prices).