Evil defined the progressive geometry, short-travel, 29er mountain bike genre with its Following, launched back in 2015.
The Seattle company is fiercely independent and to keep its Following leading the way, the 2020 bike features a range of upgrades.
Although the overall carbon frame aesthetic might look very similar to previous Followings, this new version is longer and has a wider rear triangle, which still cycles through 120mm of suspension travel.
Evil’s Following is renowned for its intriguing Dave Weagle patented rear-suspension linkage and the brand has not altered kinematics. Most of the noticeable changes will be found in the Following’s geometry chart.
The front triangle has been stretched with a six per cent increase in reach, which now measures 480mm on a size large Following. Evil has remained committed to its detailed engineering intuition with the Following’s design. Instead of attempting to compete with rivals by fashioning radical geometry for the sake of impressive numbers.
Designed to run either a 120- or 130mm front fork, the 2020 Following remains an agile trail bike in purpose. Its head angle is shaped at a mild 67.2-degrees (66.4 with a 130mm fork), resisting the current trend towards ultra-slack head angles.
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Where Evil has been daring with the new Following’s technical details, is the rear hub spacing, which now homes a 12 x 157mm hub. This generous axle spacing allows for the strongest possible wheel builds and increased rear-triangle strength, which takes some load of the Following’s pivot bearings.
Cable routing has been improved with an all-internal solution and despite the rear shock suspension linkage having a complicated appearance, there is ample clearance to run a variety of shock options. The standard Following shock is RockShox’s Deluxe Ultimate RCT, but trail riders who wish to push the bike to its limits will find adequate clearance at the mounting points for coil shock options.
Evil’s new Following will be available in two colours – protein powder and black. Pricing starts at $3099 for a frame and shock, with builds priced between $5,799 and $7,399.
