Some fork brace clearance issues but this is one amazing ride.

You may be saying to yourself by now that the bikes I'm talking about won't be the best at anything. This is true (not fastest up or downhill, not the lightest or the strongest) but what they are best at is doing everything. Specialist bikes are usually terrible at several things each. I don't plan on going on a ride with no climbs or perhaps no descents, I want to go and ride mountains (these often have both, DUH!) and I want to have fun all day without feeling like I got on the wrong side of Mike Tyson. Does any of this sound like the way you ride? No? tough.This is the point where many an article wimps out and refuses to name names that fit the bill for 'Best mountain bike in the world'. But not this article. This article kicks butt. So who makes the best mountain bikes? Specialized, Ellsworth, Santa Cruz and Marin. How many of you have I upset now? That many? Gulp. OK there are dozens more manufacturers who have produced at least one truly excellent bike, if not more. But these companies stand out for their obsessive reluctance to sell any bad bikes at all. Just in case you think I'm more biased than a party political spin doctor, remember I currently own a two year old K2 Proflex (great bike for sure) and I don't get paid for this website. There, I'm purer than the driven snow, and you know what snow looks like when it's been driven on....