A little bit of a pre-Eurobike titbit for you as Evil have updated the following 29er trail bike with 20mm longer reach for 2018.

Evil are calling the Following MB (or More Better’er) and it’s available to order on their website now. The front end now gives you a 452mm reach in size large, this is definitely an improvement in our eyes but it’s still a way off the likes of the Norco Optic (464mm) or the Transition Smuggler (grows to 475mm for 2018).

Also new for 2018 is a trunnion mounted, piggy back shock, one of the beefiest shocks we’ve seen on a trail bike with such small travel. Evil have also adopted the Boost standard that, along with added stiffness, has allowed for the use of Plus size wheels if you so desire. Also boosting stiffness is the switch to 1x drivetrains only, no front mech mount means a stiffer and cleaner frame.

Oh yeah, and it still looks sexy as f…

From Evil:

“Everybody’s favorite 120mm of fun just got a little better’er. We picked up right where the original Following left off and decided to make the party between your legs a little longer and stiffer, but not slacker or lower. The Following is back and more better’er with a trunnion mounted metric piggy-back shock, boost and an integrated chain guide. Now you can have all that big bike fun in a shorter travel package. Sometimes less really is more. Now you can tell everyone your 120mm rides way bigger than it looks and rarely bottoms out.

“The Following MB has been updated with trunnion mounted metric piggy-back shock, boost spacing and a few other things to handle higher speeds and bike park style riding. Moving to 148 x 12 spacing and a 1x drivetrain adds stiffness in key areas while maintaining the compliance necessary to make this thing track in the roughest corners. The trunnion mount allows the shock to run on two of our linkage bearings, which not only makes the initial stroke smoother but allows the suspension to be more active throughout the travel. Geometry has been maintained with the exception of an additional 20mm in reach, which opens up the cockpit a bit and provides a longer more stable wheelbase while maintaining our signature berm slashing 430mm chainstays. The leverage rate curve has been slightly updated to handle those days when landings are an oversight. We have also added support for various piggy-back, coil and inline shocks so you can build a lightweight XC/Trail slayer or a Pacific Northwest shredder.

“The new Following MB is both 29″ and 27.5+! So, for those of you who want rock crawling climbing traction coupled with the ability to reshape gravel into a berm then go ahead and wedge a set of balloons in this bad boy! You will not be disappointed.

“Four bikes, one frame… The Following MB can really span categories, with adjustable geometry designed around 120-140mm forks and piggy-back shocks. You can build a lightweight 120mm x 120mm trail bike with an inline shock or opt for a light duty enduro rig with a 140mm fork and a piggy-back shock. As if this wasn’t enough options, you can throw some plus balloons on there and get a fast bike that rides on rails and can virtually pull itself up anything.”