The Ibis Ripley AF, by 10 mm at both ends. The Ripley AF runs 140 mm up front and 130 mm rear; the Element runs 130 mm front and 120 mm rear (120/120 on the C99 flagship).

That's a meaningful gap on chunky terrain — the Ripley AF positions itself as a true trail bike, while the Element is firmly in the downcountry bracket. On flow trails and smooth singletrack you won't notice it; on bigger drops or rocky descents the Ripley AF has more cushion in reserve.

Ibis sells a separate carbon Ripley platform — the AF (Aluminum Frame) is the more affordable parallel line. The launch reviewer, who owns the carbon Ripley, weighed the test bike at 33.7 lb versus 33.6 lb for his carbon — a 0.1 lb difference attributed largely to component choices, not the frame material.

If you want the carbon version, it exists; this comparison is about the AF specifically because it sits at a price point the Element doesn't reach.

It's a flip chip in the rear suspension link that lets you adjust the head tube angle, seat tube angle, and shock progression across four positions. Reviewers measured the head angle range at roughly 65.0 to 65.8 degrees depending on setting, with corresponding seat-angle and BB-height shifts.

In practice: steeper for snappier climbing on tight switchbacks, slacker for high-speed descending composure. The Ripley AF has a flip chip too, but it's only for swapping between full 29er and mullet (mixed wheel) setups — not geometry tuning.

Both have caveats. The 2025 Element specifically addressed the previous generation's seat-stay pivot bearing failures by upgrading to reinforced dual-row bearings pressed into bonded alloy sleeves rather than directly into carbon. The flex-stay design also eliminates one pivot point entirely, reducing service load.

The Element's open question is the press-fit bottom bracket, which Bikepacking notes will likely creak eventually, and Rocky Mountain's recent corporate restructuring raises questions about long-term parts and warranty support.

The Ripley AF is straightforward — alloy frame, threaded BB-style serviceability, no electronic components on either build. The launch review flagged a single missing cable port bolt as the only frame issue.

You can race anything on anything, but the Ripley AF isn't the right tool. It's 140/130 with trail-bike geometry and around 33.7 lb in the build the launch reviewer tested — heavier and slacker than the XC race brief.

The Element is the XC-leaning option here, especially the C70 or C99 builds. The Carbon 99 builds out around 26 lb (about 11.88 kg per Enduro MTB's test), uses a Flight Attendant electronic suspension system that auto-firms for sprints, and was reviewed as 'punching well above its weight class' in the downcountry bracket.

Both bikes ship with brakes that drew criticism. The Ripley AF uses SRAM G2 4-piston brakes with organic pads — the launch reviewer specifically called out a 'lack of confidence' and recommended swapping to metallic pads or upgrading the system entirely.

The Element's higher builds use SRAM Level Stealth 4-piston brakes, which multiple reviewers (Singletracks, MBA, Enduro MTB) flagged for a mushy bite point and brake fade on long descents. The C30 build runs Shimano Deore brakes, which generally fare better in reviews.

Neither is a deal-breaker, but factor a brake or pad upgrade into your budget if you ride steep terrain regularly.

Rocky Mountain replaced a traditional chainstay pivot with engineered carbon flex in the seat stays. Reviewers consistently report two effects: the rear triangle is laterally stiffer (Bikepacking's reviewer noted it 'felt noticeably stiffer when climbing out of the saddle'), and the bike sheds about 350 g of frame weight versus the previous generation.

Under pedaling the flex-stay reportedly stays firm in the first 50–60% of travel, only flexing toward the end of the stroke — meaning power transfer feels direct on climbs while the rear wheel still tracks well in corners and under compression.

The Element, fairly clearly. It carries two full-size bottle mounts on the downtube on most sizes plus an accessory mount under the top tube — Rocky Mountain explicitly designed it for long-distance use. Bikepacking.com's review treats it as a credible bikepacking platform.

The Ripley AF has internal frame storage (rare at its price point) but doesn't match the Element's external mounting flexibility. For day rides with a hip pack, internal storage is arguably more practical; for multi-day trips with a full kit, the Element's mount layout wins.