Just ride the damn bike

"So is this an all mountain bike, or a trail bike, is it more enduro or more cross country?"   I am really getting sick of these questions.  

 What the fuck is a "Trail Bike?"  Wouldn't that be a bike you ride on trails? Aren't all mountain bikes "Trail Bikes" by their nature?  

I'm not gonna ride ALL the mountain, can i get a "most of the mountain" bike? 

Enduro is riding a bike up a hill, and then riding down the hill as fast as you can, which sounds like every bike ride just about every person has done since they've been riding bicycles.

Seriously, stop it. The industry, the magazines, all the forums, are filled with people trying to categorize, and sub categorize, down to genus and species, each goddamn bicycle out there. It's a fucking bicycle.  Ride it.  ride it up the hill, across the hill, and down the hill.  

Average Joe Consumer thinks there is a difference, and as a human, is subject to the human weakness of not wanting to be "behind" or "left out," he wants to be most informed to make the best purchasing decisions. He thinks it matters if the wheel size is one inch larger in diameter, or if the travel is 10 millimeters longer or shorter.  Average Joe Consumer thinks he now needs a bike to climb, then a different bike to ride across the trail, then a third bike to descend.   He thinks "Enduro" is something different than what he's already doing.  

My friend rides his 33 pound 160mm travel bike up a hill, and then down, on the same rides our other friend rides his 27 pound 130mm travel bike, and we all ride together and all have the same amount of fun.  

I know a lady who did the Leadville 100, finished 9th.  She did it on a 26" wheeled bike with flat pedals.  It's the motor, not the bike.  Strong legs and lungs will beat out most technological advantages.  

It's insidious.  The industry knows most people can't have fun doing what they've been doing if they think there is "something better" out there, if there is some advantage that makes climbing easier or bike handling better.  Average Joe Consumer can ride his bike for months and have a great time, but as soon as he hears enough people saying X is better, he starts to doubt his fun, and thinks he needs X.  

Some bikes are better equipped to do certain things better.  I wouldn't ride a hardtail down Porcupine Rim (although i've seen it done), I wouldn't ride a Santa Cruz Superlight 29er downhill in Whistler, and I wouldn't ride a Giant Reign in Bend Oregon.  I wouldn't do any of those things, but they can be done, and have, and it's ok.  

Stop worrying about what kind of bike it is.  Know what you want and need in a bike, find the bike that fits you best and meets your criteria (how much travel, slack or steep geometry, etc) and that is the bike for you.  If you ride it downhill, it's your downhill bike.  If you ride it cross country, it's your cross country bike, and if