Mountain Bike Enduro Bikes Reviews
Transition Bikes Spire CF
The Spire is Transition's big travel, big wheeled trail bike. Available in both aluminium and carbon with various different build kits this bike comes at a wide range of price points. The Spire is available from Small to XX-Large, has 170mm of travel and rolls on 29’’ wheels. Price: 6499 GBP (carbon) 3699 GBP (alloy) The product With many spec...
Unno Burn
The Burn is Unno’s answer to the demand for a high end, exclusive 160mm travel enduro machine. With a unique look and well thought out design the Spanish brand has created a showstopper. Price: 3995 EUR frame or from 8395 EUR complete The product For those around long enough to remember the early days of World Cup DH racing, the name...
Merida Bikes OneSixty 10K
Manufacturing giant Merida has just released its brand new 160mm travel enduro machine. Besides a brand new geometry, the frame is packed with features and options to provide their most high end enduro machine to date. It is available in 5 different build kits, 7 different colors and 5 different frame sizes. Price: starting from 4600 GBP / 5760 EUR...
Orbea Bicycles Rallon
The Rallon is Orbea’s weapon in the enduro world. Sporting 160mm travel in the rear and a full carbon frameset with flip chip adjustable geometry. Although designed around 29’’ wheels, it can easily be turned into a mullet setup if you’re looking for a more playful ride. The Rallon is available in 4 different build specs, and as a frame...
Rocky Mountain Bicycles Altitude
Rocky Mountains go to Enduro machine, available in 27,5” and 29” wheel size and either Alloy or Carbon. With 170mm in the front and 160 in the rear it will tackle anything you throw at it. The product The Altitude has 160mm of rear wheel travel with a 170mm fork, with different wheel size options depending on the frame size...
Cannondale Bicycles Jekyll
Price: 6999 EUR / 6750 GBP The Jekyll is Cannondales high pivot four bar linkage machine with 165mm of travel for those big mountain adventures. About the brand Cannndale was founded back in 1971 by Joe Montgomery and Murdock MacGregor to manufacture precast concrete housing. Later Ron Davis came to Cannondale. Ron, a gifted mechanical designer/inventor, had ideas for an...
Stanton Bikes Switch9er FS Ti
The Stanton Switch9er FS Ti is a one of a kind piece of art. It’s not every day you come across a titanium/carbon full suspension mountain bike. Available as a frame only or with a shock included, this is the ultimate base for a one of a kind custom build. Rocking 140mm of progressive travel and modern geometry you can...
Ibis Cycles Ripmo AF
The IBIS Ripmo AF is the alloy version of the classic carbon Ripmo, Ibis’ 150mm travel enduro machine. It features a 64.9 degree head angle, DW Link suspension design and can be run with either a coil or air shock. The bike is built to take a 160mm travel fork, 29’’ wheels and can take up to 2.6’’ wide tires....
Scott Bicycles Ransom 9000 Tuned AXS
SCOTT’s answer to ‘How to ride it all, fast’. The brand new Ransom is kitted with 170mm of travel front and rear and comes with 29’’ wheels but a flip chip allows you to switch to 27,5’’ in a blink. It’s available in 5 different build kits with either a carbon or alloy frame. The product Ever since its launch...
YT Industries Jeffsy Core 2
In a sea of big wheeled All Mountain bikes, there is little on offer for the 27,5 enthousiast. The 160mm travel Jeffsy Core 2 is a bike that stands out from the crowd. At 2999 Euro / 2649 GBP / 2999 USD the Fox / Sram equipped machine is delivered with an aluminium frame. The Jeffsy is also offered with...
Santa Cruz Bicycles Bronson XT
Santa Cruz Bronson XT Brand: Santa Cruz Model: Bronson XT Price: 6799 EURO / 6949 USD The Bronson is Santa Cruz’s dedicated mullet bike. The heart of the carbon frame is the VPP suspension system delivering 150mm of travel. It is available in 2 colors, 7 build kits and 5 different sizes. We tried out the XL sized Shimano XT...
CUBE Bikes Stereo 170 SL
Continuing from the well-received Stereo 150, Cubes latest addition to the Stereo range is the long travel Stereo 170. The Stereo range has never had such a long travel bike, but modern riders are now demanding more travel, bigger wheels and very little in the way of compromise. Cube has not strayed too far from the traditional Stereo design and...
Marin Bikes Mount Vision 9
Marin returns once more with a Naild equipped bike aiming to create the ultimate trail bike. Marin now has two R3ACT - 2 Play bikes in the range: the Wolf Ridge, which is a 160mm fast and light trail bike; and the Mount Vision we have here, a 150mm do-it-all trail bike for harder hitting applications. That's right, travel no...
Pole Bicycles Machine
Pole is a Finnish company that have been causing quite a stir in the world of geometry and bike manufacturing. Initially making waves with truly progressive geometry, they went on to experiment with carbon before scrapping that idea and heading into the world of machining and glue. Unafraid to try something new and different, Pole went ahead and created the...
Polygon Bikes Siskiu N9
Relatively unseen in Europe, Polygon have flown under the radar somewhat but are beginning to show us what we’ve all been missing over here, with some bold designs and some exceedingly well-priced bikes that have begun to get the market’s attention. Being the owners of their own factories means that Polygon is able to build bikes at a range of...
Pivot Cycles Firebird 29
Earlier this year, Pivot filled one of the last gaps in their range with the arrival of a long travel 29er. Previously, the Switchblade had been their most progressive big wheeler, but this still had trail bike tendencies and was an excellent ride in those scenarios but not in bigger terrain. Their biggest hitting non-DH bike was the Firebird, which...
Marin Bikes Alpine Trail 7
We all know that Marin is back in the game with some great bikes, and are certainly not afraid to try new things. They've pushed hard into the lower end of the price spectrum while simultaneously releasing the Wolf Ridge, their head-turning, top-end trail bike. Their bikes are coming fast from all angles. Building on the success of the Rift...
Ghost Bikes FR AMR 8.7 AL
25-year-old Bavarian bike manufacturer Ghost Bikes has a diverse list of bikes aimed at those who love to ride hard, and their latest revamped FR AMR sits proudly at the top of the list. What we have here is a mini-DH bike, freeride park toy and enduro weapon all rolled into one. The frame has been revised from its predecessor...
Radon Swoop 8.0
The Swoop is Radon’s 29 inch wheeled enduro bike, designed primarily for hitting big things, fast! There’s a range of 3 models with some rather tasty prices too – this entry-level (if we can even call it that!) Swoop 8.0 on test comes in at just 2499 Euros for the full bike, which is considerably cheaper than many manufacturers frame-only...
Marin Bikes Alpine Trail 8
It's with great sadness that my Alpine Trail is returning to Marin, having provided me with a fantastic bike for the year and a sturdy testbed for numerous parts. The Alpine Trail 8 sits one above the 7 and is the top model but still relatively amenable on the wallet. Although it was tested initially as spec, it has been...
Nukeproof Mega 275c Factory
Last year was a big year for Nukeproof, not only launching their new re-vamped range but also making waves in both the Enduro and Downhill scene. Sam Hill came, saw and conquered the EWS with trademark style, and although it wasn't a walk in the park, he reaffirmed himself as the best in the world. Just when you thought he...
Giant Bicycles Reign 1
It's not uncommon to see a battle-scarred Reign out on the trails, testament to the fact that these bikes have always been held in high regard and last the test of time. The name may have remained the same, and the suspension system similar, but year on year they quietly evolve with incremental improvements rather than drastic redesigns. Perhaps not...
Canyon Bicycles Strive CF 9.0 Team
It was once the case that buying a bike from Canyon was a sure fire way of getting an incredible deal on some Gucci parts that would have otherwise left you in tears at the checkout. The trade-off was that although you’d get a great overall bike, those parts might be allied to a workman-like frame - functional all day...
CUBE Bikes Stereo 150 TM 29
The story behind the new Stereo has already been told when I wrote up the first ride a few months back. In short, Cube's enduro team had access to a long travel 650b bike but chose to ride the shorter travel 29er (stereo 140) and Greg Callaghan ended up winning the Irish round of the EWS on board the big...
Pivot Cycles Switchblade
2017 is an important year for Pivot, with two new bikes creating waves in the highly competitive trail and enduro market. Creators of top end bikes with price tags to match, Pivot have produced both the Switchblade and it's bigger brother, the Firebird. Both feature new geometry and new technology to create machines to make mountain bikers go weak at...
Nukeproof Mega 290 Pro
A year ago the new Mega 290 started making a powerful statement that Nukeproof were once again ahead of the curve and producing fresh and exciting bikes. Although available in the 650b version, rumours were flying that the 29er version was an absolute monster, and was converting riders hand over fist to the bigger wheels. When my pre-production tester came...
Pivot Cycles Firebird
For Pivot, there are two big bikes of the year, the Switchblade, tested recently, and the Firebird seen here. Both obviously share the same genes, but more than that, they represent a step forward in the evolution of Pivot bikes. Boost, refined rear ends, and longer geometry bring them to the forefront of modern mountain bike design as some of...
Rocky Mountain Bicycles Altitude Carbon 50
Rocky Mountain seems to be having a bit of an overhaul at the moment, with new bikes hitting the trails all over the place. The new Slayer, launched last year, has been snapped up so quickly they are exceptionally hard to get hold of. I count myself lucky to have even touched a Slayer, let alone ride one! Whilst the...
DMR Bikes Sled
The Sled was always going to be an exciting bike. Ever since I got wind of the new machine last year, it was clear that DMR were not going to be messing about. There are obviously a couple of aspects about this bike that makes it stand proud from the rest of the DMR fleet. Firstly it is their first...
Liv Hail Advanced
Calling all ladies out there! You are about to lay your eyes on a very tasty, women’s specific all-mountain bike, which ticks all the boxes of an aggressive and slack geometry enduro rig. This is a bike that makes an instant impression. If you didn’t already know, Liv is the sister brand to Giant Bicycles and has only been on...
Merida Bikes ONE SIXTY 7000
With Merida giving their range a massive overhaul this year, there has been a lot of excitement around a certain all-mountain/enduro bike they were releasing - the One-Sixty! The model is available in three builds with this bike we have on test, the One-Sixty 7000, sitting in the middle of the range. Merida are from Taiwan, the home of bike...
Transition Bikes Patrol 2
The Patrol has been on a wish list of mine for a good while now, having first had a drool over it a couple of years ago when the brand brought it to the European stage at Eurobike. The Covert was previously a key player in the Transition line-up, an all-mountain rig that became the trusted favourite of many a...
Commencal Meta AM V4.2 Race
The Commencal Meta range has a pedigree that seems to go back to the dawn of time almost, it’s been a hugely popular bike for the brand. In the early days it was defining All Mountain and these days is synonymous with enduro. Available in various guises we were big fans of the new Meta 4 when it was launched...
Saracen Ariel LT
British brand Saracen is back with a bang, though for those in the know they never really went away. One of the original brands from the early days of mountain bikes, those riders of a certain age will have an understanding of where Saracen have come from. Their story to this point has not been straightforward, with the brand going...
Trek Bikes Slash 9.8
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Six years ago Trek developed this suspension design, it was hugely successful and they’ve stuck with it. The Slash 9.8 is a very well thought out and brilliantly executed application of this platform aimed at the enduro rider looking for a highly capable 27.5 wheeled machine. The design criteria for this discipline of...
Nukeproof Mega 290 Pro
Developed originally for its namesake race, the Mega was one of the very earliest bikes to combine exceptional downhill performance with pedal-ability, commonly now known as enduro bikes. This year the Mega has received an overhaul and has come out the other side looking like a decidedly different beast, not least due to the offering of a 29er version. This...