Morewood Bikes Sukuma 2013
Reviews / Enduro Bikes
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At a glance
Morewood Bikes have produced some of my favourite downhill orientated bikes over the years so I was as keen as mustard to get my hands on the Sukuma when it arrived.
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With that in mind I was stood in my riding gear when the bike was delivered and had it up and running in in no time!
Tech heads
The Sukuma sports 150mm of rear wheel travel and features the Dave Weagle Split Pivot design that helps to eliminate the effects of braking and acceleration on the suspension.
With the exception of the seat stays which are carbon the tube set is 6061 aluminium and features a tapered head tube, 142x12 rear axle spacing, direct mount front derailleur, 30.9mm seat tube and a 92mm press fit bottom bracket.
The shock on this European build spec model is a 200x57 Fox RP23 and the fork is a Fox Float 32.
SRAM takes care of drivetrain duties for the most part with the Shimano Front Derailleur breaking the norm. Braking comes courtesy of a set of Formula R1s.
DT Swiss Tricon wheels get a pair of Schwalbe Nobby Nics as boots. A Morewood seat post is topped off with a Stella Gobi saddle and steering comes via the excellent Spank Oozy bar and stem.
Morewood Sukuma Medium
Seat tube 460mm
Effective top tube 585mm
Head tube 120mm
Chain stay 428mm
Front triangle 688mm
Wheel base 1116mm
BB height +5mm
Head angle 67.5°
Seat angle 72.5°
Reach 401mm
Stack 582mm
Weight w/o pedals 27.9lbs
On the trail
The initial feeling on the Sukuma was one of confidence, straight away the bike just felt right.
The combination of fit, good geometry, wide bars and an inspiring suspension feel had me charging through the woods like a loon within minutes and that sense of ‘ride it like you stole it’ stayed with me throughout the test.
Sukuma means ‘arise’ or ‘awaken’ and while the Morewood is a very comfortable bike when cruising, it truly comes to life when awoken. Stamp on the pedals hard and you get launched forward, whether climbing or hammering out of corners the effect is the same, there is an urgency that is infectious.
The geometry is perfectly matched to the ‘hammer it’ personality of the Sukuma, balanced and confident you have to push hard to break the bike into drifts, but once drifting control is just right.
There is a depth to the suspension that makes it feel planted yet there is enough progression that when you push into it the suspension pushes back giving a lovely degree of ‘pop’ that is just plain fun to ride.
Kit wise the spec on the Sukuma is excellent though I would prefer a beefier fork up front for stiffness, however the damping of the non-CTD fork was pretty good. Add a dropper seat post to the mix and there is little else that needs changing.
For
The magic formula for any bike is a combination of fit, geometry and suspension.
In the Sukuma Morewood have hit a sweet spot and the reasonable spec means that you are equipped with a bike that just works.
The Formula brakes never missed a beat, the shifting was excellent, the wheels are stiff and light and the Schwable Nobby Nics proved a capable and fast tyre rather than a stunning grip fest.
Against
Personally I would rather the Sukuma came as a 2 x 10 set up as I simply do not find I need a triple anymore and I would prefer to lose the 44T and spec the rear derailleur down to a medium cage one.
Overall
As you can tell I liked riding the Morewood Sukuma, in fact I loved it and was genuinely sad to see it go back.
It does everything I would want my trail bike to do and it encourages me as it is doing it, I lost track of the number of times I rode a trail and at the end of it realised I was blowing hard because I had pushed hard, then pushed harder.
The Morewood Sukuma is a blast to ride, it is fast and fun and should be on every aggressive trail riders shortlist, thanks Morewood, I enjoyed that test.
Videos
This review was in Issue 23 of IMB.
For more information visit Morewood BikesRelated
By Nigel Garrood
Nigel Garrood was one of the instigators of the IMB project and has been with us since the very beginning. This loveable rogue has more stories than the Bible and is known to enjoy a beer or two. On the bike, he’s fast and loose and often puts younger riders to shame. Equally he’s been known to suffer from the odd crash and carries the scars to prove it. He was once referred to as being a robot sent from the future to save us all!
