Giant Anthem X1 review

Steep-angled 100mm-travel full-suspension bikes are normally great for tearing up between the tapes, but Giant’s Anthem X continues to tear up the rule book. Tweaks to the frame for 2011 make it feel like it spent the whole winter down the gym building muscle exactly where it makes the most difference.

The result is a totally ripped all-terrain athlete that’s equally inspirational in terms of ego boosting efficiency and scorching speed on startline or singletrack alike. Add benchmark trail kit and you’ve got an extremely versatile, extreme velocity machine whatever you aim it at. If you're more about GPS and maps than jumping gaps, and more likely to stick a race number on than shin pads, this bike is the outstanding option.

Ride & handling: Delivers an intense and inspirational ride whatever the terrain

It’s not the solidly sorted spec that continues to make the Anthem such a fast favourite; it’s the insatiably rapid and involving ride attitude. Looking at the super-steep head angle and relatively long stem you’d think this bike is something of a dinosaur, but its default setting of devastating speed makes this an alligator of a bike that’s still got no natural predators.

The snap-reaction steering takes some getting used to, with a tendency to twist the front tyre underneath you if you’re pulling too much front brake at low speeds. The longer stem is needed to keep it manageable as you get into a big ring spin and the trail edges start to blur.

The 25lb all-up weight makes acceleration and altitude gain addictively easy too. Even if a recovery pootle rather than predatory pursuit was on the agenda at the start of your ride it won’t last long. You’ll soon find yourself snicking up through the gears, building speed in each one, then the next until you’re skimming down the singletrack and sprinting up climbs rather than dropping gears and dawdling. 

Decent side knobs and that planted cornering precision of the longer stem means there’s no question of backing off in corners either. The new bike adds very noticeable extra fork and frame stiffness for even more accurate feedback and G force fighting tenacity. We’ve lost count of the number of riders who’ve raved about how hard you can push an Anthem through turns or how many riders they’ve scalped by diving underneath them as they’ve slid out of a greasy corner.

Don’t underestimate the amount of control the Anthem wrings out of 4in of suspension movement either. While the colour-coded blue finish was the source of some love/hate debate, nobody complained about the performance of the Fox F11 fork. Up the climbs the next-to-grip lockout lever means you can stomp the pedals round as hard as you can without worrying about bounce and then open the fork for rougher stuff without even taking a thumb off the bars. 

While the FIT cartridge makes it firm over small stuff (run the tyres tubeless if you want ultimate smoothness) its ability to swallow serious hits without coughing up control is outstanding for a race fork. A through-axle and tapered steerer means there’s no slur or deviation in the steering either opening up more cornering, off camber and overtaking opportunities than most forks.

The back end is similarly sorted, with the option to run a buoyant open setting of three different levels of ProPedal low-speed compression damping giving as firm or as fluid a ride as you want. Ground clearance is an occasional issue but the Maestro suspension lets you keep the power on whatever is happening under your wheels, and traction is wonderfully consistent.

Rear end stiffness and damping composure mean no ricochet or need to ‘collect’ control even after substantial drops or sequential hits. The Maxxis CrossMark tyres are a lot tougher than most race rubber too, making rock rips less of a worry when you’re going off piste. While it’s no all-mountain cockpit setup, the little bit of lift and extra leverage from the mid-width riser compared to the traditional racer flat bar makes getting the front wheel off the ground or correcting a slide a lot easier than normal.

Frame & equipment: Newly pumped-up chassis plus sorted parts spec

The big changes for 2011 are an ‘Over Drive’ tapered head tube, ‘Mega Drive’ oversized down tube and press-fit ‘Power Drive’ bottom bracket. These mean significant steering and pedalling stiffness gains up front. A two-piece linkage replaces the previous bolted linkage while a post-style rear brake mount saves bracket weight at the far end of the swingarm. So while the actual frame is no lighter it’s a significantly stiffer proposition that builds a lighter overall bike.

In terms of kit, Giant have kept it simple. Shimano’s triple-ring XT might not be the lightest groupset – particularly compared to SRAM’s 2x10 setups – but it’s reliable and much longer lasting. The longevity theme continues with the tough XT wheels, which also add tubeless tyre running capability. Maxxis CrossMark tyres still surprise us with their combination of rolling speed and grip in all but the sloppiest conditions. 

The Fox fork and shock combo is another control enhancing benchmark and Giant’s own-brand low-riser bar is a decent width for adding steering authority. The Giant stem and seatpost are good too, while Fizik’s long, firm second generation Tundra 2 is a great saddle for mileage-hardened hindquarters.

Source:bikeradar.com 

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Haro Flightline Comp Review

The long established Haro brand is probably better know for its BMX rigs. The UK distributor doesn’t bring in the complete mountain bike range but the 2011 hardtails look great. As with many of its price rivals, a Flightline Comp can be found for less than its RRP if you’re willing to shop around. That’s a good thing, as it’s up against better-equipped bikes at this price.

The Flightline Comp has a great frame and rides well but we expect to find a better fork than a RockShox Dart at this price. It’s hefty and under-equipped for its RRP, but worth considering if you find one for less.

Ride & handling: Overall trail feel is good

There are lighter bikes available around the £800 mark: its 30lb heft is noticeable in initial acceleration and on climbs. But overall trail feel is good, with only the mediocre fork performance reminding you that rough trails need extra body language when riding on a budget fork. The ride position is well stretched for efficient power transfer on long climbs, the steering is very nicely balanced on even the most technically demanding singletrack and the super-soft saddle and soft compound grips add to trail comfort. A 12in bottom bracket height boosts stability but takes a while to get used to, initially causing pedal/ ground strikes through bumpy corners.

Frame: Nicely designed

The frame has double-butted top, seat and down tubes. Swoopy hydroformed biaxially ovalised shaping to the top and down tubes creates great aesthetics and boosts tracking stiffness, while smooth-welded tube junctures make for a very clean look, flattered by the integral headset and full-outer-cable routing. Standover height is roomy and there are three sets of bottle cage bosses and rack mounts. 

Equipment: Fork and crankset are downgrades

The RockShox Dart 2 fork has decent factory set compression damping, a ‘lockout lever’ that still leaves a small amount of compression and a preload dial to increase the pressure it takes to compress the fork. That’s all fine, and the 100mm of travel is welcome, but skinny stanchions contribute to noticeable flex, especially when braking hard on bumpy terrain.

The drivetrain package starts well, with an XT rear gear matched to Deore up front and Deore shifters, but a steel ringed square taper-axled bottom bracket Truvativ crankset, while it works well enough, is a downgrade compared to a lot of other bikes we’ve seen around this price. While there’s nothing actually wrong with it - the bottom bracket will actually cost less to replace than some higher spec units - you’d save weight and get more drivetrain stiffness on better units.

Basic Shimano hydraulic disc brakes take a few rides to bed in but they have enough power to suit all but the most demanding riders. The WTB-rimmed wheels are tough enough and Kenda’s Kadre treads roll fast and grip well in the dry but clog in sticky mud. No complaints about Haro’s own brand Pivit finishing kit though. The 25in riser bars are a good happy medium between wide riser bars that are great for extra control off road and narrower straight bars that are probably better if lots of your miles are on the road. The Haro Race saddle is a good compromise too, slimline but supportive and comfy.

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Mongoose Fireball Review

Like GT, Mongoose are a brand with a deep BMX heritage, which shows in their hardcore MTBs. The Fireball might be low on their jump bike menu, but it still packs an excellent frame and highlighted componentry pack for a confident kick-ass ride on dirt, street or wherever else you take it.

Frame

You're certainly getting a great frame for your money here as it's the same frame as the top line Hardball. The big square headed main tubes get an embossed Mongoose logo for extra pimp appeal, and there's a neat shallow gusset underneath the thick wall head tube. The flat-topped top tube drops away steeply for maximum crotch clearance, with a seatpost quick release for easy height adjustment. The monster block profile seatstays run almost parallel down to the back wheel, while even deeper rectangular chainstays link to the bottom bracket with solid slab sections and welded pipe bridges. The real winning details on this frame are the massive open box horizontal dropouts. These come complete with neat screw-adjusted wheel carriers that also hold the rear mech plate.

The Fireball is perfect for use as a single gear set-up, and slotted brake mounts also mean easy alignment on either geared or singlespeed set-ups should you decide to upgrade to discs at a later date. Cable/hose mounts for discs are all present and correct, although the above top tube routing carries a small risk of catching your feet if you don't 'step through' high enough. The frame certainly has all-the-way upgrade potential as your riding progresses.

Ride

It's quickly obvious that the Fireball is slightly weightier than the other bikes here, but that translates into a fantastic feeling of total security in sketchy ground situations and reassuring stability in the air. It has no trouble getting every bit of drive you can supply through to the back wheel either, and it kicks hard off start lines or out of corners. The high bottom bracket also lets you get the power down even when you're right over in a turn.

This does show up the slight fork and wheel flex when you're powering hard with the front wheel on the floor, but otherwise it's a very accurate and sure-footed ride. The fork was also better than the GT's over rough singletrack, ungroomed trails and street sections, with the extra 20mm smoothing out step edges and roots alike, and there's no excess bounce or top-out/bottom-out clunk, which helps underline the confident and trustworthy feel of the bike.

Handling angles and weight distribution are excellent, with the compact top tube letting you really throw your weight around in the air or on the ground. Over-sized bars keep you fully informed of what's going on at ground level and the same is true of the massive rear stays; don't expect any cushy comfort from them if you decide to head out on a longer ride though.

The Mongoose Fireball is ideally equipped for shorter, more aggro adventures. The frame is premium quality and apart from the weather sensitive V-brakes and slightly baggy wheels on our test rig, there are no obvious weak links anywhere in the spec, despite the price tag.

Take it down the jump trails, grind and drop round town, huck the local Shore or DH spot, or just play around on whatever terrain you fancy, and the Fireball will feel grounded and fun. While it might be a little heavy out of the box, it's certainly worth upgrading all the way up to Eric Carter pro race spec with better forks and brakes.

Equipment

The good thing about this package is that there's nothing crying out for an immediate change. It's the only bike of the four with V-brakes, but unless your rims are rolling through muck constantly, they actually feel sharper than most cable discs.The wheels are ready to take discs anyway, though they did feel slightly baggy under real stress compared to the ultra-stiff frame, but the genuine Stick E compound Kenda tyres add masses of cornering confidence and all-round grip. Again, a bolted rear wheel gives security at the expense of convenience.

The stiff Mongoose-branded oversize cockpit also delivers plenty of clear pilot information, and the saddle and seatpost are equally fine. The Truvativ Ruktion double ring and bashguard cranks, with reinforced external bearing Howitzer bottom bracket, are ideal for this kind of hard usage bike. We weren't that fond of the forked lever SRAM shifters, but the short cage of the Suntour mech reduced chain rattle, a nice touch.

Suntour Duro forks give reliable, if basic, shock absorption, but the slight extra leg length of these 100mm travel units means a more flexy feel than the 80mm version on the GT. Again, the super stiff frame tends to emphasise that. You get a bottle cage mount for thirst quenching between runs too.

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Mongoose Salvo Sport review

Mongoose’s three bike entry-level Salvo suspension line starts with the Sport here, but the same frame and cockpit are used on the £999 Elite model. It’s these basics that make the Salvo one of the better riding bikes at this price point, despite a slow rear shock and our limited love for the front fork.

Ride & handling: Balanced handling for off-road fun

The size specific cockpit dimensions are pretty much spot on for cross-country/trail use. It's this combination of reasonable length (rather than over-long) stem and decent width bars, you notice straight away compared to the Salvo's peers. While the angles of the frame itself are relatively steep and the tyres slippery, there’s far more leverage and authority in your hands with which to control them. There’s decent communication of what traction there is through both ends too, so while softer compound  tyres are an obvious upgrade, you can at least make the most of the Kendas that are fitted until you’ve got some spare cash.

While cable stretch and cam flex means you can’t use immediate bites of brake to steady and steer the Salvo, there’s decent power after the initial pause. As usual on cheap full suspension bikes, the basic Suntour fork has a pogo stick-style rebound and harsh top-out clank when lifted or launched. The actual absorbing action is reasonably plush and smooth though, with a reasonable spring weight for less aggressive riders and a controlled bottom out bump.

The extra stroke of the 190mm long KS shock lets it suck up bumps and fair sized drops in a controlled manner too. Being able to drop the saddle right down also helps when you want to drop into steep trails or off of edges.  The non-adjustable rear shock rebound is very slow though so it soon packs down and gets overwhelmed on multiple hits and stepped descents.

With the bike’s hefty weight making pedalling a real chore whatever the shock setting, the 120 to 95mm switch is largely redundant and has the potential to become a real rattle-and-shake weak spot as the bike gets older. The overall ride is still much more controlled and capable than that of many other budget full suspension bikes. Despite limitations you could have a lot of fun on reasonably challenging trails if you’re patient on the climbs.

Frame: Well made, with floating shock mount

The Salvo chassis certainly scores well on ‘proper bike’ points. The head tube is oversized and ring reinforced to take a clean-looking ‘zero stack’ headset. The down tube and top tube both have a subtle curve – the down tube to allow for fork-top clearance, and the top tube to allow shorts-contents clearance – and they taper and change section type along their length too.

The rocker link pivots have pop-on rubber caps to cover the bearings and the whole back end is admirably stiff. That’s despite a slot in the rocker to let you slide the quick-release lever secured seatstays from a 95 to 120mm (3.7 to 4.7in) travel position without altering geometry. Forged seatstay and chainstay bridges give plenty of tyre space.

The asymmetric chainstay terminals continue forward past the main pivot to provide a ‘floating’ mount for the bottom of the long coil shock. The seat collar is quick-release for dropping it right down easily and there are mounts for a bottle. The plastic clips under the top tube for rear gear cable and brake hose are absolutely crap though, so ziptie them shut before you start riding.

Equipment: Well-specced for the price

Speccing a budget suspension bike is always going to be a case of carefully balanced compromise at best, but the Salvo Sport is reasonably – if not outstandingly – rigged for the price. The Suntour fork might have a clanging top out but it’s reasonably smooth in terms of bump response. The KS coil shock obviously benefits from more stroke to better suck up impacts than the units seen on the Salvo's peers. 

The D section Alex disc wheels are sturdy enough and the tyres are something close to a useful tread, although plasticky rubber compound still makes them very dicey on wet wood and rocks. Quick-release axles front and rear enable easy car loading and puncture repair though. As ever, the cable discs lack the immediacy and sharp control of hydraulic brakes, but deliver reasonable all-weather power eventually. SRAM and Shimano gears with ‘proper’ trigger shifters are a definite bonus in terms of precision and shift speed, although the Suntour chainset doesn’t have replaceable chainrings. The saddle is decent quality, too.

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Diamondback Response Sport review

The Response Sport was introduced to the UK shortly after the whole range was launched. There is a US version with different finishing kit. You won’t find many £500 bikes with 27 Shimano Deore gears, Shimano disc brakes and a RockShox fork. While the Dart 2 is basic compared to more costly RockShox forks, its controlled rebound sets it apart from the more clunky rebounds of many rival forks on £500 bikes. 

The nine-speed rear gears and hydraulic disc brakes mean it’s more future proof than some of its price rivals. Add that to confident handling on all types of terrain and you have a bike that we’d recommend to anyone with trail ambition. Beefy tyres, strong wheels and a wide handlebar add to the appeal, but also make it harder work than some other bikes if you spend a lot of your time on blacktop.

Ride & handling: Behaves itself on the all-condition trails that often challenge budget bikes

We had to adjust the front mech way higher than its recommended clamp spot to get clean gear shifts, and the rear gear mech knocks on the underside of the chainstay when descending on bumpy terrain in the big chainring. Apart from that, the Sport is a fun bike to ride on any terrain type. We have seen better cranksets on £500 bikes, but Shimano brakes and gears are efficient once you’ve got them set up and the finishing kit is decent quality.

You’ll notice the drag of the big grippy treads and hefty 36-spoked wheels on the uphills and in acceleration but they add to confidence on rough descents, as does the relaxed frame geometry, wide handlebar and well controlled fork rebound. The Diamondback’s hard hitting trail credentials set it apart from a lot of other £500 bikes we’ve tested.
While the back end of the frame is fairly harsh over rough terrain when you stay sitting, the padded saddle and big treads take the edge off bumps and the soft rebound of the fork gives the confidence to hover over the bike using bent knees and elbows to maintain a steady rhythm as you nip and dip across twists and bumps. Steering is reassuringly neutral, in that you’re hardly aware of it, across high and low-speed terrain.

Frame & equipment: RockShox Dart 2 fork boosts ride confidence

Diamondback bikes are distributed by Raleigh in the UK, and the ‘made for the UK market’ aspect shows itself in under-down tube Crud Catcher bosses, generous mud clearances and tyres that work well in poor trail conditions. A wide riser bar, big profile grippy tyres, soft saddle and relaxed frame geometry all add the sort of comfort that will boost the ride confidence of someone who’s a relative beginner to rough trail riding.
A lot of bikes at this price make compromises to off-road ability in order to double up as utilitarian workhorses. The Response Sport’s concession is luggage rack bosses. The frame is straightforward in construction, with neutral geometry and hydroforming in the main tubes to boost stiffness and crash resistance without adding excessive weight. All-in weight is 31lb without pedals so it’s no lightweight.

Ride comfort is left principally to soft saddle padding, the tyres and the fork. The RockShox Dart 2 theoretically offers 100mm of compression but it’s hard to get more than about 70mm even on the biggest hits. It’s not really a fork designed for aggressive riding and the lockout is basic and clunky but we prefer the rebound control to most other forks on bikes at this price, because it’s controlled rather than simply bouncing back like a loaded spring.
If you can find a bike with 27 gears at this price, go for it. You might not feel a lot of difference on the trail but you’ll be getting a bike with a better quality set of gears that should serve you well for a little longer. Look for downgrades elsewhere though, here the crankset was the obvious one. The 2.25in CST Caballero treads are a drag on Tarmac but add to poor condition trail traction confidence, as well as comfort, something many £500 MTBs lack because of heavier duty frames and basic contact points.

A wide, in this case 27in, handlebar can have a big impact on the way you’ll feel about the handling of a bike when you’re powering through twisty, bumpy singletrack. You can also tweak the back-sweep of a bar like this to give you the precise hold feel you prefer.


This article was originally published in What Mountain Bike magazine.

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GT Zaskar Comp reviews

The GT Zaskar is one of mountain biking’s longest-running hardtail success stories. Cropping up in various incarnations over the years, it’s been ridden by pros covering the gamut from trials to cross-country racing. This isn’t a bike that’s going to set pulses racing. It’s neither light enough to win races nor nimble enough for extended sessions of rock-dodging. What it is, though, is a thoroughly sorted all-rounder that’ll do most things well.

Ride & handling: Efficient ride position makes mile munching easy

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. It may be a well-worn cliché, but GT’s designers haven’t tried to redefine the trail hardtail with the Zaskar Comp, much less reinvent the wheel. The geometry is based on a tried-and-tested, cross-country friendly set of numbers that deviates only slightly from the NORBA norm of the 90s – and it’s all the better for it. Riders used to shorter cockpits may initially feel a bit stretched out, but the GT’s a comfy place to be for long periods of pedalling. 

Perfect front-to-rear weight distribution makes getting the power down easy, while a frame that won’t sacrifice your fillings on the altar of pedalling efficiency works in tandem with the supple fork to keep the wheels stuck firmly to the ground. A shorter stem would make it easier to haul the front wheel from line to line in fast-changing situations, but there’s something to be said for the stability of the stock set-up.

Frame: Tried and tested formula

The remarkable thing about 2011’s Zaskar is that it would be immediately recognisable to a mountain biker from 20 years ago as a GT. There have been some geometry tweaks and tubing profile changes, but the distinctive GT ‘triple-triangle design’ – more of a design flourish than a functional benefit, despite the company’s early 90’s claims – makes it stand out from the crowd, even today. 

In keeping with the trend to mould every tube in sight into a shape that’s anything but round in profile, the Zaskar Comp’s top and down tubes get the full hydroforming treatment. The cross-sections are gratifyingly narrow by current standards, though, hinting at an emphasis on comfort over outright rigidity. And, despite the high-tech tubing wizardry, there’s still a neat box-section reinforcing gusset up front.

Equipment: GT finishing kit looks a tad cheap

Unlike some of the competition, the Zaskar doesn’t get the 10-speed treatment. To be honest, the only time you’re likely to miss the extra sprocket is when winching yourself up the steepest of climbs. And the payback is that the cheaper transmission has left room in the budget for an air fork, in the form of a RockShox Recon. It’s head and shoulders above the coil alternative and well worth a bit of extra grunt on the climbs. 

Finishing kit is mostly own-brand stuff, which works fine but lacks the kudos or finish of some of the brand-name competition. Oh, and  the undeniably bright yellow and blue accents are only slightly marred by the fact that none of the anodised components match the blue of the graphics, saddle or grips.

Article Source:www.bikeradar.com

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Cannondale Trail SL1 review

Despite the name, Cannondale describes the Trail SL as “a racer through and through”. The SL1 is the most expensive of the Trail SL series – Cannondale does 29er versions of the bike, but we’re looking at the 26er. 

There’s a lot to like about the Trail SL1 – it looks great, the frame is well designed and finished, and it’s got lively handling. The parts spec is only adequate, though.

Ride & handling: A lively feeling bike with agile handling

Cannondale’s not kidding with the racer thing – the SL1 is long, low and lively. It’s not all that light (12.5kg), which dulls acceleration a bit, but its race-day DNA shines through. In some senses it’s a demanding bike, but it’s also a rewarding one – it compels you to pedal hard all the time, and requires your full attention as speeds rise, but it reacts to power and steering inputs with alacrity, allowing for the extra bit of weight it feels like it’s carrying.

The Cannondale is agile, and feels close to an old-school cross-country (XC) bike. And that SAVE (Synapse Active Vibration Elimination) back end? Without riding a bike that’s exactly the same apart from the stays, it’s impossible to say how effective it is, but the Trail SL1 isn’t a harsh bike despite the relatively low-volume tyres. The flattened stays don’t do it any harm. 

Frame: Well designed and finished

The SL1 shares its frame with the rest of the Trail SL series. Despite that range starting at just £500, the chassis has an impressively high-end look and feel. Cannondale has used generally straight pipes in the front end, with just a little bit of a curve at the front of the down tube and a flared top tube.

Out back things get considerably more interesting thanks to Cannondale’s SAVE chain and seatstays with flattened mid-sections. SAVE is described as micro-suspension, which roughly translates as flexes a tiny bit. Flattened stays at the back end are claimed to yield a bit of comfort-enhancing give. While it's hard to filter out any effect from seat post flex and tyre cushioning, the Trail's a pretty comfy bike.

There’s reasonable clearance around the 2.1in Schwalbe tyres fitted, but you wouldn’t want to go much bigger than that. And, if you’re tall, take a good look at Cannondale – many bikes don’t even come in XL, but the SL1 can be had not just in XL but also a super-sized Jumbo variant.

Equipment: Merely okay in the value for money stakes

Cannondale has always tended to deliver a high-end frame at a given price point, usually compromising on components to do so. That’s not a bad approach, given that components wear out, but it does leave the SL1 looking merely okay in the value for money stakes. Up front is a RockShox Recon fork, which Cannondale has specced with a full 1.5in steerer to take full advantage of the frame’s oversized head tube. 

While none of the Trail SL range comes with Cannondale’s Lefty fork, the frame’s 1.5in head tube is ready to accommodate one should you want to upgrade. With a suitable headset it’ll also take a tapered steerer, or use a straight 1.125in steerer and play with Anglesets.

No complaints about the all-Shimano transmission set-up, which is smooth and reliable. We’re not massively enamoured of the Hayes Stroker Ryde brakes, which are a little over-firm in feel, if adequate in power. Finishing kit is Cannondale’s own, and none the worse for that.

Article Source: bikeradar.com

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Intense M9 FRO – First ride review

Based Intense Cycles have been busy once again producing their latest pedigree downhill bike, the M9 FRO. With help from some of the fastest riders in the world – Intense claim that their M-series, of which this is the latest incarnation, has been ridden by more pro athletes than any other downhill bike ever – the M9 FRO should be one of the best bikes out there. It's a real racer's bike, with masses of adjustment and speed. But the suspension feel won't suit everyone.

Ride & handling: Plenty of speed but a harsh rear end

An uplift day back in the UK helped with bike setup before we headed to Europe’s downhill capital, Morzine in France, to really give it some. Unfortunately, the day on the bike in the UK raised some setup issues. The Cane Creek Double Barrel shock’s compression damping, even when turned to minimum, created a harsh feeling after about 70 per cent of the travel.

This was especially true when hitting high-speed compressions hard – and this was with the bike set to its most linear suspension ratio curve. It wasn’t enough to blow your feet off the pedals but it was enough to really put some force up through them. In the end we settled on using a softer spring and still using minimal damping. We did try the M9 with a stock Fox shock for a short amount of time, which helped with reducing how harsh the rear end felt.

We ended up running the bike in its longest wheelbase and slackest head angle options while out in the Alps. In those settings, the 1,205mm (47.4in) wheelbase is super-stable, but not so long that corners become a chore. We also found that in the two shorter chainstays settings the rear wheel would buzz the saddle, which wasn’t ideal. 

Out in the rough stuff, we got used to the M9’s harsh feel, but it did mean we were getting pretty beaten up on the long alpine descents. What really does stand out is the speed at which the M9 picks up, and if you can deal with the slightly harsh ride, you can definitely be rewarded with some serious speed potential.

Frame & equipment: Neat chassis adjustments and durable, high-end build

The M9 FRO is one the most adjustable downhill bikes on the market. It has three travel options, adjustable shock progression, three chainstay length adjustments and a Cane Creek AngleSet that offers head angles from 62.5 to 65.5 degrees. The frame is constructed from 6061 T6 aluminium and as well as the neat adjustment features, it also has a bolt-in top headset cup which allows for easy removal and angle changes. 

Our test bike had a durable but high-end build, with a RockShox Boxxer Team fork and Cane Creek Double Barrel shock taking care of the suspension, while Truvativ’s Holzfeller OCT cranks, MRP G2 chainguide and SRAM X9 made up the running gear. Formula’s powerful The One brakes take up the job of slowing the M9 down, the wheelset is Easton Havoc and the finishing kit all is all supplied by Easton.

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Cannondale Rize One 20 2 review

"Low slung and potentially fun, but weight and low traction dulls feel"

A full 1.5in head tube, big main tubes plus sharp and shapely shock and drop-out furniture make the RZ mainframe a tight and twist-free structure. 

The massive oversized stem and stiff mid-width bars transfer accurate control into your palms even with the QR-tipped fork. The long wheelbase and low-slung ride height, plus a tendency to sit back into its rear travel, feels really stable and we were pushing it harder on rougher, rockier trails than most other 120mm bikes.

While equipment levels are reasonable, weight is high and the Schwalbe tyres are slow and slippery. Despite decent pedalling manners and front and rear lockout this left it feeling harder work – particularly on climbs – than we’d hope for a 120mm bike and overall agility was stifled too.

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