Anglicisms are not exactly my best friends. That's why I find the term "slopestyle" stupid in principle. But unlike the French, we Germans don't manage to muddle out catchy alternatives into linguistic usage and then find them nice. "Freeride", "Enduro", "Downhill" - they're all available in German too! But nobody uses the corresponding terms in our beautiful mother tongue. Me neither. Too cowardly. Too wannabe-trendy. I admit it. A simple translation really doesn't help with this test: "piste style" - what on earth is that supposed to be? "Slopestyle" it is, then.
NEW SCHOOL
Basically, it's a charming idea to ride down a slope in style. So don't just duck behind the steering centre like the downhillers and chase through the undergrowth at Mach3. Or crashing into the landing from a height of five metres, death-defyingly, but without any real motor challenge, like the big bike riders. It's better to be a gentleman and greet the crowd in a friendly manner with every jump. With your hands, your feet, upside down - it doesn't matter. The main thing is that the route from the mountain to the valley is varied and beautifully designed with style-defining riding. A great thing! The organisers also realised this years ago
and established this form of cycling as a competition. And some manufacturers, after some initial conceptual confusion, now also have the appropriate bikes on offer. Admittedly, it is a small niche that we are talking about here. That's why there are hardly any big names in the industry in the test field.
You can find the test results of these slopestyle bikes in the PDF download below:
- CORSAIR KING
- KONA PAUL B
- NORCO EMPIRE 5
- SOLID FLAIR
- SPECIALISED SX
- YT NOTON
