The phone rings. "FREERIDE magazine, hello?" - "Ralf Kerscher. I have a question: Which bike should I buy?" The classic - no question is asked more often. The answer is simple: For shuttle rides in rough terrain and drops in the bike park, a big bike, because it offers the most reserves. If you want to trick in the bike park, then a slopestyler or robust freerider. For mountain tours and trail rides, a trail bike is quick and light. "...er, but I want to ride tours, trails and in the bike park," says Ralf. "Then you need a super enduro!" Superenduros are the all-purpose weapon among bikes. They can do everything - not perfectly, but better than ever.
Where do I want to drive?
Everyone has to answer the most important question for themselves: What do I want to do with the bike? As the manufacturers want to fulfil different buyers' wishes, they set different priorities. There is the comfort faction (with Giant, Votec, Alutech, Rotwild, Rocky) with suspension reserves and smoothness in rough terrain. At the other end of the scale are the firmer, but agile and light bikes (such as Trek, Specialized, Canyon). They excel on tours and are easier to accelerate on undulating trails, but require much more riding skill for bike park missions and stunts. The green bar in the test letter gives you a quick assessment of the respective character: firm and direct or more comfortable with a full suspension.
Full programme
We've never tested a bike this extensively before: Seven testers rode thirteen bikes for four days through the trail paradise of Finale Ligure.
You can find the test results of these bikes in the PDF download:
- Alutech Fanes
- Canyon Strive ESX 9.0 SL
- Ghost Cagua
- Giant Reign X1
- Last Herb 160
- Nox Flux FR 6.7 Team
- Rose Uncle Jimbo 8
- Solid Blade Enduro
- Specialised Enduro Comp
- Trek Slash
- Votec V.SX
Out of competition were:
- Rocky Mountain Slayer 70
- Rotwild R.E1 Pro
Downloads:
Dimitri Lehner
Editor
