"Why should you opt for less suspension travel on an enduro bike when you can have more?", Leo Kokkonen asks me during our phone call for this article. He is the founder of Pole and the mastermind behind the new 190-millimetre Vikkelä enduro bike. But it's not just in terms of suspension travel that the Finn has an affinity for the extraordinary. And no, we're not talking about the exotic bike's shiny golden paintwork.
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Highlight at Pole Vikkelä: an aluminium frame from the CNC milling machine
The real highlight is hidden underneath: A completely CNC-milled aluminium frame. You will look in vain for weld seams on the Pole Vikkelä. The milled half-shell pairs of the main frame, the single-sided rear swing arm and the solid double joints are fused together with a special adhesive to form hollow sections. This process offers several advantages: Firstly, CNC milling offers full control over the shape and material thicknesses of the entire frame. In addition, the automated processes enable minimal tolerances, which are virtually impossible when welding round tubes. Compared to carbon fibres, the advantage lies in sustainability. Almost 100 per cent of the milling waste can simply be recycled. Recycling processes for carbon fibres, on the other hand, are still in the starting blocks. The toxic substances used in carbon fibre production are also harmful to health and damage the environment.
The Vikkelä - the most radical enduro bike on the market
Fully assembled and placed on two wheels, you can already guess what the Pole Vikkelä is capable of off-road. Once the manufacturing aspect fades into the background, the extreme geometry immediately catches the eye. In figures: 1334 millimetre wheelbase, almost 80 degree seat angle and 63.3 degree steering angle. In addition, the bottom bracket sits so high that it is in line with the wheel axles. No other enduro bike on the market is this radical. Suspension travel? According to our measurements, 185 millimetres at the front and rear. Pole thus fully utilises the potential of Rockshox's ZEB enduro fork.
The Pole Vikkelä provides a lot of downhill safety
Speaking of pushing the limits: the Vikkelä can do this extremely well - especially when it comes to the rider's comfort zone on the downhill. This is because the extreme length and the raised front end convey an enormous amount of riding safety. The potent suspension does the rest to tempt the rider to top speeds on full-throttle sections. Hard landings, deep drops and fat boulders literally fizzle out in the suspension travel. Thanks to the pleasant progression, it rarely feels as if all reserves have been used up. However, due to the very high weight, these qualities only come into their own on steep terrain. If there is no gravity, the colossus requires a lot of physical effort to keep going. Angled trails are also not in the specifications of the finned tiller due to the sweeping wheelbase. The high bottom bracket allows you to maintain control and not feel trapped in the bike, but rapid cornering is only possible under the dictation of experienced riders.
Grippy Maxxis tyres turn the Pole into a climber
Uphill, you automatically lower your expectations of the Pole. Quite wrongly. Because if you swap the doughy MaxxGrip rubber compound for easier-running MaxxTerra slippers, the bike proves to be a decent climber. The super steep seat angle puts a lot of pressure on the front wheel and gives you a propulsion-orientated riding position. In combination with the very long chainstays, the Vikkelä scrambles up even the steepest ramps - naturally only with the right amount of effort. The high bottom bracket also offers a lot of ground clearance on rough sections. The rear end also responds excellently under chain tension, remains surprisingly smooth and is high in its travel. Bravo!
In the end, Leo's words come back to me. Yes, the Pole inspires with its massive downhill travel, no question about it. But because it doesn't have a disadvantage on the climbs either, I would always opt for more travel - at least on the Vikkelä.
Conclusion on the Pole Vikkelä by Max Fuchs, BIKE test editor:
If the rider's riding skills and fitness are right, the Pole Vikkelä shines both downhill and uphill with great riding characteristics. The average biker, on the other hand, will probably only benefit from the extreme riding safety on fast descents. Practical: The online configurator allows you to optimise the Pole for your personal area of use.
This is Pole
Pole bikes stand for daring geometry concepts and unusual frame designs. In the meantime, CNC-milled frames have also become a trademark of the Finns. For exactly ten years now, Pole has regularly surprised the bike industry with its unusual development approaches. Founder and company boss Leo Kokkonen now employs 22 people at the company headquarters in Muurame, Finland. From the initial idea to development and production, all Pole bikes are created 100 per cent in Finland.
Technical data and notes on the Pole Vikkelä
Manufacturer information
- Price: 9540 Euro
- Available from the sender
- Frame material: aluminium
- Frame size: K1/K2/ K3/K4 (Tested size K3, 40 cm)
Measured values
- Weight without pedals: 16.19 kg
- Frame weight: 3894 g
- Weight of wheels: 5580 g
- Acceleration of running wheels: 4578 kg x cm²
- Handlebar width: 800 mm
- Frame rigidity (absolute): 37 N/mm
Equipment
- Wheels: Crankbrothers Synthesis E 29
- Tyres: Maxxis Assegai/Minion DHR 3C Maxxgrip TR Double Down 29 x 2.50/2.40
- Fork: Rockshox ZEB Ultimate
- Shock: Rockshox Super Deluxe Ultimate
- Front/rear suspension travel:: 185/185 mm
- Brakes: Sram Code RSC / 220/200 mm
- Gear system: Sram GX Eagle AXS 1x12
- Ratio/bandwidth: 32; 10-52 / 520 %
- Telescopic post / stroke / Ø: Bike Yoke Revive / 160 mm / 34.9 mm
Valuation
- Driving behaviour uphill: 19 from 20
- Chassis efficiency: 17 out of 20
- Rolling resistance: 6 out of 10
- Weight: 1.5 from 15
- Inertia impellers: 3 out of 10
- Bottle cage: 4.5 out of 5
- Driving behaviour downhill: 36 from 40
- Front suspension: 25 out of 25
- Rear suspension: 22.5 out of 25
- Saddle retractability: 10 out of 10
- Brakes: 14.25 out of 15
- Tyre grip: 15 out of 15
- Driving stability: 2 out of 10
TOTAL UPHILL: 51 OUT OF 80
TOTAL DOWNHILL: 124.8 FROM 140
- Other: 24 out of 30
- Ease of maintenance: medium
BIKE test rating*: very good - 199.8 out of 250 points
*The BIKE judgement reflects the laboratory measurements and the subjective impression of the test riders. The BIKE judgement is independent of price.
BIKE judgements: super (250-205 P.), very good (204.75-170 P.), good (169.75-140 P.), satisfactory (139.75-100 P.), with weaknesses, unsatisfactory.
Max Fuchs
Editor
