Mankind prefers to come to terms with problems instead of solving them. That has always been the case. During the oil crisis in the 1970s, for example, people didn't question cars with combustion engines. No, people simply harnessed horses to their own carriages and sat out the crisis. Driving a carriage for a fortnight was more comfortable than throwing the entire system overboard.
Trail bikes are also in crisis: they are too heavy!
The response of many bikers: more and more are turning to motorised assistance to tackle long climbs or tours - be it with shuttles, mountain railways or e-drives. But this cannot be in the interests of the inventor or the end user. Surveys clearly show that most mountain bikers want to get around in the mountains under their own steam, and that is ultimately the essence of this sport. That's why we didn't just chase the seven brand new trail bikes through a bike park, but took them on a serious tour: the Stoneman Taurista circuit around Altenmark (Austria). The 4500 metres in altitude and 123 kilometres will not convince a bike that carries a lot of excess weight - and that was exactly what we feared after our lab tests!
You can find the entire article with all the test results including points tables, technical data and grades as a PDF in the download area below:
- Focus Jam C Pro 29
- Ghost SL AMR 9.9 LC
- GT Sensor CRB Pro
- Kona Satori DL
- Rocky Mountain Thunderbolt A 50
- Specialised Stumpjumper ST Comp Carbon 29
- Stevens Jura Carbon ES
The facts first
Our trail bikes cost between 3300 and 4200 euros. The sophisticated chassis with 130 millimetres of suspension travel is designed to provide downhill fun on long, sporty tours and increase comfort on a Transalp, for example. The average weight of the test group including pedals is exactly 14 kilos. Six months ago, we complained about excessive weights in the trail bike test in BIKE 3/18. The trail bikes that were up to 1000 euros cheaper back then were on average even 100 grams lighter than our current test field. It seems as if our plea for lighter trail bikes simply fell flat with the product managers. We know the industry's justifications for the high weight: the dollar exchange rate is bad, the bikes ride better downhill and they are much more stable than they were ten years ago. Maybe so, but none of this helps us as we crank up the 700 metre ascent to the Rossbrand, the first summit of our Alpine tour.
You can find the complete group test including all data, points tables and the score overview in BIKE 10/2018. You can read the entire issue in the BIKE app (iTunes and Google Play) or buy the issue in the DK shop. reorder:
