With a weight of 14.8 kilos, you have to switch to the smaller of the two chainrings early on the climbs. The slight pumping of the rear suspension can be stabilised by the platform on the shock. On the way to the trail entrance, the Whaka's heart rate climbs a little higher than on the trail bikes. If you accept this, you will be rewarded with a lot of confidence and riding fun on the descent. The suspension with 150 millimetres of travel works sensitively and offers significantly more reserves than the slimmer trail bikes. You glide over root patches as if on a sedan chair and feel encouraged to jump off when hitting off-road edges. Thanks to the moderate 67-degree steering angle, the Stevens weaves nimbly through the tight bends of the test track. The extremely long head tube places the handlebars well above the front tyre and allows you to stand almost upright behind the front end. On steep trail sections, this gives you a lot of confidence, but on flat, fast corners, the All Mountain lacks a little pressure on the front wheel. The 2.35 inch wide Nobby Nic tyres in the high-quality Evolution version strike a good balance between rolling resistance and grip in the terrain.
Conclusion: The Stevens defends the honour of the All Mountains. Anyone looking for a lot of fun and safety on single trails will find it here.
The alternative: If you want a trail bike on principle, Stevens has the Jura ES with 29-inch wheels for € 2999.
You can read this article or the entire issue of BIKE 8/2017 in the BIKE app (iTunes and Google Play) or the issue in the DK shop reorder:
