Mondraker bills its Dune e-bike as the natural evolution of enduro. And the Spanish brand has a point. With many enduro race bikes tipping the scales at around 16kg, who…
Reviews
YT has nailed the sizing, geometry, and handling of the Decoy SN, but the suspension could be better and the motor reliability is questionable
The new Decoy SN is YT’s first foray into the diet e-bike segment. It’s also only the brand’s second e-bike, because although YT is extremely trendy when it comes to…
Propain’s new Spindrift is a shapeshifter: fun and fast on the descents with 180mm travel, but efficient enough to work on mellower singletrack too
In a world where excess is increasingly frowned upon, it’s easy to find reasons to be more conservative and play things safe. Propain’s Spindrift takes that ethos and throws it…
Near DH protection, without the stuffiness: the Bluegrass Jetro helmet is my favourite 3/4 helmet
Three-quarter helmets like this new Bluegrass Jetro have forged a bit of a category of their own, sitting between regular half shell lids and the best lightweight full-face enduro helmets. The…
Boardman’s new MTR 8.9 is a fast and light hustler of a down-country bike, for less than £2,000
Boardman’s MTR range has been one of our top bargain trail bike recommendations for years. The older model had 150/140mm travel but this latest version drops that to 130mm both…
“Like riding chainless” – e*thirteen’s Sidekick decoupling hub irons out the trails, but XC riders will probably hate it
e*thirteen has something special inside the rear hub on these Sidekick wheels. Seven years in the making, the brand’s innovative new design claims to end pedal kickback on a full…
The addictive Santa Cruz Heckler SL came within a whisker of winning my SL E-Bike of the Year award, but one serious concern held it back
Everyone says that SL e-bikes are supposed to offer a more analogue-like ride experience. So what better way to make a great SL e-bike than taking a great analogue bike…
The Atherton S170 is like nothing else when it comes to how it looks, the way it’s made, and the range of sizes, but at 17.5kg it’s one of the heaviest enduro bikes I’ve ridden
Atherton Bikes moves so fast that loads has happened since the brand’s first aluminium bike – the S170 – first appeared in the spring. One of the biggest changes being…
The Gen 2 Specialized Levo SL is adaptable, capable, and genuinely lightweight for an e-bike, but it’s lacking two key ingredients…
I think we can all agree that while Specialized’s Turbo Levo SL wasn’t the first lightweight e-mountain bike, it’s definitely the one that kickstarted the whole SL e-bike trend. And…
My last SDG Tellis dropper post did 5,000km without a service, and this V2 version is even better
The original SDG Tellis dropper came out in 2018 and made a bit of a name for itself as one of the cheaper options on the market that was still…
Norco’s Fluid VLT C2 140 is lumberjack-solid, but this Bosch SX-equipped Canadian shredder needs some urgent upgrades to log a top rating
Most mountain bike brands like to have one suspension design to hang their hat on. Not Norco. Instead, it prefers to switch between different layouts depending on the application and…
Silent, smooth, and streamlined – The Trek Fuel EXe 9.7 with TQ motor looks, sounds, and sadly feels, a lot like an analogue bike
Back in 2022, Trek was the launch partner for the ultra-compact TQ-HPR50 motor. The bike in question was the brand new Fuel EXe, and in many ways the TQ eco-system…
Hope’s new brake mash-up is an inspired down-country dream, pairing its lightest XCR brake lever with the enduro-ready E4 caliper
Hope’s minimalist XCR carbon lever started out mated to an X2 twin pot brake caliper, making it ideal for proper XC applications. Roll on a few years and that XCR…
After four kids I know what makes a great balance bike, and there’s nothing out there to match the Kids Ride Shotgun Dirt Hero for off-road riding
Kids Ride Shotgun started out with a great idea, take the traditional toddler bike seat and fit it up front and onto the top tube. And just like that you…
The heavy metal Orange Phase Evo LE totally rocked on enduro trails thanks to its great suspension and dialled geometry
At this price point, most SL e-bikes use carbon fibre frames to save weight, or at least that’s what the marketing gurus tell us. Not at Orange, though. In fact,…
Best hardtail mountain bike: classic trail shredding machines
These handful of rad machines are the absolute best hardtail mountain bike options out there right now. We've been thrashing hardtails for nearly three decades to build this definitive shortlist.
The Orbea Rise was one of the original SL e-bikes, and I think new LT version is better than ever. More travel, more power and more options make it more e-bike, not less
Foresight or good fortune? It’s hard to say which it was, but Orbea’s decision to use a detuned full power Shimano EP8 motor on the original Rise has clearly paid…
Whyte switches to the new Bosch CX motor for the ELyte Evo. And in doing so it’s made the best SL e-bike even better. More torque, more muscle, more e-bike
Is it groundhog day? It sure feels that way to me. Because exactly one year and three days ago, I was typing up a review on the (then) new Whyte…
I was totally won over by the Cannondale Moterra SL’s raw power and range, but it doesn’t have the suspension response to capitalise on its extreme geometry and relatively lightweight build
The Cannondale Moterra SL truly is a hybrid bike. It shares its name, travel and Shimano EP801 motor with the full-power Moterra, but the sleek full-carbon frame has more in…
Coil or air? Cane Creek’s unique Tigon shock gets both, but it’s not enough to lure me away from Fox
Cane Creek has made twin tube coil and air shocks for decades now, including the Kitsuma Coil shock I’ve previously raved about. This new Tigon design represents something entirely new…