Tested

The Italian word “Arma” translates to “Weapon.” If you currently don’t know anything about this company or piece of suspension, that's at least a pretty good starting point. Extreme Racing Shox, better known as EXT, is an Italian brand that has been immersed in the world of racing for 55 years. They have been helping make rally, F1, Le Mans, and pretty much anything that needs to go fast, do so under precise control with their unique valving technologies and future-minded approach to product development. In 2014, EXT decided to take their decades of experience in motorsports and bring it to...

Itis as close to any objective statement as an opinion can be: the 2019 Trek Remedy sitting in the Vital garage is a damn good looking bike. Clean lines, bold carbon molds and a tuxedo-classy paint job. Trek’s popular trail machine is back in a new version, and like the Session and Slash it now has a stationary lower shock mount – no more Full Floater. Trek states that with updated shock technologies, primarily RE:aktiv and Thru Shaft, off-the-top sensitivity and overall rear suspension feel no longer require the action of the floating shock mount. The Remedy also gains some stiffness and tire...

'What a most super special and awesome best good time thing this bike is. For many times of funs and sends, this off-road bicycle will make biggest splash.' Marketing speak be damned, bikes these days are pretty awesome and the Canyon Spectral is no exception. Yes, light carbon wonder-rigs with the most bitching of parts are fantastic. One can even get a Spectral equipped as such. Thing is, the vast majority of us don’t truly need them and can't fully utilize them, much less do we want to shell out for them. Read on to find out why the Spectral AL 6.0 is the ultimate punctuation in that...

Zerode's 160mm travel Taniwha enduro/all-mountain bike represents one of the best mountain bike frame production efforts built around a gearbox drivetrain system. Is it all it's cracked up to be? Where does it excel and where does it struggle? Does it live up the Māori monster inspired New Zealand name? After more than three months of use in dozens of locations, it's time to fill you in on the all the juicy details. Highlights Carbon frame 27.5-inch (650b) wheels 160mm (6.3-inches) of front and rear wheel travel Single-pivot suspension with 216x63mm shock Collet-style pivot hardwear Pinion C1...

If you’ve been riding bikes for over a two decades or ask your seasoned shop guy (you know, the only mechanic who can setup cantilever brakes within a reasonable amount of time) which fork changed suspension as we know it, one product will come to mind: Z1. Well before the year 2000 and the frantic Y2K computer-crash scare, mountain bike forks consisted of slim tubes containing rubber-like chunks of plastic known as elastomers. Riding with dampers at the time was like playing a spontaneous game of Russian Roulette, but replace the bullet with a shower of fork fluid. Anything offering over 2.5...

After years in the cycling industry, Jeff Soncrant and Kevin Sigismondo put their heads together to create a ground up mountain bike brand of their own. It wasn’t that they hadn’t been working with great folks, but they wanted the opportunity to create products without restraints and in their own image. With a "clean slate" approach to design, Eminent Cycles has set the bar high with the Haste, which they claim to be the ultimate enduro bike. We spoke with Soncrant who elaborated on their priorities: "We feel that we must create product that improves the current market standard and try not to...

At the dawn of the twenty-first century, driven by the unforeseen death of a fellow rider, a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery set out to design a revolutionary neck brace. After several years of research and design, Dr. Chris Leatt (MB ChB) finally had his first neck brace in production, and it wasn't long until the Leatt-Brace earned the product of the year award from one of the largest moto news and media outlets. Ever since that day, Dr. Leatt and his hand-picked R&D team have been pushing boundaries and setting new standards, not only when it comes to neck braces but in all...

During the 2018 Vital MTB Long-Travel 29er Test Sessions, the Trek Slash went head-to-head with four other leading bikes. What follows are our thoughts specific to the Slash. Be sure to check out the main feature for an in-depth comparison video, timed testing results, and more. Highlights OCLV Mountain carbon main frame and seatstays, alloy chainstays 29-inch wheels 150mm (5.9-inches) of rear wheel travel // 160mm (6.3-inches) fork travel EVO link suspension with ABP (Active Braking Pivot) Trunnion style 230x57.5mm Metric shock with RE:aktiv and Thru Shaft Straight Shot frame design with...

During the 2018 Vital MTB Long-Travel 29er Test Sessions, the Transition Sentinel went head-to-head with four other leading bikes. What follows are our thoughts specific to the Sentinel. Be sure to check out the main feature for an in-depth comparison video, timed testing results, and more. Highlights Aluminum frame 29-inch wheels 140mm (5.5-inches) of rear wheel travel // 160mm (6.3-inches) fork travel GiddyUp 2.0hh suspension Trunnion style 205x57.5mm Metric shock Shorter 44mm offset fork Molded rubber chainstay and downtube protection Rattle-free internal cable port covers External rear...

During the 2018 Vital MTB Long-Travel 29er Test Sessions, the Specialized Enduro Coil 29 went head-to-head with four other leading bikes. What follows are our thoughts specific to the Enduro. Be sure to check out the main feature for an in-depth comparison video, timed testing results, and more. Highlights FACT IS-X 11m carbon frame 29-inch wheels 160mm (6.3-inches) of front and rear wheel travel FSR suspension Custom shock size and mount Flip chip adjustable geometry Roval Traverse Carbon wheels SWAT down tube storage and hidden SWAT CC tool Fully enclosed internal cable routing Compatible...

During the 2018 Vital MTB Long-Travel 29er Test Sessions, Evil's The Wreckoning went head-to-head with four other leading bikes. What follows are our thoughts specific to The Wreckoning. Be sure to check out the main feature for an in-depth comparison video, timed testing results, and more. Highlights Uni-directional carbon frame 29-inch wheels 161mm (6.3-inches) of rear wheel travel // 160mm (6.3-inches) fork travel DELTA System suspension Various 216x63mm shock upgrades available Flip chip adjustable geometry Internal cable routing Integrated 30% sag meter Downtube, seatstay and chainstay...

During the 2018 Vital MTB Long-Travel 29er Test Sessions, the Orbea Rallon went head-to-head with four other leading bikes. What follows are our thoughts specific to the Rallon. Be sure to check out the main feature for an in-depth comparison video, timed testing results, and more. Highlights Orbea Monocoque Race carbon frame 29-inch wheels 150mm (5.9-inches) of rear wheel travel // 160mm (6.3-inches) fork travel Advanced Dynamics suspension with concentric rear axle/pivot Offset Metric 230x60mm shock Shorter 44mm offset fork Adjustable geometry Internal cable routing Threaded bottom bracket...

When it comes to improving a bike's performance, one of the key areas to consider is suspension. Combined with your tires, it is by and large responsible for controlling your bike's interaction with the trail beneath you. DVO, short for Developed Suspension, has a long history in our sport and knows a thing or two about how to perfect that interaction, maximizing traction and control on your mountain bike. Whether your goal is outright comfort, speed, or a combination of the two, their suspension products offer the tuning means to make it happen. We've been torture-testing the DVO Topaz T3 Air...

Flat pedal shoes are tricky business. Not only do they need to deliver good grip on the pedals, but we also want them to look like shoes we’d wear on the town, not take on water, be stiff enough for pedaling but comfortable enough for walking around in all day. Needless to say, us flat pedal riders are a discerning bunch when it comes to our footwear, and it takes a solid shoe to impress us these days. That is just what Shimano has delivered with the new GR7 – read on to find out what else we think of it. Strengths Weaknesses Low weight Well ventilated Fast drying Ankle collar protects against...

How do you make a good bike better? That's the question Devinci asked when they set out to improve an already very capable ride. The solution involved the creation of an entirely new frame for 2018, and it's Devinci's first full-carbon bike. Over the course of three months, hundreds of miles, and dozens of park laps we got intimately familiar with this wild-looking ride, evaluating exactly how it compares to the original Spartan. Strengths Weaknesses That paint job Improved pedaling performance Coil compatible progressive suspension design Excellent bottom-out composure Ultra-stiff rear end...

If there is one model that defines Five Ten’s legacy in mountain biking, it’s the Impact. As the first ever shoe sold with the magical Stealth rubber derived from the world of rock climbing, for many years it was quite simply the go-to model for any serious flat pedal rider. Of course, that’s because it was almost the ONLY go-to model available during that time, if a shoe with actual grip was what you wanted. Now, for as much as people loved the grip, the overall quality of the Impact over the years often left riders with a bittersweet aftertaste, as the shoes would fall apart or take on...

Let's be honest, we are sick of narrow rims that ride like cooked spaghetti and hardly support a 2.3-inch tire. All of us are looking for some extra advantage to let us slap that corner harder or hit that off-camber line just a little bit left of that sketchy root – you know the one. Bikes are becoming more capable, and newer, wider wheels offer real benefits over the older, narrower wheel that might be on your ride. Race Face is trying to help you get into this decade by designing the Next R wheelset around a 31mm internal width carbon fiber rim and their fast-engagement Turbine hubs to keep...

There is no doubt that $3000 is a lot of money to spend on a carbon wheelset, especially for a mountain bike. First, because you can easily find a perfectly good ENTIRE BIKE for that kind of money, and second, because on a mountain bike you know the wheels are going to have a tough life. That hasn’t stopped ENVE from making such an expensive product, and it hasn’t stopped them from selling it either. For 2018 ENVE decided to go back to the drawing board and look for solutions to a couple of common complaints with the previous generation of M-series wheels: they were sometimes criticized for...

Following an excellent first experience at the 2014 Vital MTB Test Sessions, I've been riding a Norco Sight for nearly four years. Not a tester at the time, I played the role of house mom. Yes, I'm a woman, a darn good cook, and OCD enough to clean everyday (throwing horns). The 2014 Norco Sight was one of the only test bikes with low enough standover for my wee legs – a common issue for women. In the years since I've progressed a lot as a rider aboard the Sight, given it some upgrades, and gone on countless adventures with my bike. Needless to say, I'm rather attached. I call it The Unicorn...

When we stumbled on Thule’s new range of hydration packs at Eurobike 2017 we were a bit surprised to see them. Best known for their racks and other automotive carrying solutions, Thule also produces an impressive line of luggage and backpacks, but this is the first time the Swedish manufacturer has ventured into the hydration pack area. We wasted little time examining the new goods in detail, and what we saw made us want to put the packs to the test out on the trail. No sooner said than done - we’ve now racked up a full three months with the new packs in action, and we’re ready to let you know...

Aaron Gwin’s hotel-notepad-drawing-turned-tire is not revolutionary in its looks, function, or purpose, but why reinvent the wheel (tire)? The Aquila was hotly lauded by many as the next best piece of rubber to hit the dirt upon its inception, and it immediately delivered by winning the 2017 World Cup DH Elite Men's overall title under its creator. From the dry hard-pack terrain of Leogang to the loose and wild steeps of Andorra or the deluge of Mont-Sainte-Anne, Onza’s golden ticket tire proved to be versatile and reliable. When we were given a set for long-term testing after a press camp in...

The original Process 153 was highly regarded at the time of its release. The bike's progressive geometry, lively suspension, and unflappable reliability quickly built a following and also seemed to influence how other brands approached the geometry and sizing of their own products. The original Process 153 seemed to stand the test of time against carbon constructed, feature-laden super bikes, but nothing is perfect and many Process fans were speculating what changes could make such a good bike even better. Improvements in the weight and pedaling performance realms were at the forefront of...

The wheelset market is forever getting more and more competitive, especially around the $500-$600 mark. Quality wheels with strong rims and good hubs can be found complete or built at this price point, so anything less than very good will inevitably fail to make much of an impression here. Read on to find out how FSA's new Afterburner WideR hoops held up to our testing. Strengths Straightpull hubs give purposeful look Covers most current axle spacing standards Comes with tubeless rimstrip (not installed) Compliant ride without excess flex Fast rolling Weaknesses Graphics stickers seem a little...

There was a time when riding Kenda tires was a rite of passage in a mountain biker’s life. The Kenda Nevegal or Small Block 8 could be found at just about every trailhead. More recently, however, Kenda had fallen out of favor with riders as development seemed to stagnate while new tires and technologies from companies like Schwalbe, Maxxis, e*thirteen, and even in-house brands proved to be great options. Upon signing with with Polygon UR World Cup downhill team it was only a matter of time until Kenda produced a new aggressive tread. Their latest effort takes shape with the recent release of...

There was a time when riding Kenda tires was a rite of passage in a mountain biker’s life. The Kenda Nevegal or Small Block 8 could be found at just about every trailhead. More recently, however, Kenda had fallen out of favor with riders as development seemed to stagnate while new tires and technologies from companies like Schwalbe, Maxxis, e*thirteen, and even in-house brands proved to be great options. Upon signing with with Polygon UR World Cup downhill team it was only a matter of time until Kenda produced a new aggressive tread. Their latest effort takes shape with the recent release of...

The wheel size debate is a dead horse beaten into mushy glue by this point. The hatred forged by some toward 29ers is likely rooted in experiences from a time when the only options were Gary Fisher hardtails. The market has matured, and frame, wheel, suspension, and tire selection have come a long way. 27.5 and 29-inch bikes are different tools that excel in different ways. That being said, this tester has a hard time wrangling many 29ers. Remember how Danny Hart had a skid mark up his ass for the first half of the 2017 season? That skid mark is how some of us feel on big wheels. This past...