Issue #030, Review - November 10, 2017

Lapierre Spicy Team Ultimate Review

If you believe the opinion of many self-made forum experts, the Lapierre Spicy Team, with its compact geometry, should be virtually unrideable. Nevertheless, it was one of the fastest bikes in our review – how can that be?

For an overview of the test fleet head to the main article: Let’s go Racing! – The 10 fastest enduro bikes in test

Just standing there, the Lapierre Spicy Team Ultimate exudes a racy attitude. The blue-red-black paint job with white lettering is reminiscent of a racing car, and the components on the Lapierre underline its racy character. The RockShox suspension consists of a Lyrik RCT3 suspension fork as well as a Super Deluxe shock with 170 mm of travel, with colours matching the red cage of the SRAM X01 Eagle. As a French bike brand, Lapierre relies on Michelin Wild Grip’R tires mounted on 29 mm-wide DT Swiss EX 1501 SPLINE ONE rims. Where in the past our shoes often rubbed the wide rear swing arm, this is no longer an issue. Damage done to the paint by chain slap is a thing of the past as Lapierre has installed two thick plastic protectors – although they’re not very pretty.

Long and slack is the big trend in bike geometry. However the 66° head angle of the Lapierre Spicy isn’t that slack, the BB drop of just 5 mm is rather shallow, and the reach of 461 mm (size L) is quite average by today’s standards. Nevertheless, the bike amazes with its outstanding handling! One of the reasons for this is the finely tuned rear suspension, which absorbs even the smallest hits. At the same time, it provides very good feedback, does not wallow, and generates a lot of traction when braking.

The Spicy is very direct and light-footed, but unlike other bikes, it’s not demanding or energy-consuming. The balance is brilliant, which becomes especially noticeable through corners. Direction changes are engaged easily, and the bike behaves very predictably. The Spicy refuses to lose its calm over the roughest rock gardens or the meanest of roots – even at high speeds, the Spicy will stay on course. The bike accelerates willingly, though here it couldn’t keep up with the best bikes on test. The Michelin Wild Grip’R tires managed to convince us with a lot of grip and acceptable rolling resistance on the dry, hard test track.

The Lapierre Spicy Team Ultimate in Detail

Fork RockShox Lyrik RCT3 170 mm
Rear shock RockShox Super Deluxe RC3 170 mm
Brakes SRAM Guide Ultimate
Drivetrain SRAM X01 Eagle
Seat post RockShox Reverb Stealth
Stem Lapierre Nico Voullioz
Handlebar Lapierre Nico Voullioz
Tires* Michelin Wild Grip’R2
Wheels DT Swiss EX 1501 Spline One
Price € 5,299

The geometry of the Lapierre Spicy Team Ultimate

Size	S	M	L	XL
Seat tube	390 mm	430 mm	460 mm	500 mm
Top tube	580 mm	605 mm	625 mm	650 mm
Head angle	66°	66°	66°	66°
Seat angle	75°	75°	75°	75°
Chainstay	435 mm	435 mm	435 mm	435 mm
BB Drop	5 mm	5 mm	5 mm	5 mm
Wheelbase	n/a	“	“	“
Reach	421 mm	444 mm	461 mm	484 mm
Stack	593 mm	602 mm	611 mm	620 mm
Wheelsize	27.5″	27.5″	27.5″	27.5″

Conclusion

The Lapierre Spicy Team Ultimate puts to rest all geometry theorists, winning us over with its outstanding suspension performance and balanced handling despite the rather steep geometry. If you are looking for an agile bike with enough reserves to go big, you will find it here! Oh, and it’s really fast too!