Review -

Preview Group Test: 7 Exciting Bikes for 2015

For issue #013 of the ENDURO Mountain Bike Magazine we traveled to the beautiful Ötztal region of Austria to test seven of the most interesting bikes for the 2015 season. In the days leading up to the trip, the mood in the office was just like that of a kid on Christmas Eve. But instead of waiting for Father Christmas we waited anxiously for the postman, who was going to deliver us the new bikes.

This time our goal was not to do a comparison test, we wanted to find out the strengths and weaknesses of each bike individually. No matter if it was a fast 120 mm Trailbike or a 160 mm Racebike, each machine was tested individually on the various trails.

Neben einer traumhaften Aussicht boten die abwechslungsreichen Trails im Ötztal auch massig Tiefenmeter und damit perfekte Testbedingungen.
In addition to a beautiful view the diverse trails in the Ötztal also offered massive vertical meters of descent and so perfect test conditions

In addition to some completely newly developed bikes such as the CONWAY WME 1027 Carbon, the Specialized S-WORKS Enduro 650b and the Giant Reign 0 Advanced team, we also included some already well known bikes. However, each bike had received interesting detail improvements which should significantly improve the performance on the trail – and we have tested them for you!

Here are the bikes at a glance:

Commencal META AM V4 / Giant Reign Advanced 0 Team
Commencal META AM V4 / Giant Reign Advanced 0 Team
Conway WME 1027 Carbon / Specialized S-Works Enduro 650b
Conway WME 1027 Carbon / Specialized S-Works Enduro 650b
Trek Remedy 9 27,5 / Scott Genius LT 700 Tuned
Trek Remedy 9 27,5 / Scott Genius LT 700 Tuned
Lapierre Zesty 829 E:i Shock auto
Lapierre Zesty 829 E:i Shock auto
Am Tag des Fotoshootings war früh aufstehen angesagt um das "gute" Licht zu nutzen.
On the day of the photo shoot we had to get up early to use the good light
Trotz noch kühler Außentemperaturen war die Laune der Testfahrer super!
Despite still cool outside temperatures the mood of the test riders was great!
Auf den unterschiedlichen Trails fanden wir neben perfekten Testbedingungen auch super Foto-Locations.
On the different trails we found next to perfect test conditions, and also great photo locations
Tech-Talk am Trail. Welches Bike würdest du deinem Kumpel empfehlen??
Tech Talk on the trail. Which bike would you recommend to your buddy??
Ellenbogen raus: Kathi gibt mit dem Commencal Vollgas!
Elbows out: Kathi goes full throttle with the Commencal Meta AM V4!
Wer viel fährt muss viel essen. Mittags stärken wir uns an der Gampe Thaya Hütte.
Who rides much has to eat much. At noon we strengthen ourselves at the Gampe Thaya hut.
Dort wird uns feinstes Gröstel und Knödel serviert.
There finest Gröstel and dumplings were served
"Enjoying the sweet life" Vinzenz genießt die Pause.
Enjoying the sweet life: Vinzenz is chilling in the sun.
Nach dem Essen beginnen wir die Test-Session.
After lunch we began the testing session. The hallmark of Vinzenz: the tongue in the mouth.
Die Fahrwerke werden abgestimmt und das Cockpit an die persönlichen Vorlieben angepasst.
The chassis are tuned and adjusted, to make the cockpit meet personal preferences.
Auf den Test-Trails wird den Rädern einiges abverlangt.
On the test trails the bikes faced some tough demands.
Der erfahrene Enduro-Racer Markus Reiser steht uns mit seiner Expertise zur Seite und notiert seine Testeindrücke.
The experienced enduro racer Markus Reiser is with us to share his expertise and test impressions
Besonders im Bereich der Fahrwerke verfügen unsere Testbikes über interessante neue Technologien und Detailverbesserungen.
Many of the bikes showed interesting new technologies and improvements
Egal ob verblockter Singletrail oder die neue flowige Prime-Line. Die Räder wurden auf unterschiedlichstem Terrain erprobt.
From rough single trail to flowy main lines, the bikes were tested on mixed terrain
Die Landschaft im Ötztal ist atemberaubend!
The landscape is just amazing!
Am Ende eines langen Tages darf man sich auch einmal etwas gönnen — Prost!
At the end of a long day we enjoy a fine Gösserradler – Prost !

If you want to find out how the new bikes performed on the trails and where were the strengths and weaknesses, you’ll see in the next issue # 013 ENDURO Mountain Bike Magazine which appears in October. Until then, we hope you enjoy reading the latest issue. This as usual is free & digital on the tablet, iPhone or can be read in our online viewer.

Teaser ENDURO Mountainbike Magazine Issue #012 from WWW.ENDURO-MTB.COM on Vimeo.

Text & Photos: Christoph Bayer

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