Which is fastest? Five 150mm carbon bikes take the speed challenge
Two pedal strokes from the start then it was coasting all the way
We’ve got five top end carbon full-suspension bikes on test in the April issue (out Weds March 7th). They all boast 150mm of travel, they all cost around £4000 and they all aim to offer that complete all-mountain package; light enough to ride to the top, capable enough to shred back down. The five bikes are: Cannondale Jekyll Carbon 2; Ghost AMR + 7700, Trek Remedy 9.8, Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Expert Carbon Evo and BMC Trailfox Carbon TF01. If it helps you, the weights are: BMC 24.98lb; Cannondale 26.46lb; Ghost 28.1lb; Specialized 25.26lb; Trek 26.83lb.
For a bit of fun we took them all out for some timed runs down one of our favourite trails. It’s pretty short, at only 30 seconds, but involves no pedalling and lots of corners, making it a good test of handling prowess and how well each bike carries speed. All five bikes were mounted with Maxxis Beaver 26in tyres pumped up to 32psi front and 34psi rear. We did three runs on each bike and took the fastest one.
So you know what the bikes are, but which was the fastest? The answer is below. Just bear in mind, this was just a bit of fun; don’t read too much into the results.
- BMC: 30.15 seconds
- Specialized: 30.6 seconds
- Ghost: 30.84 seconds
- Trek: 31.67 seconds
- Cannondale: 32.82 seconds
And you can find out whether our timed runs were reflected in the review ratings by checking out the April issue.
The first few corners are fast and flowing
A kitemark for quality when it comes to trails round our way
Average speed for the trail is over 20mph. Stumpy Evo in full flight
The transition from evergreen to deciduous comes at the halfway point
Three line choices for this section. Which would you pick?
Subtle berms help carry momentum all the way down. The Ghost hits the track
Conditions were tacky so traction was good, but restricting speeds
Tight trees all the way amplify the feeling of speed
Crossing the finish line on the Trek Remedy
We used the Freelap Timing system for accuracy