Downhill bikes, also known as downhill mountain bikes, are for daredevils who like to fly down sloping trails that twist and turn. The bikes for this sport need to have proven suspension systems, shocks that can absorb most, if not all, the bouncing and pounding you will experience as you fly down the course, and superior brakes. The wide tires on a downhill mountain bike feature knobby protrusions to give the bikes as much traction as possible. There are 10 downhill bikes introduced from 2009 to 2010 that received top recommendations from independent testing and review sites.
2010
"Bicycling" magazine gave two downhill bikes its gold thumbs-up ranking in 2010. The Evil Revolt, at about $2,850, as of March 2011, features a suspension with floating-shock absorption. You can move the bike around quickly on the trail or in the air. The Intense 951, at about $4,950, is light and turns easily. This is a World Cup-quality bike. Other highly recommended bikes from 2010 are the Mongoose Boot R, at about $4,000, a top bike for both speed and control, and the Norco Atomic, at around $3,150, which has effective traction on the ground and over small bumps.
2009
Top-rated downhill bikes introduced in 2009 include the Specialized Demo 8 II, with suspension and shocks built to take a beating and a price tag of around $6,100, as of March 2011. The Corsair Crown, at about $2,600, gives you an option to add a secondary shock absorber. The Mongoose Nugget, selling for around $2,500, will give you ground-hugging traction in a lightweight bike. The Norco 4X, at about $3,075, features lighter mainframe tubing. The Foes 2:1 RS7, at about $2,600 is designed for highly technical and shorter downhill courses. The Kona Slab Supreme, retailing for approximately $5,700, features a floating braking system to give you better traction when braking.
Best Value
Bike Radar says the best value bike of 2011 is the Canyon Torque FRX 9.0. At about $2,800, as of March 2011, the FRX 9.0 features highly regarded components such as Vivid R2C shocks and a RockShox BoxxerR2C2 fork
Considerations
Bike manufacturers turn out new models on a yearly basis, so you might be able to find a bike released in 2009 or 2010 at a bargain price, as of March 2011. For example, a new 2009 Kona Stab Supreme can be found for just over $5,100, a savings of almost $600 for an updated version of a bike that won two World Championships.
Member Comments