- Hey everyone.
I'm Sarah Moore. And this here is Mike Levy.
And today, we're gonna be awarding
the Value Mountain Bike of the Year Award.
- Now this whole mountain biking thing,
it's definitely not inexpensive,
but it doesn't need to cost you everything you own
and a little bit more.
And that's never been more true than
in 2020 when you can get a pretty damn impressive bike
for a pretty impressive price.
- [Sarah] We can also look at things like performance,
durability, weight, components.
There's a lot that goes
into a value proposition.
- With that in mind, we've picked some recently introduced
and available bikes that offer impressive performance
for their price tags,
which is of course the whole idea
behind the Value Mountain Bike of the Year category.
All right, let's get to our first nominee.
It's the Vitus,
or maybe it's Vitus,
Mythique.
- Or Metique.
(both laughing) - I don't think it's Metique.
(both laughing)
It's 140 millimeter travel 20 Niner that impressed us
with both it's part spec
for $2000
and its performance.
We rode the hell out of it
at our value field test earlier this year
and it was very impressive even compared
to the more expensive bikes we had on hand.
- The bike uses a horst-link suspension design
and that paired with the Monarch R Rear Shock
and the 140 millimeter Z2 Fork,
was a standard performer.
- Yeah, and it also comes with a good dropper post
and a 12-speed Sram SX drivetrain.
Let me read you a quote
from when I reviewed the bike earlier this year
in Sedona.
"The Mythique 29 VRX isn't trying
to be a part-time all-mountain bike
and it's better for it.
With a contemporary but compact cockpit
and the best fork of the group
in its Marzocchi Bomber Z2,
the Vitus is a no fuss trail bike
that the gobbles up the miles and rough ground.
Sometimes making its competition appear slow
and over-gunned in comparison."
And that is why the Mythique is on our shortlist
for Value Mountain Bike of the Year.
- Next up in the fight to win this guy,
we've got the Fezzari Delano Peak Comp.
So for $3,500, it does a really good spec.
It's also one of the full suspension bikes
in this category that's really versatile.
And with it's 135 millimeter horst-link design
and well-rounded geometry,
it's a pretty good bike.
- Right. It also comes
with 150 millimeter travel DVO Diamond Fork
and a Topaz Rear Shock.
You'll also find Shimano's SLX 12-speed drivetrain
and all of that is hanging off the same carbon frame
that the high-end models use.
Now when Kazimer reviewed this bike earlier
in the year,
he said, "Call it an aggressive trail bike
or maybe a short travel all-mountain bike.
Either way, the Delano Peak's well sorted geometry
and parts spec give it a high level of versatility.
For rides that encompass a wide range of conditions,
up, down and all around,
the Delano Peak could be a worthy companion."
And it's for those reasons that we've got it
on our shortlist
for Value Bike of the Year,
which brings us to our next nominee,
which has a lot more travel.
It's Privateer's 161 millimeter travel,
Privateer 161.
Now in case the name didn't give it away,
this frame was designed
for privateer racers who were looking
for a strong, reliable frame that won't break the bank.
Now Privateer offers complete bikes that started off
at just over $3,000
with a pretty reasonable part spec
or you can get a frame for just over $1,500.
- [Sarah] The 161 millimeter travel bike
has a 490 millimeter reach,
an 80 degrees seat tube angle
and it also has 446 millimeter chainstays on the P3.
- So, if you put 170 millimeter fork on it,
you're gonna get a 64 degree head angle.
Now, the frame alone though,
this thing isn't light.
10 pounds for just a frame.
Kazimer liked it though.
He didn't seem to care that it was pretty heavy.
What did he say?
- [Sarah] "The 161 does best on faster wide open tracks.
It's more of a speed demon than a trail dancer
and when there's room to straighten it out
and let off the brakes,
it's stability at speed is very satisfying."
- Aluminum, good suspension, forward-thinking geometry
and, most importantly for this category,
a pretty dang reasonable price.
Our final nominee is a bike
that's very familiar to us.
Commencal's 140 millimeter travel aluminum Meta TR.
Got updated geometry and suspension
for this year
and you could get bikes starting off
at just $2,200 American.
Frames, well, they start off at $1,400 American.
So pretty reasonable pricing.
Kazimer reviewed one
of these early this year.
- Yeah.
- [Mike] Sarah, tell me what he said.
- [Sarah] "If TR no longer stands for trail,
turbo would be a worthy substitute.
The Meta TR loves to go fast no matter if that's
on a rough, chunky trail or something a little smoother.
Ideally with plenty of berms and big jumps.
I wouldn't think twice about taking it
to a bike park, doing an enduro race or three,
or tossing it into the back of a truck
for some rowdy DH shuttle laps."
- If anything, the Commencal Meta TR is ready
for absolutely anything you're gonna find
on the trail
and it does it all
at a pretty reasonable price.
Now we had some other bikes that are worth mentioning.
They didn't quite make our shortlist
but some notable mentions include; YT's Izzo
and BMC's impressive Twostroke hardtail.
- All six of those machines will supply you
with a lot of performance for your money
but there can only be one winner.
And that winner is the Vitus Mythique.
- Yeah. For $2,000,
it's hard to beat the Mythique's all around performance,
as a trail bike that's just basically ready for anything.
And that's why it's our winner
for the Value Mountain Bike of the Year.
The last 15 videos I've filmed,
I've had to wear two pairs of pants.
It's been so cold.
And we're in our shop, I'm wearing two pairs of pants.
- You're just missing a hat.
You'd be fine if you just wear a hat.
- I can't wear hats on cameras.
Not a good look.