ED’S ATOR DL KONA OPER £3,799.99

It might be a bit chunky, but the Operator shows serious potential

When I was a wee nipper just getting into downhill riding, the bike I always lusted after but never owned was an orange and black Kona Stinky. Now, 13 years later, that wish has sort of come true, in the form of my new long-term test bike. The 2017 Operator is a far cry from that old Stinky, but it looks pretty damn good – long at the front (460mm reach on the large), super-short at the back (423mm chainstays) and seriously low at the bottom bracket (349mm). Aussie flat pedal pinner Connor Fearon certainly has no problem ripping apart corners on his, so I’ve got no excuses!

First impressions then… Well, pulling the bike out of the box, the first thing my arms noticed was the weight! At 18.58kg without pedals, the Operator DL is no featherweight. This is due to a pretty chunky aluminium frame and a build kit that’s definitely on the heavy side – a coil-sprung RockShox BoXXer RC fork and Kage shock, Mavic 729 rims, Shimano Zee crankset and steel-backed MRP chain guide. On the trail, though, I was surprised by just how nimble the bike felt, and putting the wheels where I wanted them never seemed too much hard work.

There are some negatives. Fit wise, I couldn’t get on with the backswept Kona handlebar. The stock seatpost is also so short (the saddle clamp is only 12cm from the minimum insertion mark) that I had to run my seat way lower than normal. This is all minor stuff to fix though. My only other gripe is that the stock suspension set-up doesn’t give the bike a very balanced ride. I found that the combination of a firmsprung BoXXer fork and a 500lb spring on the rear shock meant that the back end wallowed and it was hard to weight the front. With a 550lb spring fitted instead, I reckon it should be bang on.

I’ve got a few other upgrades planned that should shave a few grams off the Operator, but for now, all that remains is to get out there and put it through its paces. www.konaworld.com