COTIC SOLARIS MAX

II own an original Solaris, and it’s an elegantly simple 29er – fun to ride, and effortless to maintain. The guys I ride with all have dual-sus bikes, and they give me grief about my hardtail; but if you’ve never ridden a modern steel-frame mountain bike, then you’re missing out. Steel isn’t nearly as stiff as alloy or carbon – it has a suppleness that makes for a comfortable, forgiving ride. Plus, I beat them up all the hills. The latest Solaris has super-long, low, slack geometry (Cotic calls it ‘Longshot’ geometry), designed around a very short stem, wide bars, and 120mm-140mm suspension. It’s balanced, and fast – deceptively fast. It’s also versatile: you can run 29-inch wheels with XC tyres, or 27.5-inch wheels with dirtgrabbing 3-inch rubber. The frame is Reynolds 853 steel, and it’ll last forever. You’ll love this bike so much, you might never consider going full-sus.