It's that time of year when the cycling industry starts to turn its attention to the new season, not just in discipline, but in product model year. Perhaps confusingly, the new bike season starts the year before the model year might suggest, i.e. the pros are already riding 2018 models on the race circuit and you can get your hands on them too. There's just one round of the MTB World Cup left in the 2017 season which will take place on the last weekend of August. You can expect to see many of the best new season mountain bikes on show in Val di Sole, Italy. Take a look at just a few of our star bikes below.
Specialized
Rockhopper
Natural climbing ability, all-round versatility and a confident ride makes the Rockhopper the answer to all your questions. Specialized like to say that where efficiency and capability cross paths on the trail, you will find the Rockhopper. It is a hardtail mountain bike with a natural talent for short and snappy ascents with a low-slung bottom bracket and short chainstays. In short, the Rockhopper handles beautifully and performs like a dream.
Stumpjumper
The original Stumpjumper set the bar in mountain bike design way back in '81, and though the industry has advanced dramatically since then, the Stumpy is still the bar-setting ultimate trail bike. It bests the best handling and highest efficiency with revolutionary tech like the proprietary Rx Trail shock tune, SWAT technology and a slack, trail-gobbling geometry. It's a bike that is ready for anything.
Epic FSR
The Epic name is one of the most successful in cross-country (XC) mountain biking with World Championships, Olympic Gold and more Cape Epic wins than any other bike available. The new Epic features a completely re-designed frame which takes all the best bits of its predecessor and builds upon them. The new geometry, super-smart Brain 2.0 shock and lighter weight come together to create the most efficient and fastest XC bike on the planet.
Meet the new Epic in this video:
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Trek
Marlin
The Marlin takes everything from the lightest and fastest XC bikes and packages it into an affordable and desirable all-terrain experience. Its Hydroformed Alpha Aluminium frame is race light, mountain strong and tuned for peak performance. Though the Marlin models are at the budget end of the Trek range, they don't lose out on the premium specs you would expect from a top-drawer mountain bike.
Procaliber
If you're after a hardtail trail bike with a racing pedigree, look no further than the Trek Procaliber. It's the fast and light cross country bike that is king of the singletrack. It is wrapped in great features and components, including its innovative IsoSpeed decoupler which delivers uncompromising XC performance and efficiency.
Fuel Ex
Trek claims that the Fuel Ex is the world's best-loved mountain bike and, frankly, it's hard to argue. This year, it gets a major capability boost with more travel, more aggressive geometry and 29", 27.5" or mid-fat wheel options. A rugged, capable long-travel bike with quite some punch, this is the go to bike for all riders.
Finally, check out the Trek Fuel Ex in action with Atherton Racing in Atherton Diaries Episode 8:
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