Knolly

Chilcotin Mountain Bike Frame - 2014

Knolly's Chilcotin Mountain Bike Frame achieves an enduro ride that climbs like a hardtail but tackles the trip down with all the speed and confidence of the six-inch travel bike that it is. The durable 6066 alloy tubes are hydroformed to maximize stiffness while minimizing weight, and the result is a frame with a foot on either side of the 30-pound mark. As Knolly notes, the Chilcotin has multiple personality disorder, so it can build up to a true all-mountain enduro sled or a freeride slaughter machine that minces even the sketchiest lines.

The Chilcotin features a long reach, which accommodates the current trend of short stems and long handlebars, with a low bottom bracket height and standover. It sits low and aggressive, and the head tube angle adjusts between 66 and 67 degrees, giving you an additional element of flexibility for chewing up downhills or nimbly picking through techy trail sections and switchbacks. The Chilcotin especially excels at the latter, with a stiff rear end that negates lateral flex, a small-bump compliance that stays hungry in rock gardens and root parades, and a consistent pedaling platform that turns berms into launch pads.

Knolly's Four by 4 suspension design operates according to the same philosophy of simplicity as the Chilcotin's frame. It eschews gimmicky designs in favor of a straightforward wheel path, up and back, that prevents the bob that other systems suffer when pedal force meets suspension travel. Four by 4 climbs like an XC bike but descends fearlessly through clutter that would leave a low-travel rocket whimpering in the trees. When switchbacks call for braking, the suspension avoids lockout so those little surprises in the shade of the inside track don't ruin your day. Cane Creek's DB inline shock gives you even more control over the suspension, letting you adjust for climbing, descending, or trail-burning on the fly.