Juliana

Furtado 27.5 D Mountain Bike

Whether your garage is packed to the brim with a bike for every discipline, or you're more of a quiver-killer steed kind of gal, we think packing in as much versatility into our rides is critical, and a bike that's long reigned at the top of our do-anything-bike list is the Juliana Furtado. This year the Furtado is back once again, setting the benchmark for fun, thanks to its playful handling and nimble geometry that begs to pop off of rollers and turn anything into a feature, if you want it to. The Furtado 27.5 D Complete Mountain Bike sits longer, slacker, and lower than its predecessor did, which takes it to a new level of capable when you're pointing it downhill and your line options offer choices of slick and deep roots, or rowdy rock gardens. It maintains the snappy, short chainstays in the rear that we covet, which helps keep the bike pedal-friendly and responsive when you've got to thread-the-needle through twitchy and tight sections of trail. Juliana equips the Furtado with 130mm of rock-gobbling VPP suspension designed to manage big hits, smooth out square-edge bumps, and find the happy medium between the big and beefy enduro sleds, and ultra-light cross-country whips.

The Furtado emphasizes surgical precision, especially on tighter trails where trees and rocks pose clearance issues. That being said, this bike doesn't sacrifice much in the way of descending composure versus the Roubion — its enduro-bred, big sister — thanks to a reinvigorated geometry that's longer, slacker, and low-slung. The sub-67-degree head tube angle keeps you confident and composed when you're dropping into steep descents littered with rocks and sudden drops. Plus, it retains one of the lowest bottom brackets in Juliana's line at a mere 13.1 inches, keeping you glued to the trail when you're charging at high speeds and railing around corners. Another notable geometry number, the 16.7-inch chainstays are shorter than your average trail bike, making it quick to change direction around corners.

The inclusion of flip-chip technology allows for a subtle change from the 66.5-degree head tube angle in the high setting and a 66.2-degree head tube angle in its low setting. It not only allows you to ride with a couple of geo options, but also provides the clearance needed to run wider tires up to 2.8 inches in width. Juliana outfits this particular Furtado with their 2.3-inch tires, which deliver all the traction and bump-smoothing you need for a day on the trail, plus a bit of weight savings and rolling resistance reduction to sweeten the deal.

As you'd expect with the Furtado, it retains the high degree of pedaling efficiency and bottom-out resistance of the previous version. This VPP platform neatly tucks the lower link above the bottom bracket to protect it from rock strikes and damage from flinging trail debris. The upper portion remains attached to the top tube with a new stiffer box-section upper link. While other DH-oriented frames in the Juliana line have moved to a lower-link mounted shock, the Furtado retains its upper link-mounted shock, as to not lose the pedaling efficiency and bottom out resistance needed for the reduction in travel. That being said, it's spec'd with a FOX Float Performance DPS shock for a supple feel with improved traction while pedaling over bumpy trail sections, as well as greater resistance to heating up for more consistency on those long descents. Juliana tuned the shock specifically for lighter, female riders, so this bike complements your riding style in a manner that maximizes sensitivity and response without sacrificing power.

Please note, because the alloy version of the Furtado uses an integrated headset, the headtube measurement is 10 millimeters longer than what's indicated on the geometry chart, as to match the same headtube measurement as the carbon frame with its external lower cup and internal upper cup installed. Other than this headtube measurement, everything indicated on the geometry chart is accurate.