Recs.
Updated
This is a versatile bike which will feel familiar for mountain bikers, and will inspire confidence for road cyclists who want to get off the pavement once in awhile. The bike has a striking balance between quality, performance and cost.
Specs
Pros
Pro Good braking system
The bike uses cable-operated disc brakes. Although they have fairly large 160mm rotors, their performance is somewhere between traditional V-brakes and hydraulic brakes. While they are better at braking compared to V-brakes especially in wet conditions, they fall far behind hydraulic brakes. Still, they are easier and cheaper to maintain compared to hydraulic brakes but are more expensive compared to V-brakes.
Pro Has room for upgrades
There are slots and holes on the bike where you can add or upgrade equipment. There’s an internal cable routing port for a front derailleur if you want to add one. There are also mounts for mudguards and a lug on the seat tube to mount a rack, so it would serve commuting and load lugging duties well too. The frame lets you put on wider tires if you are thinking about more serious off-roading.
Pro Balanced gear for both road and mountain biking
The bike combines the best from both worlds. The 30mm wide Schwalbe G-One tires with lightly dotted treads lets you ride the bike quickly on tarmac while providing a decent amount of grip when going off-road and the drivetrain provides a wide range of gears, so you can use the bike to gain high speeds on flat surfaces or to do steep climbs.