Mountain Bikes

Mountain bikes are where bikepacking meets the backcountry, the rigs that carry a kit deep into singletrack and rough country no gravel bike would survive. Our corner of the MTB world leans toward the capable and the characterful: steel and titanium hardtails, drop-bar trail conversions, and rigid ATB-adjacent builds made for going far rather than just going fast. Big tires, slack angles, and frames that shrug off abuse are the through line. These are our reviews and spotlights of the mountain bikes we have ridden hard, from production trail hardtails to custom one-offs, with a filter to narrow by frame material and wheel size.