ARBR RB2

The second bike from British brand ARBR swaps trend chasing for enduro racing

- Alan Muldoon

£4,250 (frame and shock) / 29in / arbr.bike

NEED TO KNOW

What’s the hottest trend in analogue mountain bike design right now? Yup, you guessed it, it’s the high-pivot idler suspension design. From niche brands like Forbidden, Deviate and Antidote, to mainstream manufacturers like GT, Norco, Cannondale, Commençal and Trek, it seems like everyone is getting in on the high-pivot hype.

One brand, however, that’s swimming against the idler tide is a small UK manufacturer called ARBR. Its first bike, the Saker, was a 165mm-travel 27.5in enduro rig with a high single-pivot suspension layout, and, you guessed it, an idler. Five years on since the launch of that bike and it should come as no surprise that the geometry on the Saker looks dated. But with the addition of 29in wheels and a few updates to the numbers, like a longer reach, slacker head angle and steeper seat angle, the Saker would be bang-on-trend in the current market place.