What does it take to win the most relevant bike comparison tests in the bike-world?
Why we are changing the way we evaluate bikes
The bike industry is at a turning point.
Over the past decade, enormous technological progress has pushed the category forward. Motors got better, batteries bigger, suspension systems more sophisticated, and bikes more capable than ever before.
But alongside this progress, another dynamic has emerged: products have increasingly been optimized for specifications rather than for real rider experience.
More power. More torque. More travel. More features.
These numbers are easy to communicate and easy to compare. But they don’t automatically translate into better rides. As media, we are part of this system. Comparison testing plays an important role in bike development. It emerged with a clear and valuable purpose: to give riders a relatively objective framework to understand products, compare options, and make informed decisions in an increasingly complex market. The criteria used in comparison tests define what success looks like and anchor the entire ecosystem. They shape what brands build, what dealers pitch, and what riders ultimately choose.
Tests shape product development.
This influence brings responsibility. If test criteria reward the wrong things, the industry begins to optimize for the wrong goals. For this reason, we are redefining how we evaluate bikes. Our goal is simple: to shift the focus from specifications to real rider experience.
Beyond launch performance: ownership experience
A bike is not a short-term experience. It’s a product riders live with for years. Many products are designed to make an impact at launch rather than to deliver lasting satisfaction for owners. But riders don’t buy bikes for a press release or a test weekend. They buy them for years of riding. For this reason, our evaluation increasingly focuses on ownership experience.
This includes factors such as:
- Intuitive setup and adjustability
- Long-term reliability
- Noise behavior over time
- Serviceability and repair access
- Spare parts availability
- Software support and system transparency
A great product shouldn’t only perform well on day one. It should continue to deliver value months and years after purchase. Long-term satisfaction creates stronger brand trust than short-term excitement.
From marginal gains to meaningful experience
For years, product development has been driven by marginal technical gains. Each new generation promised more power, more integration, or more extreme performance. But marginal gains on paper rarely translate into meaningful improvements in real life – and on the trail.
What matters is not whether a feature sounds impressive in a launch presentation, but whether it genuinely improves the product experience: on the trail, in daily use, in the workshop, and over years of ownership. Does it make setup easier? Does it make the bike more intuitive, more reliable, easier to maintain, easier to understand? Does it reduce friction, or simply add complexity in the name of innovation?
The future of bike design shouldn’t be defined by specification escalation, but by holistic product quality. Real innovation begins with a simple question: Does this make the ride experience better?
Great bikes aren’t defined by the biggest numbers. They are defined by how naturally they work with the rider. This is where rideability becomes the central performance metric.
Closing the performance gap
At the same time, another challenge has become increasingly visible.
We live in the most over-equipped and under-skilled generation in outdoor history.
Riders today have access to the most advanced equipment ever built. High-end bikes promise enormous performance potential. Brands push technological innovation, media fuels aspiration, and riders invest heavily in premium products. But real competence often develops much more slowly. Many riders buy the bike, the equipment, the dream – yet never unlock what these products were built for. The majority of high-end product owners never come close to reaching the full potential of their equipment.
And that’s not only a trail-performance issue. In many cases, riders also fail to benefit from the systems, features, and complexity built into modern bikes because these solutions are difficult to understand, difficult to access, or simply do not create meaningful value in everyday use.
This creates a growing performance gap between what products are capable of and what riders are actually able to access. The role of great product design is not to widen this gap, but to close it. The best bikes allow riders to grow into their potential. They are intuitive, balanced and confidence-inspiring. They allow beginners to progress faster while still offering the depth and performance experienced riders demand. True performance is therefore not defined by the maximum capability of a product.
True performance is defined by how much of that capability riders can actually use on the trail.
This isn’t a call for less capable bikes. It’s a call for more accessible performance.
By closing the performance gap, we don´t lower the ceiling of what´s possible, we lower the barrier to reaching it.
Rideability as the new benchmark
Rideability is by the way not a new idea. It has always been one of the defining qualities of a truly great bike. But for too long, it was treated as one important factor among many, instead of being recognized for what it actually is: the single most relevant measure of real-world performance.
Rideability describes how naturally and intuitively a bike works with the rider. A highly rideable bike feels balanced and predictable. The rider doesn’t need to constantly fight the bike or correct its behavior. Instead, the bike supports the rider and allows them to focus on the trail itself.
Good rideability benefits all riders.
Beginners gain confidence more quickly. Experienced riders can push harder and ride more intuitively. In this sense, the best bikes don’t only perform well in extreme situations.
They create consistent confidence across all situations. Rideability therefore becomes one of the most important benchmarks for evaluating modern bikes.
Simplifying complexity
Over the past years, product complexity has increased dramatically. Proprietary standards, fragmented ecosystems, complicated service procedures and feature overload have made many bikes harder to understand, harder to maintain and harder to support.
True progress often lies in simplification.
Clearer standards, better serviceability and intuitive system design benefit riders, dealers and manufacturers alike. Simpler, more coherent products tend to deliver better real-world value and longer product lifecycles.
The most successful bikes of the future won’t necessarily be the most complex ones. They will be the ones where all elements work together in a coherent system.
From specifications to relationships
In a mature market, technical differences between products become smaller. Features can be copied. Specifications can be matched within a product cycle. What is much harder to replicate is the relationship between brand and rider.
Ownership experience, reliability, transparency, and support create a deeper connection between customers and brands. Riders who trust a product and enjoy owning it over time are far more likely to remain loyal, recommend the brand to others, and continue investing in the ecosystem. This makes rider experience not only a design priority, but also a business advantage.
A new framework for evaluation
Our evaluation framework reflects this shift in perspective. Instead of focusing primarily on specifications, we evaluate bikes across three key dimensions:
Ride Quality
How well the bike performs on the trail and how intuitively riders can access its performance.
Product & System Quality
How coherent the design and engineering of the product are as a complete system.
Ownership & User Experience
How satisfying the bike remains to own, maintain and ride over time.
A true test winner isn’t defined by extreme specifications. It is the bike that performs best as a complete system – on the trail, in the workshop and throughout the ownership journey.
The goal
The goal of this shift is not simply to change how bikes are tested. The goal is to encourage better products.
Products that prioritize ride quality over specifications.
Products that close the performance gap rather than widen it.
Products that deliver long-term value rather than short-term excitement.
Sure, communicating a better experience is harder than showing an increase in motor power. It’s easier to sell a bigger number than a better feeling. Data points provide a false sense of security, while experiences require storytelling, trust, and a deep understanding of the rider.
The future of the bike industry will not be defined by the biggest numbers. It will be defined by better riding experiences.
Let’s do this!
You want more than just to read along?
Got questions, ideas, or honest feedback? Then write to robin@41publishing.com.
We might not be able to reply to everyone — but we’ll read every message carefully.
We’re looking forward to your thoughts!
Words: Robin Schmitt Photos: Diverse
About the Author
Robin Schmitt
Robin is one of the two founders of 41 Publishing, a visionary and go-getter. While he now enjoys every second on the bike – whenever his busy schedule allows – he used to race against the clock at enduro events and a few Downhill World Cups. Besides that, Robin practises kung fu and Zen meditation, plays the cello, loves Classic Cars, travels abroad and still reviews numerous bikes himself. Progressive ideas, new projects and major challenges – Robin loves exploring undiscovered potential and getting to the bottom of new trends.
