enduro-mtb.com - Review

130 mm front travel, 120 mm at the rear, 2.8″ tires, 11.9 kg, and a slack 66.9° head angle: two years ago you’d have been laughed off the trails if you’d predicted these would apply to a SCOTT Spark – and that we’d be writing about it here. But as levels of acceptance slowly creep up amongst die-hard XCers and enduro riders alike, the new Spark is proof how those once fairly concrete boundaries between bike disciplines and categories are getting hazy around the edges.

If your home terrain is more like mellow fields and rolling woodland, then the super-agile, pocket rocket SCOTT Spark 700 Plus Tuned is likely to be a hell of a lot more fun than a burly bruiser. After all, there’s a fair share of stability on loan to this lightweight 11.9 kg weapon – generously donated by the forgiving FOX suspension, excellent 2.8″ MAXXIS Rekon+ tires, and sorted geometry for plummeting downhills. It rides with precision and surefootedness whether you’re climbing, descending, or in the air. The ergonomic TwinLoc lever lets you switch between the available suspension settings and will get any efficiency fanatic frothing at the mouth.

Way ahead of the game, the new SCOTT Spark 700 Plus Tuned isn’t just setting benchmarks when it comes to weight and versatility, it’s also the hands-down favourite amongst our editorial team for 2016. And why’s that? It’s a fun bike to throw around, pick up speed, and carve round corners. By winning the Olympics and the World Champs (albeit without plus-size tires and a bit less travel in the RC model), SCOTT have opened our eyes to the versatility that one single platform can deliver. Should bikes or frames be confined to one discipline? XC or enduro? We’ll be happy with the best of both!