RUST magazine: RUST#40

FANTIC XF1 INTEGRA ENDURO 160
“YOU CAN ALMOST FOOL
YOURSELF IT’S ALL YOUR OWN
EFFORT THAT’S MAKING YOU
SO SPEEDY”
braked Specialized Enduro for a run
on a downhill track at the Cannock
Chase Centre (in the UK) – and what a
ride, the nearest thing to dirt biking I’d
experienced without actually riding a
dirt bike. Afterwards I said, ‘when we’re
banned from riding our dirt bikes, we’ve
got this!’ With e-mtbs we not only have
that but we have an easier ride back up
to the top of the trails, too. And more
speed on the level. Hey, that’s not such a
bad future. One we might one day have
to face up to.
In the meantime, is this the ultimate
cross-trainer? For the moneyed – hey
this thing busts a clean £5000 hole in
your bank balance (and then some – as
do all the quality e-mtbs) – yes, I think
it is. Problem for me, (a lesser-paid
journo) and other lower-earners – or
the ‘over-burdened’ – is that five-large
is our budget for our number one set
of wheels. Can we afford to spunk that
again on a training aid? No, probably
not. Unfortunately, for now, I’ll keep
hammering the Hardrock.
In the meantime – fair play to Fantic,
this is actually one trick bit of kit. And
this isn’t even the top of the e-mtb tree
for them, if you want an über-e-mtb
check out their Integra Enduro R in
carbon. Then you’re talking…
www.rustsports.com 53