We are overwhelmed with the accolades for Rallon – a score of 9/10 from the French VTT Mag and the English publication Mountain Bike Rider, selection in the Bible of Bikes by Bike Mag in the USA or the more recent Dirt 100 from Dirt Mag, which calls it “one of the hits of the year”. Here is a brief review of just a selection of praise received by our enduro bullet.

This is precisely how they start their article, also making comments like “this bicycle is a weapon” and “the super stable yet fun steering dynamics makes the Rallon a very enticing proposition.” In France, specifically in VTT Mag, the Rallon made “a big impression,” thanks to the bike’s overall performance. “Easy to ride uphill, it behaves incredibly well on the more complicated technical descents.”

This blend of handling and stability has been highlighted also in the United Kingdom by Mountain Bike Rider, where they defined the Rallon M-Team as a “fast and efficient competition bike.” So much so that it’s fighting it out in the EWS with the Orbea Enduro Team, proving itself more than worthy in the hands of Becky Cook and piloted to a promising comeback under Thomas Lapeyrie.

The editors of Dirt 100 highlighted aspects such as the monocoque carbon frame (OMR) we built with exclusive high-modulus high-strength fibers. “There is a real feel of quality,” they point out.

“Not too stiff, not too flexy” says the chart about the Rallon M-LTD, indicating that we have achieved a “perfect balance” between these two concepts, which is quite important for gravity-oriented machines.

For the Brits, this balance makes it an “excellent frame that is complimented by the DT Swiss EX1500 wheel set with the 30mm.” In the end, they reached the same conclusion as other media experts: It gives “compliance where needed.”

Downhill…

“Let go of the brakes and smile,” recommends Mike Ferrentino from Bike Mag in the United States. The pure enduro geometry of the Rallon – its forward steering bias, extra-low center of gravity, long distance between axles and short chain stays, among other things – led Mike to give a curious, yet complimentary description of the bike: “The Rallon is as stable as a battleship cutting through a glassy sea.”

Desde Ride Austria To the folks at Ride Austria, it seemed like it “remained stable without being a Titanic on the curves.”

One of the most notable features noted by reviewers is Rallon’s asymmetrical design. The shock has been shifted 10mm to the side, effectively moving it out of the way and enabling the frame to have a lower standover height. This lower center of gravity and lower top tube with plenty of room to move in the cockpit is what riders love when they first experience Rallon.

Combining the sophisticated frame with expertly-tuned Fox Suspension gives results nothing short of amazing –  “the suspension ate up everything in its path,” said Bike Mag in the United States, “it’s like… where did the roots go?” asks MTB Mag Italy and Zach Ovard, from Contender USA, said he finished a test ride “stupified.” “It just excels when the going gets rough,” he noted before his conclusion: “This is, without a question, the best bike I’ve ever owned or ridden.” From the United States, Bike Mag finishes that “it’s a noticeably agile bicycle and surprisingly fun to ride.”

One of the goals of the R5 design was greater suspension sensitivity in the beginning with a bit more support and progressivity at the end of the 150mm of travel. MTB Mag Italy was able to see this in the field, after trying to find the Rallon’s limits with a 30% SAG. “We came close to bottoming out only a couple of times,” the comment. The Rallon has even served as a model for the worldwide launch of forks like the Fox F36 RC2 and the Lyrik RC2.

…But also climbing.

MTB Mag Italy was enthusiastic about the pedal-ready characterisics of the Rallon M-Team they tested: “It’s the enduro bicycle that climbs the best out of all the ones we’ve tried.” The go on to say “We have to stress that where it was tough going on other bikes on the same trail, we had no problems on the Rallon.”

The “surprising pedaling efficiency obtained on the Rallon” that reviewers are noting was optimized using Orbea’s Advanced Dynamics system (a software tool developed for testing balance between absorption and pedaling efficiency).

“Especially on steep terrain, it climbs incredibly well and offers a lot of traction”, they say at Ride Austria. “If you’re strong and have a good technique, you'll enjoy even difficult climbs.”

Thousands of miles away, in Australia, AMB magazine didn’t want to leave out one decisive detail in this Rallon, the forward pedaling position provided by a 76º seat angle. The Australians were emphatic about this aspect, especially with the “long, arduous climbs,” indicating that the Rallon “feels like a sprightly 130mm trail goat.”

At Bike Mag, in the United States, they also focused on this feature and offered their opinion: “The steep seat angle is the single biggest aspect (in our opinion) for making a bike like Rallon a good climber.”

MyO, the other greatest aspect

Because of MyO, Rallon has the honor of being Orbea’s most customizable model to date and the media has also noticed the more than 10,000 possible designs for the Enduralin beast. “The attention to detail and the offer from MyO,” among other things, have been what AMB Australia has emphasized, “putting this bicycle in the top part of the list of enduro bikes.” “This is an entirely different level,” Dirt said.

In the United States, Bike Mag proposed: “Make mine matte black, shiny black and with a matte lettering that says “Blackisthenewblack.”

In short, after the endorsement of riders and press from around the world and, of course, by us – Rallon is leading the pack. No other Enduro machine offers the same level of speed, ride quality and customization.