From Dirt Issue 113 – July 2011
Words by Steve Jones. Photos by Sebastian Schieck.
Solid specifications at an unbeatable price sounded too good to be true. Dirt jumped on a Lufthansa flight to Nuremberg to check out the YT Industries range of bikes.
One call was all it took and a month later a small jet dropped me into Bavaria. You get a pretty good idea of how a company operates within the first few hours of landing and on this occasion I was slickly moved through customs, food and hotel to arrive at their Forchheim headquarters.
Smoke billows from a nearby industrial plant but I’m guided into a large building with clean, uncluttered offices, a small team working away at designs. Seb the photographer gets down to work immediately, I’m introduced to the entire staff, the complete range of bikes, a coffee, couple of skids and that’s pretty much job done. It’s all very easy here.
What of the bikes? The most expensive of which is still less than two thousand pounds? A quick spin around on each reveals reasonably light, well spec’d equipment with good geometry – an effective range of bikes for all applications.
The fleet in total comes to eleven – three dirt style hardtails, one cross–country and a slick range of full suspension bikes: Play (Dirt jump/slopestyle bike, 100–130mm travel, €1599, also available in 24”), Wicked (150mm All–mountain €1599), Noton (170mm Freeride/Superenduro €2099), Tues (200mm Freeride €2099), Tues (200mm Downhill €2199).
A Tues LTD completes the range but that’s only available in limited numbers with nothing less than the best componentry. I guess that makes two downhill versions. But just look at those prices (€1000 is about £873, mid May 2011)!>>
