The cross bike is back! Initially in the USA, but now also in Germany, the off-road bike that was declared dead 20 years ago in the wake of the mountain bike boom is experiencing an unexpected renaissance. More and more road cyclists are discovering the versatility of the lugged racer, which manages the balancing act between road and off-road like no other bike. Without suspension, but with a certain amount of comfort and grip thanks to wide studded tyres, it can be used to explore field and forest paths that "road-only cyclists" never get to see. For cross fans, the off-road excursions are a welcome change after the long road season and therefore also a training incentive at a time when the weather rarely makes you want to go cycling. And there are other reasons to ride a cross bike: riding on loose surfaces trains your riding technique - and you also benefit from this on the road in summer. Equipped with mudguards, the crosser becomes a lightweight all-weather road bike. This also makes it interesting for commuters for whom trekking and city bikes are too sedate or not cool enough.
Short & sweet
The cross road bikes up to 1,500 euros in our test are real fun machines for winter road bike fun. Our test field includes touring bikes as well as race-ready cornering bikes with high-quality and functional equipment. And with one weak point: only Focus, OCCP and Red Bull have decent brakes. With most of the other bikes, you can somehow reduce the speed, but you can't brake with precision and control. That's not in keeping with the times.
You will find these models together with all grades and results as a PDF download:
Cannondale CS9 105
Centurion Cyclocross
Cube X-Race Comp
Focus Mares Expert
Fuji Cross Pro
Kona Jake The Snake
Müsing Crozzroad Lite
OCCP Step AL Team
Red Bull X-Lite Cross AL
Ridley Crosswind
Stevens Prestige Ultegra
2Danger Gran Cross
Downloads:
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