www.wheelies.co.uk/specialized-rockhopper-mountain-bike
The 2014 Specialized Rockhopper range consists of the Rockhopper, Rockhopper Comp and Rockhopper Pro Evo. We identify the differences between each of the Rockhopper mountain bikes to help you identify which is best suited to you. Check out our Specialized Rockhopper comparison page for more details: www.wheelies.co.uk/specialized-rockhopper-mountain-bike
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Today we take a look at the 2014 Specialized Rockhopper Range
The Rockhopper range from Specialized has grown to provide some of the most popular entry-level mountain bikes. The 2014 Rockhopper range consists of the Rockhopper, Rockhopper Comp and the Rockhopper Pro Evo. All three bikes come with 29 inch wheels which are becoming favoured more and more by riders thanks to the increased pedalling efficiency and the ability to handle better when riding off-road.
First of all we'll take a look at the standard Rockhopper which costs £650.00 and is available in red or black colour options.
All three of the Rockhoppers have a tapered headtube with the frame being made from Specializeds fully butted A1 Premium Aluminium.
The Rockhopper uses forks from SR Suntour forks to supply 100mm of suspension travel and has a lockout feature which increases the forks stiffness when required.
Simply turn the key on top of the forks to help stopping them from compressing. Once you don't need them locked out, turn the key and your forks are back to normal
The Rockhopper gearing uses a mixture of Shimano Acera and Shimano Alivio parts. The shifters are Shimano Acera as is the front mech. The rear mech is Shimano Alivio and supplies 9 gears, giving the Rockhopper 27 gears in total for the rider to choose from.
The Rockhopper uses Tektro HD-M330 hydraulic disc brakes, these make stopping with one finger much easier that using v brake alternatives.
Next, we take a look at the middle of the range Rockhopper Comp which costs £200 more than Rockhopper at£850.00 and is available in the charcoal colour option
This uses improved XC28 forks from Rockshox, which also provide 100mm of suspension travel and has the lockout feature. These forks also have externally adjustable rebound settings to help you tailor the forks to your needs.
The gearing on the Rockhopper comp is taken care of by SRAM, rather than the Shimano gearing found on the cheaper Rockhopper. It uses SRAM X5 shifters, a SRAM X5 front mech and a SRAM X5 rear mech. This bike uses a 2 by 10 setup - at the front are two chainrings and the cassette at the rear has 10 gears, totalling 20 well ranged gears for the rider to choose from.
The Rockhopper Comp has more powerful brakes than the standard Rockhopper. The Tektro Draco 2 hydraulic disc brakes are the same ones used on the more expensive Rockhopper Pro Evo.
Next is the top of the range Rockhopper Pro Evo costing a thousand pounds and is available in the Gloss green colour.
The Rockhopper Pro Evo costs £150 more than the Rockhopper Comp. It uses the XC32 forks from Rockshox, these provide 120mm of travel, which is an extra 20mm compared to the other two models. You still have the lockout feature and the option of adjusting the rebound. These are also air sprung to help keep the weight down. They also have thicker stanchions and thicker fork legs paired with a 15mm thru axel which helps to front end of the bike stiff.
For gearing, the Rockhopper Pro Evo uses the same SRAM X5 shifters and front mech as the Rockhopper Comp. But the Pro Evo uses and upgraded SRAM X7 type 2 rear mech for even easier gear shifts and increased reliability. This bike also uses a 2 by 10 set up, similar to that of the Rockhopper Comp. You'll notice the Rockhopper Pro Evo has a E-Thirteen Turbo Charger bashguard that helps to protect the chainrings and bottom bracket from debris that flicks up from the trail.
The Rockhopper Pro Evo uses the same Tektro Draco 2 hydraulic disc brakes that are found on the Rockhopper Comp. Their dual piston stopping power makes for effortless one finger braking.
As the Rockhopper Pro Evo is the top of the Rockhopper range its geometry is slightly slacker to help the bike to be more stable on the descents. This is more noticable when riding the Specialized Rockhopper Pro Evo for yourself.
All of these 2014 Specialized Rockhoppers are great value for money and are sure to make any ride thoroughly enjoyable.
