Do you really need all that travel? The Turbo Levo R says no

Do you really need all that travel? The Turbo Levo R says no

Dan Greenwood

Turbo Levo R

Do you really need all that travel? We took the Levo R out for a rip in The Royal National Park and wow......so impressive, read on to find out what Mitch and Santiago thought of their time on the bike

First impressions by Santiago 

First of all, I don't consider myself a mountain biker; however, I love challenging myself and trying "new" things, this time the new shorter travel Levo R.
Dan and Mitch took me to Loftus trails for the first time and to say it was fun is an understatement. The Fox 36SL forks and Genie shock are the perfect pair, playful, supportive and even in the "rougher" trails/terrains they were able to take it with no issues at all.

The Levo R did not disappoint; for anyone riding locally like Mill Creek and/or Loftus, and wants to get on an eBike, this is your bike. I'll definitely go for another ride and may even turn myself more into a mountain biker!

First impressions about the Levo R - Mitch

We took the bike out for a quick ride out at the local trails at loftus, straight away I noticed the motor and how much I missed the trail tune that Specialized equip the motor with and it is outstanding.

We did take the bike on some trails that I have ridden many times and the bike was well suited to the fast flowy trails, but didn't shy away from some of the slower tech. The bike was very playful and easy to get off the ground and not once on the test trails did i find the bike getting overwhelmed. The genie shock is an outstanding pairing to the bike and really plays well into this shorter travel category with the bottomless feel. the fox 36sl up front didn't feel under gunned on the e bike and was a supple and supportive as ever and kept the bike composed over the rougher trails we took it on. I think anyone getting on this bike that rides locally at Mill creek or Loftus as their main trails would find that its a perfect pairing as the lightweight and playful nature brings the trails alive, as where a larger travel bike can feel "boring".

I really enjoyed my time on this bike and will look forward to getting back out on one again.

Does a short travel, full power E-MTB make sense, yes, yes it does. Most riders are way overbiked and this provides great snappiness and is super playful but still has the stability of a larger bike thanks to the motot and battery weight. 

If you just ride XC style trails with the occasional rowdy outing this bike is perfect for you. Or, if you love that feeling of being underbiked, the Levo R is for you.

 

First impressions from Warselle (Shop Ambassador)

Demo’d the Specialized Levo R 

140/130 travel on paper, but it rides way bigger once you point it into the rough stuff. Super composed through chunk while still feeling quick and playful on tighter trails. The Fox 36SL and Genie suspension setup definitely keep the front end feeling lighter and more responsive than most of other full powered eebs. Climbs were effortless, corners felt sharp, and it still had plenty left when the trail got rowdy.

If you’re looking for a full-power trail bike that doesn’t ride like a tank, this one a great contender.

First impressions by Oscar Trenear

When I first heard of a full powered ebike with 140-130mm of travel I wasn’t expecting much. But the specialised Levo r proved to be a lot more than what’s written on the spec sheet. I got the opportunity to take this bike for a spin on some short snappy tracks at Heathcote not too long ago and wow was I surprised at how capable this bike really is. The bike felt extremely progressive for the amount of travel it had and not once did I feel as though I was smashing through all the travel really quickly and losing support. Being full powered, I didn’t really feel the extra weight of the bike whilst riding downhill, and if anything it made the bike feel that little bit more planted and confident through the rough stuff, whilst the shorter progressive travel assisted the bike to continue to feel lively and playful through the quick turns and jumps.
One thing I’ve also noticed with all of the short travel bikes I’ve ridden is that they’re fast, fun and surprisingly capable - and the Levo R certainly didn’t disappoint. This is the kind of bike where you actually feel in control, get a feel for the trail, and are able to move the bike the way that you want compared to many of the more burly longer travel ebikes. However whilst I didn’t really get the opportunity to test this bike to its limits on any proper downhill tracks, there aren’t many places around Sydney where you would be riding insanely rough downhill anyway. This bike would be a perfect fit for 99% of the riding that Sydney has to offer. If I was to buy the bike myself, I’d probably throw on some tougher casing tyres to be able to really send this bike to its limits without having to worry about flats, rather than running the light casing tyres the Levo R comes with.
Overall I was thoroughly impressed with this bike and would strongly recommend it towards anyone who is looking for an e-bike that has all the power you need on the uphill, but still super playful, nimble and just really fun in general on the downhills. Whilst many people dislike the idea of shorter travel bikes being ‘less capable’ than a modern enduro bike, this bike fixes the problem through its progressive and supportive geometry platform. Would definitely ride one of these myself and can’t wait to ride one again in the future!
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