Flow's First Bite: Lapierre Zesty AM 727


The not-so-minor details

Product

Lapierre Zesty AM 727

Contact

Advance Traders
www.lapierrebikes.com.au

Price

AUD7,299.00

Positives

Converts the rider into a corner shredding animal.

Negatives

e:i system is great, but ours isn't working quite yet. Wide rear end, interferes with heels when pedalling.

If 650B wheels, electronic suspension gadgets and groovy carbon framed bikes are your thing, this Zesty will appeal to you.
We first rode this bike at the super duper media launch in France this year, now it’s time to put it to the test at home, without Nico Vouilloz within eyesight making us feel insecure about our humanly average riding abilities.

Test_ZestyAM727 47
Great new graphics on the new bikes, very nicely finished indeed.

For 2014 the Zesty platform splits into two, the AM and Trail. AM is 150mm travel front and back with 650B wheels, the Trail uses 29″ wheels and 120mm of travel.
We’ve yet to calibrate the e:i system entirely, our test demo came to us with the cadence sensor not pickup up pedal motion, so ‘auto mode’ doesn’t work, but it’s not the end of the world. So far ripping through single rack has been loads of fun, and memories of how much we loved tipping the 2013 model into a corner came flooding back.
The low bottom bracket may cause you to bang your pedals on rocky climbs, but the way it turns a corner is great. Coming off the Yeti SB66 this guy feels short in the top tube, so adding that to the very supple 150mm of zesty-ness we have found it climbs tricky ascents just as well as it bombs down them.
More of our thoughts to come as we keep this trail shredder close by.
Test_ZestyAM727 20
The little motor on top of the shock tweaks the rear shock compression settings faster than a blink of an eye, making adjustments according to your speed, cadence and fork activity in auto mode. You can toggle between three modes (open, medium and locked) with the thumb lever too if you don’t want to run the auto setting.

IMG_4644
The control centre, right there in your face.

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