We had our first look at Charge’s 2011 bikes at the recent Cycling Sports Group trade show in Poole, Dorset and a particular highlight was the new Cleaver.
The £1599,99 Cleaver slots in the company’s range between the cross-country Duster and Blender 4X bike, as Charge Bikes head honcho Nick Larsen told us: "The Cleaver is like the Blender’s bigger brother, it bridges the gap between the Duster XC range and Blender 4X / dual bikes.”
“It's longer and taller and lighter (and uses Tange Infinity butted tubing) than a Blender, so you can put the saddle up on it and ride it a bit further, yet burlier and slacker than the Duster range.”
The Cleaver’s got an ISCG mount and routing for a front mech so you can run single or multiple rings up front. It'll come with RockShox Sektor 120mm forks, Avid Elixir 5 disc brakes, Alex XD-Lite all-mountain wheelset, Truvativ Stylo chainset and Charge-branded seatpost and saddle combo.
Keep an eye on BikeRadar for a full review, and let us know in the comments box below whether the Cleaver looks like a winner to you.