Kona Kula Supreme review

The first question a lot of people ask is, why buy a £1,700 hardtail when you can get a decent full suspension bike for that money? The Kula Supreme answers that question perfectly.

This is a bike that’s been thought out, costed out and pieced together with real attention to detail. Starting with the heart of the bike, that superb Easton aluminium frame, you’re given a perfectly shaped, lightweight yet robust platform to hang the rest of your kit on. Then you add to that the highly respected and super-reliable Reba fork, not to mention a strong, light and good looking complete wheelset from FSA, with possibly the best looking and smoothest operating QRs that you can get your hands on.

Thanks to all that, it’s shaping up into a good bike, so by speccing a balance of solid, reliable and stylish finishing kit you end up with an overall package without any weaknesses or shortcuts. Most reassuring of all is that you just know this is a quality bike that’ll last a very long time.
Once you jump on board and start putting it through its paces, this is a hardtail that feels perfectly balanced and ready to sprint uphill or dash down. Despite the relatively short (4in) travel it feels capable in most terrain, and is so nimble and quick to react that you can often sail across all but the most demanding sections of trail.
There are certainly cheaper hardtails out there but few have managed to get everything right like Kona has here. Saving money on something else is a false economy – by the time you’ve replaced a cheap wheelset, headset or a stem that’s too long, and fitted decent tyres, your initial savings start to disappear. Far better to put your trust in the folks at Kona – they’ve got the Kula Supreme just right.