If your bicycling life is four-fifths commuting to work and one-fifth jamming down the trail, Kona Bikes has an all-in-one ride for you.
Kona's Major Jake is a handsome, functional cyclocross bike you can thrash without shame in the mudpits of Santa Cruz or leisurely pedal through the streets of Park Slope. Like other cross bikes, it's got a road-bike geometry, but with a higher clearance, a wider trail-friendly handlebar set and lightweight cantilever brakes. Turns out, this makes it a good urban bike to navigate streets where a typical ride might include a cyclocross-like mix of straightaways, potholes and hills, punctuated by slicks of oil and vomit.
The ride's stiff, thanks to the scandium-aluminum frame (atomic number 21, which adds strength and durability to aluminum without adding weight) and the Alpha Q CX20 carbon fiber fork. The fork is light enough that one Wired editor oversteered into a close encounter with the ground. (He's since been issued a cruiser with training wheels to test.) No shocks means the off-road ride is bumpy, but the Major Jake's solid construction, fat tires and wide handlebars make it easy to control.
Nice touches: The flattened top tube helps it ride easier on your shoulder, whether you're humping it over an obstacle in a race or charging up the back stairs just before the morning meeting. Integrated Shimano brake/shift levers keep you in control at all times, and secondary brake levers on the upper part of the handlebars help you stop if you're sitting upright.
The Mavic wheelset is light and strong. Our only complaint: The knobby 35C tires are better suited to the dirt paths than they are to city streets.
OK, we lied. Our other complaint is about the price: At more than two large, it's a bit steep for something you might need to leave locked to a street sign while you get a quick double macchiato. But if you're cool with that, the Major Jake makes a versatile city or country bike.
