First Look: 2016 Mondraker Dune Carbon

The 2016 Mondraker Dune Carbon XR. It talks the talk, but it certainly walks the walk too...

Mondraker's CEO Miguel Pina (in audio) was excited as ever to share his latest creation with assorted members of global MTB media on hand in Leogang for 2 days of riding, just after the World Cup. -photo Nathan Hughes

Most of us had a fair idea of what to expect, but it's always exciting to pull the covers off a brand new bike, especially a high-end machine like the new Dune Carbon.

Mondraker's carbon handiwork will stand up to any kind of scrutiny. From the design to the execution, this is one beautifully constructed bicycle.

A few years ago, Mondraker's signature long front ends were not exactly lauded for their good looks - oh how those times have changed. Every angle, nook, and cranny of the new bike have been lovingly sculpted, and the result is spectacular.

The Mondraker Dune Carbon RR is the middle-tier build, featuring the 2016 FOX 36 Float FIT4 fork and a 2016 FOX Float X shock, with SRAM's X01 on drivetrain duties.

Blending the Foxy Carbon trail bike and the Summum Carbon DH bike into a race ready enduro bike gave Mondraker the perfect excuse to spend a little more time perfecting the overall design aspects as well. Few companies dedicate as much time and resources to this aspect as Mondraker do.

Danny Hart's Summum DH bike lurks in the background, and it's easy to see that the Dune Carbon is made for downward pointing fun above all.

The smooth yet aggressive lines and the (intentional) misalignment of the top tube and chainstays create a sleek looking package that not only looks fast but also puts in a very convincing performance on the uphills.

With adjustable headset and chainstays, the Dune can be made even slacker and longer, or shortened up for tighter handling.

Forward Geometry: make the top tube longer, and adjust effective reach by running a shorter stem. Mondraker pioneered the concept, and have been refining it ever since. It is now less extreme, with about 35-mm extra TT length offset with a 30-mm stem (10- and 20-mm options also exist).

Mondraker's Zero Suspension System is optimized for 1x on the Dune Carbon (there is no FD mount). Zero provides very good pedalling efficiency while remaining compliant over obstacles, and we had little trouble getting along with it after adjusting the basic settings to taste.

The day after the World Cup finals in Leogang, the weather that had threatened the event all week finally moved in. We were not to be deterred however, as there were shiny new bikes to get dirty.

When you bring one riding jersey and it rains all day...

The Dune Carbon is the 3rd project from Mondraker featuring the fantastic plastic. It's fair to say that they have really perfected their craft by now.

The Dune R is the entry level bike. Featuring a Rockshox Pike RC fork and a Monarch Plus RC3 DebonAir shock, it turns to Shimano (11-42) for the drivetrain and DT Swiss for the wheels.

The "lady legs" have been reinforced to deal with the rigors of enduro racing and the general abuse that any 160-mm platform today should expect to have to take on.

Rockshox Pike on fork duties on the entry level Dune R, a solid choice and a proven performer, although at almost 6000 EUR MSRP, we would really have expected to find the RCT3 version.

Diego Grasa from FOX was on hand to talk us through some of the (significant) changes they have made to the line-up for 2016.

Putting his money (and mud!) where his mouth is, Diego spent 2 days setting up bikes and shredding with the group.

Everybody wants a fork that rides high in the travel without being harsh, recovers quickly from hard hits, doesn't dive under braking, and remains soft and plush over the small hits - FOX ticks all these boxes with the 2016 version of the 36 Float.

The FIT4 version found on the mid-range Dune RR is a great fork...

...but the RC2 on the XR really blew us away. We don't want to resort to hyperbole after just one day on it, but we are definitely ready to say that FOX have made up whatever ground they had lost to the Pike, and then some... -photo Nathan Hughes

So many bikes, so little time. Getting 20+ journalists set up and out the door is no small task, but the Mondraker guys were on it.

With a frame weight of 2450-grams without the shock, the complete builds are all under 13-kg (28.7-lbs), really impressive given the amount of performance on tap here.

The carbon bashguard is a nice touch, and there's a lovely carbon fender to keep the dirt off the shock as well. Internal cable routing with "HHG Hidden Housing Guide" keeps the lines clean and the cables protected.

We rode both a medium and a large size bike. The medium is basically a traditional large bike with a slightly shorter stem, and at 6'0 we felt right at home from the get go. The actual large is a very long bike already, which takes a little more getting used to. Very stable in the rough, more of a handful in tight turns. -photo Nathan Hughes

If you are looking for a rad place to spend a few days shredding Leogang, we can warmly recommend Mama Thresl's. A boutique hotel with an alpine touch, great staff and truly awesome food, it was the perfect base camp for the event.

Danny Hart was still recovering from the (gruesome!) internal injury he sustained in Fort William, but he got out for a few laps on the new Dune regardless. We're looking forward to seeing Danny back in action at the next World Cup!

We wondered what would happen if you crossed a Foxy with a Summum, and we were not disappointed by the result. It is by no means a cheap ride, but you get a stunning piece of engineering with very specific handling traits for your money. We have no doubt the Dune Carbon will show up on your local trails, and that it will turn heads when it does.