Kona Process 134
by (TKO) Thee Karen OConnell
I’ll start this review with an important admission: I struggle with 29ers. As a class, I have found them to be quite opinionated on the trail and stubborn about receiving my input. The Kona 134, on the other hand, was quite tamable - which allowed me to enjoy the advantages afforded by the 29” wheels. In short, I had fun on the 134. She was nimble and poppy with just the right amount of muscle.
On the rough stuff, the Kona 134 held its own. Whatever I put in this bike’s way, it ate up with ease and grace. The longer wheelbase and bigger wheels provide a very stable ride through all sorts of chunder at any speed. Having ridden a handful of longer travel 29ers with more aggressive geometry, I’ve often felt as if the bike wants to ride away without me like a disobedient horse. The 134 never felt this way for me. From day one, it felt much more in tune with my riding and never got out ahead of me. As a mid-travel 29er, the 134 felt more nimble and responsive, even over chunder, than a bike with more travel. The trade-off is potentially feeling outgunned on more aggressive trails, but as a smaller, lighter rider, I never found myself wishing for more travel. I hit some medium sized drops and jumps on it and still didn’t feel like it wasn’t enough travel. All in all, the benefits to slightly smaller travel seemed a worthwhile trade for better control and responsiveness. The more I rode it, the more I trusted the Process 134, which allowed me to mow through rough with increasing confidence.
On the rough stuff, the Kona 134 held its own. Whatever I put in this bike’s way, it ate up with ease and grace. The longer wheelbase and bigger wheels provide a very stable ride through all sorts of chunder at any speed. Having ridden a handful of longer travel 29ers with more aggressive geometry, I’ve often felt as if the bike wants to ride away without me like a disobedient horse. The 134 never felt this way for me. From day one, it felt much more in tune with my riding and never got out ahead of me. As a mid-travel 29er, the 134 felt more nimble and responsive, even over chunder, than a bike with more travel. The trade-off is potentially feeling outgunned on more aggressive trails, but as a smaller, lighter rider, I never found myself wishing for more travel. I hit some medium sized drops and jumps on it and still didn’t feel like it wasn’t enough travel. All in all, the benefits to slightly smaller travel seemed a worthwhile trade for better control and responsiveness. The more I rode it, the more I trusted the Process 134, which allowed me to mow through rough with increasing confidence.
Cornering: 29ers corner a bit differently than a 27.5”. The bigger wheel simply isn’t as agile in tight technical corners. There’s a bit of a learning curve and your reaction time needs to be a bit quicker. Honestly, I didn’t take this bike on trails with steep, technical corners. Haunted by my past experiences where a 29er has taken over and run away, I just plain didn’t want to do that again. On more standard corners (not too steep and not too technical), I found the 134 displayed the same willingness to work with me as on the descents. With a steeper head angle and shorter travel than the popular long travel 29ers, the front wheel of the 134 felt like it was underneath me and we were able to find a rhythm. Lastly, the Process 134 really came to life in longer banked corners. It lets you charge into corners and springs out of them without getting squirrelly. I really enjoyed riding long berms on this bike.
Climbing: If you’re shopping for a 29er, there’s a zero percent chance you don’t care about how it climbs. Being a poor climber, I’m more interested than most in how a bike climbs versus how it descends. I found the 134 to climb better than I expected given its weight and the bikes to which I’m comparing it (carbon frames, carbon wheels, MSRP at least twice that of the Kona 134). The wagon wheels take a little extra oomph to get going, but once they’re rolling, the extra momentum becomes an asset, making long or steep climbs slightly less brutal. The bigger wheels easily pop over roots and rocks so they’re not only a benefit on road climbs but give you an edge on more technical single track as well.
Whether you’re riding chunder or linking bermed turns, this bike is driven to go forward and fast, without getting out of control. It’s both speedy and nimble. The Kona 134 is an all-around great bike that’s playful and responsive with big wheels to keep you rolling smoothly even when the riding gets rough.
Life behind bars. Cheers, TKO
Life behind bars. Cheers, TKO