Charge Bikes

Cooker 1 Complete Mountain Bike - 2016

Bikes are meant to be ridden. It's an obvious fact that can get lost in all the discussion about carbon fiber, gearing ratios, and performance tracking, but it's not something that's slipped past the sharp eyes of the bike builders at England's Charge. In 2005, Charge started building bikes for bike riders — not cyclists, not triathletes, not professionals — and ten years later, whips like the Cooker 1 are still rallying down hidden trails, tearing up backyard berms, and rolling over gravel roads.

A step up from the simplest Cooker 0, the Cooker 1 trades in the former's steel frame for a lighter, but still rugged, aluminum construction, and replaces the singlespeed drivetrain with a 1x10 Shimano Deore setup, giving you a little more hill-conquering versatility. The bomber geometry hasn't been messed with, and like all Cookers, the 1 comes correct with extra-wide 2.8in WTB Trailblazer tires (27.5+) to balance the cushion and grip of fat-bike tires with the do-it-all skillset of new-school 27.5in tires.

To get you through those gears, Charge hooked the Cooker 1 up with a Shimano Deore derailleur and shifter and a nickel-plated KMC chain. Tektro disc brakes let you check your speed before you plow headfirst into that tumbledown shed alongside the trail, and Charge's in-house Spoon saddle and Square lock-on grips provide added comfort. The Cooker even ships with pedals, so it's ready to roll as soon as it hits your front steps.