Charge Bikes

Cooker 5 Complete Mountain Bike - 2016

It's easy to make a bike that looks good.  Making a bike that looks good and rides just as well without costing a fortune, though? That's a little bit tougher, which makes what Charge Bikes has done with the Cooker series seriously impressive. Started 10 years ago in a glorified shed, Charge makes bikes that balance functionality, affordability, and style, making them perfect for riders of all abilities, and the Cooker 5 is the whip that sits at the top of this durable, versatile, and sexy heap.

All the other 27.5+ Cookers are made from aluminum, but the Cooker 5 boasts an improved titanium frame that's lighter, stronger, and stiffer for increased pedaling power. The geometry is simple, reliable, and comfortable, and the 1x11 SRAM X1 derailleur and shifter provide the precise and snappy shifting that's essential when you're cranking the Cooker 5 up a hill. Charge also included SRAM Guide R disc brakes for reliable stopping power when you're ripping down your local trails, even in wet and muddy conditions.

To increase the Cooker 5's descending capabilities, Charge decked it out with a RockShox Reba RL Boost Solo Air fork, which helps you pound through rock gardens, over roots, and onto curbs without feeling like you're rattling your teeth out of your head.  Like all Cookers, the 5 also sports Charge's trademark extra-wide 27.5in wheels and tires (27.5+), which offer fat-bike-style traction and smoothness alongside the snappiness and versatility of regular 27.5in wheels. The Cooker 5's crowning details are the Fabric Scoop Shallow Elite saddle and Fabric Lite lock-on grips, superlight components that are made in-house by Charge and not found on anyone else's bike.