Kona adds some sweet road, cross and adventure bikes for 2016

Kona has been expanding away from its mountain bike background lately, and the sneak peak we got on the 2016 models takes things to the next level. Here are the four models that stood out the most to me.

Private Jake – $2,000

An all new aluminum frame offers modern updates like front and rear thru-axles, and geometry that is on the slack and low side for a cross bike. Combine that with sliding modular dropouts and a single-chainring specific design, and this might be more of a “fun bike” than race bike, and that is OK with us. It even has clearance for 40 mm tires.

Roadhouse – $2,400

Steel road frames and disc brakes aren’t common bedfellows. Which is a shame. The Roadhouse unashedly combines a Reynolds 853 steel frame, flat mount disc brakes and thru-axles for what is perhaps the most modern production steel road bike I’ve seen. But fear not, it isn’t all high-tech. Those looking closely will see rack and fender mounts. I am probably in the minority here, but about the only thing that would make this a better bike is a high-end steel fork.

Sutra LTD – $2,000

Fear not touring cyclists, the standard Sutra model is still around, still has a triple crank, Brooks saddle, and a rear rack. The Sutra LTD leans more towards use on unpaved roads and dirt. Combine a frame with lots of braze-ons,  a 1×11 SRAM drive train with a wide-range 10-42 cassette, hydraulic disc brakes and 47 mm tires, and you should be ready for anything from long dirt-road tours to detours on the way home from work.

Essatto Fast – $TBA

We have almost no info about this bike, but we do know there are a surprising number of riders that want the speed of a road bike without the drop bars. This looks like it should fit the bill nicely for those riders.

As of this posting, Kona’s website isn’t live with the new bikes yet, but it should be soon.