Forbidden Bikes Launch the Reya

Originally a company known for their hard charging, high pivot trail and E-bikes, Forbidden have recently begun to expand their horizons and that push continues with the new Reya. Their take on the modern lightweight trailbike, it carries many of their signature design cues into a super light 120mm travel platform. 

Unlike many bikes in this category, the Reya isn’t an adapted XC race bike, but instead has been designed to maximise fun and speed on flowing descents while still coming close to the weight of the thoroughbred XC machines. One look at the geometry chart makes that philosophy obvious, will a set of numbers that bear little relation to most short travel bikes. 

Head angles are a slack 65’ across all sizes and the BB height is super low, with 42mm of drop relative to the axles. As with all Forbidden bikes, the rear centre grows proportionally with Reach, keeping a similar weight balance throughout all sizes so that even the largest bikes still have plenty of grip at the front wheel. In practice, that means chainstays that vary from a dinky 420mm on the S1 all the way to 464mm on the S4. Seat angles are also adjusted by size, with the larger bikes seeing steeper angles to keep the effective angle consistent despite changes in saddle height. Wheelbases are generous for a bike in this category (the S3 is 1244mm), again pointing to a bike that should be calm and confidence inspiring when descending and cornering at speed.

The 120mm rear travel is delivered by a full Horst link design. That suspension platform adds a small amount of weight compared to simpler flex stay bikes but also brings performance advantages with it and looking at the graphs for the Reya they once again point to a bike designed to punch beyond its travel numbers when descending. There’s a good amount of progression built into the leverage rate which will both play well with modern high volume shocks and provide plenty of bottom out protection.

Anti-Rise sits at around 75%, which should strike a good balance between keeping suspension active under braking without the bike pitching forward. Anti-squat values sit in a range slightly above 100% (depending on gear and suspension travel) which is going to result in a direct and solid feel under pedal effort. All in all, the bike looks like a simple, effective and neutral package and one that should be a lot of fun to ride.

Elsewhere, the frame is sensibly equipped with space for a full size water bottle on every frame size along with accessory mounting points. Cables route through regular ports and there’s even ISCG mounting for anyone looking to add an upper chainguide. One common feature which is conspicuously absent however is a door for internal frame storage. That will divide opinions, but it allows for a slimmer downtube and saves a good amount of frame weight thanks to the more efficient structure. 

There are three Reya models to pick from along with a frame only option. Even the ‘basic’ bike is pretty well equipped with RockShox Select+ suspension and a SRAM 90 groupset, while the top end Reya is practically impossible to upgrade with Fox Factory suspension and SRAM XX parts. Prices range from £6099 up to £9999 for the Tier One bike, while a frameset will cost £3199. 

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