Karim and his Kona Abra Cadbra. Although he has a few mods on his bike, the geometry is the same as the stock bike (he helped develop it after all). Kona wants this bike to be an off-the-peg enduro race bike and going by Karim's results on it, they've done a pretty good job of it.

Factory as you like...

The difference is in the details. On first glance this looks the same as the stock bike, but look closer and you realise that the linkage here runs on bearings, not bushings, to help it move more smoothly. We saw a few months ago Matt Slaven running an air shock for the Magic Link, Karim has been running the same prototype, but didn't have it with him this weekend.

Small details like cable routing don't get past Karim, this way they stay clean and out of the way. For the rest of us, you'd have to be pretty brave to put a drill to your headtube!

1 x 10 is a pretty stock setup for the fast guys on the Superenduro circuit. That's a 34t chainring in there, coupled to an 11-36t block at the back. The carbon ring helps protect the cranks, so they won't deform in an impact.

This is a very cool little detail - sandpaper on the shifter blades so you don't slip when you're trying to make that important gear change.

You've probably seen the production versions of these by now, but Karim was rocking some of the prototypes for Formula's new Oval brake.

These are proto alloy centres on the discs to help them cool more effectively.

Those are Easton's ultra-light (and ultra-expensive) carbon Haven rims to keep the weight down. No weight saving in the tyres though, 2.35 dual plys all the way, having something as stupid as a puncture ruin your race is just painful.

Although Reverb posts can be positioned in their travel, that little metal clip on the shaft means he can find his precise place in the travel every time. How's that for attention to detail?

To top it all off, a custom etched stem cap from the guys at the factory. Sweet.

• The numbers:
• Travel: 170mm front/160mm rear
• Head angle: 67 degrees
• Toptube: 580mm
• Chainstays: 430mm
• Bottom bracket: 345mm
• Bar/stem: 750mm/55mm
• Weight: 12.92kg (28.5lbs)

We did film this bike check with him, but the audio didn't come out. Things go that way sometimes...