Easy riders

NUCLEUS 29 VR, VITUS, £550 A great-value package with a market-leading ride

Vitus is the in-house brand of online cycling retailers Chain Reaction Cycles and Wiggle, and its bikes are available exclusively via their websites.

Vitus’ consumer-direct model means you benefit from its enormous buying power and get a beginner’s mountain bike that, for the money, is arguably unmatched. The ‘cost’ is that you have to buy Vitus’ bikes unseen, and any warranty issues can’t be sorted out with a quick trip to your local shop. This shouldn’t put you off though, as the brand’s bikes have consistently scored well in BikeRadar reviews.

To start, the geometry of the bike is