Enlarge / The Fuel EXe 9.9 XX1 AXS. (credit: Trek Bikes)
I rediscovered my bike after a few weeks in lockdown. At first, I just pedaled my cheap, steel-framed bike around the neighborhood. After a few rides, It dawned on me that this was a mountain bike! So I took it to my closest trail.
That first exhilarating ride is forever etched into my memory. The early morning sun breaking between the trees as deer darted away, the sound of tires on packed earth, and the stupid grin on my face as I rode fast, flirting at the edge of disaster—or at least pain—with my inexperience on trails. I was hooked to the point of riding bike into the ground, taking a perverse pleasure every time something broke and I upgraded it. I eventually upgraded to a Trek Fuel EX 7, and I love it.
The Fuel EX is Trek’s full-suspension trail mountain bike family intended for various terrains, from flowy to techie. Like every model in Trek's lineup, it comes in a large range of trim levels, including aluminum and carbon frames. (My EX 7 has an alloy frame.)