Descending

The energetic nature that the 134 exhibited on the climbs carries over to the descents, where it's happiest snapping through corners and being ridden on the back wheel whenever possible. Those short chainstays make manuals and wheelies a cinch, although there is a tradeoff for that easy maneuverability – the Process lacks the unflappable stability of something slacker and longer when faced with really steep terrain and at higher speeds. It's more of a play bike, a machine for jibbing and interpreting the trail in a creative manner, rather than an all-out speed demon that's only satisfied by being pointed straight down the fall line.The Process 134 is an absolute blast on tight sequential turns - line up a few nice berms in front of it and it'll rocket through them with ease. The short back end is easy to set adrift and then bring back in line, and while that may not be the fastest way down the trail, it sure is fun. I did find myself wondering what adding an extra 10-15 millimeters of length to the chainstays would do to the 134's descending capabilities. We're starting to see more bikes emerge that allow riders at least some chainstay adjustment - Kona's own Connor Fearon was spotted aboard a Process 153 that had adjustable chainstay length last year, and I'd love to see that feature make its way to this bike.The Process is a lively bike, but it also feels reassuringly solid – I never experienced any unwanted flex or strange behavior, even when hitting drops and riding in terrain that was likely a little more than it was designed for. Once I added an additional volume spacer to the Super Deluxe shock there was enough bottom-out resistance to deal with bigger hits, and plenty of support for pumping the terrain, popping off a lip, or tossing in a couple of pedal strokes in between features. The tune on the shock felt well-matched to the bike, with enough sensitivity to take the edge off of chattery sections of trail, and a calm and controlled response to bigger impacts.