Decathlon B’Twin Riverside 920 hybrid bike

Who could imagine a big old lump of a hybrid – with 38mm tyres and a suspension fork and weighing north of 13kg – being any fun to cycle? Anybody riding something like that is in for a slog, right? Thankfully, nobody told those crazy French cats about accepted wisdom because in the B'Twin Riverside 920 they've managed to put together an incredible bike that combines all the practicalities of a hybrid, with a fun and enthusiastic ride and almost unlimited potential.

• Pros: Fantastic and fun ride experience; excellent value for money package; superb wheelset
• Cons: Brakes are a bit weak – that's it

The first thing that hits you about B'Twin's Riverside 920 is just how reactive it is. For a big and relatively heavy bike, you can get it up to speed without any real effort, and weaving in and around parked cars or street furniture is exciting and direct.

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Crucially, even if the Riverside 920 isn't necessarily quicker than other bikes, it at least feels lively and willing. This is a really rewarding bike to ride.

The tiny rear triangle does help power transfer – even when you're suffering on a climb, there's a reassuring sense that all your effort is going into forward motion. But a great deal of credit for the ride experience also has to go to the front end. Although you sit relatively high, you never feel estranged from the front wheel, even with the suspension in operation. Placing the bike exactly where you want is so certain and direct that you can quickly go looking for excitement.

Rather incredibly, none of this direct power delivery and control comes at the expense of comfort. While both ends of the bike feel stiff when it counts, the overall ride is rather refined. The suspension fork helps smooth out vibrations coming through to your upper body, while the rear triangle still has give to keep things smooth. As a complete design, everything just feels fully resolved.

Frame

For all its qualities, I'd be lying if I said the Riverside 920's aluminium frame was the prettiest thing in the world. As you can see in the photos, there's a very pronounced kink in the top tube; as is the fashion, the rear triangle is tiny; and the welds are neat if not as smooth as some rivals. The frame is finished in smart rather than exotic metallic grey paint.

Far more importantly, though, it comes with a lifetime warranty and a really great riding position that definitely errs on the side of uprightness. That gives you a good view ahead and commanding road presence in urban environments. It also contributes to a ride experience that is stable when cruising but dynamic when the mood takes you.

I tested a medium size version, which was just about perfect for me at 6ft tall. And while the 13kg weight seems hefty, such is the bike's general enthusiastic character – and its sensible gearing – you really don't notice the mass.

Up front, the 63mm Suntour NCX air-sprung fork features a very handy remote lockout. These Suntour forks seem ubiquitous on mass-produced hybrids and may not be any ardent off-roader's idea of a plush front end, but for taking the sting out of road imperfections, potholes and sleeping policemen, they do a laudable job.

Then, when the going gets tough, you can click the switch and ensure all your effort is converted into forward momentum rather than lost to suspension bob.

Drivetrain

Any worry that having a fork lockout lever to add to the clutter on the handlebar is dismissed with the SRAM NX 1x11 drivetrain.

With only your right hand controlling gearing, things couldn't be simpler. Things couldn't be much more efficient, either.

The classy NX 36-tooth chainset is teamed with a wide-ranging 11-42t cassette, which really does provide all the gear ratios you'll need to enjoy (or at least conquer) everything from tough climbs to long descents. These days, who needs triples, or even doubles?

Operation is fairly impressive, too. Although there is the occasional hesitant gear change, by and large the SRAM NX setup works very well. Clicking up and down the 11-sprocket cassette is solid and secure, and – possibly best of all – it's super-easy to maintain.

Brakes

I tend to test my review bikes in the limbo hours between 9am and 3pm when vans and 'mature' drivers rule the roads, so the need to be prepared for the unexpected is perhaps more paramount than when you know everybody's simply trying to get to work/home as quickly as possible. To that end, the B'Twin branded disc brakes are perhaps the only real disappointment – I almost ended up in the boot of a Honda Jazz that pulled out on me then proceeded to drive at 10mph below the 20mph speed limit.

To be fair to B'Twin, its own-branded kit – such as the Hybrid Trekking Speed tyre here – is normally very good. But these are rebranded Promax discs rather than anything of proprietary design, and a change of name doesn't change performance. When it comes to scrubbing off speed, they're OK, but in terms of all-out braking power, you're going to be squeezing very hard before you get anywhere near locking the wheels in dry conditions.

Tyres and wheels

In fact, even in soggy conditions, I didn't experience much loss of grip. That's thanks to those 38mm Hybrid Trekking Speed tyres, which feature a nice low-profile tread across the middle with more pronounced grip at the sides. As a do-anything compromise, suitable for road, leisure or even a bit of trail riding, they're surprisingly impressive. However, once you know what you plan to use your Riverside for the majority of the time, a switch to more role-specific rubber would highlight the bike's abilities even further. Some semi-slick 32mm tyres for commuting would make the Riverside 920 an awesome urban machine, and some more mud-favouring rubber would even give you a fun hardtail.

As well as the fantastic frame, drivetrain and tyres, the biggest speccing highlight is the Mavic Allroad Aksium wheelset. Whatever potential the rest of the package holds, with these hoops it all comes alive, and they even elevate the already supremely positive and enthusiastic ride. In the £600 hybrid marketplace, often the best you can hope for are wheels that don't nullify the rest of the bike too much. These quick and lively wheels are more like the cherry on the cake.

Controls

Controls are all B'Twin's own kit. The Ergofit Sport 900 saddle contributes to overall ride comfort and offers decent support.

The stem and handlebar are fairly run-of-the-mill aluminium efforts, although the bar does feature welcome central crosshairs so you can line it up properly.

Even the basic plastic pedals are nice and wide, with little knobs to keep your feet in decent contact.

Probably the most exciting components among the finishing kit are the handlebar grips that feature bar-end cow horns. These might not be in vogue so much anymore, but on a bike that B'Twin says is designed for 'long distances and very regular rides', the ability to change your hand position is a ride-saver. It also gives you just a little more purchase and leverage for out-of-the-saddle efforts.

Value

In terms of value, in recent months I've tested the Specialized CrossTrail Sport at £750 and the Saracen Urban Cross 3 at £749.99, both of which have similar talents to the Riverside.

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Of course there are some significant speccing differences: the Saracen in particular offers a great deal with Shimano hydraulic disc brakes and Shimano Deore gears. But don't forget the B'Twin has those Mavic wheels, which help make the Riverside a very decent value all-round package.

Conclusion

Back in 2012 I tested the B'Twin Triban 3, a £300 drop-bar bike that played its own little role in the road bike revolution of the last decade or so, and significantly contributed to Decathlon's reputation for selling 'proper' bikes. This Riverside 920 is just about the best B'Twin I've ridden since then. Few bikes will ever again match the Triban 3 for value, but the Riverside 920 is almost faultless in terms of ability and ride quality, while the underlying potential of the frame and package is unquestionable.

In fact, it's to Decathlon and B'Twin's credit that they pitch the Riverside 920 as a wide-ranging hybrid trekking bike suitable for commuting, gravel or even trails; other manufacturers would be tempted to chuck in some 'urban lifetstyle' mumbo-jumbo. Keeping the idea that the Riverside 920 has a variety of potential uses, rather than opting for some trendy marketing spin, couldn't be more sensible. Short of road races or hard sportives, this bike can do almost anything you ask of it.

Verdict

Agile and exciting ride makes the Riverside 920 an unexpected treasure