After having to curtail my seventh dyfi enduro due to a worsening back injury, I’ve got to thinking about 29er full sussers. Only ever ridden hardtails and had the same one for the last dozen years.

So convince me to get something slack and lairy!

Can your back not be fixed? Thus is also regardless of the full suss question – dont give up the fight!

Do some core exercises and build up your strength? Even if you do go full sus it will help protect your back and further injury.

Yoga

Excellent back advice here:

[video]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BOjTegn9RuY[/video]

I have an horrific back. I also ride a hardtail.

Ibuprofen, core strength exercises, and a heating pad are my best friends.

I would say definitely get a full suspension to just enjoy what they offer.

I have a bad lower back and I have to do certain exercises to keep it in shape or it will get to the point that I struggle to walk let alone ride. So I recommend looking at what you need to do on that front as well.

My experience is that it’s not just sitting on the bike that causes back pain, it’s wrestling the bars on climbs and fast single track and pedalling.

I’d look at specific core exercises to remedy the back thing.

Thank you all for the back advice. Much appreciated. It’s not that bad, just a weak core and over enthusiastic gardening last weekend! It will recover and will do some core exercises to strengthen.

But this is a bike forum, and I have a good excuse so tell me about fun 29er full sussers!

There a fabulous brace of 120mm or there about 29er full sussers, which as slack, long & short backend. Take you pick from the whyte t-129, Santa Cruz Tallboy3, Evil following, banshee Phantom, Transistion Smuggler, Kona process, YT Jeffsey, orange segment, Spesh camber/stumpy, come to mind.
I have the evil & love it

Only ever ridden hardtails and had the same one for the last dozen years.

The world has moved on big time in that time, and so has your body – what ‘fitted’ you in your 20’s probably won’t fit you now.

Also look at your forks/bars etc, are they knackered and contributing to your ‘pain’?

And I’m in my 50’s, and still ride my HT but have spent more time in the last year on my FS (Camber evo 29er) – although I’ll still bring the HT out for longer rides.

http://www.bikes.com/en/bikes/sherpa/2016

Just bloody buy it Mike.
(nearest thing to a Slayer for you)

Or:
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/specialized-stumpjumper-fsr-evo-carbon-29er-frame-5
To stop me buying it…

Sounds like a good excuse, go for it.

Stand up.

Swim.

Stretch.

My 3 ‘S’ program!

Grow a beard, buy a fat bike and ride slowly. Happy days. Cheers 1 shed.

Slayer?

Do it. 🙂

Or at least go 650b+

The long test rig will probably be a little too big, but the short may be just the ticket…

What is it with this “I’m over forty so…” mindset?
Your barely a grown up until your over forty, you can expect to live until your a hundred, man up you soft lad and fix your body.

Guys. The OP is trying to justify buying a new bike. He does not want to hear medical advice, no matter how well intentioned.

wilburt – Member
What is it with this “I’m over forty so…” mindset?
Your barely a grown up until your over forty, you can expect to live until your a hundred, man up you soft lad and fix your body.

This…..
Over 60 and my back has been knackered since my early 20s 🙄
Wrestling with hay/straw bales, bags of corn/wheat/barley in my early teens followed by engines and gearboxes till mid twenties…
Swapped that for fixing machines in a factory which has lots of stairs.

In answer to the question though, yes you need a bouncy bike, it will help(a bit, not much) 😆

You’ve turned 40, treat yourself to a full Sussex. Because you’re worth it.

Same applies to 39, 41, 42, etc…

My back plays up less on my carbon, and then now on a Ti hardtail than it did on my full susser.

It seems to be a recurring problem as we get older. I too suffer/suffered from various back problems.
Yoga helps so does stretching. The chiropractor I was seeing told me to use the hot and cold compress trick, it works.
Also take a look at this fix your bad back, it got me back on my feet.
When you get back on the bike, the trick is not to over do it too quickly.
I still only ride HT’s

Have a ride on a mate’s FS and see if it’s better.

Technical MTBing is really good for my back, but I only really ride full sus bikes.

Don’t buy a fullsuss, buy a physio ball, therabands, a set of kettle bells and learn how to use them.

🙂

The only thing a full Susser will do is give you a weaker core. Best bike for core strength I ever had was a single speed.

Yours,

Scienceofficer, 42 with a bad back, a hardtail and an FS.

Y
O
G
A

Man. There are more autocorrects in this thread than I’ve ever Sean.

OP, buy a full Sussex, it’s time.

I’ve had a HT to go alongside my FS since about 2006, I built my Blur LTc nearly 3 years ago and I reckon thats when I stopped riding HT. For me it’s just better. It stops the buzz and pinging that you get on a HT, it doesn’t stop my bad back though. It’s just a better ride and a better bike. I keep toying with something like a Soul or a Solaris but can’t justify either. I went for a 100mm 29r XC FS that does well for the less gnar stuff and is so capable and pedals so well I don’t know if I would go back to a HT.

Scienceofficer – Member
The only thing a full Susser will do is give you a weaker core. Best bike for core strength I ever had was a single speed.

I must agree with this – and on any bike, just get out of the saddle more instead of just sitting most of the time. It always amazes me to see how much time a lot of people just stay in the saddle.

and on any bike, just get out of the saddle more instead of just sitting most of the time.

Depends what your doing

It always amazes me to see how much time a lot of people just stay in the saddle.

Time and a place for everything, unless it’s really technical seated climbing is more efficient and lasts longer, on technical down then yep get stood up and move around, through the pedally stuff? If you can be in control sat pedalling then why not?

Issue is more likely to be sizing than whether you ride a hard tail or full-sus. I have a bad lower back and I’ve just ordered a new P7. My back will probably still hurt, just like it does on my full sus, but it’s probably my fault for riding slightly too-small bikes and not doing enough stretches/exercise, plus sitting at a desk too much and being 43. Good luck anyway. I reckon a new hardtail will be fine, so long as it fits you properly.

Unless you’re doing Danny Macaskill-level stuff, surely it’s riding up steep hills and grinding big gears that hurts your back more than riding a hardtail? Unless you were to sit down like a sack of spuds when descending, which no one does anyway? I have a bad back and if I thought riding a full suss would help, I’d buy one, but I honestly don’t think it would.

I have an horrific back. I also ride a hardtail.

Ibuprofen, core strength exercises, and a heating pad are my best friends.

Sod that, Buy a FS. Ibuprofen long term is not a great option.

Stand up.

Swim.

Stretch.

My 3 ‘S’ program!Nikk – brilliant! My mantra too!

And OH, do those plus buy a full suss anyway because they are fun! I dont notice any difference in my back depending on which bike I ride, but guess I am more prepared to hit drops on my full suss which does jar the back!

imnotverygood nails it!

The hardtail is not giving me a bad back. That was the result of a bizarre gardening incident.

However I am using the bad back as a thinly veiled excuse to justify a new bike and I’m full sus curious, particular slack 29er gnarpoon-lite.

The back advice is appreciated and I fully intend to start doing more to help it and prevent a reoccurence.

So no more back advice and more bike suggestions please?

Do it, FS bikes are good fun!

I went for a ride around sherwood pines yesterday, would normally take my HT, but it was on the stand awaiting some TLC so I took the 150/140 FS bike, I was slower and horribly overbiked but I did 25km of pinging off every little thing I could find to jump and laughing all the way.

Now we get to the heart of the matter!

I’m full sus curious, particular slack 29er gnarpoon-lite.

Do it, these kind of bikes are such good fun and so fast.

Good list by Zippy on previous page.

Coming up on 43 in a few months, back pain was a problem previously and I rode a hardtail mostly before switching to a FS about 3 year ago – no massive change if I’m honest.

What did change my back pain was my physio teaching me to self manipulate two muscles which have near stopped my back pain. This was my Psoas and Iliacus. The pain does flare up but spending some time massaging these resolves it quite quickly.

Link to more info on the Psoas

Disclaimer – Obviously I’m no doctor and only speak of my experiences and having recently broken my back I’d highly recommend speaking to a professional

Yoga, stretching, core exercises and standing up on the bike honking rather than sitting spinning all help my back loosen up.

Oh and buy a new bike if you want one 😀

Warning: slack FS bikes are monster trucks to a hardtail’s MX5 😉