coffeeking - try riding in the Lakes. Even the easiest trails make "black grade" trail centre routes look like a walk in the park.
Out this weekend on the Quantocks with young lads, all much faster on their hardtails than anyone I know (close to my age) is on a full sus.
coffeeking - try riding in the Lakes. Even the easiest trails make "black grade" trail centre routes look like a walk in the park.
I used to ride in the lakes every other weekend (that's a lie, but usually at least once a month before I moved to Scotland), cheers. My point is not that the black trail centres are harder, but that they're the fun ones on a full sus, and not because they're technical (because the suspension irons most of it out), but because they're often very very fast and swoopy. Natural trails are more fun, certainly, but again suspension irons out a lot of the fun (the fun that doesn't require brain removal to ride) AND they're also not fast and swoopy, meaning a double fail.
Coffeeking
Lol I found I just can't ride fast enough to make a longer travel bike that much fun any more. When you have a long travel bike it irons out all the surface detail, so the trail has to be nicely shaped and hit at speeds approaching spinning out in your hardest gear before it's even close to fun. Don a rigid and all the little details become fun again, just getting across a stream crossing is hard work. You no longer lunch over logs like they're not there, you have to navigate them, pick the best route, set it up and work for your fun.
That is the reason why I have just got rid of the dh bike. Too much bike, even for the dh tracks I ride. Just flattened them out. Made them boring to ride. I have down sized the fleet for the reasons you have pointed out.
What sort of trails are you ladies riding with 160mm tow paths/trail centres, i used to ride everything on a 100mm Hardtail that includes Laggan Black/ Ben Lomond, now ride the meanest mother****ing trails in t'Lakes and ecosse and find it way more capable, i think we are talking crossed wires here you guys bought big bikes for trail centres and bridelways, at the end of the day you can get down the trail riding anything, but did you feel like like a riding god at the end.
I guess it all comes down to what everyone gets from riding in the end. Some people get an adrenalin rush from riding fast, some like to nail a tricky section slowly, some like the smooth flowy sections and jumps of man-made trails. I like them all to some extent, but I do find anything more than about 3" needs to be reserved for the most hardcore of trails, be they natural or man made, otherwise it's just too simple. I didn't realise this a few years ago and was lulled by the confidence inspiring long travelness. After a few years (and a long trip to the Alps) I just got bored of riding here.
And since I spend spend most of my time riding local trails that are not DH monster runs, it makes more sense to have a shorter travel frame. Doesn't mean I don't want a DH bike for the times when I can get to an all-out survival of a DH route, just that most of the time it's actually a negative.
I've spent a bit of time thinking about my riding recently, thinking about why I don't really enjoy it any more. This is part of my conclusion.
110-120 rear with 130-140mm front seems to be where I've settled in the last few years afer everyting from hardtail to 9 inch dh bike. Most stuff I ride isn't steep or technical enough to warrant a bigger bike and 26-27lb is a nicely pedalable weight.
although a pounding on the descents at the weekend has me considing a 30lb 6 inch bike with lyriks again!
seftonI do feel there is a urge to get long fork bikes (with the burly downhill/all-mountain image)...dare I say "because it will make you look tough"?
Too true. Looking in the back of What MTB etc and the categories that they pigeonhole bikes and riders into there is always a danger that the ego gets in the way!
Oh yeah aggressive trail ripper !
As for travel I've always hovered around the 5-6 inches. Although the old San Andreas Mountain Cycle had very dubious suspension and put me off for a long while.
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And no ones mentioned the zenith in suspension design
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Different people want different things, but for me about 120mm seems the sweet spot. I have a Superlight with 100mm at both ends, and a Blur Classic with 115mm rear and DT Swiss XMC130 on the front. The latter is noticeably better downhill even on local trails, at somewhere like CYB it is much more secure, but you certainly lose out a bit on the climbs or any non-technical stuff, and that's with trying to keep the Blur as light as possible and with forks that partially lock out. They both weigh within a pound of each other (27lbs ish) and have the same wheels/tyres. I can't imagine wanting more travel at either end unless really focusing on the downs alone.
On the other hand I've pretty much given up with the hardtail - the Superlight, set up slightly stiffer than the Blur, is so capable even in the wet or on-road I just don't have a need for the hardtail. I'm a firm believer in full suss - just lightweight, well set up, and without too much travel.
Is it not the case that Frame design has caught up. You now find the same sort of geometry in a 120mm bike as you used to find on a 160mm bike - i.e. it used to be longer travel = slacker angles - now it's not so clear cut.
And as the geometry is a huge part of how a bike rides you can now get away with less travel and less weight, so easier to get up the hill, less wallowy etc etc, still fun on the downs.
And the argument about trails being ridden on rigid bikes meaning no one needs more travel is surely the same as saying everyone should just have a model T ford. It worked didn't it?
And for the record, i've gone
0" hardtail,
5" Old enduro
0" Prince albert
6" Old Bullit
4" Blur 4X
5" Heckler
6" Nomad / 0" Blue Pig
5" Five
I've found the five is a lot more lively than the Nomad, but you don't get through the rough stuff quite as quickly. Fun all the same though!
People may laugh at that Girvin now but it was great in it's day. A day out on my original Rockhopper and I'd be having to use my whole hand to operate the friction shifters by the end of a ride my hands and thumbs were hurting so much. That Girvin made it a lot more pleasant.
Didn't I say the Flexstem was the zenith of suspension designs 😉
I progressed to Manitou 2s with lovely elastomers and that stopped my fingers suffering from early onset of arthritis!
I had a flexstem in yellow and it was awesome It was more about showing it off to my mates really 🙂
Surely it's personal preference. I have 140mm travel on my orange 5 which is ideal for me. Compromised slightly on the ups but I like to remove any sence of fear on the downhills and hit them as hard as I can. Still more than capable on the climbs.
I think geometry and bb height is probably more important..