Hardtails – they're called hard for a reason

If your getting a battering your riding it all wrong
I have at least 12″ suspension when on the hardtail, it’s in my legs
Hardly mince around things, look ahead and pick a line maybe, if that’s mincing then I’d rather that than just blasting over things devoid of any skill
I like riding both the same, but there is nothing I wouldn’t do on hardtail

Real “real men” ride a rigid with old skool cantilever brakes and still pass noobs on Full Sussers! End of the day its all about getting out and riding. I also ride a Spesh Stumpy FSR and horror of horrors a road bike.

Was lucky enough to borry a Titus Motolite for a few hours riding the Marin Trail. Lovely lovely bike. I can see why they call full-sussers ‘skill compensators’, totally. But they do allow you to ride harder and faster, with less penalties than a HT, that’s for sure. Bewildering then that so many folk I see riding them are proper slow mincers… 😉

But coon’t help wondering how well I’d do on my HT. Probbly not as quick, but I’d at least like to know that I am reasonably competent on a bike, and can handle most things on me HT, than have to rely on a full boinger. I’m sure I could ride it nearly as fast, and I dunno about more ‘fun’, but a FS is a nice thing to have, for sure. I’d need to be a lot richer before I contemplated buying one though, as tbh, a HT is more than enough for most riding, certainly all the riding I do. I’d feel embarrassed only ever riding the likes of Epping, Swinley etc only on a FS but to each their own, just enjoy it innit?

Only thing for me riding HT full time is that over rocky trails (not rock gardens) that require constant pedalling its easier to be seated on a full suss to pedal through it as opposed to be stood up on the HT ie more effort required. I can say without doubt that descending I can do all that those lads I ride with do on full suss- just drop the seat if its that steep and use the maintainence free suspension of arms and legs.

Skill compensator? perhaps a skill magnifier!

I do love my HT but my FS’s lets me pop higher off lips, gain more grip in corners, smile more, ride longer and last but not least… keep spending hard earned cash.

Seeing as my FS is in dry dock licking it’s wounds from Morzine, I had to use my HT for a blast around Cwmcarn. 1 lap later and I had to re-ajdust some internal organs!!!!

Totally forgot how tough it was on the bod.

Not to say it wasnt fun though.

I love my steel hardtail and full susser. Use the hardtail for 4x tracks and jumping but find the saddle feedback annoying when xc riding on it.
When it points down and gets rough i’m out of the seat anyway and so hardtail is fine, but riding along I find the constant feeling that you are being unseated pretty annoying.

I constantly vacillate between the two. Only got hardtails built up at the moment but have full sus frame in the loft as I know I will fancy a change at some point. 16 years of riding has done one thing for me though, and that’s made me accept that I don’t have to be going as fast as possible all the time, and as long as it is fun it doesn’t matter what I’m riding….

I often forget to take the lockout back off the rear shock for descents so I might as well just ride a hardtail

i really can’t be arsed riding a ht anymore. rode a ht(soul) almost exclusively for about 3 years, rode it in the alps and everywhere here so i don’t feel that i have anything to prove. nowadays i just can’t stand the things, being kicked up the arse by the saddle, coming home feeling beat up and knackered cos i’ve had to keep working so hard just to keep the momentum going.

as for skills compensation, that’s just bolllox really isn’t it. i wasn’t any more skillful on a ht, i just avoided stuff or went slower over it and i firmly suspect that this is the same for 99.9% of us non riding gods on here.

You get used to whatever you ride after a few weeks. I switch from my full-suss to a long-forked hardtail when winter sets in (easier cleaning and maintenance etc) and although the first couple of rides are a shock to the system, I soon adapt and love the hardtail just as much.

Switching back to the full-suss is like getting in a new sports car though, definately adding 10-20% to my overall speed 😀

Love ’em both though, it’s all good riding innit!

I wanna build my HT up (super light)!

every decent vehicle on the road has full suspension

Ahem.

I’ve been riding HT’s, mainly cos i couldn’t afford a FS, for the last 15 years or so, but I built my first FS at the begining of this year. I absolutley love it. My HT is a commuter bike nowadays but to be honest, and it could be lazyness but i just don’t want to ride anything else off road now. I love the speed I can carry on the downs and the lines I can take. I’m not the best rider in the world but the funometer has gone up massivley since i started riding FS, and i used to have loads of fun on the HT.

Ride what you’ve got it’s fun, FACT. And stop telling others that they’re doing it wrong. They may not have the skills or the money but as long as they have a smile on their face, they’re doing it right!!

Switching back to the full-suss is like getting in a new sports car though, definately adding 10-20% to my overall speed

Funny that, I feel the opposite way. When I get on the HT it feels like getting on something a lot sportier than my FS. That feeling of acceleration when you stomp on the pedals, the lighter weight, the sharpness, I just don’t get that on my XC FS bike.

Horses for courses though as while that applies to the majority of my trail riding, when it gets really steep and rocky and I still go for the big FS bike.

I rode my Ti456 (with 140mm TALAS) for the first time in ages yesterday, round the Surrey Hills. Takes me 2.5hrs on the FS race bike, I was 10 mins slower on the hardtail…..was a bit slippy and wet and by the end I was definately more tired than I have been on the FS, did batter me a bit.

Thing is I ENJOYED yesterday on the hardtail, was great having the big (adjustable) forks on the downs, 140mm on the front and a bit of flex at the back, great fun. I’m def going to get a a dropper post of some kind though, moved the post around a few times during the ride, on the susser I can just set it and leave alone.

I like both.

every decent vehicle on the road has full suspension

Ahem.

Maybe for Germany…..have you not seen the state of our roads?
http://www.autocar.co.uk/News/NewsArticle/AllCars/259228/

Can’t really compare a FS race bike with a long travel 456, not really a like for like HT/FS comparison there.

Suspect over typical XC terrain with a good mix of ups and downs there is little to choose between a similar FS and HT. Looking at most XC races there tends to be a mix of both FS and HT bikes with rides going equally quick regardless. Obviously when things get quite a bit more gnarr relative to rider ability then the balance tips towards FS.

Switching back to the full-suss is like getting in a new sports car though, definately adding 10-20% to my overall speed

Funny that, I feel the opposite way. When I get on the HT it feels like getting on something a lot sportier than my FS. That feeling of acceleration when you stomp on the pedals, the lighter weight, the sharpness, I just don’t get that on my XC FS bike.

Horses for courses though as while that applies to the majority of my trail riding, when it gets really steep and rocky and I still go for the big FS bike.

Maybe ‘sportier’ was the wrong word to use, but the FS definately alllows me to ride the local singletrack faster and more smoothly, carrying speed and maintaining flow better than the HT.

Love ’em both though, and as ADS678 said riding bikes is fun whatever you’re on 😀

Does no one just go for pootles around the park? I do. Hardtail is perfect for that, WTB SS Prowler close block (sort of) tyre on rear.. nice and zippy..

FULL SUSS
FULL WUSS

Wish I was hard like you Grizzer.

FULL SUSS
FULL WUSS

You’re provocative. I like that.

Real men don’t use suspension…or gears. I do though, two helpings of suspension and lots of gears, but I’m a pussy.

Get a carbon frame/rear end – loving mine 🙂

Luddites … 😉

Love my Cove Stiffee but it lives up to its name. Its brutal on the old knees and back.

Don’t understand all these comments about sore arses though. I only sit down on long fire road climbs or road sections. Rest of the time I’m stood up. If you’re sat down on the rough stuff on a HT you’re doing it wrong.

Don’t understand comments about sore knees or back. Well.. I do, but it’s **** all to do with frame stiffness and everything to do with rider (skills or physical) weakness

Have to say I don’t know why I call the full sus a skills compensator because it’s not really.. I reckon on the right kind of trail a hardtail will be faster than a full sus but it mostly depends on rider skill. Case in point I followed who I’m fairly sure was the “whistler hardtail video” guy (one of the only HTs in the bike park, all chromag stuff, great rider) down Dirt Merchant and I could not keep up on my freeridey full sus. He’s so bloody quick and I think the HT helps on jump trails as momentum can be carried better. But it’s mostly rider skill which I don’t have enough of 😆