In a philosophical way, what are we looking for when we ride? A degree of thrill on the descents. With a hardtail you get the same thrill but at (arguably) a slower speed on less steep (maybe) less jumpy trails. It’s human nature to an extent to want more. More car, more house, more toys etc. But it’s similar with our bikes. Bikes and trails evolved together where we kept asking for more capable bikes to ride more challenging trails but I think to a certain extent we forgot what we were all really wanting. We called it progress but was it really? I ride both and I enjoy both. Certainly some trails are more enjoyable with full suspension as those trails are rocky and rough. To the cynical the marketing people are telling us what we want and we all suck it up. And there is a grain of truth to that.
Good review though. Kind of shows that geometry is more important than amount of travel.
March 5, 2021, 9:27 a.m. - Andy Eunson
In a philosophical way, what are we looking for when we ride? A degree of thrill on the descents. With a hardtail you get the same thrill but at (arguably) a slower speed on less steep (maybe) less jumpy trails. It’s human nature to an extent to want more. More car, more house, more toys etc. But it’s similar with our bikes. Bikes and trails evolved together where we kept asking for more capable bikes to ride more challenging trails but I think to a certain extent we forgot what we were all really wanting. We called it progress but was it really? I ride both and I enjoy both. Certainly some trails are more enjoyable with full suspension as those trails are rocky and rough. To the cynical the marketing people are telling us what we want and we all suck it up. And there is a grain of truth to that. Good review though. Kind of shows that geometry is more important than amount of travel.