SO! Hardtails still rule, maybe we are not all mad then!

Most of the fun is in going as fast as possible - both uphill and down.
Personally I never looked back after getting a Proflex 752 - eventually got some 1 1/4 Rockshox to fit - Full sus ever since for epic* rides






*Of course one man's epic is another man's jaunt in the woods, but that's a different argument.

I agree - it's just hard to define what's 'best', when that can mean very different things for different people! I won't be going anywhere very fast on my SS, but it's still fun...

Oh, & my bike of choice for long rides? Proflex 856 with modern XT gruppo.

Me too, until it got nicked!

Oh dear even our discussions are retro.
Seem to remember this starting around 92.

I have been converted to the full sus. My ETSX is better than my YBB that is better than my old Bonty for real mountainbiking.
And thank you God for disc brakes.

Cant see the point of riding a bike that the suspension smoothes all the trail out. If you want smooth ride on the road! Surely the reason for riding offroad is the challenge of the terain?

Have never seen a trail in this country where you NEED bounce. Everything can be riden on a HT.

Full suss bikes also date very fast.

Have had two full sussers and got rid of em and gone back to a HT and dont regret it for a minute.

Much as I love Kona, out of that lot, I want the Cotic. Bad.

Can't really comment on FS bikes, the only one I've ever ridden is a Pace DH machine which was lovely for doing what I would describe as 'stupid stuff' (even if the chick who owned it would describe it as normal biking) but obviously not even vaguely suitable for XC/trail riding. Yet to ride an XC-based FS bike. One day...

SPOT ON 100%

Don't you just love sweeping generalisations

I wouldn't fancy taking a hardtail down this (or the rest of the trail for that matter),



I recently rode the new "Punterised" version of this trail with a couple of guys on hardtails. This route is a Munro (4 actually) - this bit used to be at about 3000ft until it was punterised - it's still mental though. Three guys on big full sussers rode most/all of it, two guys on big full sussers walked a few bits, and two guys on big hardtails did very well but were defeated by a few more bits. This goes for the climbs also - my Nicolai is a scary heavy beastie but it is very low geared and is designed to climb, I can winch this bike up stuff almost no other bikers can touch - including bits I could not ride on a hardtail BITD when I was fitter

Although you could take a little hardtail round this route you would be walking most of it, which to me is not the point, you may as well leave the bike behind and get your ron hill tracksters and red socks on

Having said that I spend most of my time riding in the local forest on my Balfa hardtail and keeping the Nicolai for the real mountains. The Nicolai makes the descents in the forest too easy and the short sharp sprint climbs to much like hard work. If I want a distance blast then I take my Lloyd or Trek 8900 and if i'm feeling like a real tw@ then I take the rigid Kona singlespeed.

It's horses for courses in my opinion and there is no room for sweeping generalisations about wether FS is better than hardtails - but it sells mags and galvanises opinions.

If where or how you ride doesn't require a big bike then...

This topic has been discussed so many times on so many levels, my $.02 isn't even worth it.

FS helps bikes go fast. Riding bikes fast is fun. Not everyone has the skillsets to maneuver a hardtail enough to make it go fast.

Oooh, thats going to upset a few FS die hards