Mountain Biking

23 Reasons Why a Hardtail Will Always Beat a Full-Suspension Mountain Bike

The original is the best. Here's why...

You wake up in the morning an hour before your alarm goes off. It’s a Saturday. You’ve been woken by the sun slamming through your curtains via a cloudless blue sky.

You get out of bed, get on the shorts and riding jersey, funnel some coffee, cereal, toast and stoke directly into your veins, avoid the shower – you’re going to be getting filthy anyway – and head for the glorious space, aka “the room of requirements”, where you keep your beloved mountain bikes.

You don’t need to put your helmet on. It was already on from the night before. You were prepared for the sun and the perfect conditions the night before. You were ready.

You stare at your selection of bikes, scanning through the masses of money you’ve spent on full-suspension bad boys, all of which are screaming “pick me, pick me”, then your eyes set on the beast at the end of the line – and you pick out the hardtail for the perfect session. Here’s why…

1) Your first child should always be your favourite, and if you’re anything like us, your first child was a hardtail mountain bike

2) You feel every rock and root on the trail on a hardtail, making you effectively James Bond, or a less sexist, more bike-based equivalent

3) So you spend more time scoping the best lines you can ride down

4) …and become a whole lot better at reading the trail in the process

5) Subsequently, you learn much more, much quicker about the local trails, and march instead of stutter down the road to becoming an all-mountain warrior

6) And the feeling going over those rooty sections is just… well, you know

7) You give your arms a much better work out, getting you in shape and meaning you’re immediately more attractive to the opposite sex

8) And because you have to ride truer and more decisively, your technique will be improving all the time

9) Meaning when you eventually go back out on your full-suspension rig and take on the stuff too scary for a non-squishy bike, you’ll look like that dude/chick in that video you watched that time

10) But you’re not thinking about going back to full-sus. You’re thinking about how you feel like Jean-Claude Van Damme as you pin another rock section

11) Appreciating that extra acceleration before you drop in and that pedalling efficiency when you’re climbing

12) …and how you know there’s a significantly higher chance that you’re about to fly into a tree if you fuck up

13) So when you don’t fuck up, and ride the trail unscathed, you see Steve Peat/Rachel Atherton instead of your own reflection when you look in a puddle at the end of the trail

14) Also, hardtail is a cooler word than softail, obviously. Softail sounds like an unusually tame species of squirrel.

15) And you feel like you’re getting back to the roots of the sport on a hardtail, riding like Plato or Socrates back in ancient times

16) You don’t have the price tag of the ride and the repair costs running through your head when you hit a jump either

17) Because less moving parts means less maintenance… And if it’s lasted 20-odd years already, why would it break now?

18) …and that extra bit of adrenaline before you do take a jump, and after you land – or crash for that matter – makes you seriously stoked

19) Especially when you feel it in your legs. Because oh, do you feel it in your legs

20) You probably feel like you’re going faster too, even if, y’know, you’re not

21) So when you look your mate on his full-suspension in the eyes at the end of the day, you know you’ve suffered that bit more on the trails

22) Which is obviously a good thing. It means you’re badass

23) And adds an extra bit of justification to that end of session brew

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.

Necessary

Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

Cookie	Duration	Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional	11 months	The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy	11 months	The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Functional

Performance

Analytics

Others

production

Mountain Biking

23 Reasons Why a Hardtail Will Always Beat a Full-Suspension Mountain Bike

The original is the best. Here's why...

1) Your first child should always be your favourite, and if you’re anything like us, your first child was a hardtail mountain bike

2) You feel every rock and root on the trail on a hardtail, making you effectively James Bond, or a less sexist, more bike-based equivalent

3) So you spend more time scoping the best lines you can ride down

4) …and become a whole lot better at reading the trail in the process

5) Subsequently, you learn much more, much quicker about the local trails, and march instead of stutter down the road to becoming an all-mountain warrior

6) And the feeling going over those rooty sections is just… well, you know

7) You give your arms a much better work out, getting you in shape and meaning you’re immediately more attractive to the opposite sex

8) And because you have to ride truer and more decisively, your technique will be improving all the time

9) Meaning when you eventually go back out on your full-suspension rig and take on the stuff too scary for a non-squishy bike, you’ll look like that dude/chick in that video you watched that time

10) But you’re not thinking about going back to full-sus. You’re thinking about how you feel like Jean-Claude Van Damme as you pin another rock section

11) Appreciating that extra acceleration before you drop in and that pedalling efficiency when you’re climbing

12) …and how you know there’s a significantly higher chance that you’re about to fly into a tree if you fuck up

13) So when you don’t fuck up, and ride the trail unscathed, you see Steve Peat/Rachel Atherton instead of your own reflection when you look in a puddle at the end of the trail

14) Also, hardtail is a cooler word than softail, obviously. Softail sounds like an unusually tame species of squirrel.

15) And you feel like you’re getting back to the roots of the sport on a hardtail, riding like Plato or Socrates back in ancient times

16) You don’t have the price tag of the ride and the repair costs running through your head when you hit a jump either

17) Because less moving parts means less maintenance… And if it’s lasted 20-odd years already, why would it break now?

18) …and that extra bit of adrenaline before you do take a jump, and after you land – or crash for that matter – makes you seriously stoked

19) Especially when you feel it in your legs. Because oh, do you feel it in your legs

20) You probably feel like you’re going faster too, even if, y’know, you’re not

21) So when you look your mate on his full-suspension in the eyes at the end of the day, you know you’ve suffered that bit more on the trails

22) Which is obviously a good thing. It means you’re badass

23) And adds an extra bit of justification to that end of session brew

You May Also Like

Topics:

Share

1) Your first child should always be your favourite, and if you’re anything like us, your first child was a hardtail mountain bike

2) You feel every rock and root on the trail on a hardtail, making you effectively James Bond, or a less sexist, more bike-based equivalent

3) So you spend more time scoping the best lines you can ride down

4) …and become a whole lot better at reading the trail in the process

5) Subsequently, you learn much more, much quicker about the local trails, and march instead of stutter down the road to becoming an all-mountain warrior

6) And the feeling going over those rooty sections is just… well, you know

7) You give your arms a much better work out, getting you in shape and meaning you’re immediately more attractive to the opposite sex

8) And because you have to ride truer and more decisively, your technique will be improving all the time

9) Meaning when you eventually go back out on your full-suspension rig and take on the stuff too scary for a non-squishy bike, you’ll look like that dude/chick in that video you watched that time

10) But you’re not thinking about going back to full-sus. You’re thinking about how you feel like Jean-Claude Van Damme as you pin another rock section

11) Appreciating that extra acceleration before you drop in and that pedalling efficiency when you’re climbing

12) …and how you know there’s a significantly higher chance that you’re about to fly into a tree if you fuck up

13) So when you don’t fuck up, and ride the trail unscathed, you see Steve Peat/Rachel Atherton instead of your own reflection when you look in a puddle at the end of the trail

14) Also, hardtail is a cooler word than softail, obviously. Softail sounds like an unusually tame species of squirrel.

15) And you feel like you’re getting back to the roots of the sport on a hardtail, riding like Plato or Socrates back in ancient times

16) You don’t have the price tag of the ride and the repair costs running through your head when you hit a jump either

17) Because less moving parts means less maintenance… And if it’s lasted 20-odd years already, why would it break now?

18) …and that extra bit of adrenaline before you do take a jump, and after you land – or crash for that matter – makes you seriously stoked

19) Especially when you feel it in your legs. Because oh, do you feel it in your legs

20) You probably feel like you’re going faster too, even if, y’know, you’re not

21) So when you look your mate on his full-suspension in the eyes at the end of the day, you know you’ve suffered that bit more on the trails

22) Which is obviously a good thing. It means you’re badass

23) And adds an extra bit of justification to that end of session brew

You May Also Like

Topics:

Newsletter Terms & Conditions