Hardtail Talk!!

iman29 said:
Nice bike congrats. I was shopping for one of these or the TimberJack until I found my TJ.
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Timberjack was on my list too. They are nice bikes. I got lucky with this one. Decided I wanted a bike, walked in the shop, and they had a few in my size. I was surprised they hadnt been spoken for yet. No love for hardtails I guess lol
 
SCNJ said:
This thing is honestly amazing. I've owned many FS and Hardtails over the years. As being someone who's only gonna own one bike for the forseeable future, I was hesitant on going the hardtail route just getting back into the sport. This was the Hardtail I always wanted though. 7 rides in now and I can honestly say this thing almost feels like a full suspension. If someone said that to me before I'd have ridden this bike I'd have called em crazy but the frame is incredible. This thing dosen't beat me up like my previous hardtails did. Granted I've only ridden Allaire and Clayton so far but Allaire is where I'll be riding 90 percent of the time anyway. I might feel different when I hit Hartshorne or another park though. Who knows.
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I've read the same thing about the SC but cant help wondering how it rides compared to higher end steel bike like a chumba, steel rocker, reeb or stanton. Tough to get ahold of the latter bikes tho..
 
djm said:
I've read the same thing about the SC but cant help wondering how it rides compared to higher end steel bike like a chumba, steel rocker, reeb or stanton. Tough to get ahold of the latter bikes tho..
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I've never ridden a steel ht but I've always been curious about how one would feel out on the trails. The Chameleon was just that one ht I always said I'd pick up one day. Next year I'm gonna buy an aluminum fs but I still see the Chameleon getting plenty of time out on the trails.
 
SCNJ said:
I've never ridden a steel ht but I've always been curious about how one would feel out on the trails. The Chameleon was just that one ht I always said I'd pick up one day. Next year I'm gonna buy an aluminum fs but I still see the Chameleon getting plenty of time out on the trails.
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I feel like I’m starting to hear more and more people doing away with their full suspension and going back to a hardtail, or just giving there Hardtail more time. Not sure if it’s because the modern day “Geo” of these “hard-core hardtails”or “do it all hardtails” whatever you want to call them.

Like I always say, if I lived closer to a bike park like mountain creek I would probably go in Enduro FS Cause it probably just makes more sense but for most of the riding I’m doing and local New Jersey trails I just don’t see the point. These new hardtails Are so compliant steel or aluminum.
 
Strix said:
I feel like I’m starting to hear more and more people doing away with their full suspension and going back to a hardtail, or just giving there Hardtail more time. Not sure if it’s because the modern day “Geo” of these “hard-core hardtails”or “do it all hardtails” whatever you want to call them.

Like I always say, if I lived closer to a bike park like mountain creek I would probably go in Enduro FS Cause it probably just makes more sense but for most of the riding I’m doing and local New Jersey trails I just don’t see the point. These new hardtails Are so compliant steel or aluminum.
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All this terminology is so crazy. Enduro, AM, XC......all that's for is to sell bikes. In my opinion there's 2 disciplines. XC....which most of the riding we all do falls into, whether people choose to admit that or not..... and downhill. Most of us don't need more than 100-120mm of travel but that dosen't sell bikes ya know? I want a fs again bc they are alot of fun, but truthfully in NJ a hardtail can run most any trail.
 
Strix said:
I feel like I’m starting to hear more and more people doing away with their full suspension and going back to a hardtail, or just giving there Hardtail more time. Not sure if it’s because the modern day “Geo” of these “hard-core hardtails”or “do it all hardtails” whatever you want to call them.

Like I always say, if I lived closer to a bike park like mountain creek I would probably go in Enduro FS Cause it probably just makes more sense but for most of the riding I’m doing and local New Jersey trails I just don’t see the point. These new hardtails Are so compliant steel or aluminum.
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FS is just as relevant in a flatter or less rowdy park (just fix a go-pro at your shock and watch how much it's moving), but pedaling an enduro-bro sled anywhere other than 1-2 trails in a park, or at Creek is definitely going to sap energy. Question to ask yourself: is the energy you lose pedaling greater than, or less than, the energy you lose getting beat up by the trail.

I look at it this way: I ride my hardtail (single speed) on most of the same trails I ride my full suspension. My times are generally faster, but that's because I can't take it easy up hill. Pointed downhill, the lack of rear suspension is obvious when the speeds increase, and I am riding on the edge of control for the bike+tires...but that's part of the enjoyment of that bike. No dropper, no rear suspension, no extra gears.

At the same time, the full suspension allows me to experiment with line choices without the (very real) danger of being bucked/under biked. It has taught me that carrying momentum over something that looks bad can be faster. My downhill times eventually get faster on the hardtail, but cannot match the FS.

The gnarlier the park, the more likely I'll pick the full suspension to ride, even if I can ride it on the hardtail. I'll use Sterling, Sourlands, Jungle, etc, as examples. I can ride everything in those parks on a hardtail, but my average speed will drop around 25-30%. Line choices become no fun, at that point; since I don't ride those parks frequently enough to know every inch, a poor line choice could lead to some bad injury.

My actual saddle time for the year is pretty evenly split; I generally don't use the FS in winter, since I don't want to deal with cleaning road salt off of it.
 
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I wouldn't say I'm doing away with my full squish bikes but I do find myself riding my HT more and more and at more places.
 
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