FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Probably the most pondered question for novice bike buyers and certainly Mountain Bike (MTB) buyers. Not as easy as it may seem. If you are on a budget and having this question, just buy a hardtail. Full Suspension bikes today are better then hardtail with todays technology. The old thought was that hardtail was faster at acceleration because of the energy lost in the suspension while pedaling hard. Today there are lock outs and other things that make this a non issue. That said, unless you are a very serious rider that is going to be doing extreme terrain, it is not needed. Money could and should be spent on many other performance enhancing things first. Last on this is dont bother buying any full suspension bike under $1000 dollars.

This is a question that really comes down to preference and dare I say faddish style. Its said that they have a bigger footprint for mud and extreme climbing. Is it worth the weight and drag? Again thats a personal question. I personally like MTB tires as wide as possible so long as the frame is not modified outside the standard size. Time will tell...