21 November 2008 - 3:16Why the Internet is bad

It’s when people that don’t know how to work on bikes, but damn it they know how to use the internets!

This is a sad truth, that the internets makes us all dumber. 

Thank you Al Gore.

This is a reply I put up on a post I put up on a forum in reply to a very misguided set of very poor questions. It just sort of rubbed me the wrong way. You don’t smack talk one of my favorite bikes without having your facts in order!

I generally don’t get in on discussions like this, but I feel that there is some information that is missing here. Your bike is bobbing. Front and rear. It is disheartening, I know. However, it is important to know all the variables, such as – What are the settings on your shocks? Is your preload set correctly? Why are you out of the saddle? Suspension frames are designed to absorb bumps, each manufacturer has a different idea on how those bumps are absorbed. The great equalizer, is that all frames are designed to react a certain way without any other force on the bike. We’re talking straight up and down motion here. Now, here’s where it might possibly get interesting…. Let us pretend that you have perfect technique, with a perfect spin, and you can roll right over a bump on flat ground without losing any energy on your full suspension frame.

Congratulations! You’ve set your fork and rear shock correctly! So, part of this experiment requires you to remain absolutely motionless as you pass over this “bump”. You coast over the bump, and the fork and rear shock damp the bump, and you remain motionless as you pass over the bump.

Now, let us pretend that we are actually “mountain biking”. Not only do we lose the constant of flat ground, but we also add incline, decline, and the dreaded “compound bump”. A compound bump may be one or a combination of the following: rocks, roots, mud holes, logs, squirrels, chickens, goats, tourists, equestrians, hikers, the short bus, a car, your girlfriend, wife or your mom.

My point is, that these obsticales require effort to get over. You can’t just expect the bike to do it for you. So… some of these bikes will do their very best at absorbing as many of these factors as they can, but then you want to add pedaling forces too??!! Your whole body rolling around your bottom bracket? Some of the bikes out there will do a good job of dealing with both of these obtrusive forces. 

And here I am assuming you can do it all sitting on your saddle. What if you were out of the saddle, cranking through a section of tough bumpy mom trail?

And out of these few bikes, only some of them will do a really good job of dealing with these forces.

Not one of the many amazing full suspension designs out there in the world will do it all for you. You have to do some of it. And now I’m going to point out that the forks you’ve mentioned, that you think may be the salvation, are actually going to behave exactly the same (despite the fact the the 20mm QR versions are about as real as Tinkerbell or the Pope).  I’ve been riding a RIP9 since 06, and it is still my favorite ride.

I expect that my bike may not necessarily pedal well in certain instances, but it is in the way that I set it up that counts.

1} I never use the lockout feature. I paid for the suspension fork, I expect it to do it’s thing.

2} I am definitely not the smoothest rider in the world. Many external forces dictate my ultimate line, including big, ugly, square pedal strokes.

I set my RIP9 up soft, so it can deal with the horror I throw at it. I weigh 230 with gear, have my front shock at 80 psi, rebound at 8 clicks back from fast. The rear shock is set at 150 psi, normally set at wide open, but will flick the ProPedal on during extended boring climbs. The setting is “3″, rebound is 8 clicks back from fast. To get really detailed, I’m running Stan’s Flow rims, generally I have the tire pressure at 28-32 depending on the tire I’m running at the time. It works for me, I stand, sit, crank, and roll over just about everything that doesn’t pitch me off the bike.

BTW, Best Bike EVER as far as I’m concerned. You need to learn how to set up and use your bike dude. This forum is a great place to get info on how to do it… oh, and reach down and lock out your fork if you need to…

Here’s your video

RIPing it up

Maybe it was a bit too much. I never know…