Thought I might get some expert CAMBR knowledge here, instead of the store salesman bias. Well, Im looking at getting my first real bike. Ive been doing a lot of research the last couple of weeks and I decided I wanted a GF Big Sur Disc. I can get an 04 for 1099, which is 220 of retail. This bike components are nice, and it rides nice. Lately however it seems like I hear a lot of people saying that hardtails are not worth it and that fs bikes are what everyone should get. I plan on doing mostly xc and trail and I dont plan on really any downhill or big drops. Now Ive been looking at fs and one I like is the Trek Fuel 90. I can get one for 1299, which is a good 250 below retail I think. The Trek is not going to have the disc brakes, but most of the components are about the same. Anyways, I still am not sure if I need a fs bike, but I dont want to make this big investment and deicde a few motnhs later that I made the wrong choice. Are hardtails not the future, should I just suck up the extra cost and get a fs? I know you can get a fs for 400 it seems, but Im talking about in terms of equalt compnents to the hardtail.

Hmmm.... This works for me, it won't work for you. Make your own decision based on what you feel is the best for your budget, desire, and ridin' style.

Hardtails still hold a place in my heart. If you are new to technical mountainbiking, a hardtail is a harsh mistress, but she'll teach you many, many valuable lessons about riding. Hardtails don't have exploding rear shocks, shitty pivot bushings/bearings, the "steal me" factor, etc..... Hardtails are nice if you race or for a change of pace. I'm in the process of acquiring a rigid singlespeed hardtail right now.

That being said.....

You can have my 3.75 inch travel Giant NRS when you pry it from my cold dead hands. I've owned bicycles from Standard to Centurion and it is, by far, the best bicycle I've ever owned. It's perfectly built for the terrain in the midwest(I've ridden it in MI, WI, and Illinois, and I've never felt the travel to be inadequate. That being said, my next FS bike will most likely be a Santa Cruz Heckler. If you're truly looking for the best of both worlds, Otto's in Oak Lawn has an Epic for a great price. It's more than you had listed in your post, but it's worth the investment.

Thought I might get some expert CAMBR knowledge here, instead of the store salesman bias. Well, Im looking at getting my first real bike. Ive been doing a lot of research the last couple of weeks and I decided I wanted a GF Big Sur Disc. I can get an 04 for 1099, which is 220 of retail. This bike components are nice, and it rides nice. Lately however it seems like I hear a lot of people saying that hardtails are not worth it and that fs bikes are what everyone should get. I plan on doing mostly xc and trail and I dont plan on really any downhill or big drops. Now Ive been looking at fs and one I like is the Trek Fuel 90. I can get one for 1299, which is a good 250 below retail I think. The Trek is not going to have the disc brakes, but most of the components are about the same. Anyways, I still am not sure if I need a fs bike, but I dont want to make this big investment and deicde a few motnhs later that I made the wrong choice. Are hardtails not the future, should I just suck up the extra cost and get a fs? I know you can get a fs for 400 it seems, but Im talking about in terms of equalt compnents to the hardtail.

It is a personal decision. I bought my first dually years ago, and loved it. But I eventually hunted down the hardtail that it replaced.

Both bikes have distinct advantages and disadvantages.

Positives to the Hardtail: Hardtail will be lighter, you can always add a seatpost shock (Thudbuster, Rock Shox, Use, etc.), Hardtail will be cheaper, hardtail will help you learn the best lines, hardtails take less maint, and finally when racing... the rider is more important than the ride.

Positives to the Dually: Dually will be more comfortable, dually should have better traction, duallies are more forgiving of mistakes, duallies let you go faster while still being in control.

Deciding if you want a dually is your own decision. I'm in Indiana where it is flat, flat, flat, and there is not really any 'reason' to have a dually. In fact most riders out here are not on duallies.

Best bet is if you have a friend that's got a dually he'll let ya ride for a while on the trail, or a hardtail, and see if one feels better or just 'right'.

Good luck,

JmZ

I ride with the CAMBR regulars and they all swear by FS. On the flipside, there is a substantial number of local riders who only ride singlespeeds, which are hardtails. So far, I've resisted the urge to change to either bike and have held onto my hardtail.

My only objection to it was my back getting hammered by the rocks and bumps. I stand up for the big ones, but a good piece of singletrack will have tons of little ones that add up to back pain after a few hours. Getting a $100 Tricky Dick seatpost turned my bike into what I call the poor man's FS bike. Your feet still get as jarred as before, but your back gets a break from it. Having ridden with this seatpost for over a year, I would never go back to a pure hardtail.

So... if you lean towards very technical trail, I'd say a FS bike would be worth it. If you see yourself riding smoother trails, go for a hardtail and think about a suspension seatpost if the ride gets too harsh. Of course, you haven't ridden here yet, so I would hold off on the purchase if your current bike will let you explore the local trails. Once you know what trails you'll be riding, you'll know what bike you'd raher have for them.

Also, Trek does have a Demo Days weekend once or twice a year at Palos. Don't know when the next one will be, but if you can hold out for a few months, you can get a test ride around Palos on a Fuel, a Sugar, or something else from the Trek family.

I live, ride and race in Chicagoland, I have owned both hardtails and pricey FS's. and have enjoyed both. I really think I am faster on a hardtail. Lastyear i bought a inexpensive SingleSpeed as a training tool. The bike is rigid and with no gears, and I truly believe I am faster then I have ever been especially on singletrack. I do alot of base miles on The PP, where every once and awhile a geary will drop me but I have trail ridden with the same gearies and I drop them. I say your best bet is touch base with some CAMBr members and some of the fine folks on Illinoismtb.com, I am sure you can hook up and test ride all three styles of bikes on an upcoming group ride. You'll know what you really like only be riding and testing.
I used to buy the Hype
Now i just ride my bike

It's nice that the parts spec and $ differential of hardtail vs. f/s is very close these days. BTW, hardtails are not dead and you will see plenty of people with them. I like riding a hardtail somtimes becuase it requires more skill.

I would go for the Fuel w/o disk brakes for an extra $200. I am assuming the parts spec is the same otherwise as you mention. I have the 100 and it's night and day versus hardtails for these trails. My lap times at any xc course in the MOST midwest are faster. (I actually compared side to side with a 9.8 in a variety of courses). Light weight doesn;t mean anything unless you are hitting some big hills and/or racing. You will find the fuel actually climbs technical trail better than HT. Disc brakes are great but I think an efficient f/s design is a priority over disc which you can add later once you burn through your wheels. I am sure your $s are tight being a student. If the $200 kills you will be happy with the big sur (it's all about riding anyway) but if you can part with the difference, get the fs. See you at Palos.

BTW, sorry for State's turn out in the tournament.

Thanks for all the help guys. Its defintely nice to have when you are going to plunk down a bunch of money. Anyways, I think Im going to get the full suspension. It will either be the Fuel 90 with discs or a Fisher Cake 2 DLX. Yeah I know, speding more than I thought, but oh well, its only money. Im going to go to Richard's (Seems to be well touted around here) and check those two out. Very low prices there as well. Anyways, maybe they will let me do a spin round the neighborhood to get a feel for which one I want.

As for my team, I cant believe they lost to Nevada, I defintiely saw at least a sweet 16 for them even with the shaky regular season. Now they are prolly going to lose davis and who else knows. Eveyone keeps skipping out on Tom. Oh well, well see how the hockey team finishes up.

Thanks again, and if you guys hear anything bout the demodays at Palos let me know. See ya.


It's nice that the parts spec and $ differential of hardtail vs. f/s is very close these days. BTW, hardtails are not dead and you will see plenty of people with them. I like riding a hardtail somtimes becuase it requires more skill.

I would go for the Fuel w/o disk brakes for an extra $200. I am assuming the parts spec is the same otherwise as you mention. I have the 100 and it's night and day versus hardtails for these trails. My lap times at any xc course in the MOST midwest are faster. (I actually compared side to side with a 9.8 in a variety of courses). Light weight doesn;t mean anything unless you are hitting some big hills and/or racing. You will find the fuel actually climbs technical trail better than HT. Disc brakes are great but I think an efficient f/s design is a priority over disc which you can add later once you burn through your wheels. I am sure your $s are tight being a student. If the $200 kills you will be happy with the big sur (it's all about riding anyway) but if you can part with the difference, get the fs. See you at Palos.

BTW, sorry for State's turn out in the tournament.