1 HOW MUCH SUSPENSION DO YOU NEED?

It’s essential to establish early on what sort of trails you intend to ride and on which terrain you want your bike to excel. This will help you decide what category of bike you need. Unless you’re set on a hardtail or fatbike (see right), the easiest way to define the categories is in terms of suspension travel. Roughly speaking…

60-110mm: Cross-country race bike Trail types: Fast-flowing, smooth. Excels: Climbing and acceleration.

110-130mm: Downcountry bike Trail types: Manmade loops and less rocky natural routes. Excels: Covering distance fast.

130-150mm: Trail bike

Trail types: More technical tracks with some bigger features.

Excels: Equally capable up and downhill.

150-180mm: Enduro bike

Trail types: Steep, gnarly off-piste; rocky tech; bike-park tracks.

Excels: Rapid on the descents, but can still be pedalled back to the top.

180-200mm: Downhill/freeride bike Trail types: The fastest, roughest descents known to man! Excels: Descending; there’s no way you’re pedalling one uphill.

Less suspension travel usually means a lighter, faster bike uphill and on the flat. More travel generally equals better downhill capability. If you’re new to the sport and want to try a bit of everything, a mid-travel trail bike is the best all-rounder. Within this broad category, there’s still a lot of variation, though.

Want to rack up big miles on all-day epics? Lean towards shorter travel. If progressing your skills and tackling technical terrain is what gets your blood pumping, consider more bounce. The same rule of thumb is true for electric bikes too (see right), although with a motor to help on the climbs, it’s on flatter trails that a shorter-travel e-bike is likely to excel.