Crash Course in Mountain Bike Suspension (2026)

The problems are to be old motorcyclist is that although my skills may change a little, the rocks don’t get softer every year. I’ve admitted, for example, that I’m not going to brush up on the Teacup Trail in Sedona when I ride from the west side of town to the fun, smooth terrain like Adobe Jack around Soldier Pass. But I try my hardest, broken bones be damned, because the same thing is true: Every year, bike suspensions get better.

Garage mechanics have been dealing with bike suspension ever since 1888. Full suspension – bikes with a fork in the front and a little shock in the rear – became more popular in the 1990s when brands like Specialized, Trek, and Santa Cruz brought the results of their outings from the bike to daylight.

I bought my first full-suspension mountain bike, a Santa Cruz Superlight, in 2000. With 100 mm of travel (longer suspension travel at impact) and 120 mm of front travel, it gave me the confidence to ride lines through New Mexico rocks that I would never have dreamed of riding in front of me.

Today’s full-suspension bikes have so many obstacles that even the world’s best low-end riders can crush events like Red Bull’s. Hardline Tasmaniacourses that combine technical equipment with high jumps, because they have shock absorbers and 200 to 220 mm of movement.

I have ridden a full suspension bike for the past thirty years and have been WIRED bike test since an An ill-planned trip to the Mojave Desert in 2014. But there are more experts than me when it comes to explaining how parking works – so I asked Vernon FeltonDirector of product at Canyon, former editor at Pinkand former editor-in-chief of On a bike magazineto come closer to us.

What is Suspension?

“Mountain bikes are designed to take you uphill … with rocks and roots between you and your destination,” says Felton. Yes, he adds, one he can riding a mountain bike over all kinds of obstacles without a suspension fork or rear shock, but “doing so, without suspension, requires a great deal of skill and takes a toll on your body and strength.”

How Does It Work?

“Suspension almost always has a spring (made of a metal coil or air seal) that compresses when your wheels come into contact with rocks, roots, ruts, etc., and some type of ‘rebound damper’ that reduces the spring when it returns to its unsprung form,” says Felton. Without a damper unit (or ‘shock absorber’), your bike will spin around like a pogo stick every time you hit a big enough bump.”

Good bike brands, he adds, work tirelessly with companies like The Fox Race and RockShox The weight of the bike, the style, and the placement of its links affect the way the suspension works; therefore, companies use ‘music’ to manage the fuel inside the shock and change the way the suspension feels.

Why is oil needed? When the bike hits a rock, the suspension, either a coil spring or an air spring, is compressed. At that time, the piston forces the oil up through small or large gaps and valves, depending on its pressure. This creates resistance, also known as damping, which controls how quickly the suspension grips. After removing the obstacle, the swing will “reset” or return to its original length. The “rhythm” of the tremors controls how quickly this happens and, to some extent, how the tremors affect, not just the arms, legs, back, neck, shoulders, and other parts of the body.

How Does Suspension Differ Between Cross-Country, Trail, Enduro, and Downhill Mountain Bikes?

Felton says: “Ultimately, every suspension is designed to do the same thing—to help you ride through rough terrain with ease, speed, comfort, and control. But different styles of mountain biking, and different distances, require different styles and different suspensions.”

Felton says: “The racing world is looking for a bike that’s light and has a lot of handling. They feel that it gets them up the big hills very quickly.” As a result, the cross-country suspension moves slowly, and the suspension can be stiff for the average rider.