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I'm shopping for a new bike and having trouble deciding between a trail bike and XC, and how much travel to look for in a fork.

I definitely want a hardtail with lockout, no skinny tires, great uphill pedal efficiency, and able to handle multiple terrain such as; steep uphill pavement with potholes, gravel, and moderate wooded trails with roots and some bumps but no jumps or super crazy switch backs or downhill trails.

Also if possible, I would like to use it for my small grocery trips with the use of a bike rack. So a bike that can handle a small amount of cargo on it. I want pedal efficiency when climbing uphills on the street on my way to the trails without wearing myself out before I get to the woods.

Is 100mm enough travel for lightweight to moderate trails?
Is 140mm travel too much for uphill pedal efficiency?

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    Bikes are a little like shoes. Often it's more about feel than specifications. I won't buy a bike without riding it first. Shops will let you test ride.
    – David D
    Commented Jul 13 at 13:00
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    Three comments: 1) do you live in an area where you can take a $2300 bike grocery shopping and not have it disappear on day 1, and 2) whatever bike you choose, you need to make sure it actually has rack mounts. A lot of higher end hardtails don’t, and I don’t think any full squish bikes do. 3) be sure to factor in the cost of other things like a more off-road suitable helmet, tools, body protection, etc.
    – MaplePanda
    Commented Jul 13 at 15:19
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    Good point about taking it on shopping trips. I think I will stick with my old 3-speed bike for that.. It won't be as devastating to come out of the store to find that it's missing
    – Alison
    Commented Jul 15 at 9:43

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Generally speaking, pedal efficiency of trail bike depends on the tires, suspension layout, and shock tune.

You’re asking about hardtails, though. Forks don’t really bob under pedaling unless you’re sprinting. So if you want a bike you can “grow into” as a rider, I would get more travel. The 100 mm bike will like have relatively steep angles that make steering a bit of a bummer.

But since you’re on a hardtail, once you’re on the trail, traction will be at a premium. So the trade off you have to make with your tires is road efficiency through low rolling resistance vs trail efficiency through traction. These two things are at odds. That’s where the current crop of short travel, but slack geometry trail bikes really shine: good steering and the rear suspension does a good enough job of maintaining traction that you can use a less aggressive tire.

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  • At my weight (86kg) forks definitely bob under uphill pedalling loads. I've just upgraded to remote lockout and really like the ease of being able to climb locked out, unlocking for occasional rough patches.
    – Chris H
    Commented Jul 14 at 8:01
  • @ChrisH on smooth asphalt? You might need to add some low speed compression damping to your tune. If I’m pedaling circles on the road, my forks (Fox 36 GRIP2, Fox 34 FIT4, and an RS Pike) barely move.
    – Paul H
    Commented Jul 14 at 14:46
  • Probably even on smooth stuff though I'd always be locked out. My new air fork has better tuning than my old coil one despite still being pretty basic. Both bob on climbs if unlocked. I'm not sure I've got the new one dialled in quite right yet, and by chance I'm taking it on a test ride in a minute, on road
    – Chris H
    Commented Jul 14 at 15:11
  • @ChrisH body position/bike fit surely play a role in this. E.g., a more aggressive, lower cockpit will put more weight on the front, and so that’ll be more responsive to slight changes in posture
    – Paul H
    Commented Jul 14 at 15:45
  • Yes, and I also noticed some bob coming from the tyres with the fork locked out. So I suspect my posture is such that the weight distribution changes when I push hard (and not even very hard)
    – Chris H
    Commented Jul 14 at 19:15

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