Understanding suspension: quality vs. quantity

[michael_bc]

I'm relatively new to mountain biking and trying to understand the different suspension options better.

Some background: I bought my first bike 2 summers ago, not knowing what kind of terrain I would like. I chose an all-rounder beginner bike with 130mm travel: Focus Thron2 6.9. It has a Fox 34 Rythm front fork.

After 3 summers I am extremely pleased with my bike. I'm riding all kinds of gnarly terrain with a lot of confidence and comfort. I also know what kind of terrain I like now: long back-country trails with uphill and flat bits (e.g., Vorab trail in Laax, Trais Fluors in St. Moritz) as well as rockier flow trails (e.g., Never End trail in Laax). I don't particularly like super flowy trails.

But: I can't help but notice all the other riders on the mountain have at least Fox 36 suspension with 150-170mm travel. Am I missing out? I know nothing about suspension.

Question 1: if I were to upgrade my Fox 34 Rythm with a better fork (e.g., Rockshox Pike) what difference would I feel? What makes one fork better than another?

Question 2: if I were to upgrade my bike with more travel (e.g., Orbea Wild) what difference should I feel? will gnarly terrain become easier? will I bounce around more?

I might try to book some test rides to understand this better. I rented a 150mm travel bike while in the US (Trek) and honestly didn't feel any difference from my current bike.

I feel like such a newbie on this topic. Will I outgrow my current setup? How do I know? My goal is to keep progressing in my riding and use the right gear for that.

If anyone has links to good resources or videos on this topic that'd be really helpful.

 

[Hardtail]

Your bike sounds perfect for your riding style!

Most people are definitely 'over biked' on the trails.

I recently upgraded to a Pike Ultimate 120mm on my hardtail, it was a noticeable upgrade to the low-end RS Judy it came with, I may upgrade it to 140mm but it serves my purpose for 90% of what I ride.

The Fox 34 is a nice fork and will benefit from a service and damper upgrade, depending on which one you have.

Pike and Fox 34 comparison here; Review | 2023 RockShox Pike vs Fox 34 GRIP2

The same can be said for your shock, I assume it's FOX FLOAT DPS Performance?

If you want more travel and are enjoying the bike you could purchase a new Lyrik Ultimate and run it at 140mm, this can be upgraded to 160mm to make it future-proof. You may also want to upgrade your rear shock and see if you can get 140mm of travel out the back also.

Enjoy!

 

[CrispyDesigns]

I went from a 140mm Fox 34 on my Orbea Rise M20 to a 160mm Fox 36. For me it wasn't the extra travel that was the main reason (even though now i love the extra sag that the additional travel allows). The main reason was to have a stiffer fork chassis to experience less forward and rear flex. It made a lot of difference to both accuracy of steering and confidence when on the front brake.
As for the rear, I'd leave it until after you potentially upgrade the fork. You may not need it