How Hard Can You Ride On A Hardtail Mountain Bike?
Vložit
- čas přidán 31. 03. 2018
- We always get asked, what can I ride on my hardtail MTB? Dirt jumps? Enduro? Freeride? Downhill? Is it only good for XC? Well Blake's been listening, so thought he'd demonstrate exactly what a hardtail can do!
Subscribe to GMBN: gmbn.eu/subscribe
Get exclusive GMBN gear in the GMBN store! gmbn.eu/Jh
As Blake says, his hardtail differs slightly to what yours may be at home, featuring more aggressive angles, a beefy wheelset and a low bottom bracket that makes it perfect for his kind of riding! But this just proves that if you adapt your riding to suit the bike, you can ride a lot on a hardtail!
If you'd like to contribute captions and video info in your language, here's the link 👍 gmbn.eu/Jg
Watch more on GMBN...
Balance on your bike: gmbn.eu/balance 📹
Fat bike vs hardtail: gmbn.eu/pumptrackvs 📹
Click here to buy GMBN T-shirts, hoodies and more: gmbn.eu/tHEGMBNShop
The Global Mountain Bike Network is the best MTB CZcams channel, with videos for everyone who loves dirt: from the full-faced helmet downhill mountain biker to the lycra-clad cross country rider along with everyone and anyone in between.
With the help of our pro and ex-pro riding team we’re here to inform, entertain and inspire you to become a better mountain biker, including videos on:
- How to ride faster with expert knowledge
- Fix everything with pro know-how
- Ride anything with world-cup winning skills
- Dial in your bike with bike set-up advice
- In-depth entertaining features
- Chat, opinion and interact with us on the Dirt Shed Show
Welcome to the Global Mountain Bike Network | Covering Every Angle
Thanks to our sponsors:
Canyon bikes: gmbn.eu/Canyon
Nukeproof: gmbn.eu/nukeproof
SCOTT bikes: gmbn.eu/SCOTTbikes
crankbrothers pedals: gmbn.eu/crankbros
crankbrothers seatposts: gmbn.eu/8b
Exposure lights: gmbn.eu/exposure
Continental: gmbn.eu/ContinentalPOC helmets and eyewear: gmbn.eu/POCsports
Topeak: gmbn.eu/topeak
WD40: gmbn.eu/WD40
FSA: gmbn.eu/fsa
Ergon: gmbn.eu/ergon
Park Tool: gmbn.eu/ParkTool
Northwave: gmbn.eu/Northwave
Camelbak: gmbn.eu/camelbak
CZcams Channel - gmbn.eu/GMBNsubs
Facebook - gmbn.eu/GMBNFB
Google+ - gmbn.eu/GMBNGplus
Twitter - gmbn.eu/GMBNTW
Instagram - gmbn.eu/GMBNIG
GMBN Shop - gmbn.eu/gmbnshop
GMBN Tech - gmbn.tech/subscribe
GCN Tech - gcntech.co/subscribe
EMBN - embn.me/subscribe
Leave us a comment below! - Sport
This video has really lifted my spirits and confidence for my hard tail because I cant afford anything else but it’s really nice to see someone who can show me that it doesn’t matter the bike you ride but it does matter how much fun you have
But this hardtail is Made for this kinda stuff and is like 2000 dollar
@@hoineenietjij3331 yeah mine is 350 pound its a Carrera Vulcan this would not stand on any of this
@@HumorsOfwhiskey yea me2
6 9 i Also think so but iT doesnt mean its bad hardtails are fun and fast great for XC
personal technics is what really matters
He’s so good I’m pretty sure he could ride a tricycle on all these trails
uhhhhNick possible Sam pilgrim reference?
Or a unicycle
Uh. That would be easier than riding a bike. That’s kind of the whole point of tricycles.
Hahaha
Or a kid's bicycle with training wheels.
I'm selling my expensive maintenance downhill bike and getting an aggressive hartail. Freedom :)
Don't sell, still buy the hardtail.
Dude you know you're a good rider when you're casually riding a set of big dirt jumps and talking at the same time
Easy to yell awe F@ck as you eat shit on the first big jump. Guess I'm god tier.
Love my hardtail for everything beside rock gardens haha
Pete Horn amen brother
Well, the stuff I ride is just rocks, rocks, and more rocks.
I can't stand coming into a berm with patch of breaking bumps leading into it on my hardtail.
Derek Smith well with my local trail (llandegla) the fucking start all the way to the end of the berms have like 10cm deep breaking bumps! As I am too young to work I only have a hard tail so it is true torchure.
That’s my favorite thing to ride on my hardtail! Love the out of control feeling you get at you bounce through the rocks.
80% Rider 20% bike... Of course it can, haven't you seen all the riders in the 80's and 90's?
Back in the day 90% of the riders were on hardtails. It forces you to really learn how to absorb bumps with your legs/arms/body.
start with bmx racing and you can race everything 🤘🏻
Hendrik Ruf I was raining about bmx the whole vid 🤣 it’s all in the rider.
Aggressive hardtails are some of the most well-rounded bikes out there. Also, some of the best looking bikes too. Less is more.
I agree with ya , I've got a commencal meta ht 29er thing is a beast . I've thrown a lot at it and it just takes it like a champ.
I had a pipedream moxie , a beast in all kind of trails, even in the most gnarly is always composed. Awesome
@@danhart2411 where did you purchase or find your commencal? I’m looking into meta ht am
Totally agree on normal trails and that but for freeride, like big drops, jumps and just overall comfort , I struggle with a ht and just prefer full suspension
Agreed. I have 2 full suspension bikes, but recently bought a Santa Cruz Chameleon and it's an absolutely fantastic bike! (Tho a little heavier than expected, however it's definitely strong!)
Blake is becoming my favorite presenter. He seems to always be having fun! Great video too. Always great to see some hardtail love.
Did anyone not notice that I nearly hit a squirrel at 7:56 🤣🤣🤣
Blake Samson I didn’t but that was close lol
Is "hitting a squirrel" some kind of dirtjumpers slang? :P
I ran over a chipmunk once, crossed my path, felt the bump on the wheel, something hit my foot, I didn't want to look back and see what happened.
Did not see it until i read your comment, rewinded and there it was: the tail of a dangerous squirrel, danger close to your powerwheelie 😱
Not really haha was really hypnotised watching you rock on a hard tail!! 🤘🤘
A video with blake is always a great video
I love hardtails!!
Do they make you hard? ;)
@@lilmikey6902 oh hell nah xD
Hell ywh
Take it with pride that your bike is cheaper than others bikes but you still can compete with them, I am sponsored by my local bike shop, but I choose to ride a $1,250 hard tail in races and $700 hard tail on my free time. If your good at what you do because of your bike, are you actually good?
@@hardtailrider4685 I do ride a generic Hardtail that's around a hundred. As long as it does what I throw at it well, I'm happy
I had a Hardtail but it was robbed yesterday. R.I.P me
Report it and include the serial and any mods you've made. There's a reddit for looking for bikes that have been stolen to check out as well as Facebook groups that do the same. It would also be a good idea to check out local flea markets and craigslist posts. A guy in my town just got his bike back by doing that. He reported the theft along with the serial number and when he saw his bike for sale on craigslist 2 weeks later he set up a meeting with the seller and brought the police along. He got his bike back and the seller got a free ride and bracelets to the nearest detention center.
A good hardtail rider is in the zone reading every inch of trail, noticing every little rock, root and undulation, working the bike and the terrain constantly with brain synapses firing on all cylinders at lightning speed ... by comparison a lot of full-suss riders are kind of 'brain in neutral', comatose even, at least in terms of awareness of the trail's fine details, the minutiae of what they're actually riding on/over, they just pedal and steamroller everything. As a consequence they need high speeds and/or plenty of "trail features" (typically man-made - e.g. jumps etc.) just to feel the same rush and same level of pump and "trail high" as a hardtail rider feels on what might otherwise look like a mundane piece of singletrack, simply as nature provides it.
Buck Rodgers
Which is why I always say: be sure your FS is an adequate bike for your uses and not just a crutch.
Well said!
i can find challenging bits around where i live for my nooby HT riding, hardly would i be able to achieve the same running some full blown enduro bike without having to travel to bike parks.
The best bike is a dirt jump bike it keeps ya on your toes when your riding gnarly downhill
Well said!
Those of us that grew up in the 80s before suspension know the answer- of course they can. It’s all we had back then so we had to make them do everything. Still riding a hardtail and still shredding.
Exactly , getting to the bottom of the hill and your arms were bright red and shaking from the vibrations
And the brain got a bit of a shaking, too. It was the same amount of challenge and fun on much easier trails. I rode my no suspension MTB until 5 years ago and it was still a great experience. Of course you can do much more on a modern fully, but you need a different track for the same amount of endorphins. Mountain biking has become an arms race in a way, which is fun if you enjoy hi tech and can afford it.
Didn’t even have front suspension forks on my 1990s mtb, which I still ride and it goes everywhere.
I’m still riding my fully rigid old school S works. Wouldn’t change it.
10:32 that was smooth af
Ads are smooth
Blake is one fun, wheeliein', manuallin' kinda guy! Love his addition to GMBN...
Better yet.. How hard can you ride a budget hardtail lol 500-600 USD range haha
I rode a downhill Park on a half-broken hardtail I found in the trash. It's not comfortable, but it's doable
Really depends on your skill built my hard tail for 500 bucks and it dose everything downhill races to dragging my daughter on the tag alone bike
Exactly... I guess 50% of us here can only afford 500-600 usd mtb.
I can't believe we live in an era where a $700 bike is considered 'beginner'. The First World is spoiled. :)
You can ride it inside the compound of home for the aged
When people say can you do stuff on a hardtail generally they mean a 3x suntour coil fork bike, entry level not a hardtail that’s better than most full suspensions
In what category would you put the RST Dirt 100mm? I have one in my Ozono M918, along with 26in wheels(pretty cheap tires, but the rest is decent) it's my daily bike and sometimes I go to the track with it(has taken some good crashes here and there)
marcox43 haven’t heard of the fork but I would recommend good Tyers over many parts so you should gat some grippy Tyers
I just upgraded my hardtails fork it’s so much better
You are right
I bought a trek marlin 5 because it was the cheapest bike i could get w/ hydraulic disc brakes... Its currently falling apart and the shop said even curbs arent good for it... Am i just a bad owner because i just wanted a bike that i could ride on trails and do jumps on
Did we forget this is all a lot of us had for many years. Hardtails for life.
My favourite thing about your videos, Blake, is your obvious enthusiasm and love for what you do. You're an inspiration for all of us!
I race downhill on my 120mm hardtail because that’s all I can afford and I still beat some of the kids my age who were on their dh rigs
ik same here all the kids that brag there good cause of there bike and they cant do anything
I'm in my 40's and I beat kids half my age on my hardtail.
Elias Mårtenson så bra😉
honestly for some downhill couses i think a hartail would be better than a fs. I'm not sure why people see having a hardtail as a bad thing.
Its not the bike its the person who rides it...
Blake is the mvp of the team, love his style and delivery. Keep up the great work Blake!
This might be my favorite video in that everything was just nailed. Blake nailed the presentation, the music was perfect for the "atmosphere", the scenery and filming were top notch. The "Style vs Speed" video was pretty awesome too though for the same reasons.
I can definitely see that hardtail-nostalgia hitting you with this bike, it's crazy 😁 Thank you sir, helped a lot 🤜🤛
GMBN is just the best MTB channel in Europe!
the best MTB channel
it's also a good channel! i watch them both
I'd say the best Scott's MTB channel. For me That 1 sponshership is sketchy.
NO!! GMBN is the best anything related channel in the universe 🌌
And when I say GMBN I mean GMBN tech also!
Blake's presenting skills have developed really well! Awesome work!
Martin Middleton thanks dude. Means a lot 🤘🏼😁
It's good to see what he's capalabable of. 0:50
Blakey makes it look so easy though, I'm envious of the skills Mr Samson.
Nukeproof Scout is on order Blake. Looking forward to chucking it around! Cheers for the inspiration
I love this guy (Blake?). He's my favorite on the channel. Great energy!
Glad to see more hardcore hardtails coming on to the market. I feel like many people think of a hardtail as just an entry level XC bike, but the aggressive geo of some of these trail hardtails makes for a super fun ride!
Blake with Lycra :o
Still no clipless tho :D
Thank you for this excellent information. Well done.
I love your videos about hardtails. It gives me full confidence on my keysto conquest 29er hardtail mtb. A lot of enduro rider discouraging me to use it if im going to use it on a big jump. I appreciate the video..keep it up and more power
You are the Great Blake in the dirt, man--that video was beautiful and hardtails are beautiful and those trails, well, some guys have all the luck. Thanks. Blake, and keep riding your hardtail hard.
I got a 27.5+ hardtail with 120mm travel, its Great.
Me to
Same
Same
me as well, love it
Ayyy same
Great video thanks for the work and time you put in!
Love the Blake's passion for hardtails!
A new video: “How hard can you ride on a budget XC bike?”
Blake is such a good rider. Wish I lived in the uk just so I could learn from him
this video always give me positive vibes on hardtail. because thats only I afforded to buy. thanks gmbn. thanks blake. love it when blake in the video.
Love my ON ONE HELLO DAVE. Highly recommend is for your all rounder. I smash miles and the hills during the week and bike parks and downhill at the weekend
You enlighten me! I dont have money to buy full suspension and im using hardtail bike. I love mountains and downhill but they always say i cant do dh because im using hardtail. Btw im no hardcore but i just love downhill. Thanks for the great vid!
may the hardtail live forever,my on one 26" hardtail is my fulfilment of life.
Hell yea bro
Yeah man 26” will never die, I have a MkI Ragley bluepig, love it
5:10 that was sick!
Love this guy's riding style and enthusiasm.
Love my specialized Fuse.
Got rid of my full suspension for an all mountain hardtail (commencal meta HT AM) and it is honestly the best of all worlds IMO. Its better at climbing than a full suspension but still gives you a tremendous amount of confidence on the downhill and in my opinion is just way more fun.
this interests me as ive been looking at a commencal ht for a while now, can i ask what full suspension bike you had?
Padraic Bronson I had an entry level diamondback so it was much of a surprise. However I've ridden expensive full suspension santa Cruz, intense, and kona bikes and I would still argue that while those bikes are more capable on the downhill, my commencal AM ht is a better all around bike and I would argue a lot more fun too. But that's just my opinion
Cool! thanks!
I just bought my first mountain bike. This video made me feel a lot better about buying a hard tail. Thanks for the great vids!
Just picked up a Rocky Fusion, loving it!
Before Bikepark Wales, it's just used to be Gethin Woods forestry commission ground, there was a DH track there and it was accessible when used as a venue on the Dragon Series (Welsh DH series). I was there, it was pouring down, it was scary, conditions were far from ideal, but I remember very clearly a young man on a 26" hardcore hardtail and he was the fastest man down the track for a very long time, embarrassing the first half of the full suss category.....he was killing it. Proof enough of the 20% bike, 80% rider rule.
Neil Blundz no one cares?
Aaron Kirkaldy at least you did😉
You cared enough to respond😘
I feel touched....not like in a creepy uncle kinda way😗....but touched none the less😂
Neil Blundz
26" hardtails are _the_ underdog of MTB, and they're low-key amazing. Get a good rider on one and you'll flabbergast a shitload of folks. Then again, it _was_ the standard for MTB in the early days before the 29er popped up, so 26ers have history behind them.
Ok thanks to this guy now you can only blame on yourself and your poor skills when going slow
Im riding a HT is not a excuse no more
27 years on Hardtails and Fullies, crossed the alps, did Marathons, avoided bike-parks, enjoyed trail-parks. Last year i have faced facts and noticed that i´m to old go for high drops, rock-gardens etc. and too young for a boring gravel-road si i bought a 29 plus Hardtail with 120 mm travel, 3 inch tyres and a dropper post. Works everywhere and brought me back to regular biking in any conditions. For me, i benefit more from fat wheels giving tons of traction and safety than from rear suspension. YES, i sometimes miss it and need to slow down - but most of the time i speed up!
Great video and great advice 🤙
Please more Hardtail videos :-)
Sooooo nice having a GMBN presenter who isn't a tree
Scotty+Neil+Marc
I bought myself Vitus Sentier Vrx 27.5 back in 2018 mostly after this vid. And now after 5 years later I've never had a better experience in my life than this bike. In has almost all swapped parts due to some cracks, breaks and wear (CRC was always great with warranty) . But it's still the same 27.5" 140mm (or 160mm for bike park trips) shredding machine. 15+k all year kms on it, hundreds of street, pump track, dirt jump, trial sessions. 5 great trips to big mountains with everything from chair lifts to big all-mountain rides. Love it only more!
Literally Raised my Confidence on my Hardtail Trek Bike!!!
THANK MAN!!!
GOD BLESS US ALL!!!😊🌄😇💖💯
My next Mtn bike will be a Hardtail, getting back to just riding for fun again. I am not a Dirt Jumper, Downhiller, Freerider, or Trials kinda rider. Just love to ride. 😁
John Day coming from East Anglia in the UK ( which is flat as a pancake) having a full suss bike just isn't needed. Like you, just love to get out on the Hardtail, enjoy the views / trails and have a bit of fun.
Dale Mandell It's not flat or totally groomed trails here in Oklahoma, but I do love a little of everything. I started on a Hardtail and just love the simplicity of them. I tend to ride technical, rocky trails and climbs with loose debris, but I never really needed a Full Suspension
Now do it on a $600 mongoose/GT/Diamondback etc.
See if they break.
And then compare to that rocket ship youve got in this vid.
The Mongoose Yeah, but do it on a cheap full suspension and it probably wouldn’t do much better. You can get a lot better of a hardtail for the same money.
My gt aggressor has taken a few beatings down hill on 75mm forks
Christian Donovan and THe GT doesn’t break because the frame has triple triangle 👊🏻
The Mongoose do it on a 600$ Trek, Specialized or Scott and it won’t break
Try it on a £500 voodoo or gt
Mate, your hardtail is probably the best hardtail you can get, and I don’t think people have hardtail’s as good as that.
Yeah that hard tail is extreme and nice then a lot of full suspensions
I’ve been riding my hard tail for 20+ years. It’s handled the Santa Cruz mountains (steep hills, roots, water, rocks), Texas hill country (rocks galore), and easy peasy trails. It’s been through water and a few crashes. It’s never needed any major repairs, just basic inexpensive maintenance that I can mostly do myself. Your legs are your rear suspension. You get really strong legs. 😂
everyone who asks this should watch "out of mind" by Fabio wibmer
I ride a 120mm hard tail with similar geometry. It's absolutely a blast. Even on more xc - oriented trails I can attack things better and throw the bike around way more than on a xc bike. Might not be as fast as a xc bike but it's certainly way more fun!
Thank you for this video, I just build a hardcore hardtail with octane one prone frame and loving it.
Excellent video!...reminds me of many days spent on my Kona Cindercone back in the late 80's...thanks :)
Blake samson your the best and i have a hardtail.Is a GIANT ATX 2018
That hard tail is nice but could do with some cheese grips 😂
callum.w 🤣
Hell yeah 👏
New to the bike world. Love GMBN to gain some knowledge!!!
I always have a blast riding my HT. Hardtail love ❤❤❤.. I would to see more videos on the hardtails...
I like hardtails because tou can take them to the track, jump with them, do tricks with them and use it to ride home without having to pay more than $1000
I have ridden a hard tail all my live and its great
So have I there awesome bikes ...
Thank you Blake sooooo much
Thank you, this is exactly what I needed. I'm about to get back to my youth love, mountainbiking. And everybody is trying to convince me to buy a full suspense, it delivers more control and more comfort, more speed, blabla. But I have the exact same feeling as you, I'm not biking for reasons of comfort, I'm looking for fun and a challenge, so hardtail it is! You helped me removing my doubts :)
Nice Vid!
I don't get why people always ask can hard tails do this or do that... Of course they can... Stop asking!
Love my hardtail. Definitely requires more finesse on those jittery descents.
Perfect video thank you !’ Confidence booster for sure!!
You are the best mate!
I don't mean to be "that guy" but everything you rode was smooth as the back of a spoon. Even the roughest rooted areas you rode would be the smoothest thing I would be riding. I'm jealous of that front fork, looked pretty nice!
Thanks for mentioning that.
Lots of rocks where I live.
"You can throw anything at this bike and it will take it on!"..... So you are saying it's nuke proof!
no. Stop
Bullseye Fowl fantastic pun
Gottem
Good one. 😁
Hey, that sure would make a good brand name! 🤔
I might have to cash in on that
I’m in awe at your skill mate. Brilliant video 👌
You are one of the best cycle reviewers on the net. Love your work.
I have a Giant Talon and I've taken it down some pretty rough trails and probably over-ridden it, but it still works and climbs really well. I want to upgrade to a full suspension if I can though.
Nybot Notrub I have the 2018 Talon 2, and it’s worked wonderfully for me so far! Better than I thought it would, for sure!
Nybot Notrub I have a Talon 4. Planning to buy Anthem or Glory.
"Don't put a world cup downhill track in front of it" mate you need to have a look at phil atwill
such a cool dude, fun to watch him!
Great topic and awesome presentation great work Blake thank you
5:40 actually you showed us it can can 😂
I'm worried what the mountain bike community is becoming. Especially if people need to ask if a hard tail will be able to ride a type of trail! Do modern mountain bikers live in a closet and are unable to go out and ride something to find out if it's possible. Just as all us older riders did back in the day. Hell I rode competitive xc, dh and even 24hr all on the same bike.
tell me about it....I'm surprised one of the questions this video didn't answer was "can I ride gravel on a hardtail"
When i was a kid we did all that stuff on a malvern star dragster lol.
Which bike did you use?
So tell me, I wanna ride quite a gentle downhill over a rocky path, many stones the size of my foot in places, can I use a rigid like I wanna buy?
I enjoy your riding. Keep it progresive you are a great target to reach. I ride cro-mo enduro hardtail with 150-120 travel and carbon fatbar, and i feel you feel it too. Wish you all the best keep making videos.
Ive got a Felt 960 hardtail and I friggin love it!
What components are you using on this hardtail? I'm looking at upgrading my front and rear brakes of a GT MTB and would luv some suggestions... here in Australia
I ride my hardtail on xc trails, and dirt jumps. It's perfectly capable...
I have a hardtail and is so cool, you proof your technic of it
It was a good explanation Blake's. Thanks for the video about hardtails MTB. I really enjoyed it. Thumbs up👍👍👍. I hope you can come up with more exposure about hardtail mountain bike in the future. Thanks dude 👍👍👍
Best April Fools video yet!
id like to know how many times you did those tracks before filming? xD , im getting back into it in my late 30s. After 15 years, wish my spine luck.
Mid 30’s and just getting back after many many years. Took the week off to ride trails with my son, and it snowed!
riding a schwinn mesa hardtail with yellow judy rock shock , and a rear rack got me some looks at the ski lodge/downhill. most fun i ever had...
Just got into Mtbing, I have a budget XC hardtail with a nice frame and I’ve been upgrading everything I can to make it more aggressive and more capable on the descents. I’ve gotten wider bars, shorter stem, hydraulic brakes, wider grippy tires, a 20mm longer air fork to steepen the head angle, grippy flat pedals and grips if you count those. Gonna convert to a 1x10 soon too to replace a noisy 3x8.
I got a Norco bigfoot and I honestly end up going harder and fast on that thing then I do on by enduro simply coz I'm not worried aboit breaking it
Crocsta
One more benefit of HTs: they're fucking solid.
I've never heard of people breaking the suspension on their full suspension bike. They are just as solid if you buy a good one. The thing that breaks first are derailers. Really, you're going to ride faster, smoother with a FS, so less likely to get bounced and crash.
Phil Fraikin well even some higher end hardtails tend to be cheaper than most entry level FS bikes, so there may be something to the idea that hardtails are easier to rip around, at least psychologically. How people ever muster up the courage to trail ride $10000 bikes is beyond me.
Except when we compare, we're talking about bikes on the same level. And HTs have one advantage over a FS of a similar level: the frame is solid, with no moving parts.
I'm more worried about my Shimano wheels that costed about the same as the bike itself.
XC Blake looks just ridiculous :D
Yeah 😂
Commencal Meta ht sx 26" and I love it. sat on dual position revelations so 150mm for aggressive riding down to 120mm for jump and xc
Finally all the answers i was looking for. Thank you.
Glad we could help!