THE MORE THINGS CHANGE...
Old mountain bike suspension tech is enjoying a new lease of life in the gravelriding scene
We thought we’d seen the back of suspension stems – after all, who wants their handlebar to lurch forward when they hit a bump? – but after three decades of exile from the MTB scene, they’ve made an unexpected comeback, on dropbar bikes. The Girvin Flexstem may be long gone, but the Redshift ShockStop (below) and Cane Creek eeSilk stems both use a similar single-pivot design, with an elastomer (now hidden) functioning as both a spring and a shock-absorber. Similarly, while the posher Softride Front Suspension System is a thing of the past, the Vecnum FreeQENCE borrows its parallelogram linkage design. With less travel than their ’90s equivalents and a design focus on reducing vibration, not swallowing rocks, they’re proving popular with some riders.
Suspension seatposts are another product enjoying a resurgence. We didn’t touch on them in the main article, but they did enjoy some popularity on hardtails, up until the widespread adoption of dropper posts. Now, they’re back, in the form of the parallelogram Cane Creek eeSilk post, the linkage Redshift StopShock post (left), the telescopic USE Vybe and others. Chunks of elastomer are being incorporated left and centre – including in the rear triangles of some gravel bikes – along with somewhat more modern (but also minimally-damped) carbon fibre leaf springs, and even sprung headsets, reminiscent of Cannondale’s old Headshok forks. Loads of brands are bringing out short, 30 to 60mm-travel forks, too, including RockShox (right), Fox, MRP and SR Suntour.
We have a nasty feeling that it’s only a matter of time before someone has the bright idea of launching a URT gravel bike!