Forest. The rich soil breathes heavily. Mist over old leaves, on which millions of cool raindrops are drumming. Otherwise, silence. Suddenly a distant hiss that quickly becomes the characteristic sound of fast cleats on wet ground. Black bike, world champion jersey - only one person looks like this in Sigriswil, Switzerland: Christoph Sauser. "Average heart rate 107, average power 212 watts," he reports, "I think it was faster that way." But believing rarely means knowing. And knowing is exactly what this event is all about: we want to finally settle the old debate about which type of bike is faster, fully or hardtail. Under real battle conditions, on trails that are typical for a CC World Cup. Together with Specialized developer Jan Talavasek, we rode to Christoph's home and training circuit. Our equipment: the latest high-end data recording technology from 2D in Karlsruhe.
Hardtail vs. fully: only 500 grams difference
Of course, the Specialized team around developer Talavasek did not go to all this effort without an ulterior motive. Six years ago, Specialized tried to answer the crucial question "hardtail or fully?" with a pithy "both". The result: the first Brain shock. The idea behind it: a firm platform on smooth surfaces, sensitive suspension when bumps threaten to slow down the ride. A bike that decides for itself how to tackle the ground, a hardtail and fully in one, so to speak. On the current Epic, this versatile suspension meets a computer-optimised frame with a geometry that allows for everything from ketterecht sprints to trail excursions. An emaciated racing machine, 8.4 kilos light and therefore only around 500 grams heavier than a top hardtail - at least on Christoph's Race Epic.
Test on Christoph Sauser's playground
The route: 890 metres of rooty, flat trail, then 245 metres of asphalt steeply uphill and downhill, finishing with a steep root ascent and descent. A high-precision GPS from 2D-Datarecording took care of the timekeeping - the data collected can be used to read off the route and elevation profile, sector times, speeds and even longitudinal and lateral accelerations. A Powertap hub records Christoph's power and heart rate. The tyre pressure on his Epic is less than two bars. Meanwhile, high-precision odometers and acceleration sensors record the work and efficiency of the suspension. On the one hand, Specialized developer Jan Talavasek wanted to investigate the work and response behaviour of the Brain. On the other hand, the load on the rider caused by the ground was put to the test by measuring the difference between the vibrations at the rear axle and those at the saddle clamp - the greater the difference, the more the suspension protects the rider and power reserves.
You can find out which bike was faster in the fully vs. hardtail comparison in the PDF download below.
