I cover 150 miles a week, 60% commuting and shopping etc, 40% pleasure rides including gravel trails etc. At the end of June after two weeks of riding South Wales valley trails, I had significant pain in both shoulders when attempting to lifting my arms past head height.
I realised that apart from when aggressively hitting a 4 inch kerb, I was getting very little benefit from the stock Suntour spring loaded forks that came with the bike.
I replaced the forks with Rockshox Recon air forks. I'm not a rock hopper and was simply looking for the most comfortable experience when riding roads and gravel. I found I was able to set the forks to a softer setting than recommended to provide maximum protection for my shoulders.
Two months on, the difference in comfort compared to the Suntour forks is off the scale, like riding on a cloud and my shoulder problems have completely gone away.
For circa £250 the Recon forks are considered entry level by the MTB guys but for a commuting allrounder that does a bit of gravel riding if you currently have cheap spring shocks it's one of the best upgrades you could make.
If you do upgrade it's very doable but you need to carefully research whether you have a straight or tapered headset before ordering
I realised that apart from when aggressively hitting a 4 inch kerb, I was getting very little benefit from the stock Suntour spring loaded forks that came with the bike.
I replaced the forks with Rockshox Recon air forks. I'm not a rock hopper and was simply looking for the most comfortable experience when riding roads and gravel. I found I was able to set the forks to a softer setting than recommended to provide maximum protection for my shoulders.
Two months on, the difference in comfort compared to the Suntour forks is off the scale, like riding on a cloud and my shoulder problems have completely gone away.
For circa £250 the Recon forks are considered entry level by the MTB guys but for a commuting allrounder that does a bit of gravel riding if you currently have cheap spring shocks it's one of the best upgrades you could make.
If you do upgrade it's very doable but you need to carefully research whether you have a straight or tapered headset before ordering
