MTB Geometry Explained: Poppy, Playful, & Fun!

Mountain bike geometry has changed a TON over the past ten years, and riders now have more options than ever when it comes to choosing a frame that best suits their riding style. My preferred geometry is all about making my hardtail fun, poppy, and playful; making every trail feel like a skatepark!

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[josehurtado]

This guyyyy in seven minutes explain A LOT !! 😮 without all the bs that other channels does . What a vid👍 Thank you !! 👍

[sans_]

The most underrated channel I've ever seen!

[skads]

One of the best vids i've seen on MTB geo... saved to playlist, this will be getting watched again & again.

[jonthesailorman]

Good video. One thing to note for hardtails specifically is that geo numbers change throughout suspension travel. A 64 degree HTA measured at static travel will feel more like a 66 degree HTA under sag with a typical 130-140mm fork seen on most modern HT frames. Travel has an effect on all the geo numbers, including reach, BB drop, STA, stack etc…, it’s because of those changes that i typically prefer slightly different geo numbers between hardtail frames and full-suss.

[ognyc]

Well done! One of the easiest vids to understand on geo out there. Thanks and keep them coming

[aldomaresca]

I would also add a short seat tube, so you can slam the saddle down for the rough stuff and for leaning the bike under you in corners

[KeoOutdoors]

Lot's of great info, thanks for sharing!

[MatthewBrigham-]

As someone who hasn’t had a MTB in years…before all this slack stuff, I appreciate this video!

[lenolenoleno]

Great vid!

Only thing to keep in mind is that most riders who think they're super playful and poppy are stiff as a board/just plowers when you watch them ride.

In many ways if you're more stable (longer wheelbase) for riding trails (not just doing dirt jumps) it will actually allow you to be way more playful because your sweet spot range of balance is so much wider and you can throw the bike around much more purposefully when you're not always on edge.

[mcmtb]

Thanks for all the tips, about to upgrade my hardtail to a newer version with a better headtube angle and longer wheelbase.
Very much enjoy it when doing street, jumps, stairs etc, but a little sketchy on bigger chunkier trails. -cheers

[rexxstone]

Great video! Answered all the questions as to why my new bike that has a 64° head tube angle compared to my older bike with a 66° head tube angle. and a little bit of a shorter chainstay Felt so much easier to pop a Wheelie or bunny hop! I could not believe the difference the newer bike feels so much heavier.

[PrimeHunter]

The biggest role of Chainstay length is actually balance.
If you have a (to) short chainstay you will have to but a lot of force on your bars to get enougth pressure on the front tire. Especialy with long reach and slack HT.
a bike with longer chainstay can be riden in a more neutral position.

[leewaychang]

This is so great! Thanks for the explanation.

[trentvlak]

For full suspension you want to look for a leverage curve that is progressive at least up to the sag point. Look up Evil bikes lr curves for reference.

[stefanhansen]

Thanks a million for this! Wonderful intro to bike geometry!

[michaelrieser]

Great information in just 7 minutes! My middlechild would pull up the font easy. My 2022 Santa Cruz chameleon mullet is super hard to pull up. I’m going to compare those geo numbers in regards to what your saying. The chameleon very stable at speed going down, the middlechild alittle twitchy up front at speed. Not bad just not it’s best feature but the middlechild does everything really well. Jack of all trades- master of non- but oftentimes better than a master of one!

[vincentrivera]

As far as I'm concerned, you guys should have way more subscribers. Great channel, guys.

[DezDoesMTB]

Man I have been in the market for a while now and was super intimidated doing research on what bike to get… this vid saved me man 😅

[aaronstariha]

Great video man, i have a transition sentinel and it has the long low slack feel which works for me as i suck at climbing anyways. Everytime you improve something, you make something else worse. Its all about what areas of biking you have fun with.

[kyledailey]

Great video man! Watching MTB videos in my downtime since breaking my wrist in a recent crash. Interested in making my Stumpy more playful. Thanks!