FOX Racing Shox - Interbike 2011

 I don't understand why everyone is hating..I think it is really cool. It's amazing to see the advancement of cycling and all this new technology that is being developed. Unnecessary? How so? They weren't trying to market it to the average consumer, they were just showing off some cool toys and that I actually enjoyed learning about. Maybe we'll see computers being integrated into cycling more and more over the next few years!

 Thanks Drood for having an open mind to a CONCEPT - as for IIIestT you need to think outside the box here as that is what FOX is doing. They have created a concept that could help shops set up bikes easier and in an efficient, consistent manner and we think it's cool.

 hmmmm seems to me to be a great way to keep track of suspension setups, and like the video said have that info for the lbs to do the same if necessary...

seems pretty painless, unless you cant read, see or hear... in which case what are you riding a bike for? or maybe its because you still own a nokia? is that the source of the frustration? lol idiots i swear, cant shoot em, but they can just get more ignorant.

 App needs a kashima coating skin option.....

 The concept is cool, But is it so hard to figure out the suspension settings for yourself? I Mean, I think this would be helpful for people who are new to the sport, but for people who have already been doing it for a while, it seems kinda useless. But the Idea is Interesting to say the least.

 So much technology!

 You people are missing the point, I don't want computers on my bike, all i need is a pair of petals under my feet and handle bars under my hands. If your a real Mountain Biker from heart.

 everyone here is so anti progress if it were up to you we would be riding penny farthings

 SMASH THE SPINNING JENNY!!

 It would be kick ass for a shop. Especially for the rear shock, as so many of the shocks are custom valved for that bike. Everyone at the shop has an Iphone, as it is. Now you just scan it, and there is no guess work, rounding. I scan it, it says 154psi, done. When you have 50 different models of bikes, this would be pretty handy.

 reccommended pressures are often miles off. i asked my bike shop how to set my suspension up properly when i started. they sagged my bike to 30% both ends, then told me how much rebound is a good start point. the rest is up to rider/bike/terrain. we don't need this

and most people ride bikes to get away from their computers!

 the scanable bar code is super lame..! the whole thing takes a riders intimate connection with their bike outta the equation... this will not help newer riders learn to feel how their suspension feels and performs best for them... i prefer the connection with nature that MTB brings, this takes away from that... i'm not gonna say it's stupid or useless, but it's definitely not for me...

 Says the buttonpusher...

 says the ritchierich...

 yeah you are all right you can do it by yourself but with this you can do it in next to no time at all and you dont have to remember what setting you need. this is great technology, maybe next it will change the settings automatically for you allowing you to change it from your gps to change rebound/compression before you enter the incline/downihill section.

 this is somewhat disappointing!

 this is something a shop could take advantage of, but having this for an everyday person is completely pointless. Thats my two cents anyway.

 Although some people might not need it, I think this is def a cool concept. What theyre doing is basic but now integrate hi/low speed compression and rebound. plus make that all custom to predefined riding style. Id definitely use that!

 not thinking about the smart phonen are you ,.. ?

 I like how it takes 3 guys to take the reading...

 im not too sure about this, its a waste of time for people who are experienced so that takes out the majority as generally more experienced riders have a fox racing shox setup as its more high spec/performance. in my mind a waste of time and research, fox could have come up with something better than this. I would still have done it but not as the main advance in Fox's fork technology..this is nothing special

 Does it make setting up suspension, something that is traditionally beyond the average rider, easier? yes. Is it the coolest thing ever? no. Is it still a good idea, and useful for shops to have? absolutely.

 "fox racing shox....more high spec/performance" yeah right... and the earth is flat... and the pope sings in a boyband...

 I am sure that Rock Shox probably has patented the idea of printing sag measurements onto the stanchions... That's why no other company can do it as well...

 If you can patent measurement markings then there should only be one measuring tape company. SOmetimes I hate the patent law. Infact most of the time.

 Asian based companies pee at any patent law, lately I noticed that UMF bikes use VPP buahaha. I'm pretty sure one day BP, Exxon, Credit Suisse, Wal-Mart and Monsanto will join and form - WeFkUrealHard super corporation and patent the use of wheel

 That's ok, Niner bikes stole their CVA suspension pivot geometry from a taiwan bike maker anyway. Then filed for and were granted a US Patent on the thing.

 yea, it's disgusting these days, but it's really about patents a thing first, rather than who actualy invented it. Puuuke

 I know what you mean, I don't understand the point of this, shock/fork setup is a personal thing, how can a computer decide if the rebound is 'too fast' for a particular rider? Can it also read the mind of the rider and know where it's going to be ridden and the conditions? The same goes for sag, it doesn't know if the rider prefers a softer ride or something a bit firmer or what the conditions are like. I'm pretty sure i can set the sag on a fork/shock in less time than that as well, it's not rocket science. And one last point, how is it easier for bike shops? The majority of shops won't have a mechanic standing around with no work to do, they'll take a bike in and do the work later as they'll have other things to get to first. This technology seems to make it necessary for the customer to actually be there while the work is done. That's just making things harder for everyone surely?

 it is for renters picking up a bike at a shop away from home. It gets them in the ball park and people can fine tune on the trail. I demoed a spesh enduro last year and the shock set up sucked and I didn't have a pump to fix the pressure. The ride was still alright but it would have been a lot better with a good set up.

 Fair statement Matt, but having worked in high end shops this would be a beneficial aid in setting up bikes easily. That is how I look at it, the fact that Fox made it is fine either way, but I see that as a benefit that we could have used in shops.

 ^^ i agree 100%

 I remain unsure how many dealers or tuning specialists will purchase one of these kits purley for setting up one brand of suspension for their customers, given the rising amount on online purchases of bikes. I'm not doubting its usefulness for a niche area; I like your atricles and would like the quality to remain high.

 I agree with Matt-W. Pinkbike has a serious credibility issue as they scan these boards and are super sensitive to anything that doesn't support companies. I would prefer to see Pinkbike readers make up their own minds about the content shown here.

 @dwdw - making up your own mind is ideal - my job is to provide as much feedback as I can on something that I have written about in hopes of sharing with our viewers. Like it or not I am trying to provide information about something that stoked me out. Sensitive only because I want to help.

 I think any new tech. like this can only be helpful to bike shops who sell high end products, as it actually provides digital calibration and saved setups rather than twiddling adjusters until it feels "right"

I'd like to have a Fox smartpump in my shop that I can plug into my HTC smartphone and use to aid customer's setups of Fox suspension, make a record and be able to access these records for making adjustments to customers bikes

hell, I'd like to use this tech. on my own bike's 36 Float RC2 and RP23 BV suspension

thanks to PB for bringing us news like this

 I'm still not sold on the idea, its not like it takes long to look in the owners manual to read the suspensions initial set up for rider wieght, this looks like it would take a while to set up. For me personally there are alot more areas Fox could have focused their R&D budget then on this. And like you say Brule, this is for Initial set up only, and I think you'll agree that almost every rider will change their initial set up based on personal preference, so whats so wrong with ball parking it in the first place, using the already supplied set up table with every new bike?? And HampsteadBandit, this is for initial set up, even after using this, you will still fiddle untill it feel right.

 No but it is tough to consistently set up bikes for consumers and this could make it all easier.

 Brule has it right on the money. Looks slick, works well, and on a busy day, with so many bikes on the move would be super nice to have the factory suggested settings.

 Great, more useless guff....people can't figure out their sag, preload, shock settings, their spring rates are all over the shop, don't even know how many air chambers they have or what they do, manufacturers "recommended" shock settings (e.g. Rockshox air pressures for Boxxer WC and most other "stock" recommended settings) are a total nonsense, people don't know how to set their rebound/compression circuits........and now Fox want them to plug an app in and let the app tell them what to do...people seriously need to figure out how their shit works so they can learn how to optimize their ride. Relying on technology and mumbo jumbo nonsense is our collective downfall. Stop being dumb consumer sheeple, buying an endless conveyor belt of (made in China/Outer Mongolia) useless crap and get your head around how your bicycle actually works. It'll make you a better rider, and your bike will stop gritting its teeth every time you ride it. Educate yourselves.

Or maybe Fox could spend R&D time and budget making products that actually work properly first time to market, instead of using gullible consumers as beta testers for crap that is a fail (various 40's, Floats, that are shoddy etc).

 Brule, "consistently set bikes up for consumers"? You show me two consumers with the same shock setup needs and I will personally make a system. I do realize this was an Interbike concept, rather than an immediate consumer product.

I think the real issue is the lack of training with bike shop staff. Companies like Fox and Rock Shox need to do more PK sessions - I remember my first Rock Shox seminar. I think I learned more there than from setting up 100 bikes the wrong way in store. To get a good bike setup for a client, you need to take in to account a number of factors - not the least of which include local trail types, bike type, rider skill/experience/preference. Unfortunately, there isn't an app for that.

 @Hustler - As a general rule 90% + of the media camps I've attended plus bikes we've tested start with a 25% sag front and rear no matter what your weight. Then going to base settings for damping and fine tuning from there - while DH bikes are a little different, the principle remains of getting to those consistent base lines for everyone. You hit the mail on the head though with PKs and the lack of them in the market today. Having worked in shops with staff numbers ranging from 2 to 50+ employees it would be devices like this that would have ensured a more consistent set up for most riders when they left the shop. Ya there is lots to argue against it, but it is a concept that I see merritt in at this time.

 i could see it being the most useful for rental shop at bike parks...

 "I bet that most of you would gain time and feel from a system like this."

I'll place 5 grand on the contrary.

 Just remember that most of the biking public are not savvy with suspension. So maybe not all the guys on this site,but the general public yes. And I am also thinking of the future. This is the first version. If its ever released it will probably do more for you . Like setting changes based on your core settings.

 most of the biking public probably couldn't afford a fancy system like this.

 Niko - it is best suited to shops that need to be able to take a bike to its general base settings in a consistent manner for a variety of riders. It works fast and everyone that watched it in action was impressed - it is useful.

 I dunno about that, I don't think there is a definitive 'too' fast or slow, I think it depends entirely on your riding style and personal preference. But you're right, it's about personal intuition. I definitely run my rebound on the fast side because I've done what everyone else does and tried different settings and come to a conclusion as to what I like best and what I think helps me get from the top to the bottom fastest. I don't doubt that a computer like that would tell me to run it slower, but I'm not going to change it based on that.

 Sorry Brule, was responding to Niko but was too slow...

 I can see where shops could use it to help sort out the settings for someone as a general baseline, but it's not that hard to figure out without the help of a computer. Good job to Fox for pushing the aid of suspension one step further. It is a good thing for riders and shops who don't have the common comprehension to set up a bike for a riders needs. I do have lots of friends who ride their suspension set up totally wrong but don't know the difference. Seeing as the world is becoming more and more reliant on computers and machines than actual professional opinions, I see how this works, hahhahahhahhahaha RideOn boys!

 very oxymoronic, there is nothing digital about suspension. rideOn!

 This isn't a product that would be targeted at you then. Maybe you when you started riding and the shop where you went for your first bike, before you knew a lot more about your likes and settings.

 Even so, it's not exactly rocket science to do, most forks/shocks come with sag tables so you know what pressure to fill it to for certain weights of riders, and there's usually a fairly standard setting for rebound as well, surely it's easier to just have a sag table handy and memorise a couple of rebound settings than to have to do this for every bike? And to do it, you would have to actually have the customer there, they couldn't just drop the bike off to have the suspension tuned, sounds like more hassle than it's worth?

 Yes, your 100% correct.
That was the first thing I though too.
Once you change the air pressure in one end the computer reading would be falsified on the other.

For it to work succeed you must preset your suspension first hand getting is in your range and then go from there.

I think this technology would be better suited for the consumer if Fox used this data to give accurate air pressure settings to follow on each complete bike suited with a Fox front or rear acclimating the bikes geometry, riders weight and riding style.

RidEOn!

 Get a new sticker with the code on it?

 It is for initial set up and to learn your base settings - write em down.

 This came to mind immediately. You would have to remove them for safe keeping...

 I think its a smart idea for the initial set up, in a shop. But for private ownership its just unnecesary.

 Think of it as a product that your shop would have to help you and others who are purchasing a new bike to get set up with.

 That would be an awesome app. A sound board dedicated to Rob Warner.

 There already is an app with a Rob Warner soundboard. For iOS (iPhone/iTouch) only. Go to the app store and type "Freecaster" in search, and then download the app. Boom. A soundboard with about 30 of Rob's most famous lines.

 sounds like a lot of bullshit to me, why the f@k would you want the smart thingy to tell you if your rebound is too slow or too fast ?

 I for one think this is an awesome product that is just trying to help riders and mechanics at bike shops make the setup easier and to fine tuning will be remarkablt easier now, dont hat its a concept for gods sake.

 when all else fails try reading the instructions!!!

 Singlespeed-Seb: Actually, the apostrophe on Americans is not necessary since it is being used to pluralize American. lol!