Since I tested the FSR things have moved on. I liked it so much that I had to test it again. Then I liked it even more, but I felt I needed some back-up, some second opinions. Enter my brother Andrew (Supawal), and my friend Dave. Both veteran mountainbikers with thousand of miles under their belts. But even better still for testing purposes…
My bro’ had already tried an FSR, and hated it. He said it just felt slow and sluggish. Uninspiring, and disappointing were his words. He told me that on climbs it sapped his will to live! I convinced him that the test bike he rode had not been set up properley, and he should try again.

Dave was anti-suspension, he doesn’t even like suspension forks really, and the ‘solid’ setup of his race bike shows this. Dave would take some convincing.

To cut a long story short, my bro’ liked it so much he ordered one, Dave said that he would have to change his whole way of thinking about suspension bikes, wanted one badly, and hopes someone will buy/loan him one, and I ordered one! The FSR is a fantastic bike. So good that it convinced three cynical hardtail riders that it is the bike to have.

But don’t just take my word for it. Here’s what Mountain bike action had to say about the S-works version of it.

The Specialized is ready to race and win off the showroom floor. It’s handling is nearly flawless. At speed the bar input is minimal and the FSRxc steers lightly. The Horst Leitner-designed, fully active rear suspension reacts to bumps even under hard pedaling and braking. The bump sensitivity of the Sid Race is easy to adjust and the fork is a perfect match for the Fox-sprung rear end. The S-Works doesn’t work the trail, it FLOATS across it. With the fork and shock set to the fully active position the rider never feels that the suspension is costing pedal power. The Specialized Rockster tubeless tires are the lightest on the market and add horsepower to the riders spin. Our biggest complaint was that the oddly bent, 645mm bar felt too wide and steered too slow at grinding climbing speeds. Best quote: “There’s not a cross-country bike out there that will take you from point A to point B faster than the FSRxc. If you want to experience the benchmark full-suspension cross-country bike, this is it.