My old mountain bike was a 7-inch travel downhill monster that, although burly and solid, was heavy, had a nose-high rake for shuttling downhill, and was a chore to get to the top of the mountain unless you're on a chair lift. The front oil-damped spring fork had linear valving and was designed for hucking off huge obstacles and getting smashed into big, rutted trails. So, I upgraded with a smaller, more nimble 5-inch travel bike. It's nearly half the weight (albeit, twice the price) of my old bike and has less travel, but it not only pedals to the top of any mountain like a dream, the more modern suspension technology (air shocks and internal bypass front forks) just soaks up the downhills. So, on paper it seems I'm doing more with less. Now, take the average Jeeper who wants to upgrade his rig for some moderate trails. Are most really gonna head to the nastiest trails in Johnson Valley or prerun across Baja? Probably not. So, why throw tons of dollars into external bypass shocks, coilovers, link suspensions, and huge travel? Or worse; put monster tires and a mile of lift under the rockers? Sometimes less is more: more efficient, more economical, and more fun.