What mountain bike is best for a bike park? A complete buying guide 

“I only ride park” was a meme amongst mountain bikers a few years ago. With bike parks popping up in more and more locations, a segment of mountain bikers emerged who just wanted to ride lap after lap of sweet trails, without any of that bother of climbing. If you would like to join in with the fun and tear up some bike park laps, hitting immaculately crafted berms and jumps over and over, then let us help you find the best mountain bike for a bike park. 

Want more of the downs and less of the ups? Bike park riding might be just the thing for you. Using trailers, trucks and chairlifts, they whisk you up the hill in no time so you can focus on getting in as many laps down as possible. Because it’s all about the descents, they tend to pack in more jumps, drops and bermed corners than trail riding, and this kind of heavy-hitting riding means you might need a burlier bike to get the most out of your day.  

If you are looking for a bike park-ready mountain bike, we think that either an enduro or a downhill bike will be the best choice. 

Enduro bikes are burly, aggressive bikes designed for the toughest of trails and big jumps. If you are looking for a bike that can handle hardcore days in the bike park, but also be pedalled around your local trails or on long days up in the mountains, then an enduro bike would be a great choice for you.

Downhill bikes are gravity-specific machines. Designed to only go down, they are built to thrive on the gnarliest trails you can find. If you want to jump further, land harder and rail the corners faster, then a downhill bike would be perfect for you. But a word of caution, all that performance comes at a price: they are only built to go down the hill, not back up it again. If you are looking for a bike park bike to pedal on your local trails, you will probably want to go for an enduro bike.

For bike park riding, we think that a long travel mountain bike with at least 160mm of front and rear suspension travel is the minimum you need, but you can choose to have quite a lot more. If you start going below 160mm, you will find that the vibration and impacts from each run will start to add up throughout the day, and you will find yourself feeling tired and beaten up. 

There is no reason why you could not take a trail bike like the Spectral for a day in the bike park. With its poppy suspension and aggressive geometry, you could definitely have some fun on it. But we would offer a note of caution: firstly, you will find it passes quite a lot of feedback through to the rider with its 140mm of rear suspension travel. More importantly, with its ASTM 4 rating, it is not designed for big jumps or frequent use in this kind of environment, so you would be riding it beyond its warranty conditions.

For playful bike park riding, most people prefer to opt for smaller wheelsizes when hitting laps. With 26 and 27.5-inch bikes becoming more and more scarce, most people find themselves with a choice between a 29-inch bike or a mullet - a bike with a 29-inch front wheel and a 27.5-inch rear wheel. While there is no reason why you could not have a lot of fun on a 29er in a bike park, a mullet with its smaller rear wheel will be better suited to the kind of jumps, corners and drops you will find in most bike parks.  

When thinking about a bike park mountain bike setup, there are some key features you will want to look for: 

With hard-hitting bike park riding, the first thing you need to look for is a frame designed to take that kind of abuse. We would recommend looking for one with an ASTM 5 rating, which means it is built for big jumps and drops, and you will not invalidate your warranty with that kind of riding.  

If you are thinking of riding fast, then you need to make sure you have brakes that are up to the task. Big, 4-piston brakes are a must-have to make sure you can stop safely every time on long, steep descents.

These days, it does not really matter if you have coil or air suspension, as both do a great job of dealing with bumps and big hits. What matters more is that you get robust suspension that is designed to take the kind of abuse bikepark riding can dish out. We wrote a short guide explaining the differences between coil and air suspension, if you would like to know more. 

Not really. With the uphill taken care of, you can get away with a rigid seatpost. That said, most enduro bikes come with a dropper post, and they are definitely worth having if you are planning to go for a pedal when you get home. 

Getting the right geometry is really important for any mountain bike. If you are looking to head to the bike park, you want to look for a slack head angle and a long reach. These two elements will help the bike remain stable and composed at high speeds. If you would like to know more about how mountain bike geometry affects your ride, then we have written a guide exploring this topic. 

It is worth stopping and thinking about what kind of rider you are when choosing your bike. 

If you are planning your first bike park trip, then we think a combination of all-around ability and long travel suspension are the qualities to look for, and the Torque has them all. With plenty of suspension travel, it will help you stay comfortable and composed all day, and because it designed to go up and down the hills, you will also have a bike you can enjoy at home.

If you love to spend your weekends crushing laps on the jump lines, you might want to size down on a long-travel enduro bike like the Torque. By going a little smaller, you will find the bike more playful and easier to handle in the air.  

This is where the decision gets tough - do you stay with an allrounder like the Torque or go all-in on a Sender downhill bike? Both bikes will stand you well, but what is more important to you, a bike you can pedal away from the bike park or the extra travel of a dedicated rig? 

If you find that your passion is smashing laps on the downhill tracks, trying to push your limits rather than playing on the jump lines, then there is only one choice for you: a full downhill bike. If you are looking for speed, then nothing scratches that itch like a downhill race bike like the Sender.

Riding in bike parks is quite a unique experience. Yes, you can take a trail bike there once or twice, but they really are not suited to that kind of environment. If you want to ride regularly in bike parks, then you need a bike built for those kinds of demands, with plenty of travel and a burly frame. It is easy to get sucked into focusing on the weight or efficiency of your bike, but when you aren’t doing the work to get it to the top of the hill, those things don’t really matter any more. In fact, these days, World Cup downhill racers often strap lead weights to their bikes to help them descend faster.

It is also worth being honest with yourself about your skill level. Because, as sexy and exciting as a full-blown downhill bike may look, they are demanding bikes designed for experienced riders and can be difficult to manage out on the trail. It may be better to go for a long-travel enduro bike that is easier to manage to help put as big a smile as possible on your face.

We make two models that would be great choices for a bike park rider - the Torque and the Sender. The Torque is a long-travel enduro and freeride bike that is designed to take on the gnarliest trails and then pedal back up again. With affordable aluminium options available, it is a really great way to get into bike park riding without breaking the bank. Then there is the Sender - built in our race-spec CFR carbon, it is a no-holds-barred speed machine, designed to get from the top to the bottom of the mountain in as little time as possible.  

If you are not sure what sort of mountain bike would suit you, then we have produced a whole set of mountain bike buyers’ guides to help. Whether you are torn between enduro and downhill or trail and cross-country, or deciding between a hardtail and a full suspension mountain bike or aluminium and carbon, there is a guide there for you. Or, if you feel lost amidst all the jargon, our bike finder tool will take you through a series of simple questions about you and your riding to help you find a great bike. 

We hope you now know what you need to tackle the bike park with confidence. See you out there on the trails!