There is still snow in most bike parks, but Rock Shox is already ready for the coming season with the Vivid series. The popular shocks for gravity bikes can boast innovations in both the air and spring versions, which should help the rear end to be more responsive and provide more traction. The engineers have also worked on the user-friendliness of the shocks.

Lower breakaway torque
The Vivid RC2 rear shocks and their air counterpart, the Vivid Air RC2, both benefit from innovations. First and foremost, the suspension pioneer mentions the "Counter Measure" innovation: the main aim here is to get the breakaway torque of the shock to almost zero. Technically, the engineers achieve this with a negative spring in the main chamber, which is intended to equalize the resistance of the air in the reservoir. By equalizing the air potentials between the main chamber and the expansion tank, the oil flow should be improved and the response behaviour positively influenced.

Revised rebound system
Rock Shox already relied on separate control for small and large bumps for the rebound in the previous models. Here, the user-friendliness is said to be improved with easier-to-grip dials with clearer clicks, and the knobs are accessible from the side. The "Ending Stroke Rebound" will also no longer require an Allen key in future, as a rotary wheel will also be used here. When revising the rebound system, Rock Shox also introduced the "Rapid Recovery" function, which is intended to ensure that the rear suspension works actively and offers traction on medium and large bumps.

The Vivid RC2 shock integrates - without spring, mind you - 468 grams into the rear triangle, the air counterpart Vivid Air RC2 weighs 586 grams.

rockshox.com