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Brief Suspension is probably to most valuable piece of equipment for your bike, However suspension upgrades are usually overlooked for more preferred mods like exhaust, dampers, seats, windscreens, pegs, bar ends... well, you get the idea. After all, why would you want to spend another chunk of money on something that is already working fine on your bike? Overview Unless you've spent a lot of coin on one of those fancy Italian jobs, your stock suspensions is probably not going to consist of a high end shock like a Penske or Ohlins. Sure, my stock Showa has adjustments for compression, rebound and spring rate but I never got the feel I was looking for. Something tells me that the stock shock isn't setup for the likes of 6'5", 250lb big boy like myself. Details The first thing you'll notice about the Penske is that it looks much more engineered than the stock shock. There is a lot more fancy little gadgets than what you're probably seeing on your stock shock. When I contacted Penske about the shock, they first asked me what my weight was with all my gear on. They used this information to build the shock to better suit me as a rider. No more would I have to settle for some scrawny stock adjustment that would probably fit less than half of the riders that actually ride these bikes. ) You can tell by just at looking at the shock that it has an almost endless adjustment for spring rate. Much more favorable to the six click option I had with the stock shock. Unlike the stock spring adjustment I was able to tell right from the get go the differences my adjustments have made. It gives that much needed two up adjustment that I have sought for so long. A few simple turns stiffens the spring perfectly for those trips with a pillion. It's also easy to return the spring for solo trips where this shock really shines. The stock shock's compression adjustment was based on a gradual turn of the screw to achieve the feel you wanted. There was no easy way to find that true positioning as you had to count and observe the distance you turn the screw manually. This is another spot where the Penske really shines. The compression adjustment consists of a large dial and six pre-set settings. The dial is big and easy to change when riding, even when wearing big bulky gloves. The rebound settings are also very easy to adjust. Again, the stock shock was just a screw at the bottom of the shock. I was very hesitant in adjusting this setting as it was hard to get to and wasn't easy to mark my changes. The Penske shock utilizes a large dial that is easy to adjust. This dial will click with each adjustment so fine tuning to your preference is precise. The Penske shock also has an adjustment for ride height. I have yet to play with this adjustment as when I fitting the shock to my bike, it already sat higher than before and for the first time really felt comfortable while sitting with my feet on the ground. At my height, my legs felt a little crowded on the ground in stock form but the Penske shock already provided a more comfortable feel that the stock shock ever did. Okay, let's talk about the ride. I had the opportunity to test this shock on some good two-up and solo rides. During two-up rides, I found it quite easy to adjust the spring and rebound settings to suit the extra weight of rider and passenger. Even my wife mentioned how good the shock felt as the bumps and potholes we encountered on our rides where handled with ease. I even had other riders notice how much better my bike appeared to be handling the bumps as they rode behind us. It was nice for a change not to have to worry about the bike bottoming out over bumps because the Penske handled even the biggest bumbs with no worries. Solo rides is where this shock really shines. After spending over 57,000 miles on the conventional stock setup, the new Penske adjustments made for a more continuously smooth ride at any speed. I'm still playing around with the adjustments for my solo rides, but the Penske shock brings a much more confidant enjoyment of our urban roads. After I got some good miles under my belt, I could not image riding again without this shock. Riding solo at higher speeds, you can really feel the shock do its thing. Handling bumps mid corner and up over hills seem to be its forte. The bike seemed to hug the road without letting go, keeping the rear end planted and ready for more power. I never thought that using such a high-end component would effect my street riding this much. I've always wondered if these parts would really make a difference for us street riders as they are geared more for the track. To my surprise the advantages far outweigh the price and I encourage everyone to open their eyes first to their suspension before worrying about other options to make your bike go fast. If you're looking to increase your performance on the street, a shock from Penske will undoubtedly do the trick.
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