In the most simplistic terms, the new Lyrik is much like RockShox’s renowned Pike fork, but better. While it shares the Pike’s Charger damper and SKF seals and sticks with a 35mm chassis, there are some subtle but significant differences that you can feel on the trail.
Available with 160 to 180mm of travel (6.3-7.1in) in its 650b guise, this fork is going to be ridden hard. That’s why RockShox have beefed up the stanchions (they’re still 35mm in diameter but have thicker walls, so you have to use new, smaller grey Bottomless Tokens instead of the old red ones), beefed up the arch and used their new Torque Cap technology (wider 31mm hub end caps that increase the contact surface between fork and hub) to improve stiffness and steering precision when tackling bigger, nastier hits.
Another change for the Lyrik (and the cheaper Yari, which shares the same chassis) is that it has asymmetrical lower legs. This is because the side with the air spring in has been lengthened to accommodate a larger negative chamber, making the fork more sensitive at the start of its stroke. You can also tweak the rebound damping by adjusting internal shims, as on the Boxxer downhill fork.
What about weight? The Lyrik is roughly 100 to 120g heavier than a Pike of the same travel, with our 180mm 650b sample (29er/650b+ versions are also available) weighing in at 2.02kg. On the trail, it feels superbly supple off the top, tracking the ground’s undulations well and helping with front wheel traction on those flatter, loose turns that can prove tricky.
It was through high-speed braking bumps that the fork seriously impressed us though. It remained so composed when tackling some seriously heavy, repeated hits and removed so much of the initial sting that our hands and arms could survive run after run – a real bonus on lengthy descents.
Really hard hits are dealt with in a controlled fashion too, and although we managed to use all of the allocated travel on more than one occasion, the bottom-out never felt harsh.As we’ve come to expect from the Pike, good mid-stroke support and effective low-speed compression damping adjustment lets you ride steep tracks with awkward chutes, compressions or catch-berms with confidence too.
All in, the new Lyrik feels closer to the Fox 36 (although not as adjustable) in performance than the Pike.We’re now wondering why you’d buy a Pike if you’re looking for a hard hitting fork.
Smooth, controlled and stiff hard-hitting fork.We’re big fans of the new Lyrik
Price 1236$
