I have a hardtail and a 4 inch travel full sus. I can lock out the suspension on the full sus. and I've got it down to about 26-27 pounds, so I consider it the perfect all-around bike. I like the hardtail for more carriage road or places with a lot of climbing and not as much technical stuff. In my opinion, it's best to learn to mtb on a hardtail and later upgrade to full sus.