Patent ID: 7690667

Claim:
A bicycle, comprising: a frame; a pedal crank assembly configured to be driven by rider-induced pedaling forces; a wheel; and a suspension assembly interposed between said frame and said wheel, said suspension assembly comprising: a damper, said damper comprising a damper tube and a piston rod supporting a piston in sliding engagement with said damper tube, said piston and said damper tube at least partially defining a compression chamber, wherein said piston rod occupies an increasing volume of said damper tube during compression movement of said suspension assembly, said damper additionally comprising a gas chamber and a barrier that separates gas in said gas chamber from damping fluid in said damper, wherein said barrier permits a volume of said gas chamber to vary to accommodate displacement of said damping fluid resulting from movement of said piston rod into said damper tube, said damper additionally comprising an inertia valve including an inertia mass, said inertia mass normally biased to a closed position wherein said inertia mass is adjacent an opening to said compression chamber such that fluid flow through said opening is inhibited, and said inertia mass movable to an open position wherein said inertia mass is not adjacent said opening such that fluid flow through said opening is not inhibited; and a spring configured to apply a force to said suspension assembly tending to extend said piston rod relative to said damper tube; wherein said inertia valve is configured such that said inertia mass remains in said closed position in response to said rider-induced pedaling forces applied to said frame and wherein said inertia valve is configured such that said inertia mass moves toward said open position in response to a terrain-induced force above a predetermined threshold applied to said wheel.