Right... anyways to bet back on topic, I would look into a giant trance. It is not a softail, but from the looks of your post it will suit you a bit better for your riding style. It runs 4 inches of travel front and back. The bike does not run a huge fork or anything like that but this is a really tough bike. This thing is used from xc to 4x, so it can be jumped. It has enough suspension in the back to smooth everything out a bit, but the bike pedals really nice to you can go uphill well. It has an air shock so you can run it as stiff or loose as you feel the need to. The low end model starts at 1250, while the highest end tops out at 3600. (I am not quite sure what your budget is) If you have the chance check one of these things out.