Thanks for advice BlueDawg.

The shock is a fox float r and has pro pedal - I usually have smooth cadence unless the incline is very steep.

The back end of the bike is much better since we invested in a shock pump and slowed down the rebound. However the front end has some awful RockShock TORO's attached to it and this is creating a bobbing effect - the preadjuster is wound to the max and the rebound knob seems to make no difference except collect crud!

The shocks are coming off soon and being replaced with a set that has remote lock out.

In the meantime I think i will dust off the family heirloom - Kona Explosif hard tail!