Have you ever ridden a Softride before ? Do you have a chance to test ride one ? The Softride does help smooth out your peddle stroke, due to the beam design. I have tried out my friends Softride and it was different. Sprinting out of the saddle I couldn't get the same side movement due to the beam being so high up it banged my thighs. On the other hand I have 3 Zipp2001's and love every bit of the bike, by far the best beam bike built. The first Softride main frame design is just like the Zipps because both companies collaborated to build a high-tech bike. At the 1992 Interbike show Softride had a Zipp built bike with there beam suspension. Shortly after that Zipp decided to go with there own beam design, so they went there own way. I would never discourage anyone from getting what they might want, but try one out first if you can, then decide.