sorry to hijack but..
my LBS can give me an 09' rockhopper comp disc for $750 out the door. Should I get that, or the fantom trail for $600. All I know is that they are the same fork, don't know how any of the other components stack up but I know the fantom trail is a 9-spd while the rockhopper is an 8-spd.

Does the rockhopper have anything special that the fantom trail doesn't offer?

or maybe I should just shell out $50 more for the Fantom HT COMP?

95% of the riding would be on recreational trails, probably only 1-3 XC races a year.