CYCLE SUSPENSION
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Joe Rafael, the owner and operator of Cycle Suspension has traveled a very interesting "track" getting to this place in his career. Here is a little background information on just how Joe decided to work magic on dirt bike suspension.
As
with most off-road enthusiasts, Joe Rafael, who is the founder/owner and sole In approximately 1984, Joe began working for Liquid Spring which was a hydraulic company that specialized in suspensions for large machinery such as mining trucks. As luck would have it, the company offered Joe a transfer to California in 1988 because of his overall knowledge of inventory and inner workings of the customized suspensions that Liquid Spring had created. Being a single young man, Joe decided to take the opportunity and headed to California. Of course, he took his bike and gear with him.
While in
California, Joe met a motorcycle suspension tuner who happened to do
contract-type work for Liquid Spring. That chance meeting would result in Joe
spending all of his free time working with this tuner, Jake Thompson, learning
the tricks of the motorcycle suspension trade for Thompson's own business
Suspension by Jake. For two
Since then,
Cycle Suspension has grown in its own following with clientele that
includes vintage, road racers, street bikes, enduro, motocross, hare scrambles,
and cross
Part of
Cycle Suspension's growth is due to the fact that it has become a "family"
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wrench turner for Cycle Suspension, began his love for riding with a 1973 Briggs
and Stratton mini bike. From there Joe progressed to "his first real bike" which
was a 1976 YZ 80 that he bought used in 1977. Since his father was more inclined
to crunch numbers as an accountant than to turn wrenches on engines, Joe was
more or less forced to learn how to maintain his bike on his own. The variety
of bikes Joe has ridden runs the gamut of brands and sizes including an RM 100
and 125; YZ 125 and 465; KX 125, 250, 500; KTM 300; and finally a CR 500. So, it
is obvious that just from his own riding career, Joe has had experience with a
variety of machines.
country. Joe began racing the Texas Cross Country Racing Association series in
1995 and raced inconsistently until 1997. That year he tried to complete a whole
season but incurred bike problems that prevented his goal. For the '98 season,
Rafael bought a KX 500 which proved to be a winning solution for him as he won
the Open Amateur championship. It was about this time that he began toying with
the idea of track-side suspension service. So, in 1999 Joe began carrying tools
and supplies to the cross country races to be able to do track-side service.
Late that same year, Rafael met his future wife, Laura, at a weekend play ride.
She and her family have been involved in the TCCRA for almost 20 years where
Laura has won her own state championship in the Ladies' Open class.
business in which Joe and Laura equally participate. Even though Joe does the
majority of the suspension work, Laura is just as knowledgeable about the
mechanics of motorcycles. For the majority of her racing career, L.J. (as she is
known by most) has been doing most of the necessary maintenance herself. The
couple is a "tag team" in that they both communicate with customers about
service, trouble-shooting, parts, or delivery. Today, Joe is able to offer
complete track-side service which includes seal replacement, total rebuilds, and
even re-valving of both forks and shocks. 
