A 1990s magazine story describes the SoftRide stem thus: SoftRide's answer to front suspension is a heavy duty, spring loaded stem. As an alternative to front fork suspension, SoftRide designed a stem that permits up to 3" of progressive shock absorbing travel up and down.

Originally called the "Frankenstem", it uses a swiveling parallelogram design that fixes the handlebar to the stem body at four points on each side, with a micro-adjustable spring, and polymer bushing for initial shock absorption mounted between the upper and lower beams.