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I don't remember which account it was exactly (chainslap news?), but a while back a meme page was making jerseys using the 100% logo that said 72% instead, and got slapped with a cease and desist from 100%. I get why they'd do it, but this thing with Kade and the helmet seems pretty on brand for 100% considering.
There has to be WAY MORE to that story than just not having a 100% helmet available for him to race and him having a contract with RedBull.
I've never once heard of a racer being blocked from entering the start gate by a spiteful, bitter, hostile sponsor over a logo in your last race run of your World Cup career.
Any World Cup technical specialist on here? Love to hear how a helmet sponsor could STOP you from showing up in the gate.
No contract is structured that way.
Why would a helmet/apparel company BLOCK a racer from getting World Cup points, getting exposure for the future, protecting their reputation, results & fan base???
Someone isn't telling us the truth.
All contracts are structured that way.
100% sponsor the team to wear their products. A rider not complying puts the team in breach of contract and so they cannot let it happen.
My take- Kades deal with Trek was always based on exposure not results. Could he be a top 10 guy-absobloodylutely. But he knows how much work and dedication it takes (he sees how much work Tahnee does) and tbh he much prefers dicking about on his bmx/trials/ebike than going to the gym 5 days a week (because he told me). Trek were ok with this but maybe this has changed and he has stated he will not race WC Dh in '24.
He is paid by Red Bull to wear their logo on his helmet. His team are paid for their riders to wear 100% gear.
He did'nt have a Red Bull logo'd 100% helmet so he wore a Red Bull logo'd fox one.
He chose Red Bull over Trek.
He's not a great match for Trek's image and won't struggle to find other brands who will let him ride how he wants.
Pretty sure all contracts have language in them in regards to using competitor product which would result in your employment being terminated and/or fines. One exception being Kenda tire sponsorships.
No one physically stopped him from racing, but likely reminded Kade what would happen if he did with that helmet. His choice.
That's pretty much the whole purpose of sponsoring someone, no? You think if Loic showed up in the start gate on a Trek that Speshy would be cool with it?
Remember when Palmer raced a WC in the 90's in a pair of jeans with Specialized sharpied on the leg after having a "dispute" with Fox? The original Denim Destroyer.
Maybe build a helmet that doesn't crack as easily, or............ failing that.....maybe supply more helmets?
(comparatively. don't get your panties in a bunch)
Or insure you have enough spares or RB helmets if you are going to crash that much.
I get why Trek may have had to stop him. Who knows how much money they get from 100% and how much a breach of that contract would have cost them. Now the question is it it Treks responsibility to insure he has enough RB 100% helmets or Kades responsibility to insure he had enough 100% helmets sent to RB to have for a season. Maybe if you know you are down to one maybe not go race for Trek knowing you may not have enough. Also was there any reports of him crashing at last two races?
Kade has been riding his bmx and tagging Credence bikes in his insta posts couple times.
Creedence_bikes is Clint Reynold's insta handle. Seems like Clint is hosting Kade
I think he likely has all the helmets he needs normally. In this case they thought two helmets would be enough to the two North American rounds and didn't bring more. If the first was damaged in Snowshoe, they possibly could have had another rushed across the pond but gambled that he wouldn't break another one at MSA.
Alternate perspective: Maybe it's best he didn't race after breaking two helmets a week apart?
That's my take. There's GOT to be more to the story.
I can't see someone at 100% stepping in and FORCING him out of his last race just over a helmet. That would be the biggest jerk move I've ever heard of in DH.
I know the biggest dlckheads in the MTB industry & none of them would block him from the start gate. It's his career, his work, his body, his results, his future.
Could see a "We're gonna dock you $2500 of your final pay" & dude could still race.
For Trek and/or 100% to draw attention to their brand(s) in a very negative way by blocking a team member from finishing their career a continent away from home? No good could come of that.
Trek would never let him race with a different manufactures helmet. That would put them in breach of contract of their commitment to 100% which would most likely give 100% the right to request their investment back from Trek which is mostly like tens of thousands of dollars. Trek prioritized a title sponsor over Kade who was likely on his way out anyways and Kade prioritized RedBull. Cant really blame either party.
That is literally the only way I see this playing out. 100% invests money in the team, they don’t want Kade wearing a Fox helmet. Red Bull likely pays Kade more than 100%, so he chose to represent them over 100%. The high ups at Trek Racing said no go and pulled the plug.
i don't disagree that the contractual thing could be the issue, but why are the trek riders allowed to race non-sponsor tires all year? kade is always on bontrager tires that aren't even blacked out yet there's a pirelli logo on his jersey. maybe there was an agreement with tires and not w/ kit. the helmet thing seems bonkers if it really came down to it. as said a few times, too, the red bull thing probably just complicated it all.
I would guess that Trek cares more about getting results which means eyes on their brand doing well, and are willing to put that aside if it means great results from their riders on the world cup stage.
Kade cares more about having fun than anything else so maybe they're not so lenient for something that noticeable.
It's ridiculous. It was an exceptional situation. We are not talking about sponsoring all season long an athlete on a different equipment!
Let the kid ride!! Nobody would have paid attention and cared if he had worn the wrong helmet. Now it is just really bad publicity for all the brands involved that earn the reputation of arrogant dicks and party poopers.
Kades helmet thread.
I can see it in his eyes…recognize it from being a dumbshit myself. He’s blaming someone else, he knows he did it to himself. A last straw situation and they called his bluff.
been there.
Someone knows the truth.
Maybe we just have to wait until Jan. 2nd to be told.
@austin-NC seriously...don't know of ANY sponsor who would take that approach.
I'm thinking more and more hints at the aforementioned theory about concussion concerns. Still a shallow one.
January 2nd...come on.
years ago I did a course at work, one of the topics was the "Locus of control" and how as a person, you can change your perception of "shit going wrong" by your outlook on life. This would be good case of external locus of control, where it's everyone else's fault but mine mentality.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locus_of_control
I usually fall asleep and go for the free lunch at these sort of things, but that subject stuck with me and massively changed my perception on life, career and relationships. Very interesting subject matter.
dude Locus of Control is playing tomorrow night!!!
I love their song "it's not my fault"
Will be interesting to see how they handle Reece Wilson coming back to racing wearing a 6D helmet. After his trip to So Cal this spring where he tagged them in some IG stories that's all he's been wearing in the few riding clips he's shared since.
Seems he's prioritizing concussion safety over everything after suffering the symptoms this past year. Curious if Trek will respect those priorities since the 100% helmet doesn't seem to be the safest option, or if he'll still be wearing one while racing and the 6D the rest of the time. Either that or he's off to a different team?
Good spot. Helmetgate just got another layer to it - interested to see how this plays out...
Also, my goodness is Reece good to watch ride a bike.
Thats a good point, there was a very constant chatter here the last two years or so about 100% athletes like Katy and others dealing with concussion issues over the last few years from crashes more than average.
sooo… is this still team rumors in here or helmets/sponsor-drama?
regarding reece i don‘t think there will be any problems with 100% since he will be off trek factory i think. contract might be up and i don‘t see a reason for them to resign him unfortunately.
He is being out for a long time, but he is still a multiple race winner.
any news about XCO teams/riders?
Koretzky will stay 1 more year with Bora and Specialized Factory
He’s the only guy on the team that’s won a world champs.. before his leg break he was right up there, won a round and he was the rider that other riders were begging spectators for footage of his line choice. Great ambassador for the sponsors and the sport…. If Trek don’t resign him, he’s not going sit of the shelf and gather dust that for sure.
don‘t get me wrong, i really like reece, but his good results are 2-3 years back, you‘re only as valuable as your last race and even that was some time ago, regardless of the reasons. and if i‘m not mistaken his last time off the bike was caused because he got injured riding enduro moto which i‘m sure trek wasn‘t too stoked about.
we will see where he‘ll be riding in 2024, but doubt it will be on trek factory.
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