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Roger Viera mentioned that he just signed to Pivot for another 2 years on The Ride Companion.
That leaves Remy Meier-Smith and Ryan Griffith unless BK has decided to change directions with his career.
Asa and Dak would be amazing, the young gun and the long haired vet!
As for Specialized being down with apparel, that is crazy. There are a lot of people in that group, both in MH and around the globe. I heard of some layoffs this summer, and that the Benedict MTB Posse was pulled back to Morgan Hill from Auburn. Tough times for Big S.....
This is Lou's bike from a few years ago when she rode for Nukeproof independently, with a mix of this years parts I believe
This is what I heard also, they may still do high end road shoes and so on, where they feel they can make a class leading product, but they are not trying to be in all clothing and P&A segments.
I was in a specialized store here in the UK yesterday and they had no Specialized clothing, just Endura.
My guess would be both. Fox has been on a roller coaster since the pandemic. X2 and podium qc issues. State of industry. Increased costs for supporting racing/events in any discipline but especially mtb. personally I prefer the marzocchi to rs’s low end stuff but rs’s high end stuff is so good right now.
If fox is going to pay better sponsorship deals most teams are going to take the budget as more of an asset than 1 percentage point of performance. If fox is offering less money than they used to than I think a lot of teams will say hey let’s try out xx or just switch to the best product we think is available.
I kind of assumed this is what happened with gwin. He didn’t like the offer so he just said to heck with it and slapped on an ohlins which I’ve seen plenty argue as the best dh suspension out there.
Enduro junior women world champion Nežka Lipnik said she didn't receive any offers for next season even though she won every international race she entered by quite some margin... Apparently she is also waiting for a downhill bike. Sourced from here Nežka Libnik tudi v 2026 v domačem klubu, a na novem kolesu - mtb.si - mountain bike Slovenija
Looks like Mavens to me, but we'll see they're saying goodbye to most old sponsors on the team IG
Pivot will be BK and Roger with two new riders. Laurie would fit.
Most importantly, why did Barney leave and where is he going?
Maples
What's next for Brage?
I'm not sure where I see him landing... But, damn.. That farewell/ thank you video to GT was epic!
Brage should pick up a page from his countryman, Isak Leivson and start garage building his own bikes. Those long summer nights aren’t just good for digging!
would love to see Brage on transition due to how they have been focusing on a lot of free ride lately. I know this is unrealistic because I imagine that's a big price to pay for him (which I totally understand) dude absolutely shreds.
I'm stuck at work on Christmas Eve, so here are some random thoughts that aren't impossible. Some I like, some I hate:
Scott - I have no interest in every owning a Scott bike and not sure if it's the right fit, but the everyone seems to love the Gambler and their freeride team is kind of killing it. Brendog, Vinny T, Vaea (remember her Rampage bike?!?) and a bunch of others. Cool collab opportunities.
Specialized - out of principle, I kind of hate the Big S, but it would probably get Brage the biggest paycheck and most opportunity for cool projects.
Trek - same as Specialized, but would be cool to see more big mountain projects with Kade and maybe other stuff with Semenuk, Finley and Emil?
Transition - Brage on a Bottle Rocket would be sick. Collab projects with Nico Vink, Hanna B, Jaxson, Talus
Forbidden - Aggy, Vinny Armstrong, Brage? The vibes would be sick
Evil - not sure they make a bike that would hold up, but perfect vibe match
Frameworks - let's be honest here. Everyone should be on Frameworks.
Atherton - I could see Brage on an s.200 doing insane things with Gee? Strike that. Someone's probably going to die...
Devinci - Brage, Steve, and Yoann could do cool things together. I know lots of people who like the Chainsaw, but I'm not convinced it's a Brage bike.
Commencal - not sure I see him on a Supreme, but could definitely see him on an FRS. Brage and Edgar collab?!? From what I saw, Commencal kind of has a stranglehold on the freeride, park bike scene in Europe.
Santa Cruz - some logic with PON and is the V10 objectively the best dh bike ever? We know Brage likes to go fast, but can it slow down to do some of the technical riding he does?
Regardless of where he ends up, we know he's collaborated with other athletes, so stoked for more of that. I just hope he gets paid well and has super cool opportunities for wild projects.
long shot probably, but Zinks bike?
I could see that being a good match, but I don't believe Zink has the funds yet..
Laurie to Goodman SantaCruz ! (or new name Team, with SantaCruz for principal sponsor)
“Every step of the way”
How many Elite men do Trek have, with Osin joining, do they have space for Greenland?
Lozza back to his old home…
Maples on Pivot
Mondraker or MS? MS already has a large team, so my bet is on Mondraker.
Lachie, Oisin, Ollie Davies, Matt Walker.
Greenland to Atherton still makes the most sense to me. I could see Nukepeoof maybe,but not Mondraker unless Dak walked off to find a better contract.
On Brage I'm feeling like he might end up on Trek. They have a history of having great freeriders and slope athletes, they have the bikes, presumably they have the money.
I don't think Atherton's have the money for Greenland. And I thought Dak was already pretty much confirmed on Scott?
I'm pretty sure Mondraker want young talent to go with Ronan... so Dak gone. But I doubt he'll be replaced by someone like Greenland. It'll be a young up and coming racer.
Big question is what will Mondraker do for a top female racer?
Speaking of Mondraker, Dak and possible open spots in their roster - any word on Greg Williamson? Thought he got the seat when Dak was injured but he rode the whole season i think.
That sounds weird. I hope he’s still going to race DH bikes.
Do we really think she had to abandon those deals? She should’ve been most coveted person. Teams could have also made concessions. It’s not like she had to make moves last min.
Magura Gustav brakes
It's Lewis.
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