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The new rotors are called Shimano Rt6B750 and seem to be 2.2mm thick. The brake prototype is called BRG8000

Probably unrelated, as on the pictures it's a 200/203mm, but some teams on 100% Shimano programs had to run the cheap ebike 223mm rotor Shimano offered to get a bit more power out of their aging lineup. Other teams just run Galfer rotors ...

Ok, just did a ride on the new Tacky Chan Trail Pro Softs. I used the Wolf Tooth pressure calculator as an initial start, which rounded to 29 PSI rear, 26 PSI front. (For reference, I’m 220lb with kit and have been running 24/22 PSI on Maxxis EXO+ tires this season.) Started the ride with a half hour of climbing and the tires felt fine. Good traction, efficient feel, no complaints. Did the first bracketing run and while I didn’t notice any squirming on hard corners, I also didn’t notice anything notable about the traction, either. It felt like a...

I got a good ride in on the Tacky Chan Gravity Pro. These finally are the radials for me. They roll fast, brake well, dig into loose dirt, and don't squirm on hardpack or smashing berms. In the new Grav Pro casing, the radial effect seems less than when I tried the Albert or MM, but I think that's for the better. They feel kinda slightly more muted than a normal casing most of the time, but if you hit roots they conform really well rather than pinging off. Really pushing hard into berms or loose corners, they deform and...

Fresh podcast went up yesterday! We chatted with Jason Richardson, ex-pro BMX racer who has been a sports p sychologists the past 10+ years working with a lot of top cycling athletes. We actually recorded this a month ago, so I'm excited to listen to it again as we covered so many interesting topics about how to change your mindset and set yourself up to produce the outcome you're looking for—whether that is in a racing environment or just life in general. Enjoy!

Any thoughts on creating a new thread with to sole focus being DJI/Avinox/Amflow + Future (which can be technology and business)? I know a number of you subscribe to this looking for a broader range of things to be talked about. I'm happy to start one if you guys want.

There are already those issues with the wired in version of AXS and Di2 derailleurs on ebikes, it's actually obnoxious to work on them because of it. An interesting rhetorical question about CVTs and MGUs coming into this space is when do these "bicycles" stop being "bicycles"? Automatic shifting and the removal of manual control seem to me like the point where bicycles are no longer bicycles. We as a community and as an industry should probably draw those lines before we get too much further from where we are now. I'll stop my pseudo-philosophical ramblings here

I'll just say this (for now); off the record I've heard from many sources both Bosch and DJI are exploring gear box alternatives. DJI (Avinox) all but said it on the record. If I were a betting man I'd bet Sea Otter 2027 is focused around this one topic.

Live timing link now includes 2026 season - https://prod.chronorace.be/angular/results.html#/uci/mtb?ll=177739406765

Downhill rider entry list for South Korea (different than actual qualifying start list that should show up in a day or so). Once quali list is in, Vital Fantasy will kick off! You can join the global league now to be ready for prizes. https://www.vitalmtb.com/fantasy/leagues https://www.vitalmtb.com/fantasy/how-to-play

Trying to upload pics now! Electrical is already laid out. Water with hand washing stations, bathrooms, and nice bike wash bays.

Paddock is dialed. Nice to be on tarmac👍.

Just some heads up on the World Cup this week. Lawlor is there and will be providing the goods! We'll have PIT BITS, RAW and The Weekend once again. We have a South Korea World Cup forum thread here - https://www.vitalmtb.com/forums/hub/2026-south-korea-world-cup?page=3 Fantasy will be up and running once the quali start lists are in - https://www.vitalmtb.com/fantasy/2026/round-1-south-korea#round-desc Join the Global League to get in on prizes - https://www.vitalmtb.com/fantasy/leagues 2026 details - https://www.vitalmtb.com/fantasy/how-to-play

Brendog just launched his brand-new edit series 'Roaming on 2 Wheels' with an episode from South Korea, which dives deep into the riding culture there and also offers a good look at the new World Cup track:

The TRP Development Story with Frameworks, Gwin and Asa

90% V10s, 5% Frameworks, 5% other

Also, FWIW, Minnaar was testing what appeared to be a clutchless/dual-spring proto last fall. As seen here: https://theloamwolf.com/news/spotted-greg-minnaars-norco-with-prototype… Certainly looks like Shimano is leaning that direction, which is interesting given the negative reports about chain slap on the new XT/XTR derailleurs.

They look a lot like the crappy stamped RT66 rotors. In the first picture you can even see where the poor flatness is causing the pad to not contact the rotor fully.

Probably been mentioned before, but any guesses what’s up with these new Shimano rotors? Hard to tell if they’re thicker, and they look similar to the cheaper RT66 rotors Shimano currently sells. I wonder if they’re messing with tuning power via different rotors/pads? Or maybe these are a 3rd party I don’t know about.

I know the crew in this particular forum thread is probably the most up to speed of any group of MTB-addicted individuals on the internet, but in case you want a 5-minute recap of the impressive amount of new gear that dropped in the last month, the latest Gear Show episode is for you: https://www.vitalmtb.com/videos/member/biggest-news-issue-year-vital-mt….