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I did a little googling and no one should be surprised to learn that the late, great Sheldon Brown built just such a test fixture to perform just such a test, applying 25 pounds of lateral force to dozens of different wheels in different lacing patterns and spoke counts, and varying spoke tension to test the affect on lateral stiffness. The whole article is fascinating and worth a read: https://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/wheel_index.html He found that, "Wheel stiffness does not vary significantly with spoke tension unless a spoke becomes totally slack." He also tests a bunch of other questions, like "Are front wheels...

My V10 with Chris King hubs ate bumps until I locked up the wheel. The math says there’s no benefit from Ochain/low engagement hub while the wheel is rolling but really most bikes these days feel pretty good if you really get off the brakes and let it run. When are riders most likely to be bothered by any unwanted rear suspension stiffness? Probably braking into corners when the wheel is slowing or locking on each bump. I think Neko has said a couple times that he’s pretty much on the brakes all the way down most WC tracks. Fort...

JasBushey, I'm gonna push back a little on the "cone drills or ladders aren't worth my money" thing. The one-on-one Fluidride clinic I attended with Simon that drastically improved my pro downhill racing skills (I'd already attended one or two world cup races at this point) was largely cones on a gravel road. I don't want to give away too much of Simon's secret recipe here, but I distinctly remember thinking "this is the dumbest thing ever" at the start of the clinic and then being totally humbled within 5 minutes. And again, we were at Duthie Hill which has...

I think we have to look at what the IXS series has done. That's a multinational series that spans somewhat the geographical size of the US, and seems to have proper retention and market share. One of the biggest problems the US has always had is that it's incredibly expensive to compete cross country in the NW Cup as well as Neko's series AND the ESC. It's hard to leave your region if you have a solid series, and if you do, that requires a significant amount of motivation and willingness to spend spend spend. Kind of why you'd typically...

great post, stoked to see the replies. all i have to contribute is connor fearon qualifying 32nd today at ft bill on his forbidden "enduro bike" with flat pedals : ) View this post on Instagram A post shared by Vital MTB (@vitalmtb)

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Maybe we are now seeing that there's not enough sales of DH bikes to justify the cost of making molds for a carbon frame? Especially for a minimal gain in performance...