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Well to credit you all, this thread was Pinkbikes greatest research resource lol

if you have low expectations, you'll never be disappointed!

I will have to admit to not having my hopes set very high for the coming year.

Exactly. I’m a fan of the rider first, it doesn’t really matter what team they are on.

Yes I'm tootin' my horn here but the winning Rampage bike would fit right in here. That's a regular Altitude frame with a few low key mods that anyone can do.

I get the desire to move on from this story, but it deserves the attention it is getting. Here is why: First, there is not much else happening in the space. The Felt news is interesting, and I reached out to Cesar and may do something there later. He is a great guy. Outside of that, the only real story right now, in my view, is the health of the consumer, which everytime I bring up in conversation i get glazed eyeballs (lol...its riveting!). When you compare that to the personality of Markus, the very public way he is handling...

Just look at the comments to the podcast. Way more people praising yt and Marcus then the other way around. So no. I do not think the general consensus from the public is the same consensus that vital forum nerds are taking from it. We live in a world where misinformation is the norm. The idea of here is one side of the story and people can do their own research elsewhere is wildly irresponsible when it comes to anything that actually matters. Especially when you don’t explicitly tell the listener they need to do so. But better yet if...

@Downtime Podcast Been busy and have sporadically been able to follow the thread. I haven’t listened to the DT podcast. Haven’t listened to Brines debrief. But I do know this. MF asked/paid Chris to provide a platform. Chris did that. Jumping on Chris for not asking the right questions is crap. MF was on the back foot from the company crisis. Chris didn’t put him there. MF had every opportunity to at least clear the air and admit wrongdoing. At any point during the pod MF could have said “Let me say this about that”. MF had an open mic...

You're very entitled to your own opinion, but I didn't hear the same contradictions you did. I've re-listened multiple times this morning and I still can't hear it the way you have. I heard Markus say they knew they were facing tough times but weren't expecting the PE firm to get to a point where they aren't willing to inject cash. The Fire Sale was an effort to get through that specific period without having to ask for more cash. That failed and then they were told 'no more'. As for your previous point, it's not exactly clear to me...

Peatys latest instagram with syndicate ride doesn’t tag Laurie in it. If anybody on the team could make it to Sheffield it would be him surely.

As far as Laurie is concerned, his insta shows many SC pics in the last time. Looks like he will stay. Nice. Norcos female gang ist just insane, esp. When Erice returns: three bomber girls/women is quite unique. That said, there is maybe no money left for a established male at the moment.

I’ve been a long time listener to Downtime, as evidenced by my support in this thread, but the responses by other listeners in this thread have solidified my appreciation for the value it brings to our community. I’ll be supporting via Patreon as a result. I know, from listening, it’s been a tough year financially for Chris and the podcast, and I don’t want the negativity on this thread to outweigh the stellar content that the podcast usually offers. That being said, I do think a more hard hitting interview with Markus would be great, but I certainly wasn’t expecting...

I tried to make this clear in my follow-up audio note, but I’m really not trying to throw shade at @Downtime Podcast or Chris. Two things can be true: Chris is one of the best hosts in the MTB world, and the Markus episode missed the mark for some of us. No podcast hits a home run every time. Every show I listen to has episodes where I think, “not for me” or “this one whiffed.” That’s normal. And the same is obviously true for my own content. In a way, Chris let Markus make his own bed. Anyone who...

I had zero issue with the way the podcast went. Let's be real here does anyone think Markus goes on a podcast at think he will be pressed super hard. I am 100% saying no way he does it. You should have known what it would be the min he said have editorial control. Everyone knew what it would be and thats what it was. It was an opportunity for Markus to his story. We all know the other stories out there and we all know the truth is somewhere in between. Would I have liked him pressed about the...

What the hell is wrong with these companies? Both Stoll and DirtySixer think they can sell bikes without telling people the geometry. Is this just some kind of rug pull because they don't know what they're doing, and until Trek or Specialized or whoever comes out with a sorted 32inch bike they can trick people into being early adopters with the alure of new-new (be the first on your block!)? This is some fly by night nonsense.

Thanks to those who've taken time to write kind words about Downtime. I was expecting to get some hate for this episode as there is definitely a lot of frustration out there on this topic and Markus appears to be a very polarising character. For what it's worth, I put in the time to understand the concerns of the MTB world as much as was possible from forums etc and I believe that all those key points were covered in this interview. I also took time to understand the mechanisms of Private Equity and just why growth is essential and...

Flossman has all the classic traits of a narcissist. If you've ever worked with folks like this in any capacity... oof. He built of house of cards based on his charisma and it blew over. Expected.

+1 on Downtime here! The pre- and post-race shows are among the holy triumvirate of DH racing content (with WynTV and Vital Raw), absolutely not to be missed. The guests are often great but as hogfly says, the Downtime Goes Downhill series is evidence that the host n dem are interesting on their own. I have that as the best execution of that vibe in DH, it’s relatable and a really cool insight into the British DH racing scene. So yeah. Downtime good! Flossmann bad though. What’s noteworthy about Flossmann’s appearance is that he was given an open mic to...

Markus coming across as that POS who is bashing his wife and says something like "look at what you made me do, you made me do this" kind of vibes everyone else's fault but his.