Also, if water and fanny packs are in, and hyro-packs are out, does that mean I should invest in some seatpost mounted water bottle cages? And, how will that interfere with my dropper?
Yes, you can do downhill without suspension or disc brakes. It's the Indian, not the arrow. At one time an unknown in a pair of BluBlockers could walk on and nearly win... full video at Awesomewheelie.com