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Just got caught up on the forum tea. Amazing that Chris came here to comment. Thank you Chris! Big fan. Agree 100% with what you said, Jeff. Sounds like Chris approached this podcast with the same approach he brings to every podcast. In Chris’s defense, what you see is what you get. If you’re a regular listener, you know what to expect from his interviews. He gives everyone a platform and doesn’t put anyone on blast. For many of us, that standard approach feels like a mismatch for this particular situation because Markus does not appear to be a trustworthy...

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...

" You are very privelaged to be in your position whether you work hard or not." Might be one of the wildest statements I've read in awhile, and that's before the spelling... --- Chris, keep it going! Get everyone's side of the story, make some money while you're at it, and let the audience decipher the message. You (and all the other podcasts out there) are the platform, we are the interpreters, whether some of those interpreters like it or not. On a cohesive note, I think we can all agree that anyone who knows even the basic details of...

If your definition of making money in a cushy fashion is 4 days work for minus £40 and comments like this, then I must be that hanger on using mountain bikers for my benefit. Just to be clear, this was my decision to do this interview and I'm not unhappy about doing that at my cost. YT just covered the bulk of the travel to enable us to do it in-person, which I think provides not only a better quality audio and video experience for you all, but also makes the conversation flow better. This doesn't in any way change...

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.

Agreed. Downtime goes Downhill is awesome and Chris is really great as an interviewer. Pre/post race episodes are great. He builds rapport with his guests really well so it often feels like friends talking. I don't expect him or anyone else in mtb media to ask the hard-hitting questions; they all have to be careful not to piss potential advertisers off. Chris has great episodes, a great attitude, seems genuinely curious, and also does some episodes that pay him well. I'm always stoked to see a Downtime episode show up on my phone.

Here in support of Downtime. Say what you want about the podcast, Chris got the interview where others failed.

Chris is the man. The amount that guy does for gravity sports and athlete exposure is unreal. I think it's unfair to bash downtime over the YT gong show. Keen for a Vital x Downtime 2025 recap podcast this slow season 👀

I love Downtime, but I’m not expecting hard hitting journalistic questions out of this interview, unfortunately.

Probably just pay a outside bartending company that would serve at events that way handle having a license to serve not the location where its being served.

Lol I did feel this needed to be broken out to its own thread - Neko Mullaly did a great video on weight here and came to the same ind of conclusion I did - There is a certain minimun weight of wheel/tyre/brakes etc most people need to run for the bike to ride well, and the only way to drop any significant amount of unsprung weight from those parts would impact performance far worse than anything you gained. As long as you have good tyres, wheels that are stiff and strong enough for you then you can try to...

In my experience, if you remove enough weight it can make a truly significant difference. Back in like 2017, I set out to drop as much weight off the rear wheel as I could, going from stock low-end everything to high-end everything. I dropped 700ish grams and it made a massive difference in not only suspension performance (it could flutter for the first time) but overall bike handling/feeling as well, enough that I've prioritized it on every bike since. That was an a Devinci Spartan. I could've dropped more weight but stuck to an alloy rim and doubledown casing. I...

Me going between this thread and the OG Tech Rumors and Innovation thread...

It depends if your racing or not really. A lot of people set up their bikes for comfort on their regular trails. If your racing you just want to maximise cornering speed, so if it rattles your teeth out over some rocky chatter, just hold on as it worth it to exit the corner faster and save 0.5s on the next straight. Obviously have it high enough to not wreck a rim or pinch flat on the way down. Remember when Neko made his carbon rear end to the DH bike, and was hopeful it would improve suspension performance because...

I think in most cases the things that add weight normally add more performance than you lose from the increased mass, eg heavier/wider tyres. Also unsprung mass is going to play a bigger part at higher frequencies (more rapid changing direction) and our enemy friction is normally much bigger at that point! So 200g of unsprung mass doesnt matter too much when there is 4-5kg of excess friction in the system.

He definitely not a young guy... I follow him on IG.. I think he enjoys welding and doing projects of sorts, but doing full on production runs may not be his thing now..

Has any frame brand ever promised on-site warranty support at races before? That is very cool. 👍