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I would guess Fox product can be revalved to be as heavily damped as Ohlins. I don’t know if there’s a difference in the reaction speeds of the damping circuits though because that’s very important as you increase damping imo. The vital podcast with Fox from the launch of the new forks hinted that they are changing their philosophy around damping. Very good listen for anyone that hasn’t gotten to it yet!

The important part for all of us to remeber is that its all just individual opinion, about adults playing on bikes in the woods, none of it means anything really. We dont have all the info, we dont know exactly whats being tested and ridden, or how, why or if it even works, we are just guessing. Its cool stuff, thats really the end of it.

Neko seems to have very good support from pretty much everyone involved (deservingly), I doubt anyone will let this slow them down. Pretty shitty though.

I'll kick it off with my take on a great question by @hamncheez2003 Tune your suspension only for sector 2, dial it there, don't compromise on anything else, then the buttons firm things up for the end of the track? Most others had to compromise between these two severely different parts of the track, slowing them down in sector 2? This is in relation to the timing data, that shows Sector 2 (and then 3) as the most important and where the podium was largely decided, and the fact that sector 4 and 5, the flattest where lockout should gain...

I just don't think the data is there to conclude that lockouts helped on the motorway. Riders were tucking as much as pedaling, and heavier riders seemed to fair better. Its likely that speedsuit-gate had more of an impact. I would be open to the idea that a lockout allows you to optimize your suspension setup for the rough and chunk, and not trying to find a compromise between that and the motorway, hypothetically giving you a faster time in the middle (chunky) section.

Good perspective from MW for sure. A testament to his time in the business. I'm confident Neko's race team can get what they need. It's for Anxo and new mechanic, Josiah, that fingers are pulling at my heart strings. Pro tools are damn near expensive and often, oddly personal. And, their salaries are typically well, not to be envied. Neko and his crew has done more for grassroots racing than anyone in the US, possible world, no hyperbole. If they feel comfortable setting up a GFM for the mechanics or other staff, I'm all im. The most common response to...

MW also chimed in and said that Neko was currently flying home to get spare frames and other stuff. Full comment: "Neko is on a flight home now to get more frames and put together what we need. We weren't comfortable asking for public financial suppoirt when we have insurance and great sponsors rallying for us. The time before race 2 makes it more complicated for sure. My other big concern is our mechanics who had their personal tool boxes stolen, which as we know is a real kick to the balls for these guys that work so hard for...

They were stolen in UK between Birmingham and London. The homepage says “Scotland”. So bummed to hear this, they took the whole van but it was found from AirTag and an iPad that was on board. They got some stuff back that wasn’t taken.

That's a really valid point. It should either be autonomous or rider activated. I think it's great they are testing this stuff. Enduro bikes wouldn't pedal as well as they do without the racing, XC bikes wouldn't have lockouts without racing pushing it forward. Imagine in the future your DH bike is actually enjoyable to pump down a green trail on your way to some black gnar in the bike park. Because currently it feels like riding a trampoline on pavement.

ENVE chimed in on the PB comments w/ this "Our wheelbuilders are building up fresh wheels for the team, which should ship out tomorrow. Spares are coming the team's way as well. Let's get the boys back to the races!"

cool he does not get media attention.. but anyways I doubt he has the leverage/means to be suing people everywhere so to me thats a bluff,

I imagine he and the media are mutually avoiding each other. They briefly discussed the situation on the Making Up the Numbers podcast, and George referenced having to run their discussion through legal channels before broadcasting it. I also imagine his legal counsel is telling him to avoid interviews as he will inevitably be asked about the situation, and he hasn’t done a great job, from a PR standpoint, with any of his statements that reference the issue… and those were written statements. Just imagine what could potentially go wrong if he goes live, talking in a second language off...

Not sure why this year but it didn’t feel like there were many mechanicals or crashes or really even many close calls. (There were some) I didn’t watch the semifinals or even look to see if they are available to watch. The feed was fine on replay from flobikes in Canada but there was a commercial at the very beginning on a not so cheap feed and the rider intro graphics got old pretty quickly.

At what point does the cover on Loics bike violate the rule about fairings on bicycles? it’s quite a thought out aero design, I’m surprised nobody has challenged this

May not be on the bonded frames for a bit. Neko said he wanted to test the new frames himself. I believe this is to relieve his riders of the stress of whether or not new types of frames will make it through a race weekend.

I did not see photos of them racing the bonded bike this weekend. Pretty sure they were all on the welded frames.

Oh man, not going to lie I got a good chuckle out of the brake rub comment because its so true. I've run MT8 and MT7 and loved them both, except for the fact that they both like to have some form of brake rub at all times. Also I find them to be way better with their race compound brake pads. Magura rotors, however, are total trash. As far as my unsolicited 2 cents on Trickstuff vs Knockoffs, I have the same feeling about them as I do about cheep Chinese carbon wheels. Yes, they might be as good...

not sure if link will embed but Bernard Kerrs crash