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jeff.brines Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
8/8/2025 8:31am
My analysis is just about done, but for those hankering to get a jump on things, here are Fox's results. / and the conference call can be found here (or just wait a few hours and I'll post my thing...)
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
dancingwithmyself Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/23/2025 10:07pm
My version of what I think Robot was saying is that the issue is the industry is run by enthusiasts. I intentionally use "issue" instead of "problem," because I want my bikes designed by people who are passionate about riding bikes. But mixing passion for the sport with running a business in the sport can lead to the sort of irrational exuberance we saw during the COVID boom. I don't follow the financial news closely so I may be way off, but can you imagine the CEO of General Motors saying, "We just build the trucks we want to drive"...
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
jeff.brines Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/21/2025 11:41pm
Hey everyone, not mad at anyone in this thread (besides maybe myself). I clearly have ideas and a delivery style that probably isn’t ideal for a mountain bike forum. Robot wrote a genuinely great post (he’s a better writer than me), and I realized there was no way for me to counter it. Not because I didn’t have anything to say, but because I started turning into this (actual photo Tucker took of me this morning): Any frustration you see from me is with myself, not anyone else. I like friction. I like debate. What I don’t like is knowing...
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
chriskief Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/20/2025 5:56am
Again just speculating, but based on the various quotes, the strategic direction (grow, grow, grow) seems like it was baked well before the CEO and PE guys came in. The CEO hire and the PE investment were both done to drive that strategy. Flossmann has decided to bring in Nicols to help, "further accelerate YT’s growth trajectory, already turbocharged by this year’s demand, while navigating the increased business complexity and customer expectations." "Markus and the team have already started making the necessary changes needed to enable YT to scale and continue to redefine how customers around the world buy and...
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
Maxipedia Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/17/2025 12:21am
I find it very ironical and super hypocritical for somebody like the YT main guy to whine about ”discount wars”, when they basically were the ones who brought this aggressive pricing strategy to the market. Dude, are you for real??? I honestly hope everybody will be OK after this, but I can't remember all the direct-to-consumer brands being too sympathetic towards the bike shops who, at the end of the day, stay at the core of our sport. And the problem is that people really believe that they are entitled to that discounted ”high end bike” with top parts, even...
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
TheSuspensionLabNZ Liked a reply to forum topic FOX Podium Inverted MTB Fork - Questions, Answers, Reviews
7/1/2025 1:53am
People seem to think bike companies have way more time and money on their hands than they actually do......pulling 20 units together AT ALL, let alone people with enough spare time to strip them down and rebuild perfectly is close to impossible. They will for sure be getting some kind of once over but that's going to be pretty standard anyway for a new production run....the QC from those top brands are already really really good in my opinion and the amount of "problems" certain people try to make you think exist just aren't anywhere near that bad in reality....
This forum topic has 249 replies.
jeff.brines Liked a reply to forum topic FOX Podium Inverted MTB Fork - Questions, Answers, Reviews
7/1/2025 1:52am
I can't speak to this exact launch (obviously), but I highly doubt these forks get a full teardown and rebuild before going to media. Maybe they dyno this batch at HQ, but having tested plenty of product myself, including from Fox, all indicators point to companies pulling stuff directly out of the "for sale to the public" pile and shipping it directly to a tester. I realize press camp is a little different, but I still do not believe Jordi himself is hand-building forks (or shocks) just because they’re going to Vital or PB. In a way, some of you...
This forum topic has 249 replies.
jeff.brines Liked a reply to forum topic FOX Podium Inverted MTB Fork - Questions, Answers, Reviews
7/1/2025 1:48am
Eh, I have a few thoughts to add for the hell of it. Some may remember, but I have had the privilege of playing "bike review guy" for Vital in the 2010s and also got to do similar work in the ski and motorski industry. I've also had a behind the scenes look into the industry at various points over the last ~20 years and can say I've never seen anything to suggest media product is somehow different than the product the public buys. That said, most of these "big" launches include a mechanic (or two) as you implied. Hence...
This forum topic has 249 replies.
SteveClimber Liked a reply to forum topic Drivetrain Talk
5/7/2025 12:16am
Best value proposition is either brands 11sp drive trains. They worked incredibly well, they are different, one clunked and one was smoother, but they are very reliable, less prone to indexing faults than either 12sp, and so much cheaper. If you want value 12sp the only option is Shimano mix/match. Unfortunately an equivalent Sram drivetrain is almost double the price of a shimano one currently, so from a value perspective it simply cant be competitive
This forum topic has 82 replies.
PeteHaile Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
4/4/2025 3:30pm
Hi y'all, Longtime reader, though I rarely post. Some context I run a small non-bike company in Sheridan, WY. We make a ton in house, import a little, and outsource a bunch to other companies in the US. We do about 40% of our sales in Canada. These tariffs will put the brakes on the entire economy. My business is well positioned to make 100% of our product in the US, which would seemingly be a boon for us. But who is going to be able to buy it? Will our customers in Canada want to buy our products at...
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
DontWorryImAPilot Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
4/3/2025 11:25pm
100% Housing security (and food security) creates healthy and productive societies. Every crime statistic goes down when people can afford a place to live. Want innovation today? Go ten years in the past and feed and nurture the brains and bodies of the newest thinkers. The second best time to plant a tree is today.
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
The Enginerd Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
4/3/2025 11:25pm
If orangeasaurus was really trying to fix the US debt problem, he wouldn’t let IRS agents get fired that have a 26x ROI on their salary when recovering taxes from the rich. I’ve said this before, but it’s relevant again. When the first Trump Taxes were added to foreign made aluminum, we were manufacturing bike frames in the US at GG. With the manufacturing already in operation, it absolutely hurt us, as the aluminum with “Made in the USA” printed on the bar stock went up 30% in price. These tax increases camouflaged with a different word do not help...
This forum topic has 4723 replies.
jeff.brines Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
3/22/2025 6:47am
We've obviously talked about this a lot, and I’m in a bit of a unique spot, having played the “CFO” role at a small, vertically integrated manufacturing company in the outdoor space. I don’t think I’m oversharing when I say it’s a labor of love. That’s not to say Intend isn’t profitable, but let’s be real: Kornelius could probably make a lot more money as a founder/design engineer in just about any other industry. I touched on this in the podcast I did a while back, but the IQ level in the bike industry is wild. You’ve got incredibly talented...
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Mwood Liked a reply to forum topic MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation
3/20/2025 2:32am
Word from a lot of media is that the next 30~ days are going to be busy on this thread. Happy spring/sea otter season to all those who celebrate the relentless innovation we all don't really need!
This forum topic has 30462 replies.
monarchmason Liked a reply to forum topic MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation
1/31/2025 12:22am
Whole lotta talk about crab bikes without naming the bikes by their one true name…
This forum topic has 30462 replies.
MTBrent Liked a reply to forum topic MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation
1/24/2025 3:07pm
The About Us page gives off Prestige Worldwide vibes...
This forum topic has 30462 replies.
Between The Tape Liked a forum topic High vs. Low Tire Pressures: Which Is Faster?
1/24/2025 10:41am
We all know the theory: lower tire pressures mean more grip, and higher pressures roll faster. But when it comes to real-world speed, which one really wins? I set out to answer this with 30 timed runs down the same track. ◾ The Experiment Two sets of tire pressures were chosen for my 88kg (194lbs) weight: 25/28 psi (front/rear) for the higher pressures and 18/20 psi (front/rear) for the lower pressures. These pressures maintain a consistent 0.9 front-to-rear ratio, with the high pressures aligning with recommendations such as those from E13 . After three warm-up laps, each tire pressure setup...
This forum topic has 34 replies.
Specialized_Joe Liked a reply to forum topic Specialized Stumpjumper 15 & GENIE Shock - Impressions, Setup Help, Discussion
1/22/2025 10:58pm
I just reached out to Fox to better understand why you can't purchase the parts and the singular "special" tool to work on the damper. What you know, but maybe not everyone reading this is that most Fox shocks have an unique tool for this type of operation. So yes, unique to our shock, but not unique in the Fox aftercare/service world. I'll let you know what Fox comes back with and if we can't get it sorted quickly, assuming you actually want to work on these shocks, I'll ship you the tool. Just DM me your address. With that...
This forum topic has 83 replies.
Sven_Claas Liked a reply to forum topic MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation
1/18/2025 12:16pm
@Spomer, can we please deviate the toe-clip topic to another thread, and make it in a slightly bigger default font?
This forum topic has 30462 replies.
