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Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Since its a US holiday, I felt like going a touch more meta here and give some bigger picture thoughts... To start, and it goes without saying, but I’m continually impressed that this thread is still one of the best corners of the internet. That’s because of the people here who show up, think, and discuss topics that should be boring but somehow aren’t. I appreciate the time, effort, and respect from everyone that’s gone into this esoteric corner of the internet over the years (!!). First, my thoughts on the idea of "friction" I've been mulling...

It's easy to shit on Radwagon because they cater to the mass market, but they provided a valuable product and service that had knock-on effects throughout the rest of the industry. My Specialized Haul LT is a direct result of the market that Radwagon fostered and having a cargo bike to transport the family and run errands has been transformative for my lifestyle. I don't believe I would have arrived at the same situation that I enjoy now if it weren't for Radwagon.

We have a Rad city 4 with over 5000kms on it rolling around Whistler, it’s been flawless and with the addition of a not legit kids seat on the back for our 6yo it’s constantly over loaded. Like Earleb said it’s a Hyundai and goes the same places our friends fancy specialized and trek etc e-bikes go. I’d happily buy another one, and might get one soon if they’re about to go down the sink.

We have a Ragwagon 3 and this hasn't been our experience. It's a cargo bike, but when loaded it doesn't feel like a overloaded wheelbarrow. It's my spouses bike and she's used it year around since the spring of 2020 and daily dragged two kids around on it. Our kids are small for their ages but at 8 and 10 we're still getting daily school runs on it and my spouse is of average 5'6" build not >175lbs. The bike has been a tank, spent several winters out daily in the Vancouver rain at my spouses work as she had...

(For those who don't know, @Sacki is Stefan Sack, the founder of BikeYoke 😁)

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...

To me, it seemed like MF('r) genuinely didn't understand the insolvency process or side of business at all leading up to YT falling into it. He straight up admitted it in the pod. TBF I don't either but it seems like until mid '25 there was an assumption that they could just keep "powering through, business as usual" until it was way too late and the house of cards fell. Sweet management chops. He addresses the insolvency like it was an unforeseeable natural disaster rather than gradual foreseeable mismanagement by the company itself. "How could this happen to ME?!" type...

My issue is I assume not every downtime listener has all the facts to make their own opinions. I assume a lot are mtb riders who don’t spend much time on vital or pinkbike who will really only have Marcus’s side of the story. Especially say someone who owns a yt and is a teenager. In a pod titled Marcus sets the record straight. Not Marcus tells his side of his role in the bankruptcy. Where Chris simply responds fair play and moves on or summarizes Marcus’s words in a neutral way. Again I normally would have zero issue with...

Anyone have plans for replacement motors/batteries? Could do a core charge type thing where you buy a new motor for $1000, but send in the core and receive $500 back. Same for batteries. I think people (myself especially) are concerned about long term durability and finding replacement parts. I'd be happy to purchase a new OR refurb motor 5 years down the road. Get rid of lifetime warranties and just make replacement parts easy to find and buy.

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...

Chris, That is precisely my definition of paid work. If you are unhappy with the amount you should have charged more. It’s not like Marcus wouldn’t have paid it. And taking a weekend away from family to sit down with Marcus and give him a softee interview to spin his bs sounds like the worst use of time. Generally enjoy your show. But personally I think this episode is highly regrettable. I agree that your general style is good when it comes to interviewing racers and folk with no agenda. But Marcus paid you because he has an agenda. Not...

Chris, lots of people sacrifice and do hard work. Usually to make profits for someone or lot’s of someone else. Lots of us here make huge sacrifices cause we love mtb at financial loss. Both in how it affects our careers and the money we spend. And I’m not talking on gear, but rather the millions if not billions of dollars people spend a year after year creating trails, races, etc out of pocket with zero profit or even for free. You start every podcast asking listeners for money to keep it going. Which is completely fine. I have zero...

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...

Maybe that is a pod we could actually get.

Please someone else listen to this and summarize the important takeaways so I don't have to.

So rad @jeff.brines! I love when things geek out on overlap. What Lars has done with Cast is so cool.