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I agree with this. Feel like the slopestyle circuit really doesn't pull the weight it used to anymore. Back in the day it was a huge deal when Crankworx came around. Now a days it's just another random event. Throw in the fact that there isn't much personality displayed in these events anymore and you have to wonder, wheres the investment in throwing a bunch of money at these athletes.

I appreciate the riders being will to stand up for what they believe in. The big question I see here is simply "what is a slopestyle rider worth on the competitive stage?" Frankly, I don't know the answer to that question. To add, I scratch my head a little bit to those saying "Red Bull makes a lot off these events". How? I honestly haven't done a deep dive, but I also don't a huge moneymaker for Red Bull on a generic slope event. Rampage is the exception, not the rule. Crankworks Whistler the other exception. From my perspective, the...

In less than a month norco went from trying to convince us that a " 125mm bike can be 34 pounds and needs a high pivot" and to a "140mm ebike needs to be under 40 pounds and doesnt need a high pivot". Someone over there is quite confused.

Consumers hate Maxxis…?

I don’t know if I buy this argument, I don’t think the evidence would support your characterization. And just so you know where I’m coming from, I don’t have an e-bike. I do ride my road bike about 15-20 hours per week, mostly all super easy endurance volume that supplements my mountain biking. I do lots of intervals and am generally in such good shape that I won’t ever need to buy an e bike and have no desire to. My thoughts on the issue you’re raising: There’s no way people are getting *less healthy* riding e bikes. Even with...

Gwin is going to Giant to help push the Dick's Sporting Goods contract. Team Giant Dick's coming to a WC near you!

This deserves its own thread, but unless you are looking at the contract first hand, take everything with a grain of salt. I've negotiated on behalf of a handful of professional athletes in adjacent sports as an "agent" (LOL) and I've also watched people flat lie about what they were making to feel better about themselves. I get it. Its a topic riddled with insecurity. While I'd wager there are more athletes making $100-200K+ than most think (I'm including influencer types and freeriders in this), its a terrible career choice in every sense of the word "choice". If I was...

I don't know anything about BK's background, but the guy does 3 jobs. Team owner, team manager, and pro rider (top 5 in the world). He deserves to reap the rewards because that requires a serious amount of hard work and dedication, and of course talent. Not to mention his sideline projects such as the clothing brand. Plus the guy is super likeable, clearly loves riding, and is refreshingly open and honest in interviews. It would be awesome to see him standing on top of that podium in 2024.

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

agreed, but more money from subscription fees and team entry fees to UCI/WBD has made viewing more challenging and a lot of racers/team managers explained that last year provided a less valuable experience on site w/ pit space, access etc. to me those aren't benefits. we have not heard what the race-day product will actually look like next year (# of racers, format etc). if it's limited pro field (top 30 men and top 10 women only in finals), i won't subscribe. i love downhill racing, vital will continue to sink tens of thousands of dollars into having lawlor and...

Maybe I'm misreading but it does sound like there are some misaligned expectations of outcomes here. I think racing is super cool, and I'd encourage anyone to go chase their racing dream, whatever that may be, but be eyes wide open. 99.9999% of racers will not see a financial return on the effort they put in. In fact, most won't see any financial return at all even if they have okay results at the pro level. This all the while taking incredible risk that is far in excess of most other sports with no real safety net, D1 scholarship or...

A sneak peak is when you think you're at the top, but then turn a corner and see that you're still a whole 'nother peak away.

Should influencers and YouTubers be included in team rumours? I don’t care what product they talk about. Be nice to keep this to teams and racing talk.