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He does know a thing or two about going big in this terrain though right?

if it's been said already, sorry, i didn't read all the replies yet. by far, the easiest thing to do would be to have judging anonymous (like surfing and other sports) 7 judges, each with an anonymous score, highest and lowest thrown out. every judged can have access to replay. scores be damned, the whole week+ was an insane showcase of ludicrous bicycle riding.

On one hand, everyone has already said a lot, but on the other hand this is VitalMTB forums where we go forever so here are my takeaways 🤣: 1. It feels that judges really like "fluidity" which is actually just a mix of speed and lack of hesitation. The riders who had really high scores had fast runs with no moments where you could see them prepare for the next feature. I guess bring back a "free-racer" and let's see if the fastest run of the day can place on the box 2. I gotta say the margin for...

Ya they all ride in jeans with no helmets and handle bar speakers blaring nickleback while chuffing darts too!!

Similar story for me, my 2018 commencal weighed 23kgs in DH mode, my current Giant reign with 800wh weighs 26kg. To be honest, as much as I would like a lighter bike, it rides very similarly to lighter bikes, it's all about that unsprung weight! Hence why I would love to test a Pinion MGU bike.

we are going backwards it seems. my old 2018 Merida E-160 in large (alloy) 540Wh battery (external), double down tyres, fox 36 factory, Float X2 = 22.9kg So that's full power, decent enough battery to do 60km & 1100m climbing and enduro running gear that can take a beating. (it did) My dream is my current bike (Norco range VLT) with 720Wh coming in at 22kg lol. I'm only 8kg over!

Mid-power e-bikes are the 'biker's e-bike' imo. For the guys that want to maintain a very bike feel. My theory is that full power e-bikes will all move to internal gear boxes, weigh 60#s, will be built to be reliable and often will be price sensitive (i.e. Al frames, base suspension, etc) and that the top tier e-bike tech will be directed towards the mid-power e-bikes.

Id like to see all emtb's adobt the turned motor and have the battery slide out the bottom. Our current chainstays as long as they are should allow room for a slot at the bottom of the seatube above the motor with have the seatube flare out towards the rear. Extendable batteries could slide in like a dewalt drill cassette battery. All the weight would be central and free up a lot of space

yep my range is 30kg, I'm a pretty big tall strong lad and it's too heavy. Bunnyhopping something the size of a curb takes incredible effort. I can literally feel my back and tricep muscles hurt. My old Merida E160 was around 23kg and that was fantastic. Full power but external battery.

Yep, don't underestimate those "few" extra pounds... I wrote something very similar in the tech rumors thread (I'll probably be tarred and feathered now for derailing it haha despite this "not derailment" thread existing): To me, there's a big difference between 45 and 50 lbs in terms of how the bike feels on the trail, and in life in general. The 45 lbs bike I just spent two days on really did have me forgetting I was on an e-bike at times. Even hoisting the thing up onto a lift is "OK" (granted, I'm not a small dude and even...

I think the full power, mid 40 pound big travel bikes are the future and not far off.