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I have no real dog or insight on this whole thing, I just wanted to personally say I absolutely loathe the phrase "No friends on a powder day." Ski with your friends no matter what the conditions are and you'll have more fun. I think it's also pretty telling that the elite racers I've met have all been friendly if not friends with each other.

Maybe Kevin is retiring so he can sire a baby.

Dear Dougal, I know your favorite past time is to shit on the hard engineering work of people and then yell at them when they try to engage you in good faith arguments. I get that you are also trying to be helpful, and probably mean less malice than it comes across over the internet because, frankly, the internet is a shithole of everyone yelling at each other. But Vital has been a space that seems to have remained a refuge of reasonability despite everything else falling to click and rage bate. I am glad Vital is not the pinkbike...

Freshy B Practice for La Thuile and Andorra 🤘

What if we tried putting a small derailleur on the front cogs, may be just like 2-3 gears, then a 5-7 speed cassette on the rear with another smaller derailleur? Same ratios but better weight distribution?

Here you go @torw split1 s2 s3 s4 time Luca 35.267 1.32.847 2.40.788 3.05.123 3.27.637 Benoit 35.711 2.33.302 2.40.667 3.04.845 3.27.764 Asa 36.530 1.33.465 2.40.724 3.04.919 Asas split 4 was after he was off track, might have had a better time if not.

[Edit: Whoops. I was writing this and posted it just after someone else posted the info.] When Asa was on course, Martin Maes was in the Hot Seat. Below are Martin's times at each split, followed by how much Asa was "into the Green" at each split. [Asa's 4th split differential is open to question, because he had already run out of bounds just before reaching the 4th split timer. [The big Whoop sign he almost got choked by marks the spot where the 4th split timer is.] Martin ended up 9th, 2.050 seconds behind Luca Shaw. No one can...

Just buy a DH bike with steep seat tube angle and run a dropper post and full drivetrain. Then you have the best of both worlds! Frameworks for the win. And for those complaining it ruins drivetrains, this XX group (minus chain replacements) has been running strong since Jan. 2023.

Thanks a ton for all the questions today everyone. That was fun. With that, I'm signing off and jumping in the race van tomorrow morning to head to Mtn. Creek Bike Park for round 2 of the Pro Downhill Series. If you're in the area or around for the race feel free to stop by and say hi! Thank everyone!

Someone is streaming the elite races on YT. I wont share the link but you might find it if you search "First world cup DHI - Mona YongPyong"

@sspomer when is bikes unaffiliated leaning into typical podcast discussions of wild conspiracy theories? I mean how can the HT guy not be a plant by WBD to turn the whole fan base against privateers. It's obvious they are a safety hazard...

I think one of the largest "We're not in Kansas anymore" moments I had when I began working for a component manufacturer after years in bikes shops was when I had the insignificance of aftermarket sales explained to me. Don't get me wrong, every brand worth their salt is going to support aftermarket product bc why leave money on the table, but OE sales are king in the bike industry and ultimately OE sales drives every design decision. SRAM gets to push the convenience of full SRAM spec by limiting cross compatibility. For brands like Canyon, Specialized, etc., who are...

What the heck.... UCI is showing Men's Elite Q1 already as if it's underway, but they've apparently stuck the timed training times on the Q1 Results screen. Well, as their sponsor would say: "Whoop!"

Hear me out: Mountain Bike!