Singletracks Mountain Bike News

This year we interviewed dozens of professional mountain bike athletes, skills and fitness coaches, and industry leaders including product designers and CEOs. Here are a few of our favorite moments from more than 50 hours of programming in 2021. If you enjoy what we do on the Singletracks podcast, please consider becoming a Pro Supporter (https://www.singletracks.com/support/). --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks.com and on Instagram @singletracks --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/singletracks/support

This week we revisit some of our favorite conversations on the Singletracks podcast in 2021. On the topic of mountain bike trails we speak with trail builders, advocates, environmentalists, and local riders to learn more about the places we ride. If you enjoy what we do on the Singletracks podcast, please consider becoming a Pro Supporter (https://www.singletracks.com/support/). --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks.com and on Instagram @singletracks --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/singletracks/support

Dee Tidwell is a professional coach and the founder of Train to Ride which provides cycling-specific training programs and plans for mountain biking, road, gravel, and moto riding. He’s also a two time Big Mountain Enduro Master’s Champ and has worked with countless professional athletes including members of the Yeti/Fox Factory professional EWS race team. What is the Performance Pyramid, and how does it work? Walk us through each level. Is it OK to skip some of the lower levels and jump right to the top? How electric mountain bike riding and racing this differ from more traditional mountain bike training? Do you find that people really hate cardio so much that they avoid training altogether? Is equipment cost an excuse people use for not working on getting stronger? Is soft tissue therapy something folks can work on at home with foam rollers and massage guns, or is this one area where working with a physical or massage therapist in person is beneficial?   Have you seen a shift in the mix of y

Dr. Adam Phaneuf is a Doctor of Chiropractic with a degree in Exercise Science based in Bellingham, WA. He's also a bike fitter and has studied bicycle biomechanics. In this episode we ask Adam: Is it true that cycling is lower impact than other activities like jogging? Do you think mountain biking is higher impact than road cycling?  What are some of the most common ride-related issues folks tend to have?  Are certain muscles, or body parts, more prone to injury or pain for mountain bikers? Do oval chain rings work for reducing pain? Are there any biomechanical advantages to them that riders can benefit from?  How can riders know if it’s their form that needs to be changed, or if it’s something about the bike fit that’s wrong?  What is arm pump, and what causes it? Can vibration on the bike lead to any health or pain issues? Can things like suspension stems or seat posts be helpful for some people? How does bike fit change, if at all, based on the type or length of ride w

Singletracks tested dozens of mountain bikes in 2021 and three of our editors share their favorites in this special episode. From kids mountain bikes to enduro, and from electric to hardtail, we share the ones we liked best. In addition to sharing our favorites, we'll also talk about our runners up and some of the more unique and unusual bikes we reviewed in 2021. --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks.com and on Instagram @singletracks --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/singletracks/support

This year Christopher Blevins became the first American man to win a World Cup race since 1994, taking first in the final XCO race of the season at Snowshoe, West Virginia. He’s also the reigning short track world champion, and has notched numerous podium finishes at national and international mountain, cyclocross, and road races. This month he’s got a short documentary film titled “The Long Traverse” that will be premiering online. How did the Durango DEVO community-based cycling program shape who you are as a rider? What is it about Durango that produces so many talented riders? Is it the elevation, or the terrain, or something else? How does being a playful rider translate on the race course? How did you get interested in spoken word poetry? What did you learn through the process of preparing for and then racing your FKT attempt along the Los Padres route? Which do you find more challenging: FKTs or World Cup racing? How are they different or the same? As a professional athlete, what do you se

Todd Branham had lived, worked, and played in the Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina for 22 years. He’s a professional trail builder and also directs the Pisgah Stage race, a 5-day, fully-supported mountain bike race that showcases 140 miles of the best singletrack in the forest. How did you end up in western North Carolina? What makes Pisgah National Forest and the surrounding area stand out among mountain bike destinations? For someone visiting for the first time, what are 2 or 3 must ride trails or trail systems? Are there any family-friendly rides? Which trails are the most challenging? Who builds and maintains the trails in your area? Are there tour operators or clubs visitors can connect with if they want to ride with locals? Where can visitors rent decent mountain bikes for the day or even for the week? Where do people hang out after the ride? Are there any bars or breweries that tend to attract mountain bikers? Do many visitors choose to camp when visiting P

Tyson Swasey is a mountain biker and trail builder who has lived in Moab, Utah for his whole life. He’s currently the Operations Coordinator for Grand County, Utah Active Transportation and Trails. In this episode we ask Tyson: Has Moab always been a tourist destination? Why was the town founded?  It seems like Moab was a mountain bike destination before there were mountain bike destinations.  What makes the area so great for mountain biking? How did the first trails get built? Which trails are the oldest? Are there any family-friendly rides or trails? Which trails are the most challenging? What are some lesser-known trails where riders can get away from the crowds? Who builds and maintains the trails in Moab? What type of bike do most people ride in Moab? Do a lot of people rent bikes when they visit? What are some of the more popular guided or shuttled tour routes in the area? Are there any regular group rides for locals that are visitor-friendly? Where do people hang out after the

Ryan Standish is a professional mountain bike racer from Australia who is currently living in the US. In addition to competing in top level mountain bike and gravel races, he’s also working to raise awareness for Multiple Sclerosis. In this episode, we ask: How long have you been riding mountain bikes? How old were you when you realized you were fast? How did you end up in the US after growing up in Alice Springs, Australia? How did you qualify for the World Cup XC and short track races in West Virginia this year?  Why did you decide to wear jorts in the races? What is it like to race in the World Cup? How is it different from the other races you’ve competed in? What type of race or ride do you like the most? Do you prefer sprint formats like short track, or longer races like gravel grinders and stage races? How are you able to recover with so many back-to-back races? How did you get involved in raising awareness for MS? What’s your favorite place to ride? Do you have a favorite trail?

Casey Coughlin teaches bicycle repair at Minneapolis College in Minnesota, one of only two colleges to offer a certificate program in the subject. While applying to graduate school she worked as a bike repair tech and later as a manager at Erik's Bikes in Rochester. We ask Casey: What are some of the ways professional bike mechanics learn the trade?  What’s the most common path to getting a job in a bike shop? Why do you think the demand for bike mechanics is projected to increase over the next few years? Is this related to the Covid bike boom? When learning to become a bike mechanic, what is the first repair you start with? Why? Is problem solving something you can teach bike mechanics? What does your prospective student look like?  Is there any sort of continuing education for bike mechanics? Do today’s bike mechanics need additional skill sets to deal with more complicated systems like e-bikes? Beyond being able to work on bikes, what sorts of skills do shop employees and future ma

Neko Mulally is a professional downhill mountain bike racer and three time US National Champion.  He’s also the co-founder of Windrock Bike Park in Tennessee and is currently part of the Intense DH Factory Racing team. In this conversation, we ask Neko: How did you find your passion for mountain biking at such an early age? What’s it like racing the World Cup on familiar trails at Snowshoe, West Virginia? What have you learned through the experience of building and operating Windrock Bike park? When you’re not riding park, where do you like to ride? Do you have a favorite trail? Why do you think people are so interested in how much money professional mountain bikers earn? Did money play into your decision to pursue a career in racing? Do today’s young mountain bike athletes have advantages or opportunities you didn’t have growing up?  Do you have to live at the base of a mountain resort to become a pro downhiller? How do you feel about crashing? Is it true that if you’re not crashing,

Fabio Wibmer is an Austrian trials rider and mountain biker with almost 7 million YouTube subscribers and his videos have been viewed more than 1.2 billion times. He’s known for starring in videos like Wibmer’s Law, Fabiolous Escape 1 and 2, and most recently, Home Office. In addition to trials riding, Fabio is also a winning downhill and freeride mountain biker. How are you feeling following your dirt bike crash in November? Do you have any tips or tricks for recovering from injury? How do you fill your time off the bike? Are dirt bikes just a hobby for you, or is it something you use to get better on the mountain bike? Like a lot of people, I imagine you started riding bikes as a kid. When did you realize that you were more talented, or maybe just more passionate, than the other kids? Who were the riders who inspired you as you were growing up? Are there any tricks you really wanted to include in a video like Home Office, but weren’t able to complete? How do you know when it’

Today we’re wrapping up our mid-travel, trail bike mashup with our bike testers, Chris, Gerow, and Matt. We’ll meet the testers, discuss how the bikes were selected, and find out how the test rides were conducted. Then the team will share which bikes were their favorites, and talk about some of the surprises along the way. As a part of this roundtable discussion, Chris, Gerow, and Matt also talk about which bikes offer the best value, and offer advice for mountain bikers looking to purchase a new trail bike. Finally, we hear which bikes the team wants to text next! Read the written reviews at singletracks.com/MTM and watch video reviews at youtube.com/singletracksmtb.  --This episode is sponsored by Jamis Bikes.  Jamis has been designing and building quality bikes since 1979, and they were among the first to produce mountain bikes beginning in 1982. Check out the entire lineup of Jamis high performance mountain bikes at www.jamisbikes.com. --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks

Arrie Rossouw is the co-founder and CEO of LuvTRAILS, an online and mobile platform helping groups raise funds for trail building and maintenance.  Jeremiah Bishop is a professional cyclist with countless major wins in short track, marathon, and ultra endurance racing. He’s also a leading advocate for cycling.  We ask Arrie and Jeremiah: How did Luv Trails come about? How is it connected to Trail Care? Jeremiah, what is your involvement with Trail Care and Luv Trails?  What does the Luv Trails app do? How do mountain bike clubs get included on the Trail Care website and in the Luv Trails app? Where do the donations go? How much of the money goes to the club vs. paying credit card fees and overhead? Why are monetary donations so important to trail groups?  How do riders connect their Stava account to Trail.care? What is the average donation per mile ridden? Do people tend to ride the same local trails over and over, or are you seeing people travel outside their area and sup

Chip Hawkins is the founder and chairman of the board at Wahoo Fitness (wahoofitness.com). The company’s stated mission is to “create innovative solutions to make hard fought goals attainable and lives better,” through products like smart trainers, bike computers, watches, and heart rate monitors. We ask Chip: Why did you start Wahoo Fitness? What were the limitations of existing fitness sensors at the time? Before smartphones and GPS units, were you big on tracking your own fitness data? What are the advantages of using a dedicated fitness head unit over the smartphone everyone is already carrying in their pockets? Why do we need another device? How important are accuracy and precision when it comes to fitness data tracking? Do you think the existing fitness software that’s available to athletes does a good job analyzing workout data? Are today’s algorithms helping riders make significant gains? Is tracking power output better suited to road training, or is it useful to look at it for trail rides

Jeremiah Stone is a mountain bike skill instructor who has taught hundreds of riders across the western USA with Ninja Mountain Bike Performance and the Sedona Mountain Bike Academy. He’s also a freelance trail builder and machine operator in addition to being a skilled rider. In this interview, we ask: How did you develop your own mountain bike skills? Did you have a coach? Do you think today’s mountain bikes make it easier to be a good biker, compared to the equipment that was available in the old days? Timing seems to be a big factor when it comes to landing jumps or clearing doubles. How can riders develop a good sense of timing and speed? Why is it easier to ride a technical feature once you’ve seen someone else ride it first? What are some common bad habits when it comes to technical trail descending? Beyond improving physical fitness, are there skills that can make climbing on the bike more tolerable? Do you have any tips for helping riders overcome their fear of trying something new? How

Joe McEwan is a career aerospace engineer and carbon composites expert who founded Starling Cycles in 2014. The brand’s bikes are developed, engineered and handmade for the demands of UK trails, and the bikes have been well received among both the media and athletes. Find out why Joe thinks carbon fiber is almost the McDonalds of bikes, and also: What first piqued your interest in building steel bikes? Have you tried building bikes with other materials? Can the average rider feel a difference between a steel frame and say carbon fiber or aluminum? Do fat tires and suspension limit the effect when it comes to mountain bikes? How does tube shape and bracing affect ride feel? Why do you use Reynolds over tube stock from other suppliers? How is the tubing sized in terms of lengths? What is the cost of raw tubing? How do you go about making a steel tube stiffer in one direction than the other? Are there any design considerations that are unique to steel full-suspension frames? Why are most steel FS

Gene Hamilton is a mountain bike skills coach and the founder of Better Ride.  He's taught clinics around the world to thousands of riders looking to ride faster and more confidently. In this episode, we ask Gene: How did you get into mountain biking racing? Once you realized that you had hit a wall in terms of your own skills development, how did you go about researching proper mountain bike skills? Were there any surprises based on your early research, or any “aha” moments that stuck out? How can riders take advantage of momentum to go faster on the trail without putting in extra effort? Is it possible for mountain biking to be bad for our health? What’s a mountain bike skill that separates pros from those who would consider themselves advanced or even expert riders? Are some bike tires better at cornering than others? Which ones? How has mountain bike skills training changed over the past two decades, in terms of the techniques and the skills you’re teaching? As someone who has won Ma

Sean Madsen is WTB’s Saddle Category Manager and is an expert in cycling biomechanics with more than 24 years of experience. Over his career he's studied and taught bike fitting to thousands worldwide, and he's helped create many innovative saddle concepts while working with top athletes. In this episode, we ask Sean common questions about bike saddles including: How are bike saddles constructed? What are some of the different materials that are used for padding? Are there advantages to using materials like gel? What is the purpose of titanium or carbon saddle rails? How does bike saddle sizing work? Are more expensive saddles more comfortable? What’s the idea behind saddle cutouts? Why do you think the Volt is one of WTB's best selling saddles? Do men and women need different bike saddles? Are saddles generally designed under the assumption that riders will be wearing a chamois? Are mountain bike saddles different from road bike saddles? How have saddle designs changed over the past few

Rocky Mountain Bicycles officially got its start in 1981, and this year the innovative brand is celebrating its 40th anniversary. In that time Rocky Mountain has produced countless innovations and firsts, and their sponsored athletes have won races on all of the world’s biggest stages. Today Dre Hestler and Stephen Matthews are joining me to talk about the brand’s history, and to look to the future. In this episode we learn: How Rocky Mountain got its start Why the brand's first production model in 1982, the Sherpa, was so special What it's like working at Rocky Mountain, and how the company's operations in BC and Quebec influence product design Which Rocky Mountain athletes and races stand out over the years How the brand partnered with freeriders Richie Schley, Wade Simmons and Brett Tippie at the dawn of the sport Where 27.5" mountain bikes came from, and where they currently fit in Which bikes Dre and Stephen are most proud of How DynaMe is different from other e-bike drive systems on the m