A rocky (literally) start to the 2024 season in Fort William, a fresh track with a good mix of features and fluctuating speeds greeted racers for the second round in Poland. Speculation surrounding speed suits and electronic lockouts was replaced by the buzz of line choice and rut formation. In the end, it was a battle for thousandths of a second, and who could predict and adapt to the ever-evolving conditions best after some race day rain.
Join Dakotah Norton, Jason Schroeder, and Tanner Stephens as they break down the second round of the 2024 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup season from Bielsko-Biała, Poland.
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vital B practice podcast is proudly sponsored by Maxis Berg Tech and Industry 9 welcome back everybody to vitals B practice podcast presented by Maxis Berg Tech in Industry n this is your host Jason schroer joined as always by my good friends Tanner Stevens and stack attack Dakota Norton bco Bop Poland what a race guys freaking new track delivered some really good RAC in it was fast it was tight good mix of terrain lot of weather which changed things up and made it more interesting what you guys think it was a pretty good weekend huh I mean that’s uh that’s that’s up for debate at this point no it was a good weekend um except for Corner six box box box put it in the wall um dude the weekend was pretty insane like it seems like all these new tracks just end up to be really fun other than maybe I don’t know uh there’s been a couple along the lines that haven’t been too great but I think it’s always a fun challenge when we get these new tracks it’s really exciting just being able to ride a fresh track is so fun and I think that just sets the tone for a great World Cup when everybody’s smiling and everybody’s buzzing on hitting new jumps and ripping Corners it’s uh dude it’s a good time it was really good yeah I would agree I was uh I wasn’t trying to set you up to be too sad right off the bat I know your weekend was very hot and cold but you definitely you definitely you definitely did dude you know you know we’ll we’ll get into all that we get there here’s my first question I’ve written down for you about your week in Dakota is you qualify second then you go fastest in semifinals what are you thinking about and telling yourself when you go to bed Saturday night and then you wake up Sunday morning like how is your heads space these days after being really fast on the weekend dude uh Fort William I was how nervous are you yeah well let we get there come on uh Fort William I was stoked to go fastest in time training I was like Blown Away seeing my name on the top of the list was like w and then you know qualifying came down and and was on Pace lores uh put point8 into me and then dropped in the semi Fin and came down fastest and I’m like it was almost just like I turned around and looked at I was like oh yep cool and that was it that was all I thought everybody was stoked and I went oh yep cool good you know and and you know it’s always the pressure to go down last is a real thing but with the five minute gaps now it doesn’t really matter if you drop sixth or you drop last you don’t see anybody up there anyways I’m never turning around to look if somebody’s dropping behind me and it was like dude I I I’m really stoked on how it went because I felt like I handled it really well I uh I CH walked after dude I didn’t leave the semi until like 8:30 at night almost 9 o’clock at night I was pulling out of the pit after semifinals Because by the time we we qualify at 5 o’clock you get up for track walk you do dinner you see the physio dude it’s N9 o’clock at night so I went home only had about an hour um took a shower we watched a half an episode of Netflix me and Freda just like a normal night um what’ you watch yeah yeah what what do we watch in Netflix before yeah the big day we just finished the tourist which was really good on Netflix it’s kind of like a bizarre type uh plot twist show and then we watched the half of uh we just clicked on something random it’s called the gentleman we’ve been watching that and dude it’s really cool because I have my own room so she stays with me a lot the union is not exactly uh flushed with uh cash and and bougie houses and such so a lot of the time she has to share a room and if it’s between her sharing a room at her house or staying at mine when I have my own room it’s really nice that we can um you know spend spend time together and kind of still be together like we would at home it makes it feel like so homey and normal which is awesome like I’m so fortunate to like have my team that wants me to feel comfortable and um have my girlfriend around which is the radest and yeah dude normal stuff went to bed I mean it was you know a little like uh well uh you know but I felt like I felt confident I’m like my semifinal did not feel like anything like special it was like a fast run but it wasn’t like oh my God I like swung off of it so um I felt confident in the race and I did get really nervous when I when it started raining because I was like oh man I don’t want to like come down off the pace you know it’s a lot easier to judge it and be close and competitive when it’s uh predictable but the reality is when it’s when it’s wet somebody can just throw a a h Mary of a run and hold on to it or there’s some dude that are just really good in the mud so that was the only concern and nervousness that I had it dried up and I looked at it on the on the on the Gandhi ride up I was like it’s dry let’s go um full confidence and warmed up got in the gate like ready to go win like believed I could win so man I’m handling it well which is cool it’s uh I’m really proud of the work that I’ve done and I’m proud of the the racer I’m becoming ah that was a top one yeah yep you’ll have those days you know what they say you’ll have that on them bigger [Laughter] jobs yeah uh I don’t know who wasn’t watching that it wasn’t like a Bittersweet bummer feeling you know especially with being in first and you know ending up taking his first World Cup win it’s hard not to be really stoked for him but then not to think about what could have been and uh at the same time like you’re talking about I think a lot of people feel the same way it’s just a matter of when you know when when are you gonna have your first win like you’ve been on the cus for so long and here’s another great week and and you also came out of it I mean as good as you probably could with points you know you still God as good as I could with having like a a failure of a race run as you um I know that’s like maybe not the word that some people like but in the reality it was it didn’t it didn’t go as planned and that’s racing uh you’re you’re going to have that when you’re trying to go for race wins kange had four or five days like this um Rooney has had a lot of days L Aaron out of soul back in 2010 he was up it’s a part of it it’s a part of it I mean it’s just I’m bummed I didn’t get at least a first split you know yeah that’s true yeah I mean I mean I was gonna say what’s what’s the feeling like being the last man down on race day because it’s I mean yeah you were second to drop on semifinal day but like race day I mean I’ve never been one of the last SP down not a even a national so what they say man it’s Lonely at the Top that’s what I was wondering like when you like did you look around at all and just be like even the mechanics are gone at this point like yeah there’s noted up and going home there’s not much left up there dude it’s quiet um all the fans are at the bottom you can hear the the Roar of the crowd at the bottom but you can’t really distinctly hear what’s happening or who or what and it was pretty much Ro like I knew Ronan went I asked ronan’s mechanic walked back I said how’ he do said P1 said cool so I knew he was on the box and I was like and honestly I I did believe I know Luca and Loris had to drop and I knew that they could um you know shake up the results list but I knowing Ronan went fastest I knew that ly Roy didn’t like lay down some absolute Hammer of a run like I I believe that Ronan could throw down a hammer of a run for sure like I’m not by in any mean means saying I’m degrading his run at all because he won the World Cup that’s he’s one of very few people to do that and had a spectacular run but I I was confident that if Ronan could do it I could do it it wasn’t like somebody went 3 seconds up you know like what the performance that l Lis or ly gave at Fort William type type dominance I was like okay well chances are I knew lorus could have like a dominant run but I was like chances are I got a shot and that’s all I needed to know um had a shot went for it decided I was gonna try to take it I love it full Dumb and Dumber mentality love it I was like you win fast it can be done it can be done so you’re saying there’s a shot I got a shot like I got a shot I gotta take it yeah um you know and I I just really looked back and I was sitting there on the trainer at the top and you’re right there wasn’t a lot of people there uh Luca was warming up in front of me uh he you know I gave him a fifth bump he went on to race at had a f minute Gap I went over there and dude I was not even thinking about last Rider down um it wasn’t even a thought in my head and I’m getting more used to having that pressure I’ve got to do it a few times at the US Nationals I’ve got to do it you know drop towards the end with those three minute gaps at the World Cups now and it was just like man it’s time let’s let’s go for it because I remember at Snowshoe I didn’t go for it and I laid up midun and I was really upset with myself I felt like that day I could have won that World Cup and I got a Podium and it just it didn’t got a Podium at at Fort William it was cool but it’s cool podiums are hard to get but it didn’t deeply satisfy me like I think a one a win would and now that I’m starting to wrap my head around being able to be competitive for a win I think that is the the thing that that deeply satisfies me that thought and that feeling and that want is driving me to the point where podiums are cool and I’m grateful for them I want to try to win and if I I’m going to be upset with myself if I don’t give it my best effort yeah makes sense I mean it’s the the next step of the evolution of you know how your career and your racing is gone so hey man it may never happen but if I if I you know in 10 years go I wish I would have tried harder and and I think that maybe you know I’m still learning like maybe Peak too early in terms of speed this week maybe I rode I I was asking myself after the weekend of course I was remembering walking down the track falling down in that corner cor Corey Rimer the dude that was helping me with lines um for the weekend saying hey the black dirt’s slippery uh a variety of things of why I should have known that that corner was going to be an issue should have known I’m upset that I didn’t predict well like I talked to my Coach and he’s like by the time you have two corners on the track and you lay off the throttle a little bit thinking they could be slippery there it goes you’re never going to win like that you have to be 100% committed and the amount of times in which I’ve went into it going it’s going to be dry and it’s been dry and I’ve beat dudes because they were hesitant it’s the ratio of it’s worked out to it hasn’t worked out has been pretty dang good so yeah it’s worth the risk if worth the risk dude like you got to go for it I don’t know if we’re full on on the full race report right now but we we’re in it we’re in it sorry from intro to it dude no that’s good I mean that’s kind of more My Vibe this season especially with us doing pre-ra shows where we’ll cover racing more in depth is that people listen to these to hear from you and especially when you’re having weekends like this let’s get people what they want right up front let’s chat about the weekend you know well so I have a question about where you did fall you obvious had been taking that line though right that wasn’t like spur the moment no that was that had been working out all weekend I did it in practice in the morning I I was doing it so well it was actually like I was linking a few lines together um I was I track walked and there’s a little bit of a shelf there like this is where you know obviously race race craft comes in and being able to look and and and keep an eye on things second lap of practice there was two tire marks on the bank where I was setting up third lap of practice pole got blown out and we use these poles that stick in the ground right and it wasn’t really super open the first morning right of track walk a lot of people didn’t see it didn’t open pole got Bloon out pole got put back in maybe left a little room to to to shake and bake baby and I was like this is good and it was like everyone’s going outside jumping down jumping into the corner and going into the holes I was going setting up on the bank cutting a cross Mainline foot out go turning on the inside scooting off the side of the roller and then turning like making my turn in the grass before the BM going under all the holes and tagging the last foot of the BM Sam Hill style like and it was working so good all weekend it was so fast and like was one of the only dudes doing it I mean the PO gave me six in but I think when it rained from practice to the race when it rained yes it was really slippery there but also I think when people were turning right to go to the BM to get um support when it was wet it started to rud out a little bit and it and that that just got just enough of like some pile up of some mud there from people turning to set up for the corner that when I came across and it was wet it just took the front wheel out from under me like I I have a lot I’m working on and all I’m doing like a lot you know you look at Ken roxon and his recovery and all the stuff he went through from his arms and you know like I have definitely we’ve talked a lot about concussions and I have like con concussion symptoms I’m working on I’m working on my health I’m working on um making my brain function faster and I don’t know if it’s because of the long race weekend what ever I dropped into my race run and I I said there’s enough track to figure out how dry it is before I go but I knew it was dry jumped in scrubbed the road Gap went full inside because they had rake and it was wet so nobody rode the inside to knock any rocks out went underneath all the holes in the first Corner tagged the end got the two setups was super hot into the left jump into the woods hesitant okay how wet is it let’s see black dirt like how wet is the woods going to be at worst came out good as soon as I exited the woods light change eyes adjusted look to make sure the pole was still outside it hadn’t been moved nothing silly go into my setup and I as s like I I looked at the setup and as soon as I turned my head to look because essentially you we’re going so fast you can’t see everything you’re looking for your eyes go from setup to exit of the the corner and there’s no time to see the corner there’s no time to see the rocks and the when you’re riding that speed your eyes move in five to 10 foot increments because your eyes can’t physic my eyes can’t keep up and I never saw I because I was I never read the corner when I exited the wood because I was looking to the setup and then as soon as I got to the setup I went to look to the corner and by then I was on the ground and it happened I dropped off the bank and it just ripped the bike up underneath me and I I I ask myself the question is did I get enough rest over the course of the weekend did I do too much was I cognitively there did I eat enough Before the Race to continue to fuel my brain to move and function fast these are things that I’m looking at and should I have had someone should I hire somebody to walk down the track and take photos of stuff like this should I all there’s a hundred things that continue to go through my head of how could I have foreseen this but the reality is there was no way to foresee it the only way is I was taking a line that nobody else was it was one of the only wet I’m not going to say it’s the only wet corner there were a couple wet corners but it was much wetter than the majority of the track 50% wetter the dirt was a different it was a different dirt the red clay was dry the black dirt wasn’t as dry but the black dirt in the woods was good except for one other place because it was shielded by the woods so it’s like I just think you have to come out of it and say you know what I had winning Pace I qualified second that was phenomenal something I’ve never done I won a semifinal it’s something I’ve never done it was phenomenal the race run did not go my way due to circumstances it’s not like I showed up and choked it’s not like I was too nervous to race it’s not a of factors I was taking a line that I thought was competitive that could give me the win and it was wet period yeah what else what else can you say like the the weekend is Su success it sucks I’m I’m smoked in the overall it’s a bummer but maybe not you’re still Within Reach of like top three um or like the third hey anything can happen you never know but yeah it’s it’s really hard to run that middle line between I want to win and I want to do well in the overall they’re almost two different goals and two more race strategies but with that being said I don’t think bruny tries to focus on the overall I think he just goes and tries to win races yeah I’d probably agree at least at least this early on in the season and he’s got a huge points Gap because of it and he crashed in the semi-final he gave up semi-final points yeah so I mean they’ve reward wins they’ reward um being at the front of the pack was there was there like a spring or anything kind of like with water coming out of the hill in that zone or was that just from channeling and funneling water into the rut where people were pressing to get high for the outside line I think that there was a rut because people were pressing to get high and I also think if you if I show you like I look over the course of the weekend and it was wet there all weekend even when it was bone dry it was wet but if you look like it was that was exiting that corner it was ex it was expensively wet more than the majority of the racetrack yep and for what reason I don’t know so I saw yeah GoPro bike posted your run verse ronin’s qualifying I believe it was run and you went inside he went outside and that’s like it was close to half a second right there yeah but I B I blew the corner exit I didn’t so when I did it it was it was good but I actually in the semifinal run there was so many loose rock or in the qualifying run there was so many loose rocks I was skipping the next Corner as well and that’s what made it so fast but yeah that’s that was the section where you noticeably got ahead of him so it’s like no one I don’t know you can’t really blame you for trying to still go for that line when it was that much faster I never I never rode the outside all weekend I never even rolled through it the only way I could have known is if somebody walked there took a photo and said go outside yeah that’s the only way I could have known it rained I rode practice in the dry and it rained and I went up to race like that is that is World Cup racing that is racecraft and what this is the thing I talk about like about a new venue like year after year you go back to the same venue you have you’ve taken these mental notes you’ve learned you’ve grown new venues nobody has any data nobody knows and that’s where you have to a rely on your racecraft your mental notes and almost like because before you start a race run you’re not thinking about how you could crash that those are the negative thoughts that you’re trying to block out of your brain you’re never thinking you running through your race run you’re like oh I could whoa whoa whoa stop pause don’t complete the thought two steps back proceed through your race run correct the negative thoughts right um yeah man that’s a it’s a tough one uh you almost you almost need help and I don’t know if that’s the right decision um I don’t know I don’t know if it’s the right decision to have somebody that’s taking these notes for you that’s keeping an eye on the track I don’t know what the right decision is um I meaness everybody has some sort of a way of doing it yeah I mean it sounds like where you fell wasn’t super high on your list of concerned sections of the track to keep in mind like I can only imagine there was other sections at more at the front of your mind to be conscious of going into about how they were changing or certain unique factors surrounding them like of course that was a tricky flat corner but at the end of the day like that was probably not the toughest part by any means or something that you were like your your race run was uh like it was like a pinnacle of your run to make sure you got good for X factors after that section so you know it’s like and sometimes that is how it goes where you like you’re’ been talking you maybe glance over the sections like that that aren’t key in your mind and it makes you aware of it for the next time to take those things into consideration I mean it sounds like you did and like you’re talking about you can’t always prepare even if you had somebody there who sent you a photo right before you run it’s kind of like like you’re talking about negative thoughts if you’re looking at that section and now your heads space is okay how I need to be cautious here versus I need to be aggressive in a different way like you’re better off going into it like with the head of steam and being confident what you’re doing versus going into it being hesitant yep that is kind of what we came to the conclusion on after the weekend you know talking to my track side coach talking to um my co my actual uh physical Coach Guy uh milway and it’s just like man you almost can’t you just can’t there’s no you give up point to once you give up time there’s no getting it back it’s just it is time that’s been given up and that’s just kind of how you you have to look at it yeah what um tires what tires are you running in your RAC roll [Music] supposed to say back up can we hit a can we hit the good ones I mean I ride high rollers all the time what are you talking about I’m two guy myself you know yeah everybody knows that watch it uh I had I had a I had a intermediate in the front um and I had a a DHR in the rear there’s no coming back from that one I’m sorry put a big beep in there or something for me uh you’re not the first one to hint at those things so I think you’re fine get this point it’ll be all right yeah well I’m sure that as we get into talking about the track we’ll dive more into kind of what you got out of the weekend and and different sections and all that but good insight into your weekend and I’m stoked on just your heads space and stuff it’s not that long ago I can think back when you would have these moments or weekends where you would have a good qualifying and then maybe the racer wouldn’t come together and you would be more on your heels of like crap what happened like why did it not continue to go well where your heads space now is so much more refined than it once was even like two or three years ago you know it’s really not that long ago so yeah no it’s been something I’ve been working on and and putting a lot on and I’m understanding more like metabolically why I was struggling the way I was which is really cool it’s like I just feel like sometimes I would just get so stressed out I couldn’t even think straight and now I’m starting to understand why um and we’re starting to work on it which is really cool and it’s really exciting and it’s it’s hard after some of these weekends to be like I have stuff I’m working on I’m trying to build for the future but I have to be patient because I don’t have like now we haven’t finished we have unfinished business like in terms of like my health in terms of yeah just my health in general so um it’s exciting I have a lot I’m working on and it’s it’s will keep plugging away and hopefully I’ll continue to get stronger and continue to get uh better to be able to cognitively function better be able to make decisions faster um working on it man brain speed yeah good stuff patience let’s move yeah right let’s move on to uh IND n Bow’s report chat about things outside the tape or do we say outside the poles now you race is it not between the tape it’s between the poles outside the sticks outside the sticks um not as much uh chatter gossip this round as Fort William I think the the kind of first round hype seemed to have wore off a little bit and the the noise weekend was definitely just about the new track primarily and how people got along with it but a few things we didn’t touch on this in during Fort or Fort bill I don’t believe but they’re doing pre-race press conferences now which I think is pretty neat and a good step in the right direction just to give people more insight into Racers and all that stuff uh they’re doing it for the edrs as well so that was cool go watch that if people didn’t um I have some notes here about freaking swing arms of different of different kinds we got carbon wrap swing arms on the Norco bikes we got like perali steel ones on amar’s bike uh which is funny because on one hand on Greg’s bike they’re going for stiffness on Amor’s I’m guessing they’re going for more flex and give but you guys did you guys see any of that you have any thoughts on that uh I did not see Amar that’s pretty cool I wonder if they’re going very dainty I wonder if they’re going for laical or vertical GL Lal yeah I thought Gregs was Gregs was bit I don’t know I I think he’s got bigger things bigger fish to fry right now than than a chain stay or a swing arm yeah but some fish are just easier to fry you know like why why focus on how the big picture is going let’s just geek out on the bike not being stiffened up in the re yeah I don’t know I it’s one of those ones where they like they’re I think it’s really cool on one hand it’s rad to see the will many teams doing exactly yeah but they’re they’re I’m not even gonna try to like break down the the wise and all that stuff because it’s one riter who’s a history of being incredibly unique with what he wants but um it’s like they watched video and they take his impressions and I like was watching the slow-mo shots of him from Fort William and looks pretty good to me you know um but if I’m cool if they do whatever they want so that we can see Greg in the finals trying to race and hopefully his body comes around because that seems like priority over bike setup right now yeah but the problem is he did this and he wasn’t in the finals racing so like guys take it off yeah rapid sand it off yeah get the grinder out yeah it is cool though I mean it’s dope that they’re able to turn something around that fast um it’s interesting with the commona bikes how many variants are out there they have a lot of different Supremes on the track and that’s also cool like they’re hena’s so impressive with their race program and their willingness to create fast bikes it’s pretty sick yeah I think they are definitely trying to make that bike the bike to want to be on again yeah because a few years they they did have that was like the bike to be on and I wonder how much of that yes totally they did the bike was good I wouldn’t say the bike’s necessarily like worse now there’s just other brands that have stepped up for sure like GT’s bike seems quite popular the new V10 seems very popular but also with commona like they haven’t had I mean they’ve had Cammy and but like Miriam’s been out they haven’t had health riders for the last years and there’s definitely a parallel with seeing people on a bike when that bike’s been winning so um but yeah like I all their all their Riders have a kind of similar style like it’s a very low elbows out style which is real interesting and I don’t know maybe that’s part of the the Kool-Aid they’re all drinking over there is that’s how you like ride those bikes I me look sick you rode one for a while and I did like six years ago now yeah I mean I rode one for a season and yeah it was I wasn’t strong I I’ll say it right now I wasn’t strong enough to ride that bike they are they are heavy well that and they just take a lot of effort to make go fast yeah and yeah I would wonder what the new ones yeah for sure the new ones look more responsive and reactive to input than what I remember them being like they felt like bump eating High pivot bikes like the version the two versions i road where now they’re look like you can really pump through some stuff and carry speed like you can ride a bike park and it’ be fun I think it just doesn’t grow as much as V4 V4 grew too much V5 is seems a little bit more uh in the ballpark of a good balance of being able to pump and move forward and also eat bumps holes bump eating delicious yeah it’s interesting uh let’s talk about Electronics again do you think people were using them this week in Dakota have you seen the video well Luca Shaw has once again had the fastest pedal split um be a 0.1 athletic I seen and I’m pretty sure he had muds on no had intermediates front and rear because I went to I was at the top I at his bike intermediates and then I went to intermediates Max his new intermediate Tire stop it and I went to a DHR in the rear uh at the top made the decision to swap uh I seen a video of him and dude he couldn’t LC is a funny character right because I’m really good friends with Jim’s mechanic and Luca our our our relationship is is flourishing at the moment um Jim’s really blinging bringing us together it was a little it was a little it was a slippery slope there for a little while maybe maybe we didn’t see uh we were not on the same page not saying we’re enemies or anything we’re just very different he’s like this dude is too loud uh he didn’t know heard few people say that oh weird crazy like I don’t know about that guy but I said I was like dude I seen a video of you pedaling on the boardwalk and it literally looked like your bike was not moving and you were you were hling a BMX bike and he like just he all he did he didn’t say anything back he just SM he just like slowly smirked smiled and looked at the ground and didn’t say anything and I’m like Savage you’re a Savage you’re like let me get one of those axis things you got there yo let me get the switch switch dog’s trying to hit switches out here in the streets yeah we get them hydraulics but ASA did he in his race run have the the things on his bike the thing I think so uh I think he’s fulltime on the things same with uh Angel unle angle Suarez angle I think is how you say his name which he had a good weekend he went really fast for not being protected dude the worst top 10 that was dude sick for sure he uh he was definitely on the list to give a shout out to and I’m scrolling down to look at it because he only qualified at two dude ninth only qualified at two World Cups last year and on the weekend he went 198th and the ninth so uh pretty sick for him NCO all them pretty good pretty good yeah well so on the electronic stuff for William there was pretty clear moments when that would come into effect and be and be an advantage I’m assuming this weekend it probably would have just been that awkward right-hander to Flat Sprint into like the jumps and then the tuck going into like the last Woods was kind of the section you would use that right is there anywhere else where you would lock it out um it depends on what what modes they’re using the top like a pedal mode let’s let’s let’s let’s say if it’s a pedal mode or a full lock um which is I think why we see so many buttons on some other um bikes on the circuit is because there’s a selection uh but which also like man sometimes I have trouble being in the same gear so all respect to the boys that are using it because I mean yeah but I think you would have had you would have been using it from from you probably would have hit it before the boardwalk pedal section and ran that thing all the way to the woods now probably at the top some more platform might be nice I don’t know I can’t speak I can’t speak on it because I ain’t got it so I don’t know what they’re working with if you know what I mean yeah fair enough I’m just curious like if you be looking like F1 controllers you got a lot of real estate dude you’re gonna have finger things too and just watch out man it is got watch out and know Lo Scott so many buttons and top I like he’s got lights I just want to ask him don’t tell me what it does but like which color is your favorite you know which setup do you like most which color is favor using green or red from what I’ve seen because you can see it’s like the leader lights on on the like I want to know how you got so many modes you don’t know what mode you’re in you need a light so you can remember what mode you’re in gosh it’s too much or maybe it’s not maybe it’s exactly what he needs I mean dude before so to remember what mode you’re in independently between front and rear what gear you’re in where you got to Pedal where you got to shift where you got to do this that I mean you know good on him good on him you know how have Auto shifting and same with like road bike you can set up for auto shifting when are we gonna start seeing that oh soon I you think it’s coming because that awkward right seeing some people in some real tough gears come out of there I’m like dude especially with those belt drive bikes gearboxes and auto I don’t think it’s coming I think it’s com I don’t think it’s coming I don’t know I’ve been riding shimano’s ebike version of it and maybe I’m setting it up wrong but I’m going go and say I’m not setting it up wrong uh we as anybody who’s r a mountain bike for extended period of time let’s say five years or more you’re a lot more particular about when you shift than you realize and the systems that exist out there are still slower than how fast you want your gear changes I don’t mean like the physical change from one gear to the next I mean like coming out of a corner and you start to pedal and it’s too hard and you click a gear down to make it easier your brain’s doing that quicker than the systems that exist right now but I think with the the gearbox you could well with the gearbox you would be able to do the exact same thing as what you do now where you would just you could click a few gears without pedaling and then when you I guess the nice thing is those that first like two cranks you’re not grinding gears it would just be in the right gear um the thing about gearboxes bikes is that they’re a little more finicky about shifting Under Pressure that means they’re far from the podium I think the benefit of the gearbox is you can shift without pedaling like because it’s always spinning so you can just shift yeah and you have a harder time at least in the gear boxes I’ve written you have a harder time though shifting wall pedaling it’s more like a transmission style and not and not shrams transmission that a lot of clarification I don’t know they’re uh on the on shimano’s di2 ebike drivetrain right now you can shift without because the motor will spin the front chain ring and shift the gears for you and it also can automatically do that so if your speed is slowing down it’ll sense that and shift you a gear or two into an easier gear and you can also set what gear you want it to go to if you’re coming to a like slower speed so say like your trails are in a downhill situation you’re breaking super hard for that crappy right for the pedal you could be like I want to be in gear four if it has enough time to anticipate that it could potentially put you into that gear that you wanted but now you’re talking about having to have a way to spin your chain ring on your downhill bike o chain where you at I’m not putting it past lock and Jack I mean they got so much space in that freaking box on the bottom of the bike put something in there you know get the motor yeah well that was a fun spin-off of electronics uh Brook MD Donald was in shorts so shout out to uh shout out to 2014 shout out to the shorts Bounty that we may or may not ever bring back I’m not sure yet but I was just proud of him because he had shorts on when it was dry and I was like it must be warm in Poland I’ve never been there and then it started raining and he still had shorts on I was like let’s freaking go yeah we’re just waiting for those sleeves to roll up too three quarter maybe even yeah you know he used to do the cut like he used to just cut up yeah protect the elbow but show off the wrists yeah yeah I mean it uh you know I don’t care what they say you could make short aerodynamic prove it to me I don’t see Road bikers in freaking pants so give me in a wind tunnel what was it the thing was they had to cover their legs right but he had like they were KNE Shish pads on um yeah so so I don’t know like he had downhill great again he had a problem with it anything goes in the Eastern block I like to say that’s I like to say yeah Dak can you put shorts on for practice this season do you own shorts dude I got knee tattoos I ain’t trying to lose a knee pad that’s a good reason that I didn’t know existed um I don’t own any no I I do not have shorts I know are you wearing shorts right now dude yeah yeah I got yeah I don’t even ride tra bikes and shorts yeah I got Lulu on but I wasn’t gonna say it I got a l on man that’s just I only ride in shorts so it’s just no the worst nobody not I you know what for trail rids shorts are the worst I would maybe ride some downhill in the summer in shorts they’re kind of cool with because the Nostalgia of downhill but I’m not trying to go out there in shorts on the trail bike I don’t know why I just don’t I just wear pants all the time it’s so hot I almost this time of year the restricting feeling of pants while pedaling is yeah so bad it’s unreal yeah all right f do you not have like any of these modern petal pants I tell you what them Alpine Stars petal pants the AI light you got to go get you them oh my God here we go I was about say I’ve got some really nice pants but I I just I like a lightweight cross country short yeah I’ve had the chance to ride pretty much any Brand’s Trail pant in the last few years and I’m not saying they’re bad or they’re not better than pants a couple years ago but they’re still longer than shorts and you just don’t get that airflow I’m GNA here’s what I’m going to say when I’m done with my ride I don’t want to clean mud out of my knee pads I don’t want to have dirty dirty legs I just want to take them off like if it’s even wet out rain pants like I’m not trying to I’m not trying to have cleanup at the end of the day not trying to have my skibs be all muddy I’m trying to just be done and dusted and out of there no be done and swampy that’s what you’re trying to be yeah straight up I know I mean not that I don’t ride in pants but it has to be under a certain temp for sure to go pedal with pants on or this time of the year by us when everything’s all overgrown the thought of pants is more appealing to not be getting lit up by plants and all itchy and stuff but that’s about it all right let’s move on you know it’s way cheaper than that suspension service your bike desperately needs or less of a hassle than finally replacing those ceas frame bearings you said you would swap after last winter slapping on some crispy fresh Maxis tires doesn’t matter if you’ve got a month- old whip that came with some questionable rubber or you’re still rolling around on 26in Wheels like it’s 2013 Maxis has got you covered the tires of choice for the world’s fastest racers whether they’re sponsored by Maxis or not you can visit your local shop or favorite online retailer to get the same tread patterns and compounds UK components brand Berg Tech has long designed and develop components for Racers and everyday Riders alike well known as the cockpit of choice for Shred like vinique Sandler and Josh bryand they recently picked up the Trek Factory DH Squad and the Yeti Cycles team so look for Richie Roode mck Hanah Loris verier and SATA erest all racing this season with the signature white and yellow Berg Tech badge but I do have to warn you though as the burg Tech website is honestly a euphoric dark trap of mountain bike componentry it’s hard to leave without finding something you didn’t know your bike badly needed anodize udh hangers and axles yep Titan ium frame bolts of course offset shock bushings add to cart a true One-Stop shop for all the finer details and contact points on your bike make sure to check everything out at Berg te- usa.com if you still don’t know about industry 9 and the premium products they manufacture in Asheville North Carolina put this podcast on pause and get over to Industry 9.com that’s nine spelled out once you’re there you’ll see that they’ve got aluminum and carbon wheels from Mountain Road and grass travel as well as headsets and Stems industry 9 did Just Launch their new solx Mountain wheels and hubs built for XC and midt travel trail bikes there are four wheel models that are all sub 1500 G and the new Hub features 605 points of Engagement with a continuously phased freehub mechanism so that all five paws engage with the Drive Unit wind pedaling increasing durability they’ve also lowered the Paul spring pressure to minimize drag as well as redesign the axle and bearing layout to give Riders a fast respon bonding Burly Hub that is incredibly light make sure to check them out if you’re looking for a hub or wheel system that’s ready for the demands of modern XC and trail riding my last note for our Buzz report here and this is just a personal one because I know Dakota didn’t watch the broadcast and I don’t know if you noticed this Tanner but uh why do they do the pre-race talk with like Aaron and Josh Carlson and the woman who’s the host like in the padic at the bottom it is so loud it looks incredibly unprofessional and I’m like you guys can’t just build like a booth somewhere like up above or do this before I don’t know or they’ll do it they’re literally doing it in the Finish Corral as they’re doing Junior podiums trying to like build up the race coming I’m like what how much money is behind the sport can we not just get you like under an easy up knot where everything’s happening I don’t know it was pissing me off yeah and then they can’t have microphones for everyone and you’re like you got people sharing mics and stuff it’s yeah it’s a little it’s a little strange like when they bring a rider in they need to have a mic come in with that person instead of Aaron like and Josh Carlson you know touching tips with mics so the person between them can talk like dude yeah just give the person the mic there’s some uh there were some interesting ones there was like they did a few midra interviews where like during somebody’s run little screen pop up they’re interviewing somebody but it would be like old like it would be with somebody who no longer was in the hot seat and it would be like them talking about how their run was that just got them into first even though they were no longer first it’s like I mean they got it I mean they know what they’re doing there are a lot of good aspects of it but let’s Polish Polish the edges a little bit I will say the filming of the racing has been pretty good this year um I thought Fort William was me yeah Fort William but they almost broadcasted it was a lot of the track they got probably 80% of the track 85 and no you’re right the Drone yeah did not have Zeppelin In The Sky was y very much appreciated no satellite shots thank God no Gondola blocking the rider yeah but the there a lot of dead a lot of dead space on the broadcast as well without people talking um they they just don’t have a hype man like Warner um yeah I still hate how they don’t as they get further into the start list with the elite categories and there’s more gaps between the Riders they don’t go to like Dakota in the start gate and there’s like a 20 second buildup where they give some something pops up on the screen it’s they just go they cut right back to the top there’s no like building of excitement as you get closer and closer to fastest qualifier and that that’s missing along with the hype person like I don’t think I don’t mind Rick like I think he’s doing the best he can and he’s getting better at it like man yeah it’s actually a pretty good comparison I mean and but the hard part is it’s cool to have the Riders if they pull in but unless you consistently have like just Aaron in the booth having new people every time there isn’t that um that like that relationship doesn’t get built with broadcasting so yeah I don’t know it’s it’ll be it’ll be interesting after the break if Aaron is back racing yeah to see what happens broadcast goes um yeah it was cool having ISO um in there as well for the women’s race yep yeah she was great yeah even uh was it Charles Murray was the other one they had in there with Juniors as well I believe I think so yeah yeah like he was really well spoken it’s cool how many racers we have right now that are great personalities and have really cool insight and can talk yeah so I hope uh I hope Aaron’s being paid for his commentary I feel like Aaron doesn’t do much that he doesn’t get paid for for yeah Dakota’s facial expression agrees yeah I mean let’s keep moving this thing along man knows how to create value that’s for sure it’s true he’s a valuable man yeah one of the most valuable men in M viiking what was right you had like complaining about new venue but wanting more racist I did have that note yeah you know like people all the time that uh we like need to have more races and then we go to a new venue finally and luckily the track was sick but leading up to it all it was was people kind of complaining even on track walk day it was like when TVs uh interviews were kind as the further down he got the interviews the more positive they got but like from the very beginning some people were like I don’t really know and we haven’t really seen much I’m like that was the coolest part about this weekend is there wasn’t much info leading into it like the anticipation was so high and then it was cool that it rained because the track changed so much but like yeah people people got to be willing to go somewhere and it not be that great if we want more rounds you know unless you want to go somewhere popular in Europe or established like how was risk how was like the town and stuff Dakota dude it was cool like the downtown like B biasco was 20 minutes away and it was like actually like a legit City it was really nice super clean like sweet coffee shops nice places to go eat they have like a on the the city is like kind of surrounded by mountains and there was mountain bike trails on every one of the hills surrounding like a big pedal park downtown with like a a lift and you know three they raced an ews in it had long tracks and we went and rode downhill one day there and then when we where we raced was like kind of up the valley a bit almost like a in like um where maybe people from the city had like their weekend apartments or whatever um some place where people go to ski if out of the city go up to ski for the weekend and it was definitely really nice like maybe a little dated in a couple of spots but overall I think like it was it was pretty rad I mean it was a nice place the hill was nice the lift was fast and no no real complaints about it at all I mean it wasn’t like I wouldn’t say it’s Leo gang but it was like nice yeah and dude it seemed like people freaking turned up for it it looked really crowded yeah I thought it was really interesting because my semi-final felt like a race run there were so many people and I think they were almost okay I don’t know how to say this more people on semi day there but they charged to get into the Finish Corral for finals so it definitely really to me put a damper on how many people were there spectating and a lot of people were standing out on the road watching the TV and it just like I don’t know maybe it’s just because I was last down and I didn’t really notic and kind of got out of there but overall throughout the whole weekend there was more people on the qual in the semi day than I’ve ever seen at a World Cup maybe and similar to like Fort William but on race day it didn’t seem like it was crazy honestly like there was a lot of people there but the Finish Coral was not massive because they were I think charging to get into it which is I don’t know we uh we found the number for how much it cost to host an event um so I say charge them yeah that number is very high a lot of dollar bills walking around yeah a lot of Swiss [Laughter] Franks you need a lot of Swiss Franks to operate mountain bike events turns out like most of them most most of the Swiss ranks you need yeah that’s cool it’s sick because I don’t know much of anything about the mountain bike scene in Poland and this race definitely proved to me that it’s alive and well and people are into it and so that’s people were stoked it was it was really cool people were I will say that the fans were like so many people came up to me they you know I’ve been a fan for 20 years I’ve been watching I’ve been going to World Cups for 10 years like people were doed doed to like like proud to have a World Cup in their region yeah that’s tight that’s what you need I think like especially going to a new venue and who knows the Dynamics of what was involved to host an event but if people come out and the overall Vibe is that everybody’s stoked from people that are there to race and be a part of the weekend to people that are just spectating and there to have a good time like I was hyped on all of that because it’d be great to go back there again next year and have it be set in the schedule the same way that Fort William or Leo gang are or valou like now we go to like bisco Bala that’s part of the it’s part of the series so good stuff all right let’s uh move on to our Max’s maker break section Dak outside of the corner that freaking took you down uh which section do you think the track was one or lost on man you know I haven’t watched the race uh back so it’s like being last man down I didn’t get to sit there and see the last 10 guys you know that made a big difference but I think for me over the the course of the weekend there was two major things that stuck up to me is the the Middle Woods where a lot of the track was went from real fast to real slow and it was like a lot of like being pinned but then being restricted and then being pinned again and I think once you dropped back into the woods um there was like the big double into the ski slope a lot of the girls rolled you hit a right-hand burm and you went back to the woods now that whole section there was like a inside outside there we seen a lot of guys crash in and that set up a left-hand corner with a lack of support a right hand corner with no support left into those three rollers that went out into the open and it was a very sick section and it was very hard to ride fast because you went from like being pinned and having to really slow up and be precise which is something we haven’t seen in a while in a World Cup where the speed goes from so fast to so slow and I think the setup of that off camber was probably pretty important to the race and I know was something that I put a lot of emphasis on and then I think execution of the last the last shoot let’s call it you’d hit the rocky right and that last shoot whether I think the majority of guys hung hung up and went to the outside and and ripped that corner and we’ve seen in the Juniors race a lot of the Juniors were a bit excited and blew the rut at the bottom I think that between those two sections I think the big thing that I want to emphasize that made the race hard and made it feel more of like a make or break is the actual breaking you know you’re like you’re going from very high speeds and you’re really having to slow up and you’re wanting to almost Rush these sections and I think the it’s been a while since I seen a World Cup that felt like you went from so fast to so slow a lot you were ripping into the the Enduro corner and then it was really easy to know not get a good pump and get a good pump onto the boardwalk and then also you’re ripping across the ski slope and then you’re slowing up before the rock pile into that final shoot and I think just having the confidence to slow down and hit those sections well was a big factor in the race when you that had to play on the time where you were eating your time because if you rush those sections you could man you could lose a lot yeah it’s cool though I really like the the changes in speed I think it highlights a different type of technical writing and and gives the racing was obviously really tight but it does give some separation because you need to be able to maintain the speed and even though you’re shutting it down and then building it back up trying to keep that fairly even because you could tell a difference pretty well in people that were struggling to maintain speed after having to really shut it down or you know overriding sections because they’re trying to make up for where they felt like they were going too slow or hesitant before um yeah it was cool we you’ve seen it with a lot of riders they they went onto the off camber and went into that like let’s call it uh after the ski slope the ski go up 180 you go down you make the left-hander you drop in and it’s kind of like a fade away right-hander and then there was a catch or an inside and a lot of people rushed that catch and ended up crashing because of it or didn’t get maybe the drive they needed to set up afterwards and and then if you did go inside and you didn’t under break enough and you got pushed low then you’re losing speed for man it was like maintaining speed for a long time after that so it’s pretty crucial yeah totally um one of the notes Here I was curious on is just how did the rain change the track throughout the weekend that seemed on top of the track being new and fresh the rain played a pretty big part in how it shaped up yeah for sure it uh overall we we got there and it was Dusty it blew all the BMS apart and if man if we wouldn’t have had that have had that rain it would have man the track would have been absolutely gone like I think to a degree the rain did build some rots and make some catches that made for the track um being a bit more rable like overall we it burned up a few sections put a couple ruts in that made it so you weren’t tiptoeing through dust a lot of the places and then just like fighting for traction actually like made it so there was things uh support to turn off of ruts BMS whatever you want to call it but as it dried back out some of those places blew out a bit but I just really feel that man if we didn’t have that rain that track would have really deteriorated quickly and the BMS would have been gone it would have been just big dust so uh big dust Pockets you know where you just it’s it would have been bottomless so it was really nice to see the rain um and kind of hold the track together and make it a bit more raisable MH yeah 100% definitely uh I mean maybe your corner would have been so slippery though if it didn’t rain yeah you know I’m just kid have that uh there anything else on the on the track that is worth mentioning I mean I think we talked about it quite a bit and overall it was very well received I thought that it was sick how many how many different little sections there were between speed changes but then also you had big Burns you had like natural flat Corners you had jumps but you also had jumps that took like like technical jumps that required like skill to hit well and carry speed through and there’s also a few there was like a bunch of line choice but there was just enough to keep it interesting the um the Enduro did it share the F same Finish Line jump or like corral kind of area the drop and stuff no it was that was 20 minutes down the road okay 30 minutes away there was on the it said like what did it say on the Finish Corral it said something about Enduro the Enduro Trails yeah so all of that region that it’s called the Tre Enduro Trails so like it’s like that is like Enduro Trails is like the company that branding track track sponsors their like club and Enduro Trails is like the club that buil all the trails in the region okay I thought I thought that was funny because I saw that and I was like did it share the same finisher something like why do it say Enduro on the downhill finish yeah that’s funny all right should we move on there enough track talk everybody should go watch all of the uh GoPros that have been put out like valys and Ronin and um one of one of the sickers tracks just to watch people race down for sure I was I was into it I was about it all right let’s uh we’ll do some we’ll Breeze over some race recap here I’ll run us through Juniors as quickly as I can we’ll chat way more about this when we do our pre Leo gang podcast as well but uh Heather Wilson in junior women goes two for two after winning Fort bill by only 069 so super tight ahead of re van Luben um um but cool to see I think after she won in Fort William that kind of being a home race and all of that there might have been speculation that that was you know because she’s she’s from that area but to see her come out and do it again is really sweet um shout out to kale kosman American uh on the podium in fifth place at her second World Cup that’s really cool to see other than that the kiwis are kind of dominating the junior women’s field right now um Ellie holsbach and uh SAA Ernest are competing as well for those top three spots and it’s going to be interesting as we continue to go into the rest of the races how that all unfolds uh junior man ASA two for two as well and another dominating one um 3.8 up on everybody else in the weather like that was same with the the junior women’s weather definitely played a factor it seemed in the sense that it was really hard to race but all of the I mean ASA Rose to the occasion he might have had slightly better conditions than the top few qualifiers but regardless he had a very impressive run um yeah pretty sick to see like that’s actually not what I have here is like let’s talk about racing in Europe in the rain because for all of us going over there that’s one of the toughest things when especially I don’t know why like being from the US we just don’t really get track it shape up the same way with weather but to see ASA adapt and read the terrain and be able to lay down another really fast run like not just winning but it was fast you know is insane like he has he has something special and he runs his brake levers like super straight down you guys noticed that I was like damn K doesn’t give a he runs his brake lever straight down and his heels are dragging on the floor and I’m so jealous of his hi flexion or uh ankle flexion yeah I don’t got that anymore no he’s got some real real loose KES he’s steering with the hips a lot which is pretty cool to see 303 is fast dude like that was like three and a half seconds off I think what I did in the semi in the dry that’s like it really really fast it’s pretty impressive to see I mean he without looking at the the tens and hundreds uh 303s for elite finals 20th Place was at on a 303 all the way to 22nd so he would have been between 20th 21st and 22nd Place in Elite men’s which is in the ring yeah that’s that’s even scarier to think about actually yeah it’s pretty insane um wild not really related at all but because I’m looking at the Times uh Max hartstern Haron turn and Danny Hart tied this weekend you guys see that they literally tied with a where is it a three 303.1 160 they both tied for 20th Place and got the same amount of points for it really I don’t know if that’s ever happened before did wait yeah hold up that was 20th Place MH they have the exact same time wait these are final results uh 303 oh wow to the Thousand Dy Lees and geez I love on the result wait I had that wrong it was Dylan leas sorry yeah on the results sheet it puts Dylan Lees 21 and then below it’s Danny Hart 20 it’s weird yeah wow definitely a crazy one yeah that’s ever happened at Elite level racing it’s very it’s a very Fontana thing to have happen but to like the the 10th yeah stopwatches are crazy like that um I the racing was insanely tight in all categories except for junior and Ben but yeah no it for sure was um yeah crazy stuff uh let me let me let me get through Juniors because I’m sure we’ll chat way more about the elites and things that stand out but um de JT and third I believe that’s his first Podium so so congrats to him sick style I hope that he maintains that into Leo gang uh the ren Brothers y both have fourth places also cool to see in their first year racing gonna be interesting to see what they continue to do um oh I skipped over Milan FAL I’m trying to get these French names correct so work with me here but second back where I think we expected him to be after some podiums the end of last year and I think he’s a secondy year Junior so he he’s raised Leo gang before so going into the third round I think he’s somebody that could be probably in second it’s hard to say ace is not gonna win at this point especially with his style I think it matches a track like Leo game pretty well so we’ll see everybody’s everybody’s chasing ace at this point um Chaser Chase Chaser uh did I did I spell Lucas’s last name in ninth place did I spell that wrong is it diodora had left out a d okay I thought so I don’t know him but he got ninth in his second World Cup which is sick a top 10 um and he looked rad on the bike dope style yeah he’s really good that kid’s rip rips for sure is it his first year raising World Cups yep I think so right I do believe so heck yeah all righty continuing continuing move on you got to mention the Mike cuters run if anyone that’s listening go back to Juniors and watch his run it is wild where uh where did he go down TR to remember he made it all the way to the last split oh that’s right I think he like crashed in the last corner or something like was tapped and then missed the r but he had a lot of moments before then that’s right yeah a lot of race run to watch but I I did have a note there that his R was super wild and I was like trying to remember what actually happened to him yeah yeah andam he was yeah he was looking at Splits here he had fastest third split he was moving he was going to be up there then he finished efl unfortunately um yeah sad face next round I think he’ll be up there as well he’s another uh secondy year Junior so um Elite category anybody didn’t watch Marine cabaro took first rad to see good for her like such a sleeper I think after Fort Williams she was somebody on my mind for this round to bounce back and have a good weekend um Valley crashed and still Marine cabaro I was standing on the side of the track and she crashed and took me out in practice just slid in and just cleaned me out I was like after that it’s good to see her win the race you can almost say you were a part of her win this weekend a part of her success yes um I mean dude she had a epic weekend she went 331 like really pulls her back into the overall she’s well she’s still fifth but after her week in in Fort William she definitely needed around like this um kind of same thing for Cammy Cammy was in second um definitely back after being out last season I think she’ll be really fast in Leo gang she’s one there before that’s cool to see her building momentum uh I think I was starting to say Valley in six with the crash which is insane and chap fell at the top and then gets up and goes and has the fastest second split after that I believe which I don’t I never understand when people are able to do that it’s so hard to crash and regroup yourself and then go really fast so for her to still be in sixth is pretty insane and good for Point she maintains first yeah other than that I mean Nina in third uh Jess blue in fourth which is really cool to see her kind of getting that speed and momentum going again I think she’s been really hot and cold over her career thus far so I think for her would just be like getting another fourth or fifth in Leo gang would be really good for her momentum and then tnie and fifth like seems like she has more in the tank and she wants more but she’s in second right now for the overall yeah um and only 10 behind Valley so right there you know I think we talk a lot about Nina but Nina seems to struggle to put together when it counts and she’s back and forth now in the overall so it’ be interesting in Leo gang t uh believe T had her first win in Leo gang so good stuff good stuff in the elite men’s C or Elite women’s category and yeah like you were saying times are definitely getting tighter these days um yeah I think we need to put some emphasis on how tight the racing is in the women’s field and and we’re just talking about 11.3 seconds in the the top 10 you know there’s five girls in the in the semifinal that are right there too it’s like the Gap to get into the final is so tight for the girls and it’s man it’s fast racing they’re like really tight and really really making for a good race which is really cool to see yeah yeah yeah no for sure and it’s I still want there to be more women in finals than there should be like having 20 would be great you look at the names that didn’t make into finals this weekend and they’re all names that we recognize and have been have been they’ve been up there on certain weekends um and it’s I love now that we have so many names to follow each round and be fans of and all that in the women’s category because it’s yeah tighter than ever like sure we might have a few names that more likely than not are going to win but there’s also like a whole group of other of other riders that could mix it up on any round so that’s cool to see Lee mens moving on your teammate Ronin freaking rolls a few dice quite a few dice but uh loose dog barely gets bruny like what was the what was the SE 067 I believe yeah apparently faster than you can blink everyone’s favorite fact when times are really tight um yeah man insane run like super loose but he did it he put it together um yeah man not really much else to say about that like what was it like crossing the line though and seeing your teammate win and knowing that you also have the potential to win on the weekend I’m sure it’s bittersweet but you still got to be stoked for him yeah I mean I’m still happy for him it’s like so good like he’s in the history books dude which is really cool it’s really good for the program I mean if we just like put the program together and we were just going to the races and getting spank yeah with would motivate everybody to work but I mean it’s at the same time it’s like pretty cool to see like them put their money where their mouth is and then win a World Cup get a World Cup Podium like you know Pinkerton had top 15 splits um in the semi and it’s just man it’s really cool it was definitely like a big party in the pit for sure um everybody was pumped I was out of the pit I was sad I was definitely The Buzz kill of the whole deal I’m not going to lie I was just like packed my stuff and out but um yeah I was really I’m really happy for him because the reality is is Ronan was once a kid that would do or die and die more than he did and now he’s that’s a perect put that yeah he’s collecting himself as you know an in top Elite and you know he’s been pretty dang consistent so far in the year it’s really impressive to see especially for how loose he rides like we’re Polar Opposites you know and I feel like I’m building trying to build speed in a very sustainable Manner and I’m not trying to take a lot of risk and I’m trying to stay off the ground and not get hurt and he is racing as Loose as possible but still sustainably and is consistently there with his his style um I mean he definitely looks different than me on the bike he’s pedal everywh where he’s tapped he’s hanging on sometimes by a thread you know but he’s consistently doing it so it’s cool to see um really excited for him and yeah really excited for the whole mandrier Factory racing team it’s like pretty insane pry yeah totally yeah it was cool to see um I always is your team ERS name George or Jorge Jorge okay either or he’ll go just you know let’s get it correct it was really cool to see his reaction at the bottom and like I think he put up a post that was just yeah real telling of how much effort and energy and to you know of course winning is like all you could ever ask for but he’s also just stoked with how the whole team is operating and come together so it’s sick to see and we’re soaked for you sick to see you on a program that’s it sounded good on paper right in the offseason and to see it actually play out at races and be what you would want is really doubt yeah I think and it’s cool because it feels like we’re just getting started like we have three super talented Riders like Pinker tennis shown he has the speed to be consistently there and in the final have another third R rider in the final um he’s just kind of learning his Pace like like how hard do I need to push to make it through a semifinal and or how you know what I mean like obviously he can do a safe run and qualify and he’s just kind of learning the semifinal and you know the first one he wasn’t quite fast enough and this one he maybe went too fast um for and had some mistakes so he’s learning Ronan has consistently been there I mean he’s Ronin is the top dude on the program at this moment he’s the highest in the overall he has the race win and and at this point man he’s he’s the dude on the team so um we’ll see how that shakes out like I definitely have a lot of work to do to you know get that points Gap back but um man it’s really it’s really cool to see and for me it’s like you know I it but it was still a success for the team on the day and that’s success for the brand and and that’s cool that’s really exciting and everybody’s still really cool with me and like everybody’s really happy with the process which is which is exciting we’re just getting started we have like it feels like you know there’s almost like a few boxes you have to jump through in terms of like setup and and we’re kind of just getting a Baseline and we we haven’t really like we kind of have a base setup now but we still have a lot of things that are coming that we’re really excited about and and uh hopefully that’ll continue you know we have some refinements with with our basic architecture of what we had we’ve kind of made it as good as we can get it and now we have some cool stuff that we’re working on which for me is super promising and that’s why I wanted to go to this program is because um I believe that you know they would do what it takes to to be at the top and and man our our engineer is awesome our team manager getting in the workflow and he’s doing great and it’s just it’s really cool to see the whole whole Program start to strive and all the mechanics and everybody’s it just feels like we’re man we’ve won a World Cup and we’re just hitting our stride heck yeah that’s sick it’s stoked for you it’s stoked for you guys yep that’s my that’s my M drer um Factory racing report continue your M there was there a late start on Monday morning uh I mean yeah for for those guys all yeah they some of them went straight from the bar to the plane but uh yeah it was definitely some some hangovers in the process definitely some hangovers it’s good those are deserved hangovers hard hard fought hangovers I’m waiting patience I’m waiting too we’re gonna get we’re gon have a party over here yeah actually I’m go I’ve actually I’m I’m low on the drinking these days like no drinking so I’m ready to I’m ready to have an excuse to get after it maybe tell you what it was it was about seven in the morning I was up at I was up at 545 watching so I was like dude I’m my dog is going down last my dog I gotta be I gotta be up watching right if you would have won I would have been yeah I would have been cracking open some beers at 7 in the morning yeah budy yeah Five O’Clock Somewhere in Poland yeah actually that’s question what what time did you drop in for your race run how late in the day is that 3:45 oh okay that’s pretty that’s pretty solid that’s curious we we practice from 10 to 11 and then everybody races then you don’t get to see what’s slippery and what’s not yep no we used to practice in the middle of the day like at like 11 or noon 11: to noon maybe now we’re 10 to 11 so it’s like you know 4 five hour if you qualify well it’s four over four hours a there’s a lot that can change in four hours I’ll tell you that heck yeah yeah that’s pretty intense yeah I will say your uh your bike setup and everything looks really nice right now thanks man watching your eyes yeah we we’ve made it a really long time in this podcast without talking about your bike which is insane I’m cool if we don’t I’m just saying that’s pretty impressive I don’t I’ve mentioned your bars once it’s because you know we got to the bar talk a little bit faster than most and that’s all people want to talk to you talk about with you this weekend and poll in old news they’re up there they’re staying up there did you see the did you see the Forum post I put up you go look at it no no I’ll go look what is about maybe like maybe even go on the site like just once every like three days I would appreciate that well you like post stuff in a forum that I can’t find unless somebody sends me a link of what you posted of me in some random Forum like this sounds like a this sounds like a good opportunity for you to learn how to find the forums on the site I know I know I know I’m trying I’m trying it also was on the homepage i’ all I’m trying to do is keep up with these text messages my dog that’s a rough one for that does prove to be pretty hard for you yeah begar Beggars can’t be choosers brother I’m I’m low on the [Laughter] responses God I’m trying I’m trying to find it but I’m I can’t find the post because the title see you can’t find the post see this well because there so many Poston it’s actually been a little while no it’s good it’s good I’m not a big Forum reader honestly I’m less of a comment reader and a forum reader will always be laying in bed and fr’s like what are you doing who you talking to on the internet like in some comments on some inter in Instagram post roasting somebody just getting a snapb no I was like she’s like dude you cannot be reading this stuff you get so worked up like the last thing I need is to be a keyboard Warrior about myself so I’m trying to I’m trying to let it ride yeah I’m trying to Let It Ride Like That dude that’s like you’re gonna tuck the front I’m on his in stagram trying to find a video of him tucking the front so I can get it back that H bars oh so you never tuck the front have you yeah some post about not qualifying for the race and then I’m on there like should have had higher bars mate it’s terrible I can’t I just can’t go I can’t get in the forums I can’t get in the Instagram comments I’m gonna get myself in trouble take it too personal yeah I guess that’s for the better then well can you at least send me your GoPro runs or Joe send me the GoPro runs instead of sending them to pink bike I’m pretty sure pink bike posted something instead of us yeah I you know I prob yeah that is he’s got some sort of a pink bike deal going but put a big vital sticker on the back of your jersey like straight up why we gotta you it’s just a vital logo the whole time yeah keep that keep that in mind I’m pretty sure you mentioned pink bike in freaking wi TV interview I’m like damn can we get a B practice plug come on yeah you know you kind of got me there you know there’s there’s not really a way around that as you get bigger don’t forget about us we’re still here uh y alrighty anyways this YouTube video I love you yeah this YouTube video I named it I’ve got arms like a crocodile the could have ‘t explains his unique bar height uh so you should go look at it and then I’m just going to read this we’re getting a little in the weeds but uh I put up a poll question is how tall will DX bars beat at the end of the season and everybody agreed that he’s found what works and will still be on 75 millimeter rise at the end of the year but the other options were mander’s marking team will only settle for Signature stack Norton bars up to 50 millimeters so that’s what he’ll be left with or the other option is once you’ve seen the light There’s No Going Back Dak is a Chosen One 90 millimeters Plus or the L effect is strong will push his bars back down to the 30 to 40 millimeter range 216 people agreed 75 is where you’re going to stay so yeah there’s your answer I’m like I’m I’m thinking I’m gonna stay there like I’m a soft Fork guy I want that thing soft I want compliance I want it working underneath me you know I was down 24 Ling today I was at an all-time low of pressure in my Fork um dude it was ripping it was ripping you know more air is not always the answer ripping that couch down the hill it was literally a couch but that’s the difference bruny looks like a linebacker he looks like he’s running with a football down the I mean dude he looks he’s been eating well Rooney is intimidating right now he is a big dude yeah all right let’s wrap this this thing up there’s a bunch of names there’s a bunch of names for Elites uh a few that stand out to me lores had a really good weekend after Fort William like yeah really good weekend so second most points gathered on the weekend out of everybody had an insane front wheeel push in that flat corner right after the second split starts and did not die he also didn’t look like he lost time from it like I think he lost some time but it was like the am J front wheel push like 40 feet of front wheel push yeah Dak you should try to go find that and watch it it was pretty nuts um what else Luca another good weekend in six even though mistakes yeah he did but fastest at that third split like hold back some time for sure uh we mention mentioned Angel ninth great weekend Greg Williamson seventh backs up for Bill it wasn’t just a fluke um yeah I looked at it like last year he only made three finals out of eight his best result was 21st so something’s working on that old old sarson he got the program turned around for this season um Finn and Troy both had pretty bad weekends in comparison to Fort William sounded like in Troy’s Vlog he put up that he should have gone with the uh what were you calling the tires you ran Dakota intermediates intermediates yeah should he should have gone with intermediates and he went with the the old muds y yeah um but I think both of them in Leo gang are incredibly quick so it’ll be interesting to see them try to turn it around but from a overall in the points like on the weekend Troy was 19th if you add up his points from each of the three races Finn was 10th you know like Dak you were sixth which really isn’t that bad all things considered um so you’re that made me feel really good thank you that really that really helped actually because I yeah that 33rd really I just wasn’t trying to have a second crash yeah that’s a that’s a tough one to try to put together you still had some decent splits after you fell though so that is the biggest bummer though when you’re in the finals and you don’t get points you got to ride down the entire track because there was four people that were protected or whatever in there no you still get 30 from 30th on yeah like Dak got 30 first and he got and he got 30 points yeah okay like 34th Place Remy Myers spith 30 points okay it’s kind of it’s kind of a kind of a goofy one in a way but yeah whatever I thought they just didn’t get points I’m glad I thought so too like when I saw Dakota crash that’s my first thought I’m like I hope he’s top 30 still and then when I was looking back at I’m like okay that’s not the worst um yeah yeah uh Amry and fifth that’s kind of like a sleeper result I think like he it’s only his second race back after like a pretty rough injury last year and I would not be surprised if he like wins a race this year he’s so motivated like quietly I think he seems all chill in all the interviews this year but that’s not how that dude operates like he wants to win races he always has and who knows maybe maybe Leo gang could be one of his rounds mhm might be a little early on in his build back year but to jump all the way up to fifth is is pretty nuts um locky the weekend that could have been freaking such a bummer I don’t even know how to feel about it all like was fastest at the splits up until crashing um you know was top 10 at qualifying in semi-finals so definitely a bummer I hate seeing people’s weekends go like that that are having their best weekend ever and then to to have a crash especially in like kind of a goofy spot that doesn’t really mean anything but hopefully he bounces back and like keeps that speed and momentum he’s sick on a bike too like rat style um yeah I don’t know there’s other names on here but I think that sums up most of them for me that really stand out it was um the weekend for the elite men’s was unpredictable yeah in a sense like I mean then in the conditions I feel like were the main reason for that you know like same as Dakota reading that one corner wrong like you could see so many other dudes in their runs have moments because they were caught off guard by how just the ground or the line had shaped up yeah because like I mean locky qualified really well Oly Davis um I think Henry Kerr like all these I don’t know yeah qualified well and then ended up either on the ground or off the back and then like Greg Williamson didn’t make it through semis but was protected and then finish in the top 10 again yep yeah no it is a it was an interesting one like from a viewer standpoint I enjoyed it because it makes for really edge of your SE racing because you don’t really know what could happen it is so unpredictable I mean even looking at like Finn and Troy’s runs were the downside of those conditions like reading the how dry it was going to be incorrectly or not pushing enough throughout the whole run and you could tell like in the reaction at the bottom that by the time I got to the bottom they knew that they weren’t really on the pace and then to see that be reality with the splits they’re like a crap like I did not you know it’s part of the racecraft is part of weekends like this where like Dakota is saying you have hours between when you practice it and when you actually race it and it was raining during that time so it’s a tough one to balance and and read right yeah my uh my fantasy team I thought was super sick and ended up not being super sick yeah the uh don’t have that Z why don’t you why don’t you hop on there and build a fantasy team come on I need to hop on my email and build some emails back out need to be doing maybe maybe you know what how about I do I think you should I do yeah maybe when you’re watching Netflix night before racing only a half episode dude you can’t have a full one we ain’t got time you’re like you’re pulling these like 50 to an hour episodes like 50 minute to an hour episodes like I me maybe start rest development give me your login and we’ll do the picks for you more randomly and then we’ll just see how you fair yeah all right cool let’s get on it I’m into it you know what sign me up or something would that be insane that would be insane maybe what I’ll do is I’ll we’ll in our group text after the first day of practice I’ll just be like who was winning practice you can give me one to two names and then I’ll just build your team from there and that’ll be it nice cool I’m into it let’s do it I you know the whole process of me getting on there and remembering it the primary issue is I can’t remember a damn thing so getting out there and remembering to do this every week okay I’m in the pit I need to charge my krono I need to clean my goggles uh pick my fantasy team you know you got the order all wrong it’s pick your fantasy and then figure out what you have time left for yeah I know I need to start working on it do you even know your vital login do you have a vital account uh I do have a vital account and I don’t know the login if I’m being quite honest I was actually thinking about that but I wasn’t gonna bring it up you know what sure I can go in the back end and change it for youtime whoa I am god wow sometimes I like get on there just to just get in there and comment on people’s stuff you know yeah support us one of your sponsors I get it yeah yeah you know it’s just really cool when like you catch somebody saying something then you hit them with a hit him with a reply and then they’re like oh who what dud take him to the haters ball yeah sometimes you just got to let them know hey I’m watching you you know what’s way easier is I’ll just I find the comments I text you and then I just screenshot the response and then I drop it in there people love those personaliz yeah I’m like I’ll will get your question answered right now from The Source yeah I’ll go straight to the horse’s horse’s mouth yeah exactly wait I got a question for you related to this weekend um wildest moment you saw on track I know you’re pretty blinders on usually during practice and stuff but wildest moment Henry keer what he do is that his name Keir he that corner the little tight corner where we seen Greg wood have a crash maybe in semi-finals he just came in stuck the front and just full full full front flip like the whole front flip the woods yeah Woods steep catch stuck the front full on front flip that one was pretty gnarly Marine cabaro when she was sledding through underneath my legs and took me out that one was gnarly um dude I seen there was a lot of gnarly going on on the stump Gap at the bottom like that was that was like probably one of those those places where I stood there and I was like man these dudes are rolling here but for the most part I I stayed away from the Carnage like sometimes I sometimes I see some narly stuff I almost had a huge one just uh started leaning too much and then caught a compression and then just you know did the old tank slap that was not nice had to pull over and then the as soon as I pulled over I came to a stop and I was like oh my God I’m alive and then the course Marshall was like can you get out of the track and I’m like mys real quick yeah let me just let me collect myself and yes I would love to but ah dude it was a it was a big weekend of um people just I didn’t see any real huge huge ones but a lot of people because the speeds were high in the open you’d see somebody like start to slide and then catch um I had I had a couple of them myself hard not to good to know we’re all human yeah true all right I think that wraps up talking about racing y yeah yeah um L has a 160 point lead over Ronin who jumped from like 12th to second in the overall which is quite insane but uh then Loris was like 173 back Luca is 180 Troy is 186 Stak you’re only a little bit more so um yeah interesting racing there’s definitely a pretty big gap that L has at the moment but how many points are up for grabs every weekend it’ll be very interesting you know I mean just him not getting many points in semi-finals uh was a big factor so all right ber Tech labor of love I have some names here I don’t know if either of you were looking at them I just bolded the one the third one one I like that one where it says where it says okay back back from he had a huge crash at valou that I think ended his season last year and has been back and riding super well Dan slack I like you can say it come on come on let’s take care of our boy you know what I seen him I seen him he was doing some Laps on the pole uh on the Red Trail uh the before practice started had a great attitude um seemed super pumped and uh man definitely things are not going his way at the moment and it’s just incredible to see him like performing and having a good attitude so I think it’s uh just right that we uh help the boy out yeah yeah he’s been building for it seems like years now um dude’s fast was on Jack reading’s team and yeah yeah been around didn’t catch a break with the pole team this year but they’re still operating at least still operating yeah for sure I know for anybody who isn’t aware like poll went under and then the team obviously didn’t have funding basically and so they started to go fund me to like help raise funds to get to the races so uh if you go on I think any of their Instagram like Dan’s or the teams Instagram there’s a GoFundMe link if you want to donate get them into more World Cup rounds this season so yeah Beyond wanting to help out their program it’s against all the adversity to see him get one of his best results in a few seasons it’s pretty sick so hit you up Dan we’ll get you paid good stuff all righty clearly my notes aren’t updated here because I have next up is Poland but next up is actually Leo gang and yeah two weeks away what do you how do you feel about that track deck pretty good one dude I’m just excited I’m here in schlotman getting some bike time um on a rough track really getting the the mandrier dialed in we’re going to Leo gang you know it isn’t my favorite track but historically I’ve done really well there um just thinking about that I was like I got a six plays point two off the podium I I don’t know I think that’s my best result there but yeah really excited um I think the our bike will be good there and yeah be good let’s found a lovely photo a screenshot that I had of a Snapchat from you at Lea gang uh the first time you qualified there in 2017 no way are you gonna post it are you just G is it a private send or a post it could be a post I I’m gonna need to I’m gonna need to give you the green or red light on this I don’t think you can get give him the L bruny green or red light oh I’m gonna need to see this I think it be a good it’d be a green light for sure it’d be it’d be a good one if uh you know things work out and you end up on the top step of the podium a good contrast of where you where you’ve come from to where you are now you know because nobody likes everybody likes qualifying but nobody likes missing out in the party the no the no quality parties used to hit back in the day oh the Leo gang one in the underground the Leo gang in particular yes oh it’s not the same anymore 26 tricks is gone but uh that was were some good times back in the day those were some good times you know I think that you guys should maybe just come back come come jump on the plane come on and we’ll just we’ll swing it through the after party at all Leo gang Just for Old Time sake just Cru on through yeah Cru on through to see what’s going on you know yeah see what’s happening oh at least word on the street is you’ll be here for L that is that is definitely the word on the street I will be there for L we gotta chat about it at some point but um yeah I will be all right well it’s gonna be it’s gonna be a tough one uh col is fired up it’s his home World Cup he got his first win there he’s gon to be super challenging um man there’s a lot of boys with a whole lot of with some sauce some sauce on the handlebars that’ll be going faster I reckon whole lot lot of little Servo Motors changing things on suspensions we going fast um I’ve learned a lot about Leo gang I’m always too soft there so I’m going to try to anticipate that and go a bit stiffer for the race run I’ve already made up my mind and yeah man should be good here first all right here first I’m going I’m getting can’t even say h what we’re moving on yeah I’m getting still I’m getting stiff really Leo gang oh God uh just be careful on those bridges or the wall rides I mean it’s just one wall ride now so the second one died on is no longer there no no no in the great before the tunnel we also got to look out for the great before the tunnel yeah yep yep um yeah I think I think all The Usual Suspects that do well at Leo gang will be up there and it’ll be really interesting to watch the second or third split whichever one’s the motorway to see if all the suspension lockout stuff is going to play like a significant factor um so yeah man it’ll be good it’s a good track I like Leo gang I like how it’s all bike Parky at the top and you got a long middle bit and then the lower Woods that they changed a few years ago are a lot better now than I think they used to be a little bit more to separate people and if it rains it’s like freaking impossible to ride so hopefully it doesn’t rain last year it was bone dry wasn’t it yeah oh slippery for semis that’s right qualifying maybe was really slippery hard pack grease so me and the me and the first off camber have never gotten along so you know I’ll be really happy if that’s not there but I think it’s gonna be unfortunately yeah yeah just get on with it good stuff so what do you you’re in flading is what you said yeah Y how far is that from Leo gang few hours if I had a car I’d go ride but I think it’s actually I think it’s closed two weeks before some dudes went a few weeks ago but yeah NOP slod Ming’s open open three days ago so I’m actually getting like fresh slman Corners it’s I mean it’s breaking bumped out but not terrible so it’s like it was I rode today did eight runs it was pretty sick I got to say it’s pretty good pretty good sounds a lot better than our pedal trails in San Diego oh all right close this thing out yep well thank you guys for joining and chatting I always love these conversations and uh like a pretty good one got a good season under us right now a lot of momentum especially For You Dak so shout out to uh Maxis Berg tech industry 9 for continuing to support this we’ll see everybody in a few weeks here after Leo gang see you
1 Comment
Gutted for Dak but could'nt wish for a better winner.