The past few months have flown by. And somehow, we haven't recorded a B Practice Podcast since the last World Cup back in October. We were overdue for a catchup to discuss the many series and team changes and, of course, our main man Dak's gnarly off-season injury. We get into all the details of what happened, his recovery, and why he's in a better place than before to handle such a setback. We then get into all the team rumor gossip, Continental series gossip, career numbers, and finish things off with a debate on what is the ultimate dream sponsor. Enjoy!

Show Notes
0:00 - Intro
3:10 - Dak injury details, update, recovery
14:45 - Thoughts on the risk of riding moto during the offseason
18:17 - Dak's headspace during his injury
21:39 - How Dak's program has changed to avoid fatigue, over-training, and stress
26:26 - Where Dak started to find solutions to his health problems
31:12 - Finding confidence and happiness in your life
41:10 - Dak getting hurt at his house
43:19 - Dak's new video with GoPro' In Their Element'
45:11 - Mondraker doing a fill-in for Dak?
47:20 - Confirmed team changes for 2025
1:02:08 - Rumored team changes for 2025
1:19:28 - New team rules pushing out smaller teams and screwing 'bubble' riders
1:22:35 - Continental Series chit-chat and what it takes to make it to World Cups now
1:27:41 - Chit-chat about U.S. Series carrying weight against World Cups
1:39:01 - What career number would Dak pick?
1:40:37 - More team rumor talk
1:46:15 - Why Dak doesn’t wear gloves + what grips he runs
1:52:59 - Dream sponsor?

Thanks to Maxxis Tires | FOX | Jenson USA for supporting The Inside Line

#USDH ripper, Lucas Dedora, shares his story of going from a diehard XC grom to his first year racing World Cup Downhill. In the middle of the season, Lucas graduated high school and managed to hit 19 different races around the globe. Jack Rice was there all summer with Lucas as photographer for Transition Factory Racing and they talk about the highs and the lows of it all.

Podcast contents
0:00 - "I wanted to be Nino Schurter"
4:44 - School and finding enduro
11:54 - Racing his first National Champs with a torn ACL
24:32 - Early DH career
32:20 - Aiming for the World Cup with Pro Builds Team
39:57 - Being friends with and racing against Asa Vermette
42:33 - Dealing with injuries and P.T.
50:24 - First European World Cup season and the Ft Bill Crash
59:15 - Poland and his last physical day of school
1:05:56 - Val di Sole struggles and Valentina Roa Sanchez
1:11:30 - Graduating high school mid-season
1:19:00 - Junior World Cup Les Gets race day canceled
1:25:04 - Getting on Transition Factory Racing
1:30:25 - National Champs, Rest in Peace Scott Huntley
1:36:17 - Competing in 19 races, Joakim and World Champs
1:44:33 - Loudenvielle and weather issues, Recovery, US Open, MSA
1:57:50 - 2025, no contract and the USDH scene and World Cup challenges

Jack Rice checks in from Andorra and the 2024 UCI Downhill Mountain Bike World Championships with interviews from the podium riders and Greg Minnaar, who continues to troll us about possible retirement.

0:00 - Loris Vergier
2:33 - Vali Holl
3:15 - Greg Minnaar
7:55 - Myriam Nicole
9:09 - Finn Iles
12:48 - Tahnee Seagrave
13:41 - Benoit Coulanges

The mud at the 2022 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Downhill in Snowshoe provided the drama, but the racers, fans and atmosphere were the highlight of the weekend. Trill Will got his hands on interviews from Bernard Kerr, Camille Balanche and Eliot Jackson, Ronan Dunne, Gracey Hemstreet, Superfan Alex Ohlman, Laurie Greenland, Matt Sterling, Preston Cline (Race Director for the Snowshoe World Cup) and Wyn Masters.

After two years, the World Cup circus returned to the heart of the Pyrenees Mountains for an exciting weekend of dry, hot, fast, and tight racing. With a brand new track on a completely different side of the mountain, gone were the steep, technical sections we are used to seeing in Andorra, and instead, the track was made up of blistering fast off-cambers and high-speed turns with no shortage of loose shale and dust. Times were tight, and the margin for error was even smaller.

This week, we discuss if World Cup downhill should assign permanent race numbers, if selling more downhill bikes is the answer to the longevity of the sport, the multiple death-defying sections on this year’s track, Loic Bruni's softer-than-average suspension setup, Jackson Goldstone having the fastest time of the day, plus our usual deep dive into results and overall standings. Enjoy!

In this episode of The Inside Line podcast, Jason Schroeder sits down to interview his good friend and past landlord, Austin Smith, better known as Cheddar Child. Originally from Southern California and now residing in Boise, Idaho, Austin is first and foremost a ripping snowboarder. Introduced to mountain biking during his college years, his love for two wheels and digging trails have become his newfound passion. 

As the current Director of Innovations and Marketing at Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area, he has played a huge role in growing Bogus’ new bike park, which has moved the needle forward for mountain bike trails in the greater Boise area. He’s a staple in the community who is constantly organizing dig days and trying to improve the experience of every rider who visits the park. He also has some of the sickest backyard dirt jumps you’ll likely never see and a love for music festivals and drum and bass. Austin is truly a one-of-a-kind individual whose intensity for life and motivated personality leaves an impact on everyone who crosses his path.

Have a listen as Austin discusses growing up being a snowboarder in Southern California, jumping beach cruisers at Sheep Hills, what a degree in Ski Business & Resort Management involves, the costs of operating a bike park, what it means to be a nonprofit mountain recreation area, and what it’s like being queer in action sports. Enjoy!

Thank you to
- jensonusa.com - Use coupon code “insideline” (all one word) at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items.
- maxxis.com
- santacruzbicycles.com 

Cover photograph by John Webster - @johnjwebster

Show Notes

• The inspiration for the name 'Cheddar Child'
• 2014/15 Snowboard Edit
• Air Awareness
• Building ‘Crackland’ Backyard Dirt Jumps
• Crankland 3.0 Session
• VitalMTB All Trails POV The Basin Gravity Park
• ‘Wish You Were Here’ Austin Smith 
• Bogus Basin Community Trail Build Day
• Pose TV Series
• Ballroom Culture 
• We're All Mental Community 
• 'Freedom From The Known' by Jidda Krishnamurti
• Mr Happy - DNB Song 
• Critical Crack Critters Anonymous Spotify Playlist

Dakota Norton qualified 2nd in Lenzerheide, was up at the splits and had an unfortunate slideout during his race run at the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Downhill. Jason Schroeder and Tanner Stephens, former World Cup downhill racers, talk with Dak about his race weekend and then the three of them dive into the performances of top finishers in all categories.

Will Washam, also known as Trill Will, is on the Inside Line podcast today. If you've raced a Downhill Southeast, watched one of their race replays or attended a recent National Champs gravity event, you have heard him making the calls as commentator. We talk about his journey into mountain biking, finding his way into announcing duties over the years and more.

Thanks to jensonusa.com for supporting The Inside Line. They have their Independence Day sale going on right now with big savings on bikes, components and riding gear. Summer is here, so make sure you and your bike are ready for shredding. Use coupon code InsideLine, all one word, at check out and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Maxxis tires are stacking wins this year with Richie Rude winning the latest EWS, Jesse Melamed winning the week before, Vali Holl taking a Crankworx DH win in Innsbruck and Matt Walker winning the Leogang World Cup downhill. Hit up maxxis.com to find the mountain bike tire that best suits your riding style and conditions and maybe you'll be on the podium at your next race, too.

Santa Cruz bicycles just launched the new Hightower 29er trail bike with 145mm of rear travel, internal frame storage and 5 size options. Hit our site to see our first ride review with our tech editor Jason Schroeder ripping the trail in Oakridge, Oregon, or hit up www.santacruzbicycles.com to learn more about this do-it-all trail smasher! Don't forget, they offer free, lifetime bearing replacement on their full-squish frames, too!

We're going to take a trip back in time to 2018 with a previously aired Inside Line featuring Rob Warner. If you didn't know, after this 2022 season, Red Bull will no longer produce the Live webcasts of World Cup Downhill and Cross Country as the UCI sold those rights to the Discovery channel through 2030. Upon hearing the news, I asked Rob if he would still be involved as race commentator, hopeful for a "yes" answer because he has been such an integral part of what makes those shows so exciting to watch. This was his reply, "after this year, it's highly unlikely I'll be commentating on any UCI MTB World Cups for the foreseeable future." and he left it at that. With that answer, I thought it was a great time to revisit our interview from 4 years ago to showcase just how much passion he has for what he does.

Thanks to jensonusa.com for supporting The Inside Line. They have their Independence Day sale going on right now with big savings on bikes, components and riding gear. Summer is here, so make sure you and your bike are ready for shredding. Use coupon code InsideLine, all one word, at check out and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Maxxis tires are stacking wins this year with Richie Rude winning the latest EWS, Jesse Melamed winning the week before, Vali Holl taking a Crankworx DH win in Innsbruck and Matt Walker winning the Leogang World Cup downhill. Hit up maxxis.com to find the mountain bike tire that best suits your riding style and conditions and maybe you'll be on the podium at your next race, too.

Santa Cruz bicycles just launched the new Hightower 29er trail bike with 145mm of rear travel, internal frame storage and 5 size options. Hit our site to see our first ride review with our tech editor Jason Schroeder ripping the trail in Oakridge, Oregon, or hit up www.santacruzbicycles.com to learn more about this do-it-all trail smasher! Don't forget, they offer free, lifetime bearing replacement on their full-squish frames, too!

Engage time travel....now.

Dakotah Norton, Jason Schroeder, Austin Hackett-Klaube and Tanner Stephens discuss all things UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Downhill Leogang, Austria. #MTB #downhill #DH

Vital's B Practice podcast continues with a discussion about the last mountain bike World Cup Downhill in Fort William, Scotland. Jason Schroeder and Tanner Stephens get on the line with #USDH shredder, Dakotah Norton, to hear about his race experience and break down the other results of the weekend. The Leogang World Cup DH is next in line June 10 and 11.

Riding bikes and hanging out with friends as a kid has translated into riding bikes and hanging out with friends as an adult. Jeremiah work found fun and success racing BMX and building and riding trails in Texas. Eventually, he found his way into mountain biking through 4x racing, working his way up into the pro ranks of the Mountain States Cup and pushing on some heavy World Cuppers at a few select events. When his race career subsided, he shifted his focus with a desire to build the mountain bike community at home and in his region. He and his crew created the fun Trail Party race series that is going off. They recently announced the Downhill Rockies series which will bring #USDH racing back to the Rocky Mountain region this year with a race at Angel Fire and Purgatory and possibly 5 races in 2023. Listen to some great stories and get stoked to go rip some laps with friends.

www.trailparty.com

www.downhillrockies.com

The Inside Line is brought to you by Jenson USA, your one-stop shop for mountain bikes, products and riding gear. Use coupon code InsideLine at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items at jensonusa.com.

Maxxis Tires make our bikes and The Inside Line go. Spring is here, so make sure your bike has new rubber for primed riding conditions. Hit up maxxis.com to see which tire fits your riding conditions and style best.

Santa Cruz Bicycles is giving $1m over three years to trail projects and advocacy groups through their PayDirt fund. If you have a project worth supporting or if you want to see which projects have been helped, hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to get all the info you need.

Welcome mountain bikers! Thanks for listening to Vital MTB's Inside Line podcast. Our guest today is Noah Sears of MRP, but you may know him in the Vital forums and comments as NoahColorado. Today we discuss Noah's skills in the comment box, how he got into bikes, his eBay-bike-parts-sales career, blogging, working for Over the Edge Sports, how he found his way to MRP, ebikes, gravel bikes and more.

The Inside Line is brought to you by Jenson USA, your one-stop-shop for mountain bikes, products and riding gear. Use coupon code InsideLine at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items at jensonusa.com.

Maxxis Tires make our bikes and The Inside Line go. Spring is here, so make sure your bike has new rubber for primed riding conditions. Hit up maxxis.com to see which tire fits your riding conditions and style best.

Santa Cruz Bicycles is giving $1m over three years to trail projects and advocacy groups through their PayDirt fund. If you have a project worth supporting or if you want to see which projects have been helped, hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to get all the info you need.

After almost a two-month break since the last World Cup, elite downhill racing returns to the Pyrenees Mountains of Andorra for World Champs this week. Rejoice! Tag along with Jason Schroeder, Tanner Stephens, and John Hall as they refresh your memory of who’s been fast this year, what happened during the long summer break, and discuss who will be in contention for the elusive rainbow stripes. 

0:00 - The crew catches up
3:30 - Monster Energy Downhill - Snow Summit / US National DH scene
8:30 - The growth of national series in the coming years
11:19 - Why no Aaron Gwin on the US Worlds team? + Aaron’s return to racing
18:09 - Richie Rude the DH racer
19:20 - Do racers share more info with each other at World Champs amongst fellow countrymen?
21:24 - How country federations play a part in World Champs
27:16 - 2024 season thus far…
37:40 - Races that happened during the summer break
50:24 - Fantasy info for World Champs
54:36 - Andorra track notes
1:02:35 - Fantasy Picks - Junior Women 
1:04:55 - Fantasy Picks - Junior Men
1:09:45 - Fantasy Picks - Elite Women
1:12:55 - Fantasy Picks - Elite Women

Ryan Condrashoff, a #USDH shredder, joins Griz on The Inside Line to discuss getting into mountain bikes, becoming a top U.S.-level rider, racing World Cups, dealing with injury and coming to grips with the reality that a professional race career is not in his future.

The Inside Line is brought to you by Jenson USA, your one-stop-shop for mountain bikes, products and riding gear. Use coupon code InsideLine at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items at jensonusa.com.

Maxxis Tires make our bikes and The Inside Line go. Spring is here, so make sure your bike has new rubber for primed riding conditions. Hit up maxxis.com to see which tire fits your riding conditions and style best.

Santa Cruz Bicycles is giving $1m over three years to trail projects and advocacy groups through their PayDirt fund. If you have a project worth supporting or if you want to see which projects have been helped, hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to get all the info you need.

Vital's B Practice Podcast kicks off with a post-race show discussing the Lourdes World Cup Downhill. Dakotah Norton, 11th place finisher in Lourdes, joins former #USDH World Cuppers, Jason Schroeder, Austin Hackett-Klaube and Tanner Stephens to discuss the first round in France. They ask Dak about his transition from YT to Intense, riding a brand new bike at the race, track difficulties, race results across all categories, why all the kits seem to look the same, Dak's color palette to stoke out his grandmother who's been diagnosed with cancer, and Fort William coming up. Oh, they apologize for leaving Luca out of the discussion. He's so good, it wasn't a shocker, HA!

See all of Vital's Lourdes World Cup Downhill coverage

Mountain biker, Kyle Warner, joins us on The Inside Line for his second appearance. Kyle recently got back on the bike after being sidelined with an adverse reaction to the Covid-19 vaccine. It's a very personal discussion about loss, depression, recovery and hope.

Kyle is involved with ReAct19, a research-focused, grassroots organization made up of patients, scientists and physicians.

You can watch Kyle and April's mountain bike videos on their channel - www.youtube.com/c/KyleAprilRideMtb

The Inside Line is brought to you by Jenson USA, your one-stop-shop for mountain bikes, products and riding gear. Use coupon code InsideLine at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items at jensonusa.com.

Maxxis Tires make our bikes and The Inside Line go. Spring is here, so make sure your bike has new rubber for primed riding conditions. Hit up maxxis.com to see which tire fits your riding conditions and style best.

Santa Cruz Bicycles is giving $1m over three years to trail projects and advocacy groups through their PayDirt fund. If you have a project worth supporting or if you want to see which projects have been helped, hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to get all the info you need.

Even after a fruitful World Cup- and National-level downhill race career over a decade ago, Kieran Bennett is still one of the fastest DH riders in New Zealand. The Kiwi pinner joins us on The Inside Line today to discuss how his mountain bike race campaign took shape, its highs, its lows, and where he's at today living in Nelson, NZ.

cover photo by Sven Martin

The Inside Line is supported by jensonusa.com, your one-stop shop for all things mountain biking. Use coupon code insideline at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Thank you to Maxxis tires for making The Inside Line go 'round and keeping Kieran on the gas. Maxxis.com is the place to find the perfect mountain bike tire for your riding style and terrain.

Lastly, thank you Santa Cruz Bicycles for supporting The Inside Line. Kieran rides Santa Cruz Bicycles, and we get into his experience with the V10cc MX.

Welcome mountain bikers. You’re listening to Vital MTB’s The Inside Line podcast and our guest today is industry legend, Mike Redding. Mike helped get the fastest and most exciting riders into Troy Lee gear back in the day, working with the likes of Steve Peat and Sam Hill just to name a few. He moved on to Fox, bringing that energy to their MTB marketing through big video projects and campaigns with Ratboy, Voreis, the McCauls and others. He’s currently consulting for Alpinestars, so we’re excited to see where he takes things there.  Sean ‘Griz’ McClendon walks with Mike through his story, battles with kidney failure and so much more. Mike, thank you, Griz, thank you, listeners, thank you! Enjoy the show!

The Inside Line is brought to you by Jenson USA, your one-stop shop for mountain bikes, products and riding gear. Use coupon code InsideLine at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items at jensonusa.com.

Maxxis Tires make our bikes and The Inside Line go. Spring is right around the corner, so make sure your bike has new rubber for primed riding conditions. Hit up maxxis.com to see which tire fits your riding conditions and style best.

Santa Cruz Bicycles is giving $1m over three years to trail projects and advocacy groups through their PayDirt fund. If you have a project worth supporting or if you want to see which projects have been helped, hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to get all the info you need.

Welcome mountain bikers! Thanks for tuning into Vital MTB's Inside Line podcast. Today's guest, Danny Macaskill, hardly needs an introduction as one of the world's most famous mountain bikers, so we'll get straight into it. Danny, thank you so much for your time, it was an honor. And listeners, thank you for being a part of The Inside Line journey for over 5 years now! Enjoy the show.

The Inside Line is supported by jensonusa.com, your one-stop shop for all things mountain biking. Use coupon code insideline at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Thank you to Maxxis tires for making The Inside Line go 'round, too. Maxxis.com is the place to find the perfect mountain bike tire for your riding style and terrain.

Lastly, thank you Santa Cruz Bicycles for supporting the inside line. Danny rides Santa Cruz bicycles, and we get into his fascination with ebikes and the new Heckler that just dropped.

Welcome mountain bikers! Thanks for tuning into The Inside Line. I apologize for the haggard voice on this intro as I'm battling some sickness. Speaking of sickness, today's episode with Theo Dilworth of Allout Productions is a cracker! Sean Griz McClendon, plays host as they discuss the good times of filming and riding bikes! Theo's video catalog runs deep and his influence on keeping our sport fun and fresh is unparalleled.

Please be aware that this show is not bleeped and there is adult language and subjects in this episode. Griz, Theo and all you Vital MTB listeners, thanks so much! Enjoy the show!

A big shoutout goes to Jenson USA, supporter of The Inside Line. Use coupon code insideline (all one word) and get 10% off qualifying items at JensonUSA.com

Maxxis tires make this show and our bikes roll. Who's a fan of the Minion DHR II? Vital staffers are. Hit up Maxxis.com to browse their lineup of mountain bike tires for any riding style and condition.

Santa Cruz Bicycles offers free, lifetime bearing replacement on their full-suspension bikes. Hit up santacruzbicycles.com to check out everything from the 5010 (my personal favorite) to the V10.

Welcome mountain bikers! Can you believe we started on this journey with The Inside Line podcast five years ago?! When we think about how fun mountain biking is and how incredible the people in our sport are, it’s no surprise that the time flew by. Everyone at Vital would like to thank you, the listener, for joining us on this ride. Rides with friends are always more fun and without you sharing the stoke with us, there’d be no reason to tell the stories from our community. Thank you!

We have a great show today with Joe Bowman of Steel City Media. Not just a man behind a video camera or social media channel, he’s pretty hand on a bike and is the reason The Union World Cup downhill team exists to help give young riders a shot at the big time. He is also the filmer behind the first Vital RAW with Adam Brayton at Schladming back in 2013!

Jenson USA has been with us for five years, supporting The Inside Line and you can support them by shopping for your bikes, parts and riding gear at JensonUSA.com. Inside Line listeners can receive 10% off qualifying items at checkout too, with coupon code InsideLine (all one word. Thank you Jenson!

Maxxis Tires has kept us on this audio trail for half a decade, too, thanks to their support. Whether they’re winning World Cup races or helping punters like me feel like Greg Minnaar on the trail, Maxxis has the mountain bike tires for any riding style or condition. Hit up maxxis.com

And while Santa Cruz is the frame sponsor of The Union team discussed in the show today, they’re also giving $1m to trail projects and initiatives through their PayDirt fund. Hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your project may be helped with their program. More trails, more smiles.

Again, thank you, listeners, we hope your new year is going well and we look forward to 5 more years of The Inside Line. Enjoy the show!

Handmade alloy downhill bikes, designed by Neko Mulally and fabricated by the infamous Frank the Welder will be hitting the World Cup DH circuit in 2022.

Welcome mountain bikers! It’s the last Inside Line episode of 2021, and we couldn’t be more excited to share a fun and enlightening conversation with Don Hampton of DH productions. Don is responsible for the Chain Reaction video series in the early 2000s and shedding light on the East Coast mountain biking scene through race action and freeride footage with riders like Aaron Chase, Kyle Ebbett, Jeff Lenosky and so many more. Don’s impact on our sport is  massive, and we're stoked to help share a bit of his story today. We hope the holidays have treated you well, and here’s to a new year. Enjoy the show!

With a new year coming in hot, make sure your ride is dialed. JensonUSA.com has plenty of bikes, components and riding gear to help you stay rolling in 2022. Use coupon code insideline at check out and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Maxxis has the meats…you know, like mountain bike tires? Now is a great time to freshen up your ride with some tires that are optimized for those winter conditions. Hit up maxxis.com to search for the tread pattern and construction best suited for your riding style and terrain.

Just because it may be snowy or rainy doesn’t mean trail building projects are on hold. For some areas, it’s prime digging season and for others, it’s a time to plan and prepare for hitting the dirt in the spring. Santa Cruz bicycles is making sure trail advocacy projects and groups are equipped thanks to their PayDirt fund. They’re donating over $1m to projects over three years. Hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your project could benefit.

There's a new national-level downhill mountain bike race series in the U.S. — Clay Harper has ushered in the Monster Energy Pro Downhill and is in its inaugural year, landing in Big Bear this weekend. Clay, our guest on The Inside Line this week, is no stranger to downhill finding his love for the sport back in 1996 with the likes of Kyle Ebbett, Lars Tribus, Todd Bosch, Ken Avery, Aaron Chase and more. The farm-raised New Jersey native is also responsible for creating one of America's most legendary bike parks by building the first trails at Mountain Creek. He was behind the founding of the U.S. Open of Mountain Biking and continues to run the event today. Let's not forget he even puts on the X Games Real MTB contest. If it involves downhill in the USA, there aren't many things Clayton hasn't done and his push to grow the sport in our country through the Pro Downhill Series is a testament to his dedication to the community. Enjoy this interview with an instrumental figure in #USDH...it's just the tip of the iceberg.

Learn more about Clay, the Pro Downhill Series and the U.S. Open

• @clayharper1
• @prodownhillseries
• @usopenmtb

Welcome mountain bikers. I’m really excited about today’s Inside Line podcast. Our guest started Rob Warner’s twitter account, helped logistically get the first Freecaster World Cup Downhill live streams off the ground, was the man behind Match Videozine, may be the biggest trials fan ever and was an athlete manager at Red Bull for years. This is just the tip of the iceberg when describing Aaron Lutze history in our sport. I hope you get a kick out of the stories and history with Aaron Lutze today, and maybe you’ll learn something new too. Enjoy the show!

See Aaron Lutze / Super Rider on Youtube

The Inside Line is brought to you by Jenson USA where you can get great deals on mountain bikes, riding gear and components. hit up jensonusa.com, do some shopping and use coupon code insideline all one word at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Maxxis tires make our bikes rolls and they help make The Inside Line roll, too. Check out maxxis.com to see their entire line of mountain bike tires for any and all conditions.

A big thanks goes out to Santa Cruz Bicycles for their support too. not only do they support our show, but they support trail-building programs and projects all over the globe through their Paydirt fund initiative. For more information on how your project could be supported, visit santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt. 

Welcome mountain bikers! Thanks for tuning into The Inside Line podcast. Today I’m stoked to have Dustin Zeis on the show. Dustin is the reason the Boise Bike Park keeps its flow and runs so well throughout riding season. As Head of Maintenance, he's a Boise city employee blending his passion for riding bikes with building trails. In this episode, we discuss how he turned his love of getting two wheels off the ground into a full-time job.

If you have a public bike park or trails system in your area, make sure you thank the people that make it run. It’s such a great time to be a mountain biker with so many places to ride. Enjoy the show!

The Inside Line is proud to have jensonusa.com as a sponsor of the show. They have some fantastic holiday sales going on right now, so scoop up some gifts for you and your loved ones. Use coupon code insideline at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Even though winter is coming in, Maxxis tires still keep us gripping and ripping on the trails, no matter what the conditions. I’m back to a Minion DHR II front and Aggressor rear combo on my Santa Cruz 5010, and they’ve been nothing but fast and predictable.

Speaking of Santa Cruz, they offer free lifetime bearing replacements on all their full-suspension frames, and they’ve pledged 1 million dollars over 3 years to trail projects and groups through their Paydirt Fund. 

Welcome mountain bikers. Today on the Inside Line, we have long-time friend and ripper, Evan Turpen on the show. Evan comes from Aptos, California, and grew up with the Post Office crew, racing and digging and shredding. Now, he’s set his sights on creating his own mountain bike brand, Contra, with a steel, American-made full suspension frame launching sometime next spring. We go deep into what it took to develop this bike, and a lot of this interview covers specific details of the bike itself, so if you want to see what we’re talking about, make sure you visit VitalMTB.com check it out.

The Inside Line is proudly presented by Maxxis Tires. Evan uses Maxxis tires on his personal bikes, currently running an Assegai front and Aggressor rear, both in Double Down casing. Hit up maxxis.com to see the full lineup.

JensonUSA.com supports the Inside Line and they’re celebrating their 26th year in business with an anniversary sale. Hit ‘em up, shop for bikes, parts and riding gear, and use coupon code “insideline” all one word at checkout to receive 10% off qualifying items.

Finally, Santa Cruz bicycles has pledged $1,000,000 over 3 years to trail projects and advocacy groups all over the world. hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to apply for a grant and to see which projects have already been approved!

Thanks so much, Evan! Let’s do some bike nerding!

Last month, Vital MTB had the opportunity to head to Colorado Springs, Colorado, to meet with the crew from RockShox and get a first-hand look at their all-new automatic suspension system, Flight Attendant. We sat down with RockShox Brand Manager, Jon Cancellier and Rockshox Software Engineer, Joe Schoolcraft, to discuss what it took to develop Flight Attendant. We talked about why RockShox originally set out to create an automatic suspension system, how the mechanics of each Flight Attendant component functions, what factors were considered when developing the Flight Attendant algorithm, and we finally touched on where RockShox sees this new technology going in the future.  

Our time in Colorado was filled with some awesome riding and provided the perfect opportunity to gain insight into what RockShox's goals were when developing Flight Attendant. We also experienced the trails and terrain that the system was tested on. Ultimately, we left with a great initial impression of how Flight Attendant can transform the pedaling efficiency of our mountain bikes. 

Welcome Mountain Bikers, thanks for tuning into Vital MTB’s The Inside Line podcast. Our guest today is Tyler McCaul. We catch up with him at home in Southern Utah as he prepares for Red Bull Rampage coming up soon. TMAC shares details of his near career-ending injury, the challenging recovery process and how it’s changed his outlook on the capabilities of the human body. We talk all things freeride, his chops as a contest commentator and dabble in some old good times, too. Tyler, thank you for being our guest today.

The Inside Line is brought to you by Jenson USA.com. Use coupon code insideline (all one word) at check out and receive 10% off qualifying items.

Maxxis tires hook us up on the trail and for the show. Speed, grip and durability are what make Maxxis mountain bike tires the best.

Santa Cruz Bicycles has pledged $1,000,000 to trail-building projects and advocacy groups over three years. Their Paydirt Fund is helping get new trails built all over. Hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your trail project can apply.

Enjoy the show!

Photo provided by Red Bull Content Pool

Raw audio interviews from the 2021 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Downhill in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. Thank you to SRAM for their support of our race coverage.

Interviews in order
Emilie Siegenthaler on Retiring
Myriam Nicole, Elite Women's Winner
Izabela Yankova, Junior Women's Winner
Loris Vergier, Elite Men's Winner
PA - Loris Vergier's mechanic
Jackson Goldstone, Junior Men's Winner
Tahnee Seagrave, Elite Women's 2nd place
Loic Bruni, Elite Men's 2nd place
Vali Holl, Elite Women's 3rd place
Thibaut Daprela, Elite Men's 3rd place
Amaury Pierron, Elite Men's 4th place
Eddie Masters
Kade Edwards

Enjoy the photos from Sven Martin, @maddogboris and Dan Hearn on Vital MTB.
A big thank you to RockShox for supporting Vital MTB's World Champs coverage. 

Order of the interviews are as follows
Jackson Goldstone
Myriam Nicole
Benoit Coulanges
Jordan Williams
Camille Balanche
Troy Brosnan
Loris Vergier
Vali Holl
Amaury Pierron
Loic Bruni
Cecile Ravanel on behalf of Antoine Vidal
Thibaut Daprela
Cam Cole and Wyn Masters,
Ben Cathro
Tahnee Seagrave
Arthur, the engineer from Commencal
Greg Minnaar (the same post-race interview you listened to in his standalone podcast)

Welcome mountain bikers. The Inside Line podcast is supported by Maxxis Tires and Santa Cruz bikes. Coincidentally, Greg Minnaar, your 2021 Elite Men's Downhill World Champion is supported by them too, so if there ever was a sponsor tie-in for a podcast, this is it! Before we go further though, you can shop for all kinds of products Greg runs at JensonUSA.com too. If you use coupon code, InsideLine at checkout, you'll receive 10% off qualifying items.

Sven Martin, long-time friend of Greg and Vital media guru at large captured a fantastic weekend of World Champs activity. He and Greg discussed all his past world champs wins prior to the race, with candor and transparency, and then they were able to get together after Greg won again this year to discuss how it all came together. The class act that Minnaar is, he deflects to his support crew as the reason he won, and Sven manages to get their insight too with Lyle, Greg's mechanic, Laura, his physical trainer, Jordi from FOX and the legend himself, Rob Roskopp. There's even a bonus clip with Arthur, an engineer at Commencal, discussing the V10 as Greg listens on.

Thank you Sven, congratulations Greg! Enjoy the show and make sure you hit VitalMTB.com for all the action from a mind-blowing weekend at World Champs.

Join Jason Schroeder,  Tanner Stephens and the Rooted MTB Crew to talk about everything related to the 2021 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships and #USDH racers.

Jenson USA makes the Inside Line go. You can shop for all kinds of mountain bikes and products at JensonUSA.com, and if you use coupon code insideline at checkout, you can save 10% off qualifying items. Thank you Jenson!

Maxxis Tires help us keep the microphones plugged in and let me just say that the other day I was on a bike with a front tire that wasn’t an Assegai and it was primo, loose, dusty Assegai conditions. Needless to say, I wish I had the Assegai on that day. Maxxis.com will let you figure out which mountain bike tire works best for you and your conditions.

Interestingly enough, Greg Minnaar designed the Assegai and he also shreds Santa Cruz Bicycles. The GOAT knows what’s up and even if he wasn’t the goat, if he was a regular rider like you or me, he’d still get free lifetime bearing replacements on any Santa Cruz bike that he owned. to find your local Santa Cruz dealer, hit up santacruzbicycles.com

History in the making thanks to Sven Martin and @maddogboris.  Audio interviews from our slideshow on VitalMTB.com

Thanks to  Maxxis Tires, FOX and Jenson USA  for supporting The Inside Line MTB podcast!

While visiting Mountain Creek Bike Park in New Jersey, for a Vital Enduro Fork Test Session project, I caught up with local legend, George Ryan. I met George in person about 20 years ago, but knew of him before that because of his online persona in old-timey forums and his presence in videos like the Chain Reaction series. Over the years we'd see each other at events or on photo shoots, so it was a massive pleasure to sit down with him and hear his full story. To my surprise, he's a big-time MTB keepsake collector and he showed up with old jerseys, DVDs, magazines and even a Shaun Palmer baseball card. We discuss his journey into mountain biking, turning pro and eventually becoming the main man in charge of trails at Mountain Creek. Enjoy the episode and hit up Vital MTB to soak up some of his old relics he has stashed away. I've put some of my photos from 2005 decline work down below too. Thanks so much, Muffin!

(If you want to see epic late 90s early 2000s downhill race TV broadcasts that he recorded as a kid, hassle him on Instagram so he'll get them uploaded : )

USA Cycling's World Championships team selection debacle, Tanner Stephens and plenty of #USDH comedy and questions with Jason Schroeder and the crew at Rooted MTB. 

Enjoy the audio interviews with the racers from the 2021 Maribor World Cup Downhill. Sven Martin and @maddogboris get the inside scoops.

See the slideshow with incredible photos on VitalMTB.com

Sven Martin and Boris Beyer talk to World Cup Downhill racers at the 2021 Maribor World Cup Downhill race. Hit www.vitalmtb.com to see the slideshow full of great photos that go with these interviews.

 Welcome mountain bikers,

Today on Vital MTB’s The Inside Line podcast are two of my favorite humans - Cam McCaul and Taylor Sage. Cam’s been on the show before, TSage hasn’t, and I’m not even kidding about their Cats Don’t Need Dollars video getting me so hyped, I wanted to talk to them about it on the show.

Jenson USA makes the Inside Line go. You can shop for all kinds of mountain bikes and products at JensonUSA.com, and if you use coupon code insideline at checkout, you can save 10% off qualifying items. Thank you Jenson!

Maxxis Tires help us keep the microphones plugged in and let me just say that the other day I was on a bike with a front tire that wasn’t an Assegai and it was primo, loose, dusty Assegai conditions. Needless to say, I wish I had the Assegai on that day. Maxxis.com will let you figure out which mountain bike tire works best for you and your conditions.

Interestingly enough, Greg Minnaar designed the Assegai and he also shreds Santa Cruz Bicycles. The GOAT knows what’s up and even if he wasn’t the goat, if he was a regular rider like you or me, he’d still get free lifetime bearing replacements on any Santa Cruz bike that he owned. to find your local Santa Cruz dealer, hit up santacruzbicycles.com

I hope you have fun with the episode as some old folks try do decipher the meaning of a TikTok and the nuances YouTube Algorithm. I’ve re-bumped Cam and TSage’s Cat’s Don’t Need Dollars video to the top of the Vital homepage, so if you haven’t watched it, go do it, make sure you tune in to Cam McCaul’s YouTube channel for great content that isn’t about manual trainers or body position on the bike, and enjoy the show!

Jason Schroeder and Rooted MTB are back with another episode of #USDH Unfiltered. They discuss the 2021 U.S. National Mountain Bike Championships that just took place at Trestle Bike Park in Winter Park, Colorado. Three national champions call into the show, Kailey Skelton, Chris Grice and Dakotah Norton and Nik Nestoroff and Austin Dooley jump in too!

Welcome mountain bikers, I'm honored to be joined by three fantastic guests on this episode of The Inside Line. We will discuss mountain biking and head injuries. None of us are scientific or medical experts on the subject, but during the last World Cup DH race webcast from Les Gets, Jeff Brines and I were texting and discussing Thibaut Daprela’s incredible race-winning run with the sidebar of his recent knockout crash at French National Champs a week prior. I said let’s do an Inside Line about the subject and here we are.

Discuss your experiences and information about head injuries in our forum here

Jeff, has been a Vital MTB bike and product tester, he's long-time DH and enduro racer, he’s one of the few people to have owned a handmade carbon BCD bike from Alex Morgan, and, he may be one of Vital’s most prolific site commenters based on number of characters typed over the last decade. I’d have to imagine it’s a close call between him and Primoz.

Matt is co-owner of Momentum Trail Concepts, long-time friend and bike racer, he has the rainbow stripes of a Masters World Champion, and he’s legitimately the reason Vital MTB exists (listen to his Inside Line from a few years ago to find out why).

Craig "Stikman" Glaspell is the main MTB marketing man over at Troy Lee Designs, known for their D-series helmets and riding gear. He has years of experience as a World Cup DH mechanic and industry vet and was an influential mountain bike website entrepreneur in the very early 2000s.

Jeff and Matt are both on the show because they have plenty of experience racing and dealing with bike-related head injuries. They’ll tell their stories. Stik comes at us with industry experience in the helmet and protection category, as well as being in the position of a person who pays his sponsored athletes to ride their bikes and risk injury as a result.

We’re not trying to single out Thibaut as an example. His performance is what got us talking. Andrew Neethling and Ed Masters discussed Thibaut's crash a bit on Moving the Needle last week, which was awesome, and it seems, at least from our perspective, that there’s a growing concern for safety among our community.

Thank You Supporters of The Inside Line

Vital MTB’s The Inside Line podcast is brought to you by Jenson USA. If you need a mountain bike helmet or protective gear, jensonusa.com has you covered. Use coupon code insideline at checkout and receive 10% off qualifying items, too!

Slide your summer around with Maxxis tires and think about throwing on a Minion SS out back on your trail bike with a Minion DHR II up front. You’ll be rolling fast and surfin’ those corners, hootin’ and hollering along the way. Hit up maxxis.com for all your mountain bike tire needs or to find a local dealer

Thank you to Santa Cruz Bicycles for their support of the show. They offer free, lifetime bearing replacement on all of their bikes, and they’re giving away $1,000,000 over three years to trail building projects and initiatives through their Paydirt fund. There's nothing better than more trails!

Welcome to Vital MTB's USDH unfiltered. We kicked it off with a Les Gets World Cup Downhill pre-game show with host and Vital MTB Tech Editor, Jason Schroeder, and the crew at Rooted MTB. They get ahold of Dakotah Norton over in Europe for his perspective on how the racing has gone and how it will go this weekend. They talk gossip, race predictions, the woes of being a b-practice punter, and plenty more as another epic weekend of World Cup downhill racing kicks off in France. Despite internet struggles and technical difficulties, they charged on and made this happen, and we're excited for more to come throughout the year!

Please note there is some adult language and this was recorded before Thibaut Daprela and Amaury Pierron went down hard at French Nationals. We wish both of those riders strong recoveries and make sure you hit VitalMTB.com for all the race action this weekend!

 

We're honored to have Aaron Gwin back on The Inside Line podcast. He was on the show a few years back and with the World Cup Downhill in Les Gets on the horizon, we figured it was time to reconnect. In this episode we discuss his struggles at the first World Cup DH race in Les Gets, the challenges of being a podium-level racer now and if his training has changed over the years. Bike development with Intense is a topic of conversation as is being present on social media. Does he remain a bike racer only or does he share thoughts and questions about social and political ideas on Instagram? Enjoy the show as one of the fastest bike racers on the planet opens up.

Cover photo by Dan Hearn

Thank you to jensonusa.com for supporting the Inside Line for over 4 years now. Shop for mountain bikes, components and riding gear and use coupon code insideline (all one word) at checkout so can save you 10% off on qualifying items.

Summertime is the right time to try something different on your bike and Maxxis tires will let you slide around with a semi-slick or go big and grippy with a DoubleDown or DH casing. hit up maxxis.com for all tire sizes and constructions.

Finally, Santa Cruz and their Paydirt program are putting in $1m toward trail projects and over three years. They’ve already empowered some advocacy groups and are ready for more. hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your project can be supported.

Amy Morrison is a born competitor. After a youth spent water skiing and being a Division 1 pole vaulter for Clemson, she found mountain biking. The perfect storm of timing, talent, and work ethic had Amy join the pro enduro ranks in a few short seasons. She has a pile of race wins to her name, including National Champ and most recently, winner of the TDS Enduro.

More than a racer, Amy is a teacher, a coach, and an advocate for a healthy lifestyle that includes riding bikes. She's hooking the youth on bikes and coaching newer riders. Beyond winning races, she has a focus on the mountain bike community as a whole.

As much love as Amy has for the sport, mountain biking is better off with her in it. Hang tight as Amy sits down with Brad Howell to discuss her journey through racing and what the future may hold.

Thank you to jensonusa.com for supporting the Inside Line for over 4 years now. Shop for mountain bikes, components and riding gear and use coupon code insideline (all one word) at checkout so can save you 10% off on qualifying items.

Springtime is a fun time to try something different on your bike and Maxxis tires will let you slide around with a semi-slick or go big and grippy with a DoubleDown or DH casing. hit up maxxis.com for all tire sizes and constructions.

Finally, Santa Cruz and their Paydirt program are putting in $1m toward trail projects and over three years. They’ve already empowered some advocacy groups and are ready for more. hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your project can be supported.

Mountain bike legend and last #USDH racer to win a Downhill World Championship, Myles Rockwell, joins us on The Inside Line today. Austin Hackett-Klaube joins Myles to discuss everything from mobbing bikes around the streets of San Francisco as a kid to becoming one the fastest mountain bike racers on the planet. We're honored to have him on the show!

Thanks to Yeti Cycles for the throwback thumbnail photo

A big thanks goes out to Jenson USA, supporter of The Inside Line for the last four years! Keep your bike running strong with parts from Jenson. If you use coupon code “insideline” all one word at checkout on jensonusa.com, you’ll receive 10% off qualifying items. Thank you Jenson!

Maxxis Tires just launched the updated Shorty tire. You can check out our review on VitalMTB.com with Squamish shredder, Joel Harwood, who gives it 4.5 out of 5 stars. A specialty tire for wet conditions, the Shorty is available now on maxxis.com

 Santa Cruz Bicycles, through their Paydirt initiative is donating $1 million to trail projects over 3 years. You can see current funding recipients or submit your project to the program at santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt

If Val di Sole delivered an exciting and memorable race, then Les Gets bumped things up a notch. Our guy stack-attack Dak was having a perfect weekend until the weather had a different plan, and some miscalculated race prep led to an underwhelming finish. It was still a solid weekend for the world's fastest podcast co-host, but the limelight was stolen (again) by Amaury Pierron, who executed a legendary race run on home soil (again).  

With our crew spread out across the world this week, it was just Dakotah and I who linked up to chat about the weekend. We chatted about what happened with his visor and goggle setup in the rain, how Amaury did what he did, where Dak went wrong with his race prep, why mud races are the best, escaping the finish corral, and where overalls sit going into the last two rounds of the season. Enjoy!

Austin, Harrison, Wiley and Kasen from Rooted MTB keep the discussion going about the state of downhill mountain bike racing in the USA. They reflect on their experience at the first National level race at Windrock a few weeks ago and call Dakotah Norton to see what it means to be one of the country's fastest racers on the World Cup circuit. Finally they connect with Matt Thompson and Steve Wentz of Momentum Trail Concepts to gain insight of what it took to put on DH races a decade ago and what it may take now.

Listen to Rooted's first Inside Line podcast

Follow Rooted MTB on Instagram @rootedmtb

Thank you to jensonusa.com for supporting the Inside Line for over 4 years now. Shop for mountain bikes, components and riding gear and use coupon code insideline (all one word) at checkout so can save you 10% off on qualifying items.

Springtime is a fun time to try something different on your bike and Maxxis tires will let you slide around with a semi-slick or go big and grippy with a DoubleDown or DH casing. hit up maxxis.com for all tire sizes and constructions.

Finally, Santa Cruz and their Paydirt program are putting in $1m toward trail projects and over three years. They’ve already empowered some advocacy groups and are ready for more. hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your project can be supported.

We're honored to have Sam Hill, one of mountain biking's most successful and exciting gravity racers, on The Inside Line today. Brett Pengelley spends a few hours with Sam at his home in Western Australia to discuss everything from his race career to family life to bike setup to flat-pedal-dominance and what his future looks like. There is even a lightning round at the end with questions from riders like Troy Brosnan, Brook Macdonald, Loic Bruni and more. Don't miss his answer to the very last question, which is probably the best thing we've heard all year!

Thank you Sam, Brett and all of you listeners out there!

Thank you to jensonusa.com for supporting the Inside Line for over 4 years now. Shop for mountain bikes, components and riding gear and use coupon code insideline (all one word) at checkout so can save you 10% off on qualifying items.

Springtime is a fun time to try something different on your bike and Maxxis tires will let you slide around with a semi-slick or go big and grippy with a DoubleDown or DH casing. hit up maxxis.com for all tire sizes and constructions.

Finally, Santa Cruz and their Paydirt program are putting in $1m toward trail projects and over three years. They’ve already empowered some advocacy groups and are ready for more. hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your project can be supported.

Welcome mountain bikers! Thanks for listening to Vital MTB’s The Inside Line Podcast. We have a double-dipper of a treat today. We wax nostalgic and catch up with Henry O’Donnell, one of the original Santa Cruz Syndicate racers. He grew up in Downieville and found mountain bike success with help from Greg Williams, the main man behind the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship, who’s also on the show. We touch on Henry’s race career, why he just seemed to vanish from racing, and then get into some history of the Stewardship and what they’re doing in the Sierra Nevadas with some massive trail-building projects that connect various mountain towns in the region.

Henry, Greg, thank you for your time and listeners, as always, thank you for taking the time to hear us talk about mountain biking! Hope you’re staying safe and getting some quality ride time in!

Thank you to jensonusa.com for supporting the Inside Line for over 4 years now. Shop for mountain bikes, components and riding gear and use coupon code insideline (all one word) at checkout so can save you 10% off on qualifying items.

Spring time is a fun time to try something different on your bike and Maxxis tires will let you slide around with a semi-slick or go big and grippy with a DoubleDown or DH casing. hit up maxxis.com for all tire sizes and constructions.

Finally, Santa Cruz and their Paydirt program are putting in $1m toward trail projects and over three years. They’ve already empowered some advocacy groups and are ready for more. hit up santacruzbicycles.com/paydirt to see how your project can be supported.