In this episode, Matt and Jeff talk about the latest mountain bike drivetrain developments from electronic shifting to Eagle Transmission. What are the advantages of electronic shifting? What are the disadvantages? How does the new SRAM Eagle Transmission wireless electronic drivetrain compare to AXS? What's the deal with dropouts? Is UDH going to be the standard? How have consumers and readers responded to the Eagle Transmission news? How do you think Shimano will respond? We'll also recap some of the latest mountain bike trail and gear news at the top of the show. Let us know what you think! The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

Yvonne Kraus is the executive director of Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance, a mountain bike organization dedicated to creating, maintaining, and protecting sustainable mountain biking opportunities in Washington. Evergreen, if you don't know,  is one of the largest, if not the largest, statewide mountain bike association in the US with 8 regional chapters and thousands of members. How did Evergreen get its start? How does Evergreen divide responsibilities between its chapters and the top-level organization? How have the challenges facing mountain bikers in Washington changed since the group was first formed? What are some of the most popular trail systems in the state? What does e-bike trail access look like in the state of Washington currently?  Do you have any new MTB trails in the planning stage, or currently under construction? Is there much of a push for mountain bike tourism in Washington? What are the primary funding sources for Evergreen? What’s the biggest constraint that Evergreen faces in carrying out and growing the mission? What’s next for Evergreen? Connect with the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance and find was to support the group at evergreenmtb.org. The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

Nate Zukas is a bike frame builder living in Augusta, GA. He's been building bikes since 2011 and works in steel, titanium, and aluminum. How'd you get started as a frame builder?  Is it unusual for a frame builder to work in both steel and aluminum? What's different about working with the two materials? As a frame builder, how much are you able to affect a bike's ride feel and performance? How do you do it? What do you look for in a project or a client? How much of a frame build is your vision versus the client's? In terms of what you bring to the build, how much of it is artistry versus practicality and experience? What trends are you seeing in terms of the types of frames buyers want? Which projects are you most proud of? Have you ever had a project that was a disaster, or one that surprised you in another way? Is Augusta a good place to be a frame builder? What's the riding community like there? What's your vision for the future of Zukas Cycles? Is expansion a goal for you? Website: zukascycles.com. Instagram: @natezukas. The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

Lachlan Morton is a professional cyclist and mountain biker from Australia, currently riding for  UCI WorldTeam EF Education–EasyPost. He's notched podium finishes at the Leadville 100, rode the Fastest Known Time for Kokopelli's Trail in 2020,  and set the Everesting cycling world record in 2020. He also completed the Alt Tour in 2021, cycling the entire Tour de France route unsupported, beating the peloton by five days. In this interview we ask: Congrats on your podium finish at Unbound earlier this month. Were you thinking there might be such a close finish from the beginning of the race? How did you get into cycling competition initially? Has your motivation for racing changed? What did you learn while riding and filming Thereabouts in 2014?  We've heard that you're hoping to make a run at the record for circumnavigating the world by bike. Is an attempt still on your radar? Have you mapped out a potential route? How long do you think it would take? Is it risky to publicize an FKT attempt before you make it? It seems like a lot of your adventures are tied to fundraising for various non-profits. Which causes are near and dear to your heart? Are you someone who learns by reading books and listening to others, or are you more of an experiential learner? How is EF a good sponsorship fit for you? In Thereabouts you mention riding a frankenbike as a kid that didn't have brakes. What did that teach you about riding? About life? Is there a pressure on professional athletes to have a strong social media presence today? How does that compare to 5-10 years ago? How can the sport support pro athletes better, and how can athletes better support the sport? In the video of your Kokopelli FKT run you look super calm and collected. Is that an accurate reflection of how you were feeling? Do you think you could have done it faster? What do you want your legacy to be? Keep up with Lachlan @lachlanmorton and EF Education-EasyPost @efprocycling Photo credit: EF Education-EasyPost. The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

We're re-sharing one of our favorite episodes from 2022, so be sure to listen in case you missed it! Check back next week for more another fresh episode. Dr. Matt Miller is the inventor and founder of Brake Ace, a sensor that collects data about your braking and an app that makes braking recommendations to help you ride smarter.  He’s also a former elite-level mountain bike racer and has coached riders at all levels of the sport. In this episode we ask: How did you make your way up to the elite level of mountain bike competition? Why did you decide to look at braking performance as a part of your PhD program? What does the Brake Ace sensor look like, and how does it work? How difficult is the hardware side in terms of development? What’s different about your approach to studying braking performance? How did you figure out which metrics to focus on? Let’s talk about some common braking questions.Does the front brake generally offer more stopping power than the rear? Is locking up a wheel and skidding bad in terms of speed and/or performance, or is it desirable in certain situations? Should mountain bikers brake before a turn? How soon? Should we brake at all once we’re in the turn? What are some common braking skills riders need to work, or bad habits they need to break?How do the pros compare to weekend warriors in terms of braking skills? Do some of us brake too often? Could working on things like cornering and overall confidence allow us to simply brake less? Mountain bikers seem to be split between preferring brakes that modulate power, and those that have a quick bite. Is one better than the other in terms of performance? If bigger rotors offer better stopping power, why not max them out? Is it just because of weight, or is there another consideration? Tell us a bit about the MTB scene in Rotorua. How has it grown and changed over the past few years? Learn more at brakeace.com and sign up for their email list to be notified about availability. Cover photo by Tyler Perrin. The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

Travis Tomczak is the Global Marketing Director at Forge + Bond. The company manufactures bike wheels and accessories using a lightweight material known as FusionFiber. How does carbon fiber rim manufacturing generally work?  What are some of the challenges associated with carbon fiber manufacturing? Are there limitations in terms of how the material can be used, or how it performs? How is FusionFiber different from carbon fiber in terms of the materials used and the manufacturing process? How are sheets of FusionFiber manufactured? How is a sheet of FusionFiber shaped into a product at Forge+Bond, for example a rim? Are there any performance advantages of FusionFiber over traditional carbon fiber? Is it more expensive to manufacture rims from FusionFiber than carbon fiber?  Is FusionFiber infinitely recyclable, or does the material degrade each time it's recycled? Can the scraps or recycled rims, for example, be used to create new rims? Where can consumers recycle their FusionFiber rims? With so many different polymer choices and layups available, could a particular blend of FusionFiber make sense for handlebars or even bike frames?  What is Forge+Bond's connection to CSS Composites, the company that produces FusionFiber rims for brands like Evil and Revel? With such a new material and technology, what sort of product testing has Forge+Bond done? How do you handle product warranty claims? What's next for Forge+Bond? The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

Chris Mandell is the North American Public Relations Manager for SRAM where he's worked for the past 8 years. He currently lives and rides in Bellingham, Washington.  Is mountain biking suspension harder to design than say suspension for cars or motorcycles? What's different? How much of RockShox testing is real world vs. lab based? Is shock heat management important for the average rider? What is the advantage of larger diameter fork stanchions? What's the idea behind the electronic suspension controls in SRAM Flight Attendant? Why aren't there more inverted fork designs? What are some common misunderstandings about mountain bike suspension? Are suspension designers as focused on reducing weight as they have been in the past? By loosening weight requirements, what improvements can be made? What's your method for setting up a new fork? Which suspension innovations are you most stoked about? A full, edited transcript is available at singletracks.com. The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

Ernie Rodriguez is the president of MORE, the Mid Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts. MORE has been around since 1992 and the group maintains and advocates for trails in Maryland, Virginia, and the Washington, DC area. Why and how did MORE get its start? Did it start as more of a social club, or were there advocacy concerns in the early 1990s? How is MORE organized? How did you become the president of MORE?  How is MORE funded?  What is the relationship between MORE and IMBA? What are some of the more popular trails your group supports? Which trail projects are you the most proud to have helped support? Is there any opposition to mountain bike trail access in the region? What does the current discussion around e-bike trail access look like for MORE? What’s the biggest constraint MORE faces in carrying out and growing the mission? What’s next for MORE in 2023 and beyond? Connect with MORE at more-mtb.org. The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

We're re-sharing one of our favorite episodes from 2022, so be sure to listen in case you missed it! Check back next week for more another fresh episode. In 2006 Goat and two friends set out to ride mountain bikes from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, the southernmost tip of South America, and after three and a half years of travel, the trio completed the mother of all bikepacking trips. Riding the Spine is just one of many adventures Goat has experienced over the years, including living in a tree house and building and working on countless bikes. In this episode we ask: How did you upbringing influence your adventure-based lifestyle? How did you get into cycling, and particularly long-distance riding? What was it like living in a treehouse for 4 years during college? How did the idea of Riding the Spine come about? Who was in the group? What was your bike setup at the start, and how did it evolve during the ride? Why did you and the crew get arrested in Arizona? Which sections were your favorites to ride? Have you been on any bike adventures since the trip? Do you have any planned for the future? Get more stories from Riding the Spine at ridingthespine.com and keep up Goat's latest adventures at wandergoat.com. Cover photo by Melinda Thompson. The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred.

We're re-sharing one of our favorite episodes from 2022, so be sure to listen in case you missed it! Check back soon for more fresh episodes. Wende Cragg has been a part of mountain biking since the beginning of the sport in California in the 1970s, racing and photographing the early Repack races down Mt. Tam. She was inducted into the mountain bike hall of fame in 1989 and curates the Rolling Dinosaur Archive which chronicles the birth of mountain biking. Tell us a bit about your introduction to mountain biking. Was it love at first ride? Which aspects of riding a bicycle off road were most appealing to you? How would you describe the feeling of those first rides? What was your motivation for taking photographs in the early days of mountain biking? What was it like connecting with riders in Crested Butte who were sorta discovering mountain biking in parallel with you and your friends in the Bay Area?How was their idea of mountain biking different from the one being developed in California? Were you surprised to see mountain bikers banned from riding on Mt. Tam in the early 80s? How did you react? Did you get frustrated with the early bikes? Do you think today’s mountain bikes make the sport more appealing or accessible? How do electric mountain bikes fit in? What do you hope people get out of seeing and experiencing the Rolling Dinosaur Archive? With so many styles of riding within mountain biking today, which interpretation do you think gets closest to that original ethos? Photo: Rolling Dinosaur Archive The Singletracks podcast is brought to you by TPC -- The Pro’s Closet. Spring is the perfect time to upgrade, and TPC has an industry-leading selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned bikes, plus frames, wheels and accessories. Each Certified, Pre-Owned bike is inspected, tested and serviced, and every bike includes thirty day returns. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tpc.bike/singletracks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and enter code Singletracks40 to save forty dollars on every order over two hundred. Search the Singletracks podcast archive for interviews with more mountain bike pioneers including Joe Breeze, Gary Fisher, Charlie Kelly, and Tom Ritchey.