Singletracks Mountain Bike Podcast

Nick Bennette is the Executive Director of the Vermont Mountain Bike Association, a position he's held for a little over two years. The group recently put together a 5-year Strategic Plan to "ensure the sustainability of mountain biking in Vermont and thoughtfully promote exceptional riding experiences for all through advocacy, education, and community-driven stewardship." How did your experience as a consultant help you craft the VMBA 5-year Strategic Plan?   Vermont was an early adopter of a state advocacy model apart from IMBA. How has the VMBA Chapter model evolved since it was first launched? How does Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion fit with trail advocacy? Aside from being the right thing to do, how does it benefit the MTB community? Is e-bike access a hot topic in Vermont? Do you think it's been framed properly in the past? How did VMBA get to 10,000 dues paying members? Is advocating for trails easier today than it has been in the past? Are there additional considerations involved when public trails are located on private property? Is relying on volunteers to help build and maintain trails viable in a state like Vermont where so many trail users live out of state? What's so great about mountain biking on the east coast of the US? Why is there a perception that the trails are better out west? Learn more about the Vermont Mountain Bike Association at vmba.org and view their strategic plan here. Photo credit: Mark Clement. 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.

Ryan Gaul is the Trek Factory Racing DH team manager and technical director. He’s been at Trek for about 10 years and is based in Madison, WI. How close to stock do DH and enduro riders run their bikes? Which aspects of a bike are modified to suit track conditions, and what stays the same for every race? Do World Cup racers take many risks when it comes to equipment, or are they pretty conservative? Is it common to run test parts, or prototypes in races? Is it difficult to convince athletes to try new components on their bikes? What type of race information is useful for product designers at the brand? How do you collect and communicate that information? How many spare parts/bikes do you bring to a World Cup race for each athlete? Are most athletes pretty involved in working on their own bikes? What’s the most stressful part of a World Cup weekend for you? Keep up with the Trek Factory Racing team at racing.trekbikes.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.

Matt Shriver is the General Manager and technical director for the Trek Factory Racing cross country team and is based in Durango Colorado. He’s a former pro rider himself and previously served as the technical director for the Trek WorldTour road team for seven years. How did you make the transition from professional racing to managing race teams? What are the responsibilities of a pro team liaison? Does Trek Factory Racing provide coaching resources to athletes, or do athletes tend to bring their own training team? Some pro teams are organized as collectives, while others like Trek Factory Racing seem to lean on more of a team model. Are there different philosophies among the different racing groups in MTB? Is mountain biking a team sport? Is there a lot of strategy in MTB racing? How does recovery work between races? Is there much downtime for the staff and athletes in between events? How are team athletes selected? What is the most stressful part of being a team liaison? How intrusive are anti-doping protocols for athletes and staff? How does a brand like Trek measure the success of their race team? Do you think the current international MTB competition model is sustainable? For core mountain bikers who love riding but don’t necessarily follow pro racing, why should they start paying attention to races? What can we learn from watching World Cup competitions? In an upcoming episode we'll also talk with Ryan from the Trek Factory Racing DH team. Keep up with the Trek Factory Racing team at racing.trekbikes.com. Photo credit: Trek Factory Racing. 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.

Dr. Kristin E. Keim is a sports psychologist and a member of the US Olympic Committee Sport Psychology and Mental Training Registry. She has helped countless individual athletes and teams achieve their goals using a holistic, strength-based approach to sports psychology. (Click here or see the link below for Dr. Keim's complete bio). In this interview, we ask Dr. Keim: What are some of the areas where athletes like mountain bikers face mental challenges? Is it common for athletes to incorporate mental skills training into their preparations? Do you have any tips for helping folks get through a tough workout, or even just a really tough part of a ride? Is positive visualization an important part of developing a winning mindset? What are some things that make it tough to stay motivated? Are there any shortcuts to developing confidence? How do we get it back after a crash? Is happiness connected to athletic performance? Do you get nervous before a race or competition? How do you calm your nerves? Connect with Dr. Keim and find out about the services she offers through Keim Performance Consulting at keimperformanceconsulting.com. Photo credit: by Jared Harber. 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.

Karlos Bernart is the Founder, Off Road Architect, & Event Mastermind at Singletrack Samurai. His group organizes and plans a number of rides and bike routes in Florida including the Huracan 300, CFITT, and the Florida Divide. How did you get into mountain biking and route planning? Is your goal to include as much singletrack as possible when you design bikepacking routes like the Huracan 300? How has the route evolved over the years, and why? Is it difficult coordinating access with land managers along the route for a long, 100+ mile rides? How do you know when you’ve added the right number of challenges to a route? Do you try to balance difficulty with enjoyability? What is the right size for an race like the Huracan? How much time do you spend scouting new routes, and verifying that existing ones still work? Of all the Florida off-road routes you’ve assembled, which one is your favorite? Which one do you recommend for folks who want the full Florida off-road experience? Which bikepacking gear developments do you think have made bikepacking more accessible and enjoyable over the past 5-10 years? How do you motivate someone who is having a bad ride? Do you have any mental tricks or strategies for getting yourself through the toughest parts of a big ride? Find out more about biking in Florida at singletracksamurai.com. --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks.com and on Instagram @singletracks

Lennard Zinn is a bike designer and frame builder with a shop  in Louisville, Colorado. He was a member of the U.S. Olympic cycling team and worked with Tom Ritchey on some of the earliest mountain bikes. He’s also the author of Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance, one of the world’s best selling guides to mountain bike repair. In this episode we ask: How did you get into designing and building bikes? Zinn and the Art of MTB Maintenance was first published in 1996, and it’s now in its 6th edition. What’s changed over the years? Are today’s bikes easier to work on than bikes were 10, or 20 years ago? Why? What are the challenges involved in fitting taller riders? What have you learned about crank lengths over the years? Do tall cyclists have any particular advantages when it comes to power or bike handling? What are the considerations in terms of frame design for bigger and heavier riders? Is any of this applicable to more aggressive mountain bike designs, and vice versa? What are the main factors that influence a bike tire’s rolling resistance? What led you to write about heart conditions in athletes in your latest book, heart conditions in athletes? What did you learn through researching the book? Did your own heart condition influence your decision to build your first e-bike? Is there room for further bike fit improvements in the future? Which tech trends are you excited about? Find out more at zinncycles.com or order Haywire Heart from Amazon.

Mike Repyak is the Director of Planning and Design at Trail Solutions, the trail development arm of the International Mountain Biking Association. He’s been involved in recreation planning and trail network design for many years and is currently based in Madison, Wisconsin. In this episode we ask: How is Trail Solutions related to IMBA, and what does it do? What are some ways designers can influence trail riders' experience? Would you say we generally have the right mix of green, blue, and black trails in most places in the US? How does the cost to build a new trail today compare to 10 years ago? Are there enough experienced, quality MTB trail builders in the US? How do maintenance considerations play into trail planning? Is chipseal something that is helpful in building low-maintenance trails? What are some current mountain bike trail projects you’re stoked about? From your perspective, is there a connection between the growth of MTB participation with the growth in trail building? Does a growing sport make it easier to get projects approved and funded? Find out more about Trail Solutions at imba.com, and for information about current, open positions at IMBA, visit ride.imba.com/explore-imba/meet-imba/careers. --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks.com and on Instagram @singletracks

Jason Williams is the Senior Sports Scientist in the Human Performance division at Specialized and a bike fitter at Retul, a Specialized brand that’s focused on delivering technically advanced bike fitting and product matching technology. Retul works with top level athletes and uses collected data to help inform product design, notably the Specialized Body Geometry line. In this episode we ask: Is bike fitting today different than it was 10 or 20 years ago? Have bike fits always been so data-driven? Has bike fit data traditionally been fed back into bike design? How are current trends in mountain bike frame geometry like steeper seat tube angles and longer reach affecting bike fit? Is there tension between a good bike fit, and the idea of a “normal-looking” bike setup? How do ride dynamics play into bike fitting? Are you able to optimize a rider’s weight distribution on the mountain bike? Is there an easy way to tell if you are running the proper bar width for your body? What are the considerations for sizing up or down? Are there riders who could benefit from shorter or longer crank lengths? Are ergonomics a part of bike fitting, for example brake lever and shifter setup? Do customizable electronic controls help? What are some of the interesting things Retul has learned fitting professional and amateur riders alike? Check out retul.com get more info or book a fit. --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks.com and on Instagram @singletracks

In this episode Matt and Jeff discuss the results from a recent survey that asked, "What is the least useful mountain bike innovation?". For those who missed our survey, the top five answers among nearly 10,000 votes were: Electronic suspension control (22%) Electronic shifting (17%) Flip chips (14%) Internal cable routing (12%) Hip packs (7%) Commenters pointed a few choices we didn't include in the survey, so we talked about those as well. Steering stabilizers and limiters Tire inserts 20mm thru axles

Aaron Chamberlain is the Bicycle Sales and Marketing Manager at Maxxis, one of the largest bicycle tire manufacturers in the world known for producing high quality products. In this episode we ask: Where are we at with bike tire widths? Clearly fat and plus tire adoption have peaked so are things looking pretty stable these days in terms of widths? What are the considerations when choosing the right tire width, especially when there are so many choices? Will a tenth of an inch in width make a noticeable difference to anyone? Do you think bike brands do a good job speccing tires on bikes? Do price and weight get prioritized over performance in some cases? Which MTB tire features are a good fit for gravel? Is it more difficult to design a gravel tire that’s both lightweight and fast and also durable? Do any of the innovations in gravel tires have the potential to filter to MTB? With access to pretty much any and every MTB tire you could want, how often do you change your tires: Seasonally? Every ride? Never? One of the key specs when looking at tire casings is a number called TPI, threads per inch. What does that number tell us? How does TPI work when there are multiple plies or casing layers involved? What’s the best way to dispose of worn out bike tires? What are some of the trends you’re seeing with pro gravity riders? Are there changes in the key things they’re looking for? See more at maxxis.com and on Instagram @maxxisbike. --Keep up with the latest in mountain biking at Singletracks.com and on Instagram @singletracks