David Golay, Author at BLISTER

What We’re Watching — January 2022

January 1, 2022January 1, 2022 by David Golay

Kick off the new year (or ride out the post-NYE hangover?) with this month’s installation of What We’re Watching, which includes everything from quick edits to a couple of feature-length ski, bike and climbing films.

Over The Edge

December 31, 2021 by David Golay

Over The Edge has more than 25 years of experience as a core mountain bike shop, dedicated to serving their customers with top notch sales and service, as well as leading trail building efforts in their communities.

Guerrilla Gravity just celebrated their 10th anniversary, so on our latest episode of Bikes & Big Ideas, we sat down with co-founders Will Montague and Matt Giaraffa to talk about what inspired them to start a bike company in the first place; going from aluminum single-pivot DH bikes to pioneering an entirely new way of making carbon fiber frames; weathering the Covid-19 pandemic; and doing all that while building every single frame in Denver, CO.

Guerrilla Gravity on 10 Years of US-Made Bikes (Ep.98)

December 29, 2021 by David Golay

Guerrilla Gravity just celebrated their 10th anniversary, so we figured it was a good time to check in with co-founders Will Montague and Matt Giaraffa and get some stories from their first decade, hear what’s next for the not-so-little-anymore brand, get their predictions for the future of the bike industry, and a whole lot more.

David Golay Blister mountain bike review on the cascade components.

Cascade Components Full Guide

December 28, 2021 by David Golay

Cascade Components’ new chain guide promises great chain retention, low weight, and easy setup — i.e., all the things we look for in a chain guide. But does it deliver? And are there any downsides?

Clipless vs. flat pedals is a hotly debated topic in the mountain bike world, but now there’s a third choice — Hustle Labs’s Avery magnetic pedals. We were, frankly, a bit skeptical about this new in-between option, but we’ve had three reviewers spending time on the Avery, and they’ve wildly exceeded our expectations. So on our latest episode of Bikes & Big Ideas we sat down with Hustle’s Design Engineer, Tripp Hurt, to talk about where the concept originated; how the pedals work; who they are (and aren’t) for; what’s next from Hustle; and a whole lot more.

Hustle Labs’ Category-Defying Magnetic Pedals (Ep.97)

December 23, 2021December 23, 2021 by David Golay

Magnetic pedals might sound crazy to riders used to a simple flats vs. clips dichotomy, but we’re finding them to be a compelling option for the right riders. And so we sat down with Hustle’s Design Engineer, Tripp Hurt, to talk about why it’s worth upsetting the current pedal paradigm, who magnetic pedals are (and aren’t) for, and much more.

David Golay Reviews the Orbea Occam LT for Blister

Flash Review — Orbea Occam LT

December 24, 2021December 23, 2021 by David Golay

The Orbea Occam LT isn’t trying to be a mini-Enduro bike, and for the right rider, that’s a really good thing. Check out our Flash Review for our early impressions of this super-efficient long-travel Trail bike.

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David Golay reviews the SCOR 4060 LT for Blister

Flash Review — SCOR 4060 LT

December 20, 2021 by David Golay

We’ve just started spending time on the new SCOR 4060 LT, and it’s shaping up to be a really interesting take on a long-travel Enduro bike. Check out our Flash Review for our early impressions.

Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions

To get our comprehensive Deep Dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear, become a member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.

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Would You Rather: Mellow Groomer Laps vs. Nonstop Terror

December 18, 2021 by David Golay

Would you rather be scared on every run you take or limit yourself to mellow groomer laps? That’s the question we’re tackling in this week’s edition of Would You Rather.

This week on Bikes & Big Ideas, we’re joined by Cannondale’s Scott Vogelmann and Travis Tomczak to talk their latest mountain bikes — the Jekyll and Scalpel HT, Cannondale’s weird streak, the wild dual-shock DH bike prototype that informed the Jekyll development, and a whole lot more. And along the way, they drop some teasers for what’s next from Cannondale, too.

Cannondale on the Jekyll, Dual-Shock DH Bike, & Keeping it Weird (Ep.96)

December 17, 2021December 16, 2021 by David Golay

We’re joined by Cannondale’s Scott Vogelmann and Travis Tomczak to talk about their latest bikes, and their development process; what’s next for the brand (including some upcoming product teasers); keeping Cannondale weird; and more.

TRP Trail Evo Brakes

December 15, 2021 by David Golay

There’s a lot to like about TRP’s new Trail Evo brakes, but they’re not perfect. Check out our full review for all the details.

Topic of the Week: On Motivation

December 11, 2021 by David Golay

Our Bike Editor has been doing a lot of riding in terrible weather lately, and he’s learning how to love it — or at least talking himself into it — and has some thoughts on how you can, too.

Snow is (finally) falling in much of the Western US, but we’re still hard at work testing bikes, too — and we’ve got a lot to work through at the moment. So on our latest episode of Bikes & Big Ideas, we figured it was time to give a rundown on a bunch of the bikes we’ve been spending time on, including several high-pivot Enduro bikes, a remarkably sprightly long-travel Trail bike, and the current frontrunner for our Bike Editor’s favorite bike of 2021.

Reviewer Reports: Cannondale Jekyll, We Are One Arrival, Nicolai G1, & More (Ep.95)

December 10, 2021December 9, 2021 by David Golay

We’ve been testing a ton of bikes, and have a whole lot of updates to share, including high-pivot Enduro bike comparisons (with some surprising conclusions), an ultra-efficient long-travel Trail bike, and our Bike Editor’s current frontrunner for his favorite bike of 2021.

David Golay Blister mountain bike review on the Canyon Torque

2022 Canyon Torque

December 7, 2021 by David Golay

Canyon’s Enduro / Freeride bike, the Torque, just got a big update — including all the wheel size options. Check out our First Look for all the details.

We Are One Arrival

September 15, 2022December 6, 2021 by David Golay

We’ve now spent a lot of time on the We Are One Arrival and it’s one of the most impressive bikes we’ve been on this year — at least for the right rider.

What We’re Watching — December 2021

December 4, 2021December 3, 2021 by David Golay

This month’s iteration of What We’re Watching includes a whole bunch of skiing and mountain biking videos from a huge range of athletes — and a physics video thrown in, for good measure.

Mountain bike derailleur drivetrains haven’t fundamentally changed for just about as long as there have been mountain bikes — until now, anyway. Cedric Eveleigh has a very promising idea for how to rethink the derailleur and founded LAL Bikes to make it a reality. So on our latest episode of Bikes & Big Ideas, we brought Cedric on to talk about the limitations of existing derailleurs; why gearboxes (still) haven’t taken off; prototyping and refining the Supre Drive; what’s next for LAL Bikes, and more.

Cedric Eveleigh of LAL Bikes, on Reinventing the Derailleur (Ep.94)

December 9, 2021December 2, 2021 by David Golay

Mountain bike derailleurs have improved immensely, but is there a better way entirely? Cedric Eveleigh thinks so, and he founded LAL Bikes to make his Supre Drive a reality. We sat down with Cedric to break down this extremely promising new design, and get the full story on its development, the next steps, and more.

Blister Topic of the Week: Bigger Isn't Always Better

Debatable: Bigger Isn’t Always Better

November 30, 2021November 28, 2021 by David Golay

The bike industry likes touting stiffer parts as being better, but our Bike Editor makes the case for why that doesn’t always pan out.

Mic Williams was racing as a privateer when Covid hit, and racing went on hold. But instead of binging Netflix, he used his free time to start a very unusual bike company — Williams Racing Products. Mic has a whole lot of ideas for how to make bikes better, and WRP has offered a lot of out-there products, including what can only be described as the reincarnation of the Honda RN-01 downhill bike. So on our latest episode of Bikes & Big Ideas, we sat down with Mic to talk about all the big ideas he has for WRP; the Privateer Parts Program and privateer racing in general; and much more.

The Many, Many Big Ideas of Williams Racing Products (Ep.93)

December 9, 2021November 25, 2021 by David Golay

Few people have as many big ideas for the bike world as Mic Williams of Williams Racing Products, and even fewer have started their own companies to make them a reality. So we sat down with Mic to hear all about it, privateer racing at the top level, and more.

Jordi Cortes spends much of the year on the road, working with Fox’s top racers on their suspension setups, and that has left him with both a wealth of knowledge about suspension setup and a unique perspective on the mental aspects of racing at the top level. So we sat down with Jordi to talk about all that, and along the way get into it about the importance of consistency; developing working relationships with a huge range of athletes; how the pros’ setups differ from those for mere mortals; and a whole lot more.

Fox’s Jordi Cortes on Suspension, Tuning, & the Mental Side of Racing (Ep.92)

December 9, 2021November 18, 2021 by David Golay

We talk to Jordi Cortes about setting up suspension for Fox’s top racers, the mental battle of World Cup racing, and a whole lot more.

David Golay Reviews the Cannondale Jekyll for Blister

Flash Review: 2022 Cannondale Jekyll

November 17, 2021November 16, 2021 by David Golay

How does the new Cannondale Jekyll stack up against several other high-pivot Enduro bikes? Check out our Flash Review for our early impressions.

Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions

To get our comprehensive Deep Dives and our initial, unfiltered reports on new gear, become a member and receive many other services, deals, and discounts.

If you’re already an active member, please log in.

(If you're already logged in and a member in good standing and seeing this message in error, please refresh this page in your browser.)

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