David Golay
Norco has a long history with high-pivot bikes, but the switch to that layout on their new Optic and Sight still came as a surprise. So we sat down with Norco engineer, Colin Ryan, to hear all about the thinking, testing, and development behind the new models.
Revel Rascal V2
Revel’s best-selling and most versatile bike, the Rascal, gets an update today with a new frame, expanded size options, and more. Check out our full review for all the info on the new bike, and our Deep Dive comparisons to learn how it stacks up against a whole lot of all-rounder Trail bikes.
Deep Dive: Revel Rascal V2
We compare the Revel Rascal V2 to the Santa Cruz Hightower, Santa Cruz Tallboy, Transition Smuggler, Trek Fuel EX, Yeti SB140, Orbea Occam LT, Yeti SB135, Canyon Spectral 125, Chromag Darco, and Rocky Mountain Element.
2024 Norco Optic & Norco Sight
Norco is updating their flagship Trail / All-Mountain bikes, and they’ve got some surprises in store — beginning, but not ending, with the fact that they’ve both got high-pivot suspension layouts. Here are the details on the new Norco Optic & Sight.
Flash Review — 2024 Norco Optic
The new Norco Optic is by far the shortest-travel high-pivot bike that we’ve been on to date, and our early impressions are pretty interesting.
Crank Brothers Mallet Trail BOA Shoes
Crank Brothers’ new Mallet Trail BOA shoes combine many features from more gravity-oriented shoes into a lighter, more pedal-friendly package. We’ve been spending a lot of time in the new model, and what Crank Brothers have come up with is pretty interesting.
Ed Masters on Hardline, the 2024 Race Landscape, Pivot’s Prototype DH Bike, & More (Ep.210)
Ed Masters is back on Bikes & Big Ideas to talk about his 2023 season, the upcoming Tasmanian iteration of Hardline, the 2024 race landscape, the state of pro-level Enduro, and a whole lot more.
SRAM Maven Brakes
SRAM’s gravity athletes have been spotted using a new set of burly brakes for a while now, and now that new model, the Maven, is finally here. Turns out, it’s a big departure from the Code that it supplants as SRAM’s most powerful offering — check out our First Look for the details, and our Flash Review for our initial on-trail impressions.
Flash Review — SRAM Maven Ultimate Brakes
SRAM’s new Maven brakes promise an immense increase in power over their longstanding Codes, and we’ve started spending time with the big new stoppers. Check out our early impressions.
2024 Canyon Spectral CF
The 2021 Canyon Spectral CF blurred the line between a do-it-all Trail bike and a burlier Enduro one, but Canyon has now launched a new version, which they claim pushes the bike more squarely into Trail-bike territory. Check out our First Look to see how they’ve done it.
Yeti SB135
Has the ship sailed for 27.5” wheeled mountain bikes? Yeti’s answer is a hard no. Are they on to something? We’ve been spending a lot of time on the SB135 and are ready to weigh in — check out our Full Review & Deep Dive comparisons.
Deep Dive — Yeti SB135
We compare the Yeti SB135 to the Yeti SB140 27.5’’, Esker Rowl, Ibis Ripmo V2S, Pivot Shadowcat, Transition Scout, Yeti SB140 29’’, Trek Fuel EX, Transition Smuggler, and SCOR 2030.
Hope Carbon Cranks, TR Stem, & More
Hope is launching a whole bunch of new stuff today, including a carbon fiber crank, a new stem, and more — and they’ve added bronze to the color options across their lineup.
Privateer 141 and 161 Gen 2
Privateer has made a name for itself by building burly, no-nonsense bikes for aggressive riders, and while their new second-generation 141 and 161 don’t appear to waver from that goal, a lot of the design details have changed, and in very interesting ways. Check out our First Look for all the info.
Continental on Designing, Developing, & Testing Their Overhauled Tire Lineup (Ep.209)
Designing a new MTB tire from scratch is a lot of work. Doing 5 at once is a massive undertaking — but Continental did just that with their updated gravity tire lineup. We sat down with Continental product manager Alex Haenke and Atherton Racing’s Dan Brown to get the full story on the development and testing of the new tires.
Flash Review — Ibis HD6
We’ve started spending time on the HD6, Ibis’s first foray into making a true modern Enduro bike. So how have they done? Check out our early impressions.
Reviewer Reports: Nicolai Nucleon Supre Drive, Ibis HD6, & More (Ep.208)
David Golay and Zack Henderson give their early impressions on a bunch of bikes they’ve been testing lately, including the wild Nicolai Nucleon Supre Drive, Ibis HD6, and Chromag Lowdown.
Flash Review — Chromag Lowdown
The Chromag Darco was one of our Bike Editor’s favorite bikes from last year, but how about its bigger sibling, the Lowdown? Check out his early impressions.
Forge+Bond Shift Series Wheels
Forge+Bond’s thermoplastic carbon fiber wheels get a much more affordable option today with their new Shift series. Check out our First Look for all the info.
2024 Pivot Switchblade
Pivot’s longstanding Switchblade gets an update today, with tweaked geometry, revised suspension kinematics, and more — including some very striking pink paint. Check out our First Look for all the details.