BLISTER Gear Reviews, Podcasts, & Articles
Flash Review: 24/25 Armada ARW 112
A few weeks ago, Kara Williard brought the 24/25 Armada ARW 112 on a trip to Alaska. Here are her initial on-snow impressions.
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Win a MTB Kit From Outdoor Research
The winner of our Gear Giveaway this week will get a MTB jersey, shorts, and gloves from Outdoor Research!
Canyon Neuron:ONfly
The Bosch SX motor seems to have lit a fire in the lightweight eMTB category, and Canyon is the latest brand to release a bike featuring this popular new motor. Check out the new Neuron:ONfly.
Norco’s New DH Race Bike (Ep.219)
Norco hasn’t been shy about the fact that they’re working on a new DH race bike, and we sat down with Norco engineers Adrian Ward and Kirk McDowall to hear all about it.
Deep Dive: Rocky Mountain Instinct Powerplay
We compare the Instinct Powerplay to the Pivot Shuttle AM, Specialized Turbo Levo, Orbea Wild, and Norco Fluid VLT 130.
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Rocky Mountain Instinct Powerplay
Lightweight, lower powered eMTBs are having a bit of a moment, but the Rocky Mountain Instinct Powerplay makes a strong case for a full-power motor, even on a mid-travel Trail bike. Check out our full review for our take.
Flash Review: 24/25 Romp Oso 105
We’ve been logging time on one of the newest — and most different — skis in Romp’s stock lineup. Here are our initial thoughts on the Oso 105.
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2024-2025 Icelantic Maiden 102
Icelantic overhauled their longstanding Maiden and Nomad skis for 24/25, including longer lengths options for the women’s Maiden series, and we spent the season testing the new Maiden 102 against its competition to see where it falls in the all-mountain market. Read all about it in our Full Review & Deep Dive comparisons.
Deep Dive: Icelantic Maiden 102
We compare the Icelantic Maiden 102 to the Nordica Unleashed 98 W, Moment Sierra, Blizzard Sheeva 10, Faction Dancer 3X, Zag Slap 104, Armada ARW 106 UL, Nordica Unleashed 108 W, Atomic Maven 103 CTI, Fischer Ranger 102, Nordica Santa Ana 102, K2 Mindbender 99Ti W, Volkl Secret 102, DPS Kaizen 105, Line Optic 104, K2 Mindbender 106C W, Folsom Cash 106, & Salomon QST Stella 106.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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Devinci E-Troy Lite
We’ve been seeing a lot of new lightweight eMTBs hitting the market lately, and Devinci has made a very interesting one with their new aluminum, made-in-Canada E-Troy Lite. Dig into our First Look for all the details on the new bike.
Deep Dive: Ibis HD6
We compare the Ibis HD6 to the Yeti SB165, Orbea Rallon, Yeti SB160, Pivot Firebird, Norco Sight, Propane Tyee, Santa Cruz Nomad, Chromag Lowdown, Kavenz VHP 16, Specialized Enduro, and REEB Steezl.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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Ibis HD6
Ibis set out to make a modern Enduro race bike and came up with the HD6 — the longest travel bike they’ve ever made. We’ve been spending a lot of time on the HD6, and it has proven to be an interesting take on the genre. Check out our Full Review & Deep Dive comparisons to see what we mean.
A Brief-ish History of Blister with Jonathan Ellsworth and Michael Clarke (Ep.306)
So who was really behind the creation of BLISTER, and did the whole thing get started because of a misunderstanding over a couple of beers? Today, we dive into the origins story of Blister, with the two people most responsible for it.
2024 Sea Otter Classic Recap, Part 2
We’ve got more dispatches from the 2024 Sea Otter Classic.
Flash Review — Yeti ASR
Yeti has re-entered the World Cup XC race arena with their new ASR, and our initial impressions on this lightweight full-suspension bike are quite positive.
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BLISTER Reviews, Podcasts, & Articles:
Deep Dive: Trek Fuel EXe Aluminum
We compare the Trek Fuel EXe Aluminum to the Pivot Shuttle SL, Norco Fluid VLT 130, Cannondale Moterra SL, Pivot Shuttle AM, Trek Slash+, Santa Cruz Heckler SL, Rocky Mountain Instinct Powerplay, & Trek Fuel EX.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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2024-2025 WNDR Alpine Vital 98
Here are our measured specs, rocker profile pictures, and flex pattern numbers for the WNDR Alpine Vital 98.
Reviewing the News w/ Cody Townsend, July 2024 (Ep.319)
Cody and Jonathan discuss the Olympics; what makes someone an “athlete”; LeBron James & bikes; Amaury Pierron; the Most Canadian News; what we’re reading and watching; & more.
Flash Review — Formula Nebbia
The Nebbia is Formula’s unique take on a highly adjustable, modern air shock. We’ve been able to get a few rides on it, and our Flash Review has our early thoughts.
Blister’s Flash Reviews and Deep Dives are accessible to those who purchase one of our paid subscriptions
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Blister Labs: Results from our On-Snow Ski Testing & Dynamic Modeling (Ep.307)
Interested in ski design? Curious about where the next advancements in ski design might come from? Then you need to check out this conversation with Dr. Sean Humbert.
SRAM Maven Brakes
Mountain bike brakes have been creeping up in power in recent years, but SRAM’s claim that their new Maven brakes best their longstanding Codes by *50%* is still pretty wild. But it takes a lot more than just raw power to make a good brake, and after spending six months on the Maven Ultimates, we’re ready to weigh in on how well SRAM has done.
Win MTB Apparel From Endura
The two winners of our Gear Giveaway this week will each get a pair of shorts, gloves, socks, and a jersey from Endura!
Reviewing the News w/ Wade Simmons, July 2024 (Ep.233)
Simon is joined by freeride legend Wade Simmons for the July edition of Reviewing the News. Wade and Simon try to figure out why they keep crashing; then get into Crankworx Whistler, the wild Les Gets World Cup, the Olympics, chain lube, and a whole lot more.
Formula Belva Fork
The Formula Belva is one of the only dual-crown Enduro forks available — so is there a good reason for that? Check out our Full Review to see what we thought after a few months with this uncommon Italian fork.
Brendan Leonard on Ultra-Something (Ep.318)
Brendan Leonard (semi-rad.com) is here to talk about junk food, foam rollers, lab mice, can’t-miss business ideas; and his fantastic new book, Ultra-Something.
Stuff We Like: July 2024
This month’s edition of our Stuff We Like series includes everything from casual shirts to hydration solutions, bike tools to deceptively-technical sunglasses, and a whole lot more.
Deep Dive: Deviate Highlander II
We compare the Deviate Highlander II to the Norco Sight, Norco Optic, Kavenz VHP 16, REEB Steezl, Trek Fuel EX, Ibis Ripmo V2S, We Are One Arrival 152, and Santa Cruz Bronson.
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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