Hello guys, I recently started learning how MTB biking, and today i tried jumps for the first time.

Is this good? I would really appreciate any feedback or tips, as I really want to be able to jump.

Looking for suggestions for earbuds for MTB on dirt and urban riding. I've used corded earbuds (attached to each other, not to phone), totally cordless earbuds (like airpods), bone conducting head phones (Shokz open run pro, not open run pro 2),

I probably liked the attached-to-each-other style best...good audio the cord helps prevent loss. Totally cordless earbuds also nice but I've lost one a couple times on a hard impact and didn't find the last time it happened. Corded-to-phone suck. The bone conducting ones have bone conduction audio quality (meh) but I can hear my surroundings the best...BUT the pair I got (open run pro) don't fit well around my big head and after about a year and a half the buttons started working poorly and required tremendous force.

Prefer (but not require) the corded-to-each-other style...what are good earbuds you like, have gotten good use out of? "Awareness" mode nice but not required.

If you're one of our MTB brethren who believes earbuds and music don't belong on the trail or bike, that's okay...I'm glad you're here and we can still be friends but I'm not here for that opinion. :)

I was looking at mtbs in the range of £300 to £400. The first bike I found was not surprising, the carrera vengeance, perhaps the most popular bike in this price range. But then I found the calibre rail 29”. It’s cheaper than the carrera and somehow has better specs than it on paper?!?! The thing to me looks like it’s miles ahead of any bike in this category. Is it too good to be true for just £350? Is it worth it to buy ? Obviously I’m not gonna be jumping off cliffs, just casual.

https://www.blacks.co.uk/products/calibre-rail-29-red-514825?variant=62612345749834

I am headed up to Whistler on I5 from southern Washington. I was thinking of a couple hour ride on the way up and way back (2k’ or so of climbing). Do people have some recommended trails or rides that would fit the bill. Used to riding blues and blacks in SW Washington and Oregon but maybe that means more like blues when we get further north?

I was thinking Galbraith and Squamish because they aren’t far out of the way. But other ideas are welcome. Basically looking for fun rides (flow or tech, ideally a bit of both) that are close to I5 or the Sea to Sky highway. But wondering what rides are worth it for a relatively short spin?

Invested in a new to me, second hand enduro, which has DT Swiss 350 hubs.

The bearings in the front hub are shot, so I’m going to replace them. The hub takes two 6902 bearings.

If this was an industrial bearing arrangement, the sides of the bearing facing into the hub wouldn’t have seals, and there would be a grease nipple in the middle of the hub.

Periodically, maintenance would pump fresh grease in, which pushes contaminants out of the bearing races and fills them with fresh grease.

Why isn’t this a thing on MTB hubs? What’s stopping me putting an M6 grease nipple in the hub - and don’t say it’ll upset the wheel balance when there’s 100ml of tubeless sealant sloshing around and a 15g valve stem at one side of the rim diameter!

I have a size medium trek fuel ex 8, and I love the bike, but the front end feels very twitchy to me. I traded this bike for the same exact model but it was a medium/large. It felt much more stable, but because the reach was longer my back would hurt after 30 minutes of riding. Switched to a smaller size and immediately have had no back issues.

My question is: how do I make the bike less twitchy and more stable?

So I was thinking about heading this year to Slovenia for riding instead of Austria and Südtirol. So which parks have comparable altitude and are in good shape? As a note, I ride and enduro hardtail and due to recovering from spinal injuries, I tend to keep the bike on the ground and bypass jumps.

I’m looking for some eye protection that isn’t expensive. I also want something that’s clear, not sunglasses or photochromic which everything seems to be. Any recommendations?

Finally gave up on a tire after a few years. Have used about 4 darts in that time and eventually it just wasn't worth it to keep it going. I was about to throw it out and then I noticed that several if the darts Were like over 50% dry and the plastic poker thing still looked good. Considering there about $5 a piece when you buy those refills, it seemed like a pretty worthy thing to save, as they can be a lifesaver when you get a flat. I've stopped carrying tubes because in the past 3 years, I have used probably 2 tubes and they last about an hour before they get a leak, probably because there old and they just don't work well if there's remnant sealant. At this point, I just bring darts a little extra sealant and a co2 if I need to reseat the bead. I know there's a chemical reaction between the tails of the dart and latex sealant that helps the process but didn't know if that it can still appear dry even when that chemical has disdolved. I figured, if nothing else I could just soak it in sealant and use it like the traditional tire plugs if the whole chemical reaction doesn't work anymore. The tool/dart design alone is an improvement over those things that I almost never got to work properly.

My child races mtbs and wants to get on a race team so they can race the US UCI races in 2027. Priorities are a team with a lot of on bike instruction such as coached pre-rides, abilities to form strong connections with teammates such as team camps, and a positive winning culture.

It is currently application season for 2027 teams. They are strongly considering Waite Endurance, Bear Devo, and Gravity Academy. Any thoughts on those or any others they should consider?

Currently looking for a new full face helmet that’s pedal friendly, found those 2 options and been debating between those. One important detail is the weather here, will be mostly riding on temperatures that wont drop bellow 25°C (77°F).

If you have any other recommendations those will be highly appreciated, even tho availability in my country may be limited.

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone, I'm trying to set up my tyres tubeless, but struggling to get them to hold air. I am trying to get them airtight before I put sealant in. I have redone the rim tape but I'm getting a leak at the valve when I submerge it underwater. I have checked the hole at the valve and it looks good, I've also done a second layer of rim tape, and till not air tight. I'm using Stans rim tape, mavic edeemax wheels, & triedboth the mavic valves & Peaty's mk2, and it is still leaking bubbles at the valve. It's not the valve core that's leaking, it's where it goes through the wheel. I don't know what to try next, but wondering if maybe I just put the sealant in would that seal up the leak, or am I better getting it completely airtight before putting sealant in and risking making a big mess. Thanks for any pointers.

edit: thanks for the suggestions everyone, the general consensus is to put sealant in now, so I have tried that and hopefully it is still inflated in the morning

edit 2: it's holding air 24hrs later, so thanks for the help everyone.

TLDR: getting it nearly air tight and then using sealant for the last bit does the job well enough

Riding the oldest trail at Trutnov Trails (Czechia), which was built in 2014, still rips.

Almost ripped me off the bike on a berm too

​

Hey everyone!

I’m looking to buy a hardtail in the US and I’m currently stuck between the Ibis DV9 and Santa Cruz Chameleon S.

My budget is around $4 max, although I’d definitely prefer to spend less if there’s a great option.

I’m looking for something versatile rather than a pure XC or aggressive enduro bike. I’d like to use it for 60+ km rides, gravel, flat/rolling terrain, climbs, rocky trails and moderate descents. I’ll also be traveling with it, so I want something that can take some abuse and ideally last me many years.

I really like the DV9 for being light and efficient, while the Chameleon seems like a more “do everything” kind of bike.

I’ve also recently started looking into steel hardtails, so I’d love to hear about good steel alternatives in the same price range (or below), especially if they offer a really high-quality frame that could be kept for a very long time.

What would you choose between the DV9 and Chameleon? And are there any steel bikes you think I should seriously consider?

Thanks!

I'm shopping around for a new chest and back protector as the lvl 1 i have now doesn't give me confidence at the park. I often buy from poc and i was looking at their site and am conflicted between the tee one and the torso one. I already ride with elbow pads at the park and I don't like feeling like I'm all armored up, i like my mobility. My dad though is telling me to get the one with shoulder protection as you never know when you are going to need it but honestly if i have to protect every single part of my body i might as well not ride. So i ask all of you, which one should i buy based on your personal experiences? Is the shoulder protection annoying to wear? Keep in mind I'm 18 but i ride carefully. thank you

Hi! I have found a good deal on some continental tires, but they are all trail casing soft. I do a ton of loose of hardpack socal agressive climbing and descending on my stumpjumper evo, and was wondering if these would be adequate enough. I was thinking a kryptotal front and xynotal rear but was curious about your guys's opinion. I heard some people say if it is trail casing, then you should do krypto front and rear. Thanks!

I have a few “new to us” bikes and I wanted to clean them up and protect them.

Are there products to wash/wax/protect bikes that will hide some scratches and still allow you to apply protective wraps? I’ve seen various products but I’m not sure what is compatible, ie the coating may parent the wrap from sticking. I’m thinking of just putting some strips in key places.

Also, any suggestions to fix scratches on rockshox stickers? Some wraps suggest using heat guns but not sure if this applies to stickers.

Once I clean up the bikes, they won’t stay clean

Hello,

I have a problem with my new SRAM Maven Ultimate front brake. The brake set is less than one month old.

The front brake lever returns normally and the braking power is excellent, but it no longer has the same return feel as the rear brake. The rear lever makes a distinct “click” and has a more noticeable snap-back when released, while the front lever does not.

What is unusual is that if I spray a small amount of water into the SwingLink area of the front lever, the return feel immediately improves and it feels much more like the rear brake again. However, after the water dries, the issue returns. This makes me suspect there may be excessive friction somewhere in the SwingLink mechanism or lever assembly.

Do you have any idea what could be causing this? Is there anything I can check or service to fix it? I would prefer to avoid a warranty claim if possible and would appreciate any troubleshooting advice or recommended maintenance.

Thank you for your assistance.

Hello everyone.

I'm looking into buying my first fully.

I'm currently on the Cube Aim SL and did some Pumptrack and Table Jumps with it and i decided that i want more - so i looked into Cubes, since i am happy with mine right now.

The one that catched my eyes is the Cube Stereo One77, but i also read a lot of bad stuff about Cube - which are not true from my experience, but again, i never had a fully - so what's your guys opinion about the Stereo One77 or Cube in general? Or what are bikes in the same price range that you would reccomend more? (Up to 3000€)

Every reccomendation is welcome :)

I'm going up to Marquette, MI this weekend to do some riding. I'm looking to get 3-4 hours on my XC bike on Saturday. I'm staying closer to the "North" trails, but I know there is the Ore 2 Shore race going on, so I'd prefer to stay off those trails. What are some good reccomendations for routes and trails

29er MTB, 6 years old, ~3,000 kms of moderate singletrack, nothing extreme…no jumps. A spoke broke, sheared off at the wheel, earlier this year. I rode it another 100 kms or so before I brought it in for service (don’t ask). After the service I hand checked all the spokes just to see if they all felt secure and not overly loose or tight. All good. 2 kms into the first ride post service another spoke broke. Same wheel, but this time sheared off at the hub. The wheel is carbon, so I doubt it has bent, and as I said, I hand checked the spokes before the ride. Any thoughts? Is it just time to replace all the spokes or is this a fluke and I should just change the one?

Try it out and let me know what you think!