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Jess Blewitt first rode a mountain bike in 2018, but her list of accomplishments is already extensive — including being the two-time New Zealand DH National Champ and having earned a top-ten finish at World Championships — and she’s only 19. So we had Jess on to talk about how she’s put it all together so quickly and how her background as a ski racer helped; her career highlights to date; her brutal crash at Snowshoe and how she recovered from it so quickly; what she’s got planned for 2022 — including a very intriguing teaser — and much more. TOPICS & TIMES: Ski racing &  transitioning to MTB (2:21) Learning to ride a DH bike & starting to race (6:54) Jess’ incredible 2021 season (12:18) Formation (15:11) Snowshoe crash & recovery (22:54) NZ National Champs (27:41) Fort William update (30:54) Racing vs. freeriding & doing both (33:34) What’s next? (37:55) RELATED LINKS: Become a Blister Member Introducing: Blister Labs This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Lots of mountain bikers have idly thought about designing their own frame, but actually doing it is an entirely different matter. But ex-pro racer Even Turpen took the leap, and his Contra Bikes prototype is nearing production readiness (and was perhaps the coolest thing we saw at Sea Otter this year). So we brought Evan on the show to talk about the bike design and what he wanted to accomplish with it; the a-ha moment that sparked the project in the first place; learning to design and fabricate a bike starting from square one, and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Growing up skateboarding & pivoting to mountain biking (2:19 Working in a bike shop & the a-ha moment (5:54) Learning to design a bike (14:10) First single-pivot prototype (19:02)  Learning fabrication (27:04) Patent infringement & heading back to the drawing board (40:36) Production bike design & status (50:39) The Contra name (58:38) Evan’s Big Idea (1:01:57) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide Ep. 117: Kavenz OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Kavenz founder Giacomo Großehagenbrock got an early start in the mountain bike industry when he landed an internship at Nicolai when he was just 17. He followed that up by founding 77designz, making chainguides, stems, and more, but he still had the itch to design his own bike — so Kavenz and the VHP16 were born. But the story is a lot more complicated — and interesting — than that, so we sat down with Giacomo to get the full rundown, including the trials and tribulations of starting a bike company; the design goals for the VHP16 and all the tradeoffs inherent to bike design; the new VHP18; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Giacomo’s introduction to the mountain bike industry (2:22) Founding 77designz (7:12) VHP16 design philosophy (10:14) High-pivot bikes & their tradeoffs (20:01) The new VHP18 (34:49) Mullets (38:41) Giacomo’s Big Idea (43:15) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We sat down with Rich Frough of Fanatik, our Blister Recommended Bike Shop in Bellingham, WA to talk about bike gear trends, the local mountain bike scene, and Fanatik’s amazing custom bike and wheel building programs. TOPICS & TIMES: Fanatik’s history (1:25) Rich’s role at Fanatik (3:11) The Fanatik customer (4:47) Bellingham’s mountain bike scene (7:13) Gear trends — locally and globally (9:08) Fanatik staff’s favorite gear (20:59) Service (25:30) Rich’s Big Idea (32:37) RELATED LINKS: Fanatik Website Introducing: Blister Labs This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A few years ago, Kitsbow undertook an incredibly ambitious plan to move to Old Fort, North Carolina, and bring all of their apparel production to the United States, after years of working with overseas factories. And not only did they do just that, but in doing so they trained an entirely new workforce and spearheaded the revitalization of their new hometown, which had been losing manufacturing jobs for decades. So we brought their CEO, David Billstrom, back onto the show to talk about how they did that while weathering a global pandemic; how doing so has been a boon to the brand, their customers, and their local community; and how they hope to be a blueprint for other companies to do the same. TOPICS & TIMES: Covid shields and facemasks (2:22) Moving to North Fort, NC (7:58) The Toyota Way (22:37) Domestic manufacturing & efficiency (29:14) Revitalizing a community (35:25) Employee purchase as a Public Benefit Corporation (50:12) David’s Big Idea (57:46) RELATED LINKS: Ep. 20: How the Outdoor Industry is Helping Fight Covid Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Revel Bikes recently launched the new Rail 29, so we sat down with their founder, Adam Miller, to get the rundown on the new bike and its development process; navigating COVID & the maturation of the bike industry; the rest of the Revel lineup; wheel sizes and mullet-skepticism; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Check-in since last time (Ep. 25) (2:10) Revel’s new Rail 29 (5:51) Growth & navigating COVID (12:17) The maturation of the bike industry (27:21) Revel bike lineup (31:19) Wheel sizes (37:50) Adam’s Big Idea (48:53) RELATED LINKS: Revel Rail 29 Ep. 25: Adam Miller Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Chelsea Kimball got a later start in MTB than a lot of pro riders, but she’s making up for lost time and is part of the inaugural class of women participating in Darkfest, among a whole lot of other huge accomplishments. So we sat down with her to talk about all of it, including her longtime commitment to van life, Freeride Fiesta and getting props from Yoann Barelli, the state and future of women’s freeride, and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Growing up climbing & getting introduced to MTB (1:16) Van life & Chevy Astros (7:04) Freeride Fiesta (17:54) Darkfest & getting women into freeride events (22:14) The state and trajectory of women’s freeride (24:00) Future riding goals (28:04) 2022 plans (29:12) Windrock (32:04) Path to success in the MTB industry (33:51) Chelsea’s Big Idea (39:36) RELATED LINKS: Ep. 108: Yoann Barelli Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rotational impact protection in bike helmets has deservedly gotten a lot of attention in recent years, and MIPS has long been the pioneering technology in that space. But Lazer thought there was a lighter, more comfortable, more breathable way to accomplish the same goals, and developed KinetiCore to do just that. And so we sat down with Lazer’s Head of Marketing for North America, Chris Smith, to get the rundown on what KinetiCore is supposed to do and how it does it; why Lazer went to the effort to develop their own technology; helmet testing standards and safety; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: KinetiCore design goals (1:37) Helmet testing standards around the world (14:22) KinetiCore design details (22:45) Virginia Tech’s helmet testing & KinetiCore helmet lineup (26:15) Jackyl KinetiCore MTB helmet & Accessory mount safety (35:28) Chris’ Big Idea (46:34) RELATED LINKS: GEAR:30 on Helmet Tech, Pt. 1: Sweet Protection GEAR:30 on Helmet Tech, Pt. 2: Giro / Bell GEAR:30 on Helmet Tech, Pt. 3: Pret GEAR:30 on Helmet Tech, Pt. 4: POC GEAR:30 on Helmet Tech, Pt. 5: WaveCel Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide OUR OTHER BLISTER PODCASTS Off The Couch GEAR:30 Blister Podcast See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Lea Davison announced her retirement from international racing after the final World Cup of the 2021 season, but she’s definitely not walking away from bikes or racing. So we sat down with the two-time Olympian and 20-plus year XC pro to talk about the career that’s taken up her entire adult life to this point; the highs and the lows; the state of XC racing; mentorship & career evolution; what comes next, and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Getting started in bike racing & qualifying for World Championships at 17 (2:06) Racing first full pro season without an ACL (6:34) Evolution of the XC race scene (11:23) What could be improved? (18:56) Racing World Cups (21:10) Mentorship & development (23:57) Competing in the Olympics (27:10) Postponement of the 2020 Games (35:28) Favorite moments and proudest accomplishments (40:50) Career evolution & team roles (45:31) What’s next after announcing retirement? (49:13) Lea’s Big Idea (54:22) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There are a lot of smart people working in bike suspension, but EXT founder Franco Fratton might have the most impressive resume — which includes working for the Ferrari and Lotus Formula One teams. And so we sat down with Franco to chat about his career and life story; his suspension design philosophy; how he went from focusing on motorsports to making some of the best bike suspension out there; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Franco’s background in suspension and EXT history (2:34) Getting started in bike suspension (15:31) Upcoming EXT air shock (24:51) Twin tube vs. mono tube dampers (34:08) Coil vs. air springs (48:12) Novel ideas & gaining acceptance (55:08) Franco’s Big Idea (57:56) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide EXT Era Review EXT Storia Review See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Martin Maes practically grew up in the GT pits with his father, and had raced for them since he was a teenager. But he made the move to Orbea for 2022, and so we sat down to chat about his career trajectory and the value of a change of pace; the mental aspects of racing & injury recovery; becoming a father; bike setup for Enduro and DH racing, and a whole bunch more. TOPICS & TIMES: Fatherhood & the 2021 season Concussions & rider safety Finishing the season strong Signing with Orbea Bike setup, sizing, & parts spec Racing DH & Enduro 2022 Plans EWS format & doubleheaders Martin’s Big Idea RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Yoann Barelli just announced the formation of his Into The Gnar Progression Team  — so we got him back on Bikes & Big Ideas to talk about it. And along the way we talk about Yoann’s career shift into freeriding; what he’s learned about coaching & training in recent years; his plans for 2022 — including teasing some very big news — and a bunch more. TOPICS & TIMES: One year on Guerrilla Gravity (2:10) Moving away from racing & into freeriding and building (6:48) Sponsorship responsibilities & new opportunities to be a pro Getting back into training (11:54) Coaching Update (17:03) Into the Gnar Progression Team (21:19) 2022 plans (46:09) Freeride Fiesta recap (51:44) Yoann’s Big Idea (58:18) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Push Industries is one of the best-known suspension tuners and manufacturers of high-end shocks out there, and their founder, Darren Murphy has a whole lot to say on the topic of suspension. And so we sat down with Darren to chat about his background and how he got into suspension in the first place; the Eleven Six shock and what makes it stand out; his approach to product development and tuning; making everything in-house in Colorado; how to set up your suspension; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Darren’s background in MTB & suspension (1:36) History of Push (17:31) Eleven Six Shock (26:46) Push’s product development process (33:18) Shock tuning for a given bike (38:38) How to set up your suspension (53:16) Darren’s Big Idea (1:03:30) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Mountain bike suspension has improved immensely in recent years, but designing rear suspension kinematics is inherently a game of tradeoffs, with no ideal one-size-fits-all solution. Cascade Components founder and engineer Jimmy Davis saw an opportunity to make his personal Santa Cruz Nomad better for where and how he rides, and soon a new business was born, making aftermarket suspension links for an ever-growing range of bikes. And so we sat down with Jimmy to talk about suspension design and the inherent tradeoffs that come with each decision; what their links do and who they’re for; working with Neko Mulally on his Frameworks DH race bikes; brakes & chain guides; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Origins of Cascade Components (1:46) First aftermarket link (6:42) Suspension design philosophy (13:11) Neko Mulally's custom links (26:38) North Fork Brakes (30:25) Chain Guides (39:36) Jimmy’s Big Idea (43:23) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Register for the 2022 Blister Summit Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide Ep. 101: Neko Mulally See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Joe McEwan had a career as an aerospace engineer working with composites, but when he started building bikes, steel was his material of choice. So we sat down with the founder of Starling Cycles to get his take on frame materials, and why steel is an under-appreciated one; why single-pivots can ride really well; go really deep on the tradeoffs between wheel sizes, & why mullets maybe aren’t the best of all worlds; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Joe’s background as an aerospace engineer to founding Starling & building bikes in a shed (1:32) Why steel? (7:56) Single pivots & suspension kinematics (12:26) Starling’s “Core” lineup (20:43) Wheel sizes & tradeoffs (24:31) Starling’s “Rare” lineup (33:48) Carbon e-bike prototype (43:11) Joe’s Big Idea (48:14) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Register for the 2022 Blister Summit Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ed Masters often looks like he’s having more fun than anybody else on the EWS and World Cup DH circuits, but that belies just how seriously he takes racing at the top level, and how much thought he’s given to the sport. And so we brought Ed onto Bikes & Big Ideas to talk about the incredible end to the 2021 World Cup season (and get hyped for racing to fire back up in 2022); catch up on his injury-laden 2021 season and how he’s doing these days; the similarities and differences between Enduro and DH, and the challenges of racing both; and a whole lot more.  TOPICS & TIMES: Ed’s 2021 season & injury recoveries (2:37) The World Cup season & performing under pressure (9:55) Injuries & Ed’s 2021 season, cont’d (29:05) 2022 plans (49:12) DH vs. Enduro, & racing both at the top level (55:23) Ed’s Big Idea (1:05:30) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Register for the 2022 Blister Summit Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Katy Winton has reliably been one of the top contenders on the EWS circuit, but she found herself without a factory ride in 2021 and had to put together her own team at the 11th hour to keep racing. And despite all that chaos, she had another strong season, which culminated in her signing with GT Factory Racing for 2022. So we sat down with Katy to get the whole story, and she did a remarkable job of peeling back the curtain on day-to-day life as a professional racer during the season; contract negotiations and managing a career; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Katy’s 2021 season & being left out of a factory ride (2:19) Putting together Moxie XI (15:47) Racing as a privateer after years on factory teams (25:16) Mindset & balancing training with running a team (30:57) Managing the season & traveling with Joe Nation (35:04) 2022 team talks & signing with GT (42:49) Goals for 2022 (50:42) Katy’s Big Idea (52:17) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Register for the 2022 Blister Summit Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

RockShox announced their new Flight Attendant electronically-controlled suspension system a few months ago, so we brought Chris Mandell back on Bikes & Big Ideas to tell us all about what the system is and how it works; who it will benefit the most; what the tradeoffs are; and Chris wraps it all up with a really important Big Idea. TOPICS & TIMES: What is Flight Attendant? (1:58) How does Flight Attendant work? (4:40) What forks, shocks, & bikes is it available on? (23:35) Why no aftermarket sales? (25:09) What are the tradeoffs? (32:49) Who’s the target customer? (37:43) Chris’ Big Idea (39:02) RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Register for the 2022 Blister Summit Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

BMC has a strong heritage in road and cross country bikes but isn’t as well known for gravity-focused offerings. Mariano Schoefer and Christof Bigler — an engineer and designer, respectively, at BMC — were looking to build the bikes they personally wanted to ride and started modifying existing models as an after-hours side project. Their tinkering caught the attention of their bosses, and long story short, their efforts spawned an entirely new bike brand, SCOR. So we sat down with Mariano and Christof to get the full backstory and the rundown on the bikes themselves. TOPICS & TIMES: Mariano and Christof’s roles at BMC Background as riders Project origins Management catching on & growing momentum Design ethos & bike details Launching SCOR Mariano & Christof’s Big Ideas RELATED LINKS: Introducing: Blister Labs Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Register for the 2022 Blister Summit Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide SCOR 4060 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Neko Mulally has had a very successful career racing for some of the biggest teams on the World Cup circuit, so we were surprised — and excited — when he announced that he was launching his own team for the 2022 season, and racing a bike that he designed himself. So we had to get Neko on Bikes & Big Ideas to talk about how he decided to take on such an ambitious project; designing the bike(s) and working with Frank The Welder to build them; starting his own team; and a whole lot more. TOPICS & TIMES: Project origins & initial concepts (1:31) Making the leap & leaving Intense (16:00) Working with Frank the Welder (19:00) Design goals & tradeoffs (28:09) Going from kinematics & geometry to a real bike design (35:07) Testing & refining the design (48:37) Sponsorship & starting a team (59:00) Neko’s Big Idea (1:06:17) RELATED LINKS: Neko's video series, FRAMEWORKS Getting Here: Gunnison & Crested Butte This Week’s Gear Giveaway Gear Giveaway / Newsletter Signup Become a Blister Member / Get our new Buyer’s Guide Register for the 2022 Blister Summit Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.