218 episodes
Bikes & Big Ideas BLISTER
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- Sports
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4.8 • 25 Ratings
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Bikes & Big Ideas is the weekly podcast from BLISTER that's dedicated to the most interesting conversations and ideas from the bike world — and beyond.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Reviewing The News w/ Ryan Palmer, March 2024
March was an interesting month for bike news. There was a dispute at Crankworx Rotorua which resulted in the men not competing in the finals, Scott is having crazy management drama, there are a bunch of interesting new lightweight eMTBs, and Simon had a recent trip to ride in Tuscany. In our third installment of Reviewing The News, Ryan and Simon get into all of this and more.
RELATED LINKS:
BLISTER+ Membership
BLISTER+ Real World Testimonials
Blister Labs
This Week’s Gear Giveaway
Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide
TOPICS & TIMES:
Simon’s recent trip to Italy (1:50)
Riding eGravel bikes in Tuscany (4:03)
Are gravel bikes just reincarnated 30-year-old mountain bikes? (4:48)
John Tomac’s drop-bar riding prowess (7:39)
How did we ride without dropper posts? (7:54)
Slow eBikes in Europe (10:38)
The Slopestyle strike (20:40)
First-ever women’s slopestyle event at Crankworx (27:32)
Scott drama (32:50)
The year of the lightweight E-bikes (38:04)
Norco Fluid VLT (39:58)
Mondraker Dune (50:11)
Short-travel high-pivot bikes (53:24)
Old brakes vs. new brakes (1:01:51)
OUR OTHER PODCASTS
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CRAFTED
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Blister Podcast
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Brook Macdonald on Fresh Starts, DH Race Bike Design, Moving to Forbidden, & More
Racing World Cup DH isn’t easy under any circumstances, but doing so after a spinal cord injury — and needing to relearn how to walk, much less ride — is something else entirely. Brook Macdonald pulled it off, but he’s also struggled with bike setup, burnout, and more over the last couple of seasons. For 2024, though, he’s got a new team, a new bike, and a renewed hunger to race — we sat down to hear all about it.
RELATED LINKS:
BLISTER+ Membership
BLISTER+ Real World Testimonials
Blister Labs
This Week’s Gear Giveaway
Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide
TOPICS & TIMES:
Getting a fresh start for 2024 (2:24)
Coming back from breaking his back in 2019 (4:09)
What does (and doesn’t) work in a DH race bike (18:06)
Moving to Forbidden (23:40)
Hardline Tasmania (26:58)
Losing weight (35:44)
The evolution of DH racing (39:04)
Changing race tracks (50:05)
Brook’s 2024 goals (54:42)
OUR OTHER PODCASTS
Blister Cinematic
CRAFTED
GEAR:30
Blister Podcast
Off The Couch
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Georgia Astle on Racing, Freeriding, & Finding Her Way to MTB
Georgia Astle is one of the many ultra-talented riders to come out of Whistler, BC — but she actually grew up kitesurfing and doing a whole bunch of other sports, rather than mountain biking. Once she fell in love with mountain biking in high school, though, her rise through the ranks was astonishingly rapid — first as a racer and later as a freerider — and we sat down with Georgia to hear all about it, including the state of Enduro racing and women’s freeride, Georgia’s goals for 2024 and beyond, and a whole lot more.
RELATED LINKS:
BLISTER+ Membership
BLISTER+ Real World Testimonials
Blister Labs
This Week’s Gear Giveaway
Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide
TOPICS & TIMES:
Growing up in Whistler and not mountain biking (2:44)
Getting into racing (7:51)
Georgia’s meteoric rise (13:42)
DH vs. Enduro as a privateer (21:32)
The folly of eMTB racing (31:06)
Moving to freeride (34:04)
The state of women’s freeride (39:06)
Georgia’s 2024 plans (48:52)
OUR OTHER PODCASTS
Blister Cinematic
CRAFTED
GEAR:30
Blister Podcast
Off The Couch
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. -
Dakotah Norton on Finding Consistency, Moving to Mondraker, the State of US DH Racing, & More
Dakotah Norton finished the 2023 DH season strong, with two podiums and a 6th place finish over the final four races, but as he put it, the season started with “near failure.” We sat down with Dakotah to talk about the struggle of finding consistency at the limit; his move to Mondraker Factory Racing and the dissolution of his former team at Intense; the state of DH racing both at home and abroad; how to better develop up-and-coming American DH racers; and a whole lot more.
RELATED LINKS:
BLISTER+ Membership
BLISTER+ Real World Testimonials
Blister Labs
This Week’s Gear Giveaway
Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide
TOPICS & TIMES:
Getting up to speed with the new team (2:20)
The 2023 season (3:45)
Finding consistency in a chaotic season (6:34)
The dissolution of Intense Factory Racing (17:35)
Finding a new team mid-season (21:38)
The state of World Cup DH racing (22:41)
Broadcasting races (25:34)
Running World Cup DH (30:25)
Developing American DH talent (33:42)
Dak’s 2024 goals (41:09)
OUR OTHER PODCASTS
Blister Cinematic
CRAFTED
GEAR:30
Blister Podcast
Off The Couch
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. -
Sarah Sturm on Her Unconventional Path to Gravel-Racing Stardom
Gravel racing has exploded in recent years and Sarah Sturm — who only started racing bikes in college, after burning out on competitive soccer — quickly vaulted to stardom in the sport. So we sat down with Sarah to hear the surprising and hilarious story of her path into gravel racing; chat about the struggle of not excelling at something you’ve dedicated a lot of time and energy toward; the evolution and professionalization of gravel racing; the overall state and health of the sport; and a whole lot more.
RELATED LINKS:
BLISTER+ Membership
BLISTER+ Real World Testimonials
Blister Labs
This Week’s Gear Giveaway
Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide
TOPICS & TIMES:
Introducing Sarah (1:25)
Racing cyclocross & moving to gravel (2:49)
Sarah’s first forays into mountain biking (6:46)
Being the “doomsday prepper of bike racing” (19:20)
The evolution of gravel racing (27:37)
“Marginal gains people” (39:22)
The health of the sport (45:51)
Sarah’s 2024 plans & goals (51:22)
OUR OTHER PODCASTS
Blister Cinematic
CRAFTED
GEAR:30
Blister Podcast
Off The Couch
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. -
Reviewing The News w/ Ryan Palmer, February 2024
On our second episode of Reviewing The News with hosts Simon Stewart and Ryan Palmer; Ryan may have uncovered what Kyle and Rachael Strait are keeping secret before their big announcement on Friday (March 8th); Simon considers adopting Ronan Dunne’s pre-race hydration program after watching his incredible Red Bull Hardline winning run; there’s a brake lever lawsuit to talk about; Ryan’s father-in-law’s souped-up scooter; exploding lithium-ion batteries; and Cannondale’s wild Moterra SL lightweight full-powered eMTB.
RELATED LINKS:
BLISTER+ Membership
BLISTER+ Real World Testimonials
Blister Labs
This Week’s Gear Giveaway
Blister Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide
TOPICS & TIMES:
Fezzari name change (2:53)
Kyle and Rachael Strait’s new bike sponsor (4:38)
Red Bull Hardline Tasmania (8:44)
The dangers of racing Hardline before a World Cup DH season (12:35)
Brake lever lawsuit & the broken health care system (22:13)
Dutch police field testing e-bikes (34:22)
Lithium-ion battery task force in NY (47:18)
Frankenstein Batteries (49:40)
Lithium-ion battery safety (50:51)
Cannondale Moterra SL (1:00:32)
The future of lightweight lower-power eMTBs (1:13:28)
Cornhole College Scholarships (1:21:37)
OUR OTHER PODCASTS
Blister Cinematic
CRAFTED
GEAR:30
Blister Podcast
Off The Couch
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Customer Reviews
Very informative
The EXT ep was very enlightening! Funny in the few opportunities for David to get a word in, but just enough to keep it rolling and pertinent for my mtb needs!
Keep it up Blister!
Low-key, deep dive on MTNBike topics.
Here are 3 episodes I’ve played and recommend:
Steve Mathews — Vorsprung Suspension,
Joe McEwan — Starling Bikes,
Franco Fratton — EXP Suspension.
In each of the above, the interviewer takes a distant back seat, letting the guest shine and speak in great depth about his interests and experiences.
The sound quality is above average. Thank-you to the host — and the editor(s).
Great Podcast
Love listening to this while I am driving.