The Pinkbike Podcast Pinkbike

Martin Maes is something of a contradiction. On one hand he's an articulate man with a stoical outlook, and on the other he quite simply doesn't do things quietly. Whether it's coming onto the scene as one of the first true-enduro youngsters before eventually delivering on his potential after many years of trying with GT, or getting mired in a doping scandal and beating downhill racers at their own game, there is so much about his career that is exceptional.

Sarah chatted with Christopher Blevins right after he got back from his whirlwind of a trip to Brazil where he won the first Olympic cross-country race of the season. The 26-year-old American former Short Track World Champion last won a World Cup XCO back in 2021 in Snowshoe, but he came out with all cylinders firing in Brazil with the goal of qualifying for the Paris Olympics and getting as many points for the United States to secure two spots for the men's team.

From getting stung by the most poisonous caterpillar in the world, to recovering on downhills, dealing with cramps, life on Specialized Factory Racing, to what he thought of the cross-country race courses in Brazil, this was a really interesting conversation. We also got into why he switched to mountain biking from BMX, his creative pursuits outside of cycling, and being a mountain biker right now in the US.

We discuss our picks for this weekend's race, explain why your season won't be as easy as you think, and who are the likely winners.

While Henry enjoys riding shorter travel cross-country bikes, he doesn't follow the pro circuit all that closely. In this episode, Sarah gives Henry an idiot's guide to XC and why there's more to it than meets the eye.

We chat about how he got into riding as a teenager, how he bounced back and forth chasing summer in the UK and New Zealand for years, his time as a World Cup mechanic, why he left GMBN, some of his endurance feats including an attempt at the FKT riding across all of New Zealand and riding 1,000,000 feet in a year, and much more. Henry's an incredibly introspective person and so this was a really interesting conversation.  

Romain Dompnier and Madison Wallinger explain what goes into a season of in-depth mountain biking coverage, the power of archetypes and how race coverage can help the sport grow.