Ahead of the Tennessee National taking place this week, we sat down with Sea 'Griz' McClendon to run through some USDH names to watch on the national circuit this year. Of course, we had to get the Griz update and hear how he ended up spittin' heat on the mic at Downhill Southeast races and in the booth with the Gravity Coop doing post-race shows. We also touched on all the Americans racing World Cups this year, which World Cup racers are coming over to race this weekend at Windrock, and a bunch of other nonsense mostly related to downhill racing. Enjoy!

If you want to race downhill, check out these regional series!

NW Cup (Washington, Idaho, Montana)

Southwest Downhill (SoCal) 

Southridge USA (SoCal)

Downhill Rockies (Colorado, New Mexico)

Eastern States Cup (Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Vermont, Pennsylvania)

Downhill Southeast (North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia)

Monster Energy Pro Downhill (North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia)

With most team rumors debunked or made public, we wanted to discuss which changes are most exciting and who's posed to go fast in 2025. Of course, like any good B Practice Pod, we floated between topics, mixing in chit-chat about Supercross, racers racing longer nowadays, Gates' $100k belt drive bounty, the cause and effect of setup changes, and why Dak should never read the comments. Enjoy!

0:00 Rambling intro
9:00 - Supercross bench racing
16:22 - Developing a race bike first, then going to production 
25:20 - chasing small gains in bike performance mid-season
30:45 - cause and effect of testing and changing setup
36:08 - comparing setups with other pro DH racers
37:48 - final team change news for 2025
46:08 - what happens to the few names stuck in the middle
52:28 - Biggest team change of 2025??
1:03:08 - Most excited to see at the races in 2025??
1:14:22 - Will we see more racers racing into their 30s in the future?
1:20:55 - Dak injury update
1:25:02 - Thoughts on Gates $100k belt drive competition
1:37:52 - Dak's comeback plans
1:53:08 - Dak shouldn't read the comments

Thanks to Maxxis Tires | FOX | Jenson USA for supporting The Inside Line

Max Beaupre is a ball of energy on and off the bike. Taking a moto heritage to mountain bikes, Max grew into a national enduro powerhouse before making the move to e-enduro. But don't pigenhole him as a single discipline specialist. He rides everything and rides everything well. On top of that, he's a becoming a premier trail builder and is pushing his moto talent by opening up an e-moto future, too.

Thanks to Jack Rice for the interview!

Interview contents
0:00 - Some history
10:08 - Hitting Highland, Meeting Kyle Strait,  National Champs
16:44 - Always enduro
22:00 - Racing with a broken leg
24:12 - Dropping out of school
33:07 - Getting into a machine for the first time
37:18 - Getting on Cannondale, U.S. EWS races
51:20 - Sponsors and bike setup
57:08 - Racing e-bikes, work ethic, faith in God
1:01:18 - Wrist injury, riding for Surron, riding in Monster Jam
1:31:30 - Back to Europe for E-EDR and World Champs
1:45:54 - 2025 plans, getting on Ari
2:01:18 - Digging trails and Working with Sean Leader at Wildside
2:07:58 - Questions from friends and e-Moto talk
2:19:42 - Future of WC Downhill

The past few months have flown by. And somehow, we haven't recorded a B Practice Podcast since the last World Cup back in October. We were overdue for a catchup to discuss the many series and team changes and, of course, our main man Dak's gnarly off-season injury. We get into all the details of what happened, his recovery, and why he's in a better place than before to handle such a setback. We then get into all the team rumor gossip, Continental series gossip, career numbers, and finish things off with a debate on what is the ultimate dream sponsor. Enjoy!

Show Notes
0:00 - Intro
3:10 - Dak injury details, update, recovery
14:45 - Thoughts on the risk of riding moto during the offseason
18:17 - Dak's headspace during his injury
21:39 - How Dak's program has changed to avoid fatigue, over-training, and stress
26:26 - Where Dak started to find solutions to his health problems
31:12 - Finding confidence and happiness in your life
41:10 - Dak getting hurt at his house
43:19 - Dak's new video with GoPro' In Their Element'
45:11 - Mondraker doing a fill-in for Dak?
47:20 - Confirmed team changes for 2025
1:02:08 - Rumored team changes for 2025
1:19:28 - New team rules pushing out smaller teams and screwing 'bubble' riders
1:22:35 - Continental Series chit-chat and what it takes to make it to World Cups now
1:27:41 - Chit-chat about U.S. Series carrying weight against World Cups
1:39:01 - What career number would Dak pick?
1:40:37 - More team rumor talk
1:46:15 - Why Dak doesn’t wear gloves + what grips he runs
1:52:59 - Dream sponsor?

Thanks to Maxxis Tires | FOX | Jenson USA for supporting The Inside Line

#USDH ripper, Lucas Dedora, shares his story of going from a diehard XC grom to his first year racing World Cup Downhill. In the middle of the season, Lucas graduated high school and managed to hit 19 different races around the globe. Jack Rice was there all summer with Lucas as photographer for Transition Factory Racing and they talk about the highs and the lows of it all.

Podcast contents
0:00 - "I wanted to be Nino Schurter"
4:44 - School and finding enduro
11:54 - Racing his first National Champs with a torn ACL
24:32 - Early DH career
32:20 - Aiming for the World Cup with Pro Builds Team
39:57 - Being friends with and racing against Asa Vermette
42:33 - Dealing with injuries and P.T.
50:24 - First European World Cup season and the Ft Bill Crash
59:15 - Poland and his last physical day of school
1:05:56 - Val di Sole struggles and Valentina Roa Sanchez
1:11:30 - Graduating high school mid-season
1:19:00 - Junior World Cup Les Gets race day canceled
1:25:04 - Getting on Transition Factory Racing
1:30:25 - National Champs, Rest in Peace Scott Huntley
1:36:17 - Competing in 19 races, Joakim and World Champs
1:44:33 - Loudenvielle and weather issues, Recovery, US Open, MSA
1:57:50 - 2025, no contract and the USDH scene and World Cup challenges

Thanks to Maxxis Tires | FOX | Jenson USA for supporting The Inside Line

Today we're joined by Jeff Brines, a long-time mountain biker, Litter Mag and Vital MTB fan. He's also educated and versed in finance. He kicked off a forum thread on Vital MTB that asked "Will more companies be shutting down in the next 12-24 months?" At a year old, the thread has over 100,000 views with nearly 800 replies as news about our industry has broken. We discuss the past and current state of the bicycle industry through his analysis and tools and see if we can figure out where we're headed.

Thank you Vital listeners!

THIS IS NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE.

Podcast Contents
0:00 - Intro, who is Jeff and what are we discussing?
6:11 - Why start a Vital MTB forum post about bike companies shutting down?
11:07 - Why did the *money people* think MTB would make them rich during Covid?
17:30 - Is it just greed and ego?
19:55 - Why did bikes stop selling?
23:49 - Why don't brands save money for slow times?
27:54 - Most of the bike industry is privately held
32:52 - Companies that went under, does the investment money just disappear?
38:05 - Original owners buying a company back, Family Office and Private Equity
46:25 - Private equity and how it works
51:54 - Is going bankrupt expected with venture capital investors?
53:51 - The lunacy of VanMoof being worth $500 million
1:04:23 - What does the bike industry future look like?
1:12:41 - Is there any incentive to get into the bike industry now?
1:15:41 - Is there an ideal company size?
1:17:48 - Will the business world repeat the same mistakes 10 years from now?
1:21:31 - Tools to learn about the bike industry
1:26:10 - Vital audience survey

Check out Jeff's slideshow presentation here (Google Slides)

Vital MTB Audience Surveys (scroll to bottom of page)

https://wtfhappenedin1971.com/

The 2024 World Cup season is over. And what a whirlwind the past five months have been, with all-time racing across the board. It's a shame things have to come to an end, but the hype is already building for next year. Mont-Sainte-Anne was very par the course for how the 2024 season has gone, with wet conditions on race day. Luckily, the classic Canadian course holds moisture like a champ, and besides some slick rocks and fresh sections, it was game on. Our dude Dak was having another promising weekend, and the odds were looking good that he could close out the year with another podium. That was until a damn track pole had other plans. #polegate2024

Enjoy listening to the crew discuss all kinds of nonsense, from arm pump surgeries to e-bike training for DH, Greg Minnaar's retirement, the odds of needing a work Visa to race World Cups next year, rule changes for next year, and, of course, race highlights from the weekend and overall standings. 

A massive thank you to everyone who listened to us banter all season—we love bringing you these conversations, and we appreciate the support! 

Jack Rice wraps up the 2024 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup with interviews from racers, mechanics and MTB filmers and photographers to see how their season went, to find out what the future looks like and to continue the question, "why downhill?"

Thanks to Jack, John Lawlor and Rick Schubert for all the hustle this year at the World Cups. And thank you listeners for helping us keep the stoke for DH alive.

Interviews
0:00 - Intro
1:11 - Greg Minnaar
4:44 - Marine Cabirou
6:06 - Sven Martin
11:59 - Tahnee Seagrave
13:17 - Vali Holl
16:11 - Aaron Gwin
18:41 - Finn Iles
22:31 - Abigail Hogie
29:52 - Brad Blackwell
33:21 - Alex Presant
37:41 - Swen Heil
39:32 - Tyler Ervin
40:47 - Kale Cushman
43:06 - Nick Robertson
49:11 - Ross Bell
55:59 - Roman Tunbridge
59:55 - Tommy Krause
1:03:44 - Andy Vathis
1:11:20 - Carson Fletcher
1:13:31 - Jack Tennyson
1:14:54 - Jorge Gomes
1:17:23 - Rachel Pageau
1:21:25 - Steve Estabrook
1:22:56 - Zack Harper

Did you believe the hype? Coming into the 2024 World Cup season, Asa Vermette was an obvious favorite in the Junior Men's category. He'd been fast domestically for a few years, and with the support of Frameworks and guidance from Neko Mulally and Angel Suarez, he seemed poised to have a successful debut on the international stage. Then, at the first round in Fort William, Asa waxed everyone by 6 seconds. You tack on the fact that he won after sitting on the couch for weeks prior healing a broken hip, and the hype became simple facts. The next generation is always faster than the last, and Asa is leading the latest charge. 

Fast forward to now, and we've been lucky to watch Asa and Max Alran exchange blows all year. Each has three wins, and Mont Sainte Anne was teeing up to be an epic final round between the two. Unfortunately, Asa's crash in Loudenvielle left him more battered and bruised than initially suspected, putting an end to his first World Cup season. A bittersweet conclusion to an otherwise successful year, we wanted to know how Asa felt about his season—the highs, the lows, the lessons learned, and the goals for 2025. We talked about a whole lot more, so enjoy getting to know more about the calm kid from Durango who's damn fast on a bike.

0:00 - Intro
1:37 - Why Asa isn't racing MSA
4:24 - Injuries collected throughout the season
5:19 - The balance of pushing and crashing
8:06 - Did he feel the pressure going into the season?
12:00 - Key takeaways from his first World Cup season 
13:38 - Why keeping racing fun is key
14:51 - Asa's pump-up music of choice 
15:51 - Advice from Neko and Angel
17:05 - How Asa gets up to speed and breaks down tracks
21:10 - Favorite country he visited this year 
22:50 - Favorite track of the year
23:33 - Getting used to riding in the mud
25:32 - Injury updates going into the offseason
28:05 - How Asa passes the time when he's hurt 
29:46 - Favorite Elite racer
30:55 - Asa explains his nasty whips
31:56 - Doing a flip in a race run??
36:17 - Who's got the best whips?
38:29 - Things to improve on this offseason
40:22 - Training program chit-chat 
 42:21 - What Asa rides day-to-day
42:04 - Asa's perfect riding day
43:36 - Freestyle Asa
44:52 - Winter riding plans
45:48 - 2025 Goals
46:49 - 5 Years from now, where will Asa be… 

This is a special episode of The Inside Line as we had Jack Rice at the 2024 U.S. Open of Mountain Biking in Killington, Vermont.
See photos from the event - https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/why-ride-downhill-u-s-open-mountain-biking

Thanks to FOX, Maxxis Tires and Jenson USA for supporting The Inside Line

It was the season ender to the Pro Downhill Series and with the final World Cup DH in Mont-Sainte-Anne next week, the field was stacked with Elite level pros from around the globe. Instead of the usual questions with only the top riders, we had commissioned Jack to search the pits and ask amateur riders a simple question - Why Downhill?

While plenty of answers resonate with the excitement and action of what DH is, an overwhelming response praised the community as a reason for coming back to ride. It's the people that make our sport so great and it's our hope that the comradery of the #USDH community continues to grow.

Interview contents
0:00 - Intro
1:09 - Meredith Burnette
2:25 - Jamie Tate
3:18 - Dusty Mason
4:10 - Kerry Marshall
5:02 - "Scott and the fam"
6:33 - Jacob Dyke
8:57 - Bailey Gunter
11:04 - Cole Bernier
13:40 - Jack Burnette
21:54 - Tyson Henrie
23:55 - Tabias Spencer
24:59 - Lachie Stevens-Mcnab (Race Winner)
25:47 - Nina Hoffmann (Race Winner)
29:23 - Max Beaupre and Why NOT Downhill
31:51 - Tegan Heap
33:00 - Dylan Conte
36:20 - Lucas Dedora
36:57 - Anna Newkirk
38:37 - Chris Grice
39:50 - Clay Harper