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At what point do we acknowledge it's a different sport?

OGRipper

back alley ripper
Feb 3, 2004
10,647
1,116
NORCAL is the hizzle
I think a better question is, at what point do we stop creating division within the ranks of people who just want to get kicks on two wheels?

Do you like being labeled?
 

norbar

KESSLER PROBLEM. Just cause
Jun 7, 2007
11,346
1,587
Warsaw :/
I guess I would have to disagree. No, I don't think the equipment is expensive but are there really fresh faces every year? I don't really pay attention to SS, but it seems to be the same 10 people every time. Okay so maybe 20 people do it now, but that's about it. Anyone that can ride a bike can do DH runs but very few can do SS runs.

SS has been a good promotion for the sport but I have a hard time seeing it sustaining itself. Of course, NASCAR has a huge following for no apparent reason so I guess SS may be able to pull it off.
You don't pay attention. There are a lot of old faces at the us top 10 but most of them weren't top10 some time ago. Also where were Yannik Grannieri, Mehdi Ghani, Biembe, Szymon Godziek, Sam Raynolds, Mike Montgommery, McGarry 2 years ago? Bass, Lacon and McDermont are nowhere near as dominant as they were some time ago. Yes less people compete in ss and dirt for fun because you either can do the jump or not. No half assed riding is possible so in 1 year a specific group of riders dominate.


Also for the 20 people do it - FMBA claims 39 people have started this year already and there are a lot of big names missing. Add a lot of strong locals who do crazy stuff and I think the number is much bigger.

http://fmbworldtour.com/ranking-results/
 

-BB-

I broke all the rules, but somehow still became mo
Sep 6, 2001
4,254
28
Livin it up in the O.C.
Complaining about how this bike pedals uphill seems kinda like complaining how a DH bike would pedal uphill or how a DJ bike doesn't have the proper seat angle for climbing...
Well there are a lot of people that use bikes like the Santacruz 4x as a trail bike.
Also, as I was stating, this bike would not accellerate out of the gates well for DS or 4X... something that IS in the target audience for a bike of this travel/geometry.
 

bdamschen

Turbo Monkey
Nov 28, 2005
3,377
156
Spreckels, CA
Well there are a lot of people that use bikes like the Santacruz 4x as a trail bike.
Also, as I was stating, this bike would not accellerate out of the gates well for DS or 4X... something that IS in the target audience for a bike of this travel/geometry.
Looking at the video, it seems to me that the bike is marketed toward people who want to ride big jumps? After all it is named after Paul B, and he doesn't do much racin.
 

roel_koel

Monkey
Mar 26, 2003
278
1
London,England
At what point do we acknowledge that this thread is wack?
its a question riders will always ask - is it a different sport?

I can only answer from my own experience.....my typical day off work

today:

-I went mountain biking all morning in my local woods, on a bike with 26" wheels running 35psi in knobbly tires, 160mm front suspension / 145mm rear suspension and front/rear hydraulic disc brakes

then stopped for a lunch break....

-I went bmx riding all afternoon in my local concrete skatepark, on a bike with 20" wheels running 100psi in semi-slick tires, no suspension and 1 rear u-brake


its all riding, but the bike is different to best suit the environment I am riding...

slopestyle? I've owned numerous DJ (24" and 26" wheels) and 4X hardtails and 4X / SS full suspension bikes and it was all riding

some of these bikes were sold on, after local trails were destroyed in conflicts, all were fun to ride though!
 

norbar

KESSLER PROBLEM. Just cause
Jun 7, 2007
11,346
1,587
Warsaw :/
Well there are a lot of people that use bikes like the Santacruz 4x as a trail bike.
Also, as I was stating, this bike would not accellerate out of the gates well for DS or 4X... something that IS in the target audience for a bike of this travel/geometry.
Most modern SS specific bikes are not targeting 4x or DS. They are dirt jump bikes with rear suspension, not racing machines.
 

manhattanprjkt83

Rusty Trombone
Jul 10, 2003
9,644
1,214
Nilbog
Ok, so I have one more comment about this bike. Yeah, the Grom's will be all over it bc of the image thing and it might be good for "gravity" runs, but I have MAJOR issues with the susp design if you are gonna pedal up to get your downs. Having that lower pivot placed around the Bottombracket is gonna make it bob all over the place. It has been done before...

Same design as the Arrow DS-3



I'll admit that bike (I owned one and then sold to Sandwich) was a ton of fun when pointed down, but climbs like crud and accelerates out of the "gates" poorly (so no bueno for DS or 4x). Actually, the DS-3 might be even BETTER for slopestyle bc with the 24in rear wheel design the rear stays are VERY short.
dude are you seriously talking about this bike to go uphill? kona has other bikes for that...this is a very purpose built machine.

And i have to add my close friend and I did some loooong epics he on his Cowan, never caused him a problem.
 

-BB-

I broke all the rules, but somehow still became mo
Sep 6, 2001
4,254
28
Livin it up in the O.C.
At what point do we acknowledge that this thread is wack?

LOL...

Since our sport is the BEST SPORT EVER INVENTED, what we should do is rename the OTHER ones to:
  • Motorized Mountainbiking
  • 20in wheel Mountainbiking and
  • Road-mountainbiking
So what if there are more people in any of those other ones than ours. That is jsut bc our sport is too "fragmented" from all these lables they put on us.
:thumb:
 

v6 4.3

Monkey
Jan 22, 2005
107
0
street/dj bmx:dj mtb::bmx:4x::moto:DH
did you just right up a math calculation for labeling types of bikers?

if slopestyle is now considered bmx than slope style riders cant ride red bull rampage.

I think the reason slopestyle is more like mtb than bmx is because slopestyle came about from MTBers messing around on dj bikes and ds bikes. rather than BMXers grabbing a MTN bike and trying tricks. All pro (or most atleast) slopestyle riders started as freeride mtbers.

all slopestyle bikes are purpose built MTN bikes. We are just beging to see even more purpose built parts even down to the frames. They are ridden on a MTN.
 
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-BB-

I broke all the rules, but somehow still became mo
Sep 6, 2001
4,254
28
Livin it up in the O.C.
Most modern SS specific bikes are not targeting 4x or DS. They are dirt jump bikes with rear suspension, not racing machines.

Lets be serious here... This bike is NOT targeting Slopestyle riders. They would all build purpose driven custom rigs with specific components.

THIS bike is targeting WANNA-BE slopestyle riders. So maybe it is pointless for me to even put energy into critiquing it. As I said above, this bike is for the newest class of sam-hill fanclub wannabees.
:thumb:
 
THIS bike is targeting WANNA-BE slopestyle riders. So maybe it is pointless for me to even put energy into critiquing it. As I said above, this bike is for the newest class of sam-hill fanclub wannabees.
:thumb:

Not true.
As someone who owns a bike like this i find it to be a devilish good time killing dirtjumps.
My Killswitch has 100mm travel and singlespeed yet it makes this old school non fan boy hucker feel like hooligan.
Pretty awesome actually.
 

bdamschen

Turbo Monkey
Nov 28, 2005
3,377
156
Spreckels, CA
Lets be serious here... This bike is NOT targeting Slopestyle riders. They would all build purpose driven custom rigs with specific components.

THIS bike is targeting WANNA-BE slopestyle riders. So maybe it is pointless for me to even put energy into critiquing it. As I said above, this bike is for the newest class of sam-hill fanclub wannabees.
:thumb:
I don't know too many dudes like that. Either you do it or you get hurt until you can or give up.
 

norbar

KESSLER PROBLEM. Just cause
Jun 7, 2007
11,346
1,587
Warsaw :/
Lets be serious here... This bike is NOT targeting Slopestyle riders. They would all build purpose driven custom rigs with specific components.

THIS bike is targeting WANNA-BE slopestyle riders. So maybe it is pointless for me to even put energy into critiquing it. As I said above, this bike is for the newest class of sam-hill fanclub wannabees.
:thumb:
If you want to hate that's os your thinkg but the company that I do some part time fork for released a SS bike last year and it has been hugely popular. Which is funny as the team riders ride their HT's more. Not to mention I rode one and it is pure joy to ride one. Reread my post - a fun bike made for dirtjump, pumptracks and some mellower park trails for people who dont want a derail. In my opinion such bike doesn't have to pedal well when you are not a racer (how many people do you know that race 4x?).

Also yes I agree a bike like a banshee rampant will be more versatile but for people with no connection to the mountains a bb ss bike makes sense.

I think the reason slopestyle is more like mtb than bmx is because slopestyle came about from MTBers messing around on dj bikes and ds bikes. rather than BMXers grabbing a MTN bike and trying tricks. All pro (or most atleast) slopestyle riders started as freeride mtbers.

all slopestyle bikes are purpose built MTN bikes. We are just beging to see even more purpose built parts even down to the frames. They are ridden on a MTN.
It's a bit different in yurp. A lot of riders here come into ss from urban areas with no fr or dh and only dirt jumps. They still ride mountain bikes but I notice a trend like it here. For me slopestyle comps are dirtjump pro if you know what I mean
 

kidwoo

Artisanal Tweet Curator
THIS bike is targeting WANNA-BE slopestyle riders. So maybe it is pointless for me to even put energy into critiquing it. As I said above, this bike is for the newest class of sam-hill fanclub wannabees.
:thumb:
Aw look......somebody got old. :D



These bikes definitely serve a purpose. Just because you can't ride them in one of the manners for which they were designed doesn't mean other people can't.
 

Huck Banzai

Turbo Monkey
May 8, 2005
2,523
23
Transitory
Aw look......somebody got old. :D



These bikes definitely serve a purpose. Just because you can't ride them in one of the manners for which they were designed doesn't mean other people can't.
I cant ride it in any manner for which it was designed, but I still like it.

I don't like unicycles, unicorns or unibrows tho I find them amusing.

Hit me with your best shot! :P
 

-BB-

I broke all the rules, but somehow still became mo
Sep 6, 2001
4,254
28
Livin it up in the O.C.
Not true.
As someone who owns a bike like this i find it to be a devilish good time killing dirtjumps.
My Killswitch has 100mm travel and singlespeed yet it makes this old school non fan boy hucker feel like hooligan.
Pretty awesome actually.
]

Yes, but would you want to build up your own with the parts you want (or maybe a mix of old parts from other bikes and some new stuff) or would you buy a complete one like this?
 

-BB-

I broke all the rules, but somehow still became mo
Sep 6, 2001
4,254
28
Livin it up in the O.C.
If you want to hate that's os your thinkg but the company that I do some part time fork for released a SS bike last year and it has been hugely popular. Which is funny as the team riders ride their HT's more. Not to mention I rode one and it is pure joy to ride one. Reread my post - a fun bike made for dirtjump, pumptracks and some mellower park trails for people who dont want a derail. In my opinion such bike doesn't have to pedal well when you are not a racer (how many people do you know that race 4x?).

Also yes I agree a bike like a banshee rampant will be more versatile but for people with no connection to the mountains a bb ss bike makes sense.



It's a bit different in yurp. A lot of riders here come into ss from urban areas with no fr or dh and only dirt jumps. They still ride mountain bikes but I notice a trend like it here. For me slopestyle comps are dirtjump pro if you know what I mean
I have no issue with Singlespeed DJ'rs (with susp). I'm only commenting that the around the BB pivot is less than optimal and that a LOT of fanboi's will be riding this.
 

kidwoo

Artisanal Tweet Curator
I have no issue with Singlespeed DJ'rs (with susp). I'm only commenting that the around the BB pivot is less than optimal and that a LOT of fanboi's will be riding this.
And that's somehow worse than the immediate spike in demo 8 sales over the last three years, even though the bikes didn't really change that much?


I've got a spec SX that I ride on *gasp* big ass jumps that are definitely in the realm of 'slopestyle'. I'd be stoked if it were a concentric BB pivot because I'd love to run it singlespeed and get rid of a bunch of drivetrain stuff that I don't really need. That doesn't make me a 'fanboi' that makes me 'wishing for a pratical change'.

Here's a buddy of mine killing it on a 2009 kona Bass last year.......the exact same bike that's giving you so much trouble for some reason.



He's actually riding it, does that make him a fanboi or just a guy having fun on an appropriate tool for what he's doing? How about when he takes that same bike on trail rides which he says he does? You honestly seem to the only one that even cares. I promise you this guy doesn't have a poster of paul bas on his wall that he kisses and says good night to every evening :rofl:
 

aanon

Chimp
Nov 21, 2008
29
0
south oz
These short travel ''slopestyle'' bikes can do a s#itload more the just jump.
They are as ''mtb'' as any other ''mtb''.
 

norbar

KESSLER PROBLEM. Just cause
Jun 7, 2007
11,346
1,587
Warsaw :/
I have no issue with Singlespeed DJ'rs (with susp). I'm only commenting that the around the BB pivot is less than optimal and that a LOT of fanboi's will be riding this.
Yes but 90% of people don't feel the differnace because they run very little sag on them and a singlespeed is simple. Not everyone has their bike geek turned up to 11 like we do here on RM ;)