Recent Riding Part 3/3

..more..

Jan hitting a brand new stepdown, on my bike. 

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Speaking of new stuff, Thomas is the first guy to hit this platform drop. Props man, pictures don't do it justice..

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Tom on his new 2016 YT Capra, quickly picking up technique.

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Thomas

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That stepdown

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god im drunk

Recent Riding Part 2/3 (rant included)

Second part, this time gear-related, check it out:

Tom with his brand new Capra CF Pro Race, the top model in the Capra line.

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FOX 36 Float in the front.... ill get back to that fork in a future post. Note the carbon hoops.

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FOX Float X2 in the rear, what a great performing shock btw.

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And something that also cought my attention where the Gamut Podium Pedals, created by the former Point One Racing team. 

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Big and flat, with long pins, the grip is on par with my Predator Pedals, but not as good as my E13 LG1's

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And now the rants...

FiveTen really?? After what, 4 months of use?? Fuck this new FiveTen Contact line, this blows!

Contact?? I don't see any contact between the shoe and the sole...ughhh 124 euros down the drain. I am sick and tired of things failing.

The sole is loose, and you can literally pull it of the shoe, the foot rotates weirdly on my pedals. Review score to be adjusted....

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In other amazing news...

My Pike got stuck at 20% sag, like, the fork settled at 20% even without any weight on the bike. What the fuck?? This is a (1075 euro) new fork! : (

 So I googled a little and found out that its actually a common problem with Pikes. Rockshox has even given an unofficial guide how to get rid of it, and it actually worked! So here it is:

1)Release all air.

2)Pull the fork by hand about ten times.

3)Fill it up with air again to max psi.

4)Release air untill you get to desired pressure.

Fahk this actually worked! (but this should not have happened in the first place...so fuck...somebody!)

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im tired, and its late.. 'kay

Recent Riding Part 1/3

So got lots of riding done these last two weeks, and even shot some pics. In this 3 piece photo collection I will cover some new jumps, drops, and even a new bike..

Got air? ..Thomas hitting the tree-gap.

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I am getting more and more fond of this lady.

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Tom on my bike.

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What travel?

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Jan hitting a new jump.

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Booooooo E13!

So just got the word from E13 that they would not honour their warranty, and help me out with a defect I have with their LG1 gen2 pedal.

The problem is that the spin control tensioner gets jammed, and stops the pedal from spinning. Loosening it does nothing. A quick search on google shows that I'm not the only one having this issue! At a recommended retail price of 169,00 € this pedal is pretty expensive, and having it to fail after 6 months of use sucks.. ugh E13...go fuck yourself.

Enjoy your E13 LG1 pedal. It has amazing grip, the six months it works..

Review: Twenty6 Predator Ti Pedal (Generation 2)

16 months of testing of the Generation2 version of the Predator pedal is finally over, and the conclusion is crystal clear. Tyler (the man behind Twenty6) promised an evolution of the much acclaimed Prerunner pedal. Pretty much everything was reviewed and improved upon... And Tyler delivered....with the Gen2.

The result is the Predator pedal; thin, big, lightweight, grippy, and more expensive than your car. I wanted to find out whether this pedal is worth your hard earned cash, or whether this a CNC adventure gone wrong? Read on and find out. But first the basics:

Enduro sealed bearing, and quad o-ring seals should keep this sucker going strong for a long time.

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Self lubricating tapered turcite bushing, on a burly nitride coated titanium spindle. The CNC milled pedal body is has a concave and offset design, and each pin is isolated and raised so that the foot is resting less on the pedal body, and more on the pin itself. This pedal has more tech than your flat screen tv.

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My pin-system is smarter than your pin-system. No seriously, have a look at this picture to fully understand why this is such a smart system.

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The Predator is slightly taller than the 11mm Point One Racing Podium Pedal. But overall the Predator is bigger. If some of you would want some more comparison pics, please say so in the comments field, and Ill upload them. Comments does not require a sign-in.

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Predator with a Ti-axle. 343grams. Pretty close to the claimed 340 grams

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The amount of grip is really good. If you are a 5.10 shoe user (and if you are not, you should be), be prepared to experience some serious grip. The pedal body is large and thin, finally a pedal where there is enough real estate to rest the entire width of your foot, and I really like that. The grip is not as good as the E13 LG1 pedal, but its close.

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16 months of testing has given me a very good idea of what the Predator pedal has to offer; a lot. The huge platform with the amazing grip are definitely the highlights, and are quickly apparent. What comes after months of testing is the question about durability, and there is nothing to put my finger on here either. These pedals are tough, and durable, and continue to take heat. Top that of with the fact that they are thin as well, and offer a innovative pin-system, and you have yourself a winner, and a product above the competition. If you got the cash, then there are no excuses not to get these.

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Generation 1 -issue
After 17 months of intense use, the generation 1 pedal had a catastrophic failure. The pedal body snapped during a jump session. I wasn't hurt, and there was no drama, it just felt weird, and my foot "collapsed" into the remaining pedal body, allowing me to ride-it out - so to speak. The generation 2 version is improved according to Tylor wrote me: "On the supporting arms that come off from the center, I removed a few through holes and replaced them with counter bored holes."

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All 3 pedals are actually quite big, but the predator still ranks among the biggest out there. Lots of real estate for your foot.

From left: Specialized Boomslang, E13 LG1, Twenty6 Predator.

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The Good:
-Huge platform
-Good grip
-Thin
-Lightweight
-Smart pin-system
-Gen2 is durable

The Bad:
-Replacement pins are very expensive (and so is the pedal)

Score: 5/6

Hello Spring

Small new feature up and running, so some testing was due. Its a small stepdown leading to a larger jump. Great place to session!

24sec. Simple edit, with sound, 30-120fps.

I love spring (in fact, I could love it for 55 minutes if I wanted to)

Canyon Fail

Lets do some math:

+

=

My riding buddy Jan just found this huge crack on his Canyon Spectral AL. Anyway, lets see how Canyon handles this.

Most Wanted 2016

My last year here on All Mountain Next.. So what to look forward to in '16? I would usually mention gear and equipment, but I don't feel like it this time around - I've gone soft ; )

I took a look at whats interesting for 2016, and what I look forward to, or hope for. Lets take a look:

More contestants at Redbull Hardline ....and a live stream!

Redbull Hardline is the most interesting mountainbike race there currently is. Yes there I said it. Its only existed for two years, but its already hailed as the most difficult racing-line there is. We need more contestants, and more media exposure - a live stream would be awesome.

Keep it up Dan Atherton - you are doing it right.

New Parks

I want to try something new, something fresh, something I haven't tried before. I'm not talking dirty, I am talking about Bikeparks. Austria? Spain? Portugal? Canada? UK? I don't know yet, but I crave a new experience.

Redbull Rampage revised judging

I don't know, something doesn't seem right. I'm no expert, and I won't be vocal about some theory. But its pretty clear that the general opinion by the Redbull-Rampage contestants is that there is something very faulty with the judging. I thinks viewers where scratching their heads in 2014 and 2015 as well. I think it needs a total revision. 

New trail features

We are stepping it up, but not quite ready to show of the work. After nearly a year of working, we sure are looking forward to hit these new trail features.

Oldie but goldie (wildcard edition ver2)

I, I don't know what to say.

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Reviews In Review

I took a good look at my reviews of 2015, and although I stick to my ratings for the wast majority of the reviews I've done, there was a few adjustment I would like to make. Take a look at what, and why;

E13 LG1 pedal 2015 (generation2)

The pedals began to spin with a whole lot resistance after 8 months of use, to a point where they weren't usable. Even tho I adjusted the spin control. I'm currently warranting it and will see where it lands.

Because the pedals where unusable, I've given the pedals a final score of 0/6.

Check out the revised review HERE.

YT Capra CF Comp 1 2015

After a whole lot more riding, and comparison to my Canfield Brothers One Bike, I've concluded that the front is too low to my linking. You sit a bit to much in a race position, and that makes a  bit awkward riding position when grabbing air, or doing technical stuff. Imo the front should have been about an inch higher.

I didn't alter the final score, but added this info to review.

Check out the revised review HERE.

To see all the review or previews go HERE

Oldie but goldie (wildcard edition)

Back then the only I was riding, was....well not a bike.

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Lost Pics Of 2015 Part 2/2

More lost pics:

Kim on his status, hitting Mr.Madsens Bad idea Drop Ver2. Boy was he smiling afterwards.

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Kevin on one of the newest lines in Hahnenklee Bikepark. Pawed road *facepalm*

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Jan into a new jump we got up and running.

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Jan catching air on a table.

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Small roadgap in Malente.

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Villingen Bikepark "freeride" line. I wish I had my Capra with me here, my Tues is absolute overkill on this line, and I bet the Capra would have been faster as well.

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That's it, grab a beer and have a good time.

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Lost Pics Of 2015 Part 1/2

The lost pics of 2015.

Some pics get lost, or don't get posted due to my space restrictions (I try to never post more than 6 pics at a time). And sometimes its a shame really, because some of them are actually quite good. Well, this post is where they get their redemption, I found 12 pics worthy of blog-publication (well actually found more, but hey, lets take it easy mkay).
The pics don't have to be dramatic or wacky, it can just be a good remembrance of a trip.

Anyway, have a look:

Lets start of with this little gem of a pic. Drea unleashing beast-mode i Hafjell Bikepark. Ever since he broke his arm in Villingen Bikepark he got his no-fucks-given attitude, and just rails shit :D

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On a smaller scale I go about one of the many tables on the Villingen "freeride" line.

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Jan hitting the skull drop.

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Peter in action on his 29'er

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