Better yet…all you have to do is wake up in the morning, grab a cup of coffee and start shredding. This is the ultimate backyard for big hit mountain bikers.

Join us for an inside look at freeride mountain bike star Brandon Semenuk and his crew as we follow them on the road from World Tour Competitions to the journey back home in the coastal mountains of Canada.

In this premiere episode we check out the ultimate MTB house fully decked out with dirt jumps, slopestyle, trails, air bags, and a bear?! Lean back and enjoy some serious laughs, adventure, and of course some epic freeride mountain biking.
Stay tuned for episodes every other Tuesday

Follow on twitter #LifeBehindBars @BrandonSemenuk https://twitter.com/#!/BrandonSemenuk
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brandon-Semenuk/172128549470965

@CurtisLRobinson ?

https://twitter.com/#!/CurtisLRobinson

@KyleNorbraten

https://twitter.com/#!/KyleNorbraten

@TheCoastalCrew

https://twitter.com/#!/TheCoastalCrew

@Evan_Intern

https://twitter.com/#!/Evan_Intern

@redbull https://twitter.com/#!/search/redbull

Tracklist:

“Boys In The Bright White Sport Car” – Trooper

Everything from double backs to crazy wall rides, the latest Berg Line from Red Bull does not disappoint. One of these days we are just going to get to the point where riders say…”don’t fall…you’ll die”.

What a premiere: Red Bull Berg Line and the 26 world’s best mountain bike slopestyle riders wowed 20,000 spectators in Winterberg, Germany. The brand new gold event of the FMB World Tour could not have been more spectacular. MTB legend Darren Berrecloth created a course of unprecedented dimensions that pushed the riders to their limits. Flip-Whips, Double Backflips and 360 Spinwhips were on today’s schedule. Andreu Lacondeguy (ESP) convinced the jury with his consistently high level of tricks throughout the nine obstacles and won the contest. With his double backflip he also got the trophy for the Best Trick. Second was Sam Reynolds (UK) and third, Sam Pilgrim (UK).

So what are you supposed to run that will give you the best of both worlds?

The answer is a little bit easier than you would think, but you need to take into consideration what is actually happening with your bike while on the trail to make an informed decision that works.

How your bike works on the trail

When you ride a trail bike, you take it everywhere. From long climbs to long descents and pedaling rollers, the modern day trail bike is touted as the do-it-all option for riders looking to get out on the weekends. It has cemented itself as a great one bike option or the bike you grab when you just want to have a day of fun on the trail. Whether it is a 120mm travel 29er or a 150mm travel AM monster, the bike is not meant to be on the podium of an XC race or do big drops…it just works really well in almost all conditions.

When you ride your trail bike, there are certain fundamental things that are happening that allow it to do everything. The geometry is relaxed enough to give you stability on the downhills, but the bike is also efficient and light enough to sustain all day climbing. So how to we optimize both characteristics with your tire choice as it can be the #1 part that speeds you up or slows you down?

The Front Tire On A Trail Bike

The front tire on your trail bike is your main source of grip and braking. When you go blasting into a turn or have to brake hard for obstacles, the front tire is what keeps your bike upright and brings you to a stop. The front tire is also the source of most “oh shit” saves in conjunction with the front suspension fork, so increased volume is always a goal as that increases the bikes ability to pull you out of hairy situations. The front tire’s cornering grip is also essential in preventing front end washouts that leave you performing a huge yard sale on the trail.

On the flip side of that equation, the front tire has very little to do with climbing other than weight on your bike. For this purpose, when we think of front tire choices, we think of the DH side of the equation.

How much grip and volume can we get on the front without attaching an overweight boat anchor to the front end of our bikes?

Luckily, the tire industry has caught up with the latest trends in biking and has released large volume, grip filled, lighter weight tires that are perfect for this application. These tires (while heavier than their narrower counterparts) provide the balance between volume, grip and weight that we really look for in a front tire for a trail bike. With widths typically in the 2.3 to 2.4 range, these tires will transform your bike into a DH monster without carrying around a DH tire.

Bike198 Recommendations

• Maxxis Ardent 2.4
• Specialized Purgatory 2.4
• Continental Mountain King 2.4

Recommendations are the same for 26″ and 29er

The Rear Tire on a Trail Bike

The rear tire of your trail bike is what puts the power to the ground. The chainline is direct attached to the rear wheel that drives your bike forward, so the more tread and weight you have…the harder you are going to have to work to propel the bike in the forward direction.

Under braking, the rear tire is typically used as a momentum scrubber that often times locks up and skids. This makes some tread a good thing, but going overboard with a grippier tire does not pay the dividends like on the front. Also, your “oh shit” moments are greater aided by the stiffness and rear weight bias on the rear suspension. While the increased volume on the front saves you weight weight shifts forward, the rear is more stable and capable of handling big hits with ease.

When you take these into consideration, the rear tire lends itself towards a lighter, narrower and faster rolling setup to optimize efficiency. Depending on trail conditions, you might even want a really light, mid volume tire with a really low tread pattern (think hardpack trail conditions) so you really maximize the amount of power that is coming from your legs that reaches the ground. If the trail is rockier and more technical, look for a tire with increased sidewall protection to prevent flats. If you followed the same setup as your front tire, that efficiency could be lost. Tires for the rear typically range from 2.1 to 2.25 (2.35 sometimes depending on manufacturer) widths.

Bike198 Rear Tire Recommendations

• Maxxis Aspen 2.25
• Continental X-King
• Specialized The Captain

Recommendations are the same for 26″ and 29er

The Overall Tire Setup

So what have we done here? We analyzed exactly how each end of the bike functions and optimized the tire selection to match that purpose. By doing this, we are able to increase efficiency while not losing the overall grip we are ultimately wanting out of a trail bike. Overall weight was also kept at a minimum without much sacrifice.

There are too many times we have seen 150mm trail bike setups with very small tires up front on big forks in an attempt to save weight when…in reality…the savings are trumped by the lack of grip. With the latest tire designs and technology, we are now able to bring that grip back without the weight issues due to how the front tire actually interacts with the bike and effects your ride.

Which tires are you using on your setup?

Rider: Ian Morrison
Location: Whistler Mountain Bike Park
Frame rate: 1,000 fps
Live online premiere: May 24th 12:00pm PST – redbull.com/bike

Strength in Numbers is a rally call to connect all mountain bikers, regardless of location or language or discipline. The film captures a true way of life, from the world’s best pros to those who are just learning to love the sport. Shot over two years in some of mountain biking’s most iconic locations, Anthill’s signature style combines compelling stories with core action to create a shared experience that unites all riders. Come join us!

anthillfilms.com/strengthinnumbers

The Renovo Badash 29er wooden bike. Arguably the only wooden bike we have seen at Bike198 that actually looks like it can shred trail and Renovo sent one over for us to throw a leg over. These past few weeks…that is what I have done, so we need to take a look at how this unique bike performs on the trail. Does it ride as good as it looks?

Renovo is pretty unique. While other bike companies have gone the bamboo route, Renovo uses a series of hardwoods to build their bikes which include everything from time trial rigs to this 29er HT. This particular Badash 29er came out of the Red Stag series of frames made of New Zealand Radiata pine and hickory.

The craftsmanship is nothing short of amazing. The amount of work that goes into making sure this frame is as much of a work of art as it is a mountain bike is mind blowing. As soon as I took it out of the box, I knew it was something special. With a 5.5 pound frame weight and a $2,550 price tag, you would expect this to be a high end, boutique piece, but it over produces on the wow factor. From the way the wood is constructed and joined together to the internal cable routing, every inch of this frame is thought out and executed to perfection.

Honestly…it is almost annoying at times. You would think I pulled up to the trail in a bright orange Lamborghini Aventador the way other riders have to come up and see the bike. If you are going to ride one of these at the trail, get used to talking about it a lot.

The bike came spec’ed with SRAM X.9, Manitou fork and some Sun Ringle wheels. The SRAM X.9 package is rock solid and while the wheels are nothing to write home about…they would get the job done. The difficult part is the Manitou fork who’s performance can’t seem get into the 2000′s. The 20mm TA was good for my riding style but the action on the fork and the extreme annoyance of the 5 bolt process of the front axle makes me hate the fork.

Taking a look at the geometry, the Badash has a HT angle of 71 degrees. This falls right in line with most 29er hardtails in the industry, but with the supplied fork…we would measure this closer to the 70 to 69.5 degree end given the longer travel. This is noticeably slacker than more race inspired 29er hard tail frames that are closer to 71 to 72 degrees. While a shorter travel fork would help the tight handling of the bike, I believe this is the right setup as the 5.5 pound frame weight is going to keep this bike from ever being a light race inspired 29er. If you are not going to be a race bike, make the bike more capable on the downs without completely sacrificing the ups.

I wasn’t really sure what to think the first time I threw a leg over the Badash 29er. Was it going to ride like a steel frame? Was it still going to be stiff enough? My guess was that the wood would deaden small bumps making the bike vertically compliant but laterally stiff, but there was only one real way to tell…get it dirty.

My initial suspicions were correct. The wooden frame did a great job of softening stutter bumps in the trail. While the frame did not feel as dead as I thought it would, it behaved a little bit softer than steel. It was almost as if the hardwood was absorbing vibrations so I didn’t feel it in the saddle and grips. Normally this deadening comes at a price, but the bike did not feel loose either. The rear end tracked very well keeping traction through g-outs and off camber turns. The stiffness of the frame in hard load situations was there as much as a steel frame but not quite as much as aluminum. If I had to compare apples to apples…it was almost like a well built carbon frame from that aspect.

While the bike was not overly heavy, it was not as nimble on the climbing end as a typical light hardtail. The frame characteristics described above did a great job of keeping grip, but when you stand up to hammer…that lunging forward feeling wasn’t quite there. Honestly, I do not see anyone seriously racing this frame, so that is not as much of an issue. But, it is something to be prepared for as you hit the trail.

When you get headed downhill, the bike really comes alive for a 29er hardtail. I was able to take this bike off of drops, jumps and through technical downhills with ease. The vibration damping characteristics of the frame made it almost seem like there was an inch of rear wheel travel aiding during the run. Like I mentioned before, this did not come at the cost of lateral stiffness either. The bike tracked very well and was even comfortable in the air with flatter landings. This bike can really take a beating and I was not expecting that at all. Normally I hate running hardtails on DH runs but I slammed the seat down and shredded it. Was I as fast as my suspension bikes? No, but I wasn’t itching to get back to XC trail either.

Overall: The Renovo Badash 29er Wood Bike

This bike is obviously not for everyone. If you are looking for something truly unique that still can be pushed like a real mountain bike should, the Renovo Badash 29er is exactly that. As you can tell with my Wolfhound, I am a sucker for works of art that can also be ridden out on the trail. When you roll up with a Badash 29er, you get a lot of comments like “I wouldn’t even ride that it is so nice” and “Is that seriously made out of wood?!”. It truly is a unique piece of art that can take a beating on the trail. It will not be a race bike or a brillant climber, but it will be an incredibly fun bike that you can not see anywhere else.

Bikes are made to be ridden and I had a great time with the Badash 29er from Renovo during the period it graced our stable. It is truly the only wooden mountain bike I have ever ridden that I actually enjoyed riding as much as staring at it. The hardwoods do a great job of absorbing vibrations that rattle your teeth loose on aluminum frames and the bike is surprising capable on the downhills (as we had to record on video below as proof).

For more information on the Renovo Badash…check out RenovoBikes.com.

As part of the evenings festivities, we typically head back to a small DH/FR area and session for most of the night. We get in some great climbing while getting the added benefit of a big payoff on the way down. After about a dozen or so runs (the DH run only takes 43 seconds if you are pinning it), we finish out the XC loops and head to a great Mexican restaurant afterwards.

Last Tuesday, I decided I was going to go for broke. Thanks to Strava, we have a segment on the gully run of the downhill, so it is always a battle for the top spot. I held it for a long time but a friend of mine came back and dropped me by a second. It was time to drop the hammer and put down a hot run to reclaim the top spot.

The bike felt great on the climb up so I decided to make the first run of the day my Strava segment crusher. Those of you that have been riding for more than 5 minutes already know that the first or last run of the day is the last run you ever want to make a balls out timed hammer. I went against my better judgement and came manualing across the start line at full tilt ready to show everyone how incredibly awesome I am after my upload and subsequent post to Facebook that night.

The first turn hit and it was much looser than previous days. The hot days of Atlanta have settled in a grip was at a minimum. The front end of the bike completely left me and it was yard sale city. When the dust settled, I had a completely road rashed arm, chunk out of my hip, bruised up legs and a broken brake lever on the bike. My night was over before it even started and I officially had my first SIW (Strava Induced Wreck). I packed up my ego and headed home with mangled bike and body.

That weekend…

So…instead of resting like I should, I decided to grab another bike and head out to Stanley Gap on Saturday for a ride we had planned for awhile. I wasn’t quite 100% yet obviously but what the hell…I wasn’t missing out on my favorite area to ride in GA. The day started off badly. An unknown mechanical wasted half of my energy up the first climb and I was quickly realizing that my body might not be ready for several thousand feet of elevation gain on the day.

I ended up cutting most of the ride short in preparation for the last downhill to try to at least salvage something out of the day. The last 7+ minute downhill finally came and again I was ready to hit it at full tilt. My legs were trashed but I was still managing to keep some speed down the hill and through the technical sections.

About 3/4 of the way down the hill…it happened…

Right calf cramp in an off camber, washed out corner, at speed. I hit the ground fast. When the dust finally settled on that wreck, I was left with a broken rear spoke and saddle but I appeared to be fine other than my glasses and helmet visor far away from me. Then I finally got home and realized that my elbow was sollen up and my face had bruises. Both sides of my body were beat but no hospital trips so that is a win (funny how we try to make wrecks positive…that means I can ride right?!)!

Now…with two broken bikes and some time off the bike…that 5 day stretch is leaving me feeling like I just went rounds with Tyson. For some odd reason, my brain is actually telling me it is ok to ride even though commonsense is stepping in with the reality that if I push myself now…the 3rd one is going to be a hospital trip.

Why do wrecks come in series?

For as long as I can remember riding (seriously riding since the early 90′s), my wrecks have always come in series. I’ll have months of worry free shredding to come across a week or several weeks of doing nothing but hitting the ground. Sometimes they are bad and end up in hospital visits. Other times it is just an annoying set of seemingly lost rhythm that can not be shaken. Either way, it ends up coming then going away with no real reason why.

Does the first wreck start a mental breakdown that causes the second? Is my body just not ready and I push it too hard? Is there an uncontrollable force in the biking world that creates this phenomenon? Have I lost “the force”?

At first, I thought it was just me, but if you ask riders across the world, they will tell you the same thing. Wrecks breed wrecks and it takes several solid, wreck free runs to get out of the cycle.

Whatever causes it, I am in the uphill battle of getting out of the rut and getting the focus to clean runs that keep the rubber side down. That might require me to slow down a bit which is my hardest hurdle in life. Either way…I have to quit hitting dirt.

Wreck image by milton1055 from the Bike198 Flickr Group

Busy day in and day out throughout the winter, Projekt Roam held on to their Silver Star film footage. Now, in the clutches of spring fever, Projekt Roam has put together their Silver Star Bike Park edit in hopes of getting fellow riders amped for summer biking season. Silver Star offers lift accessed, progressive trails, no crowds, crisp, alpine-scented air, expansive views; what more could a rider ask for?
For more info, please visit gravityrideguide.com

Sit back, relax and enjoy dreaming away with this clip. It is worth every second.

This video features my good friend Jeremy VanSchoonhoven. He was a finalist last year on America’s Got Talent! He is a professional Trial Bike rider.

He performs all over the world. And you can book him for an event through his manager. Here is her contact info.

monica.warnockmoore@gmail.com

Stephen Anderson wrote the score specifically for this video. You can download the song on iTunes in the link below.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/moab-single/id472783907

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-game-single/id467424860

You can also contact him here.

http://www.stephenjanderson.com

Film was made by Devin Graham

I’m on facebook now!! https://www.facebook.com/devinsupertrampyoutube
And don’t forget to add my Twitter! http://www.twitter.com/devinsupertramp

We filmed this in Moab. Over the course of 4 days.

Shot on a Canon 5D Mark II.

As far as making the camera look like it was “flying”, I used a glidecam 2000 HD for all those shots. You can check out the exact model on their official website below where you can also buy them, and I don’t get paid to say that

http://www.glidecam.com/

I also go over a lot of camera questions I get asked in my blog right below in case you have more questions

http://devingraham.blogspot.com/

For BUSINESS ENQUIRERS ONLY, you can contact me at this email.
devinsupertramp@gmail.com

On a side note…it is really cool to see the trials side of mountain biking start to pick up steam again.

Shot 100% on the GoPro HD Hero2

Riding clip from my trip to France, shot in Grenoble.

Follow my fan page on Facebook: www.facebook.com/mikesteidley

Hit the gear on the bottom right of the video to change it to 1080p HD.