Has Social Media Changed Mountain Biking? | Dirt Shed Show 465

Is social media killing mountain biking? Is Brendan Semenok's new edit just a collection of reels? Or have we completely lost what mountain biking even is anymore? All that and much more coming up on the Dirt Shed Show. Hello, and welcome to the Dirt Shed Show, everybody, with myself, Rich Payne, and I'm joined by- Anna Ciabullo. How's it going, Anna? All right? Yes, not too bad. Great to have you on. Oh, thank you very much. Nice to see you in the Dirt Shed, isn't it? Anna, we're talking today about social media and its effect on the mountain bike world. It's killing mountain biking. It's a tough question, really, isn't it? Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, whatever the heck they're even- all the other governances now. They're all to play. They're all responsible. We're just seeing these specialist little clips, these things that people are going out dedicated to getting these little snippets of riding. Are we not seeing riding in reality? Is that real riding? Yes, it's a good question because my Instagram feed is full of people just trapping, squaring off corners. I swear that shot has been set up. They've gone into it 30 times and the pressure is at 2 PSI to get it. I know what you mean. It's not real. Now, we're watching that thinking, oh, my riding looks pretty rubbish now because I'm not squaring off all the corners. No, and that's not the way to hit a corner. You kind of do. Sometimes. Sometimes, maybe not intentionally all the time, but you're right. Are we getting this sort of glorified rose-tinted vision of mountain biking through social media? It's not really how it is for the vast majority of people. Semenuk released a video lately, right? Yes, yes. His afterlife was his latest one. Yes, I had some choice words on our WhatsApp group about it because I wasn't that pleased. There was no story. There was no journey. It wasn't a ride. It wasn't like the one where he did the unreal when it was a full. It was a journey. It was lovely. This one just seemed like a collection of reels. It's like an artist or an editor or people like you behind the camera there just going, this is a nice shot. This will look good on Instagram reels. Just pop off that and that's it. I've got a slightly different view here because I get it. It didn't really tell a story as such, although I kind of got the story behind it. I could appreciate it in terms of cinematography, the tricks and things he was doing, production value was all pretty insane. It wasn't like a 15-second snippet. It was a lot of bangers. I can only imagine that the work that goes into something like that is far greater than someone doing a ridiculous one-on-one on my phone, which I just don't want to see. Can we say one-on-one? We can't repeat it. Just once. Do you know what I mean? That kind of real cheesy stuff, I genuinely do think. I like that. No, I ain't got time for that. I don't want life to be so serious and be like, look at my riding. It's so shralpy. Seminark's video, it's just like, yes, that was a cool trick, but did we need to see it from this angle, and then that angle, and then slow-mo, and then- Would you rather have had a sombrero on doing a weird dance? Yes, actually, weird. Maybe I'm weird. Okay. Well, there we go. Interesting. Darkfest, another one, another big thing where we're just seeing banger clips coming out of. I can appreciate the scale of that is monstrous. That's really pushing the boundaries on. We're getting a little desensitized to it because everyone's just putting clips up. Interestingly, word on the street is, I don't know how real this is, but Darkfest isn't part of the Fest series because they're too social heavy. Is that the industry already calling out people that are being too social media heavy? Yes, maybe. One thing that I do really hate though is the speed-up thing. What are your feelings on speeding up clips? There are people out there cranking it up a couple of notches to make it look like they're riding quickly. That's not real, is it? Although, I had a conversation with Martin earlier. He told me he sped up some of his clips in Road Party. Did you know that? Did you know that? Really? Cheeky scallywag. I'll have to have a word. He said, and I quote, I'm bored of the speed of life. Things need to be faster. Coming from a guy who took up trials. Sorry, Mart. You know I love you. Let us know. What do you think of social media and its involvement in mountain biking at the moment? Good? Bad? Don't really care? Would rather see more cat videos or something. Who knows? If you do, cats and sombreros. If you do, certainly let us know. Anyway, on with the show. Last week's Dirt Shed Show, you were on it with Martin, correct? No, I was on it with Owen. With Owen. I apologize. Complete tech takeover. Well, yes, it was a tech takeover. What's going on there? We were desperate. Scraping the barrel. Everyone was out shooting. Damn it. Well, don't worry. We got you back though, which is cool. We got some comments from last week's show. The first one is from, oh lordy lord, user GL7EQ5FX5Q. It says, Anna and Owen were great. Such a fun show. Love it. That's a nice one, isn't it? Thanks. I'm going to blush here. I've got DQFG who says, Anna needs to do Dirt Shed more. Be careful what you wish for. Sorry. Did you pick these comments out? I did. Yes, I get it. All right. Rob Hill 00. A bit of a car crash show, but they're usually the best. Owen and Anna make a good duo. It was a beautiful car crash. The one you want to rub a neck over and over and over again. Wow. We have just learned something new about you. Thank you so much. Okay. All right. On to the news. What's up, everyone? Heaps of news this week. Let's get stuck in with some new bikes. Is that a shock in your frame or are you just pleased to see me? First up, the Scott Ransom, which receives a major overhaul. You could be forgiven for thinking it's an e-bike at first glance thanks to the bulge, but all naturally aspirated here. Super clean finish to the frame by hiding the rear suspension unit away from the elements. You can run either a 650B or 29er rear wheel in the 170 mil bike and pricing is between 5,100 and 9,800 pounds. There's a new Pivot Switchblade 2 just getting some geometry and suspension updates to increase compliance and slacken most things out to just add a touch of descending capability. There's a whopping 10 build options with pricing between 6,400 to 11,600 US dollars. Whilst we're on Pivot, Crankworx pump track specialist, Kealani Hines, moves on from the brand after four years and Jill Kempner and Bryn Atkinson are brought aboard. The last new bike before I fully get involved in the team news is the new Kotic Escapade gravel bike, 853 Reynolds steel, stock color of Cirrus but a selection of 10 Alucard colors for 149 pound premium. Team news, Keelan Grant heads for Passengers New at the Rottwild EMTB team. Brooke McDonald joins Forbidden Bikes in an expansion to their downhill program and Graham Agassiz is also on Forbidden as the high pivot brand gains some representation on the freeride scene too. Canadians Mark Wallace and John Mazzel join the We Are One Momentum project, a new downhill team where the brand will work to develop their latest frame offering. Comencal Makov have signed the Alrun brothers and Tegan Cruz signs for the United Ride team. TG on GT, Thomas Genon joins the GT Bikes team with this beautiful deep purple build. Gwin Racing is the latest new team on the block as the legendary rider looks to continue his run on his own program for 2024. Seth Sherlock and Michael De La Salle will also ride for him but there's no news on what frame they'll be using yet. If I didn't butcher De La Salle, I don't know if that's the pronunciation. If you want to watch a great recap of the 2023 XT season through the eyes of those between the tapes then Green Means Go, a documentary from the Orbea Factory Racing team is live now. And the UCI EMTB World Series has been hard at work confirming the dates for the cross-country marathon series. Three rounds this year, Navier-Mesto in May, Port Savoie in June and Mount Vanhoevenburg in September. In some final distribution news for the UK crowd, Norco Bikes just got a whole lot easier to obtain thanks to Silverfish picking them up and Hayes will be distributed by Ison from here on out. Okay, that's my time this week, let's get back to the shed. Right, now this is something that's dear to Martin's heart and actually a great cause all around. It's a GoFundMe for Stephen Murray. Stephen Murray, legendary BMXer back in the day. Unfortunately, he's suffering a rather fatal crash meaning he's paralyzed now. Martin has set up a GoFundMe page to help raise money and I suppose awareness for a new bike for Stephen, right? Unfortunately, obviously, these bikes cost a lot of money. They're very tricky when you can't work on your bikes. Access, just getting out on it all the time is really tricky. There is a GoFundMe page set up for Stephen Murray to help try and get him the specialist equipment that he needs. The link to that is down in the description below. Danny Cook. Hacks and bodges. Hacks and bodges. Hacks and bodges. Oh, Lord. Manon Lennon We've so many sons. Danny Cook It's not a nursery, right? We've descended into anarchy already, but it's one of my favorite times. It is, of course, Hacks and Bodges. This is where you lot send in, you lovely viewers and listeners, the weirdest and wildest ways you've managed to fix your bikes. Manon Lennon I know. It's a good one from Peter to start with from South Africa who just simply says, this will make a few people's eyes bleed. Is that because there's so many bits sticking out of it? I don't know what we got here. What we've got is clamped to the cassette between two pieces of wood to get the nut off. Whoa. Danny Cook Yes. Essentially, what he's done here, for those who can't see, is he's used a massive J-clamp or G-clamp, sorry, bodged together with two bits of wood to then try and take the cassette off to hold it in place because he doesn't have a chain whip. Manon Lennon Yes, exactly, instead of a chain whip. That's pretty cool, actually. Danny Cook It's using a noodle, but by golly, it's not pretty. Those who can't see are lucky because this is wild. Manon Lennon I don't like chain whips, actually. Danny Cook It's not a slip. Manon Lennon Controversial opinion. Yes, I like the pincers. Danny Cook Pin you. Danny Cook A pin me? Manon Lennon A pin yourself, but that would actually be pretty good. Danny Cook Yes, it'll do the job. Peter, you made it work. Fair play. Next, we have Adam from Hampshire in the UK here who has no room for my bike in an existing bike rack, so he made a new one. It's just- Manon Lennon Has he? Oh, I see. Danny Cook It's pretty straightforward. Manon Lennon I've turned it over. Danny Cook You're looking at it upside down. Manon Lennon I'm looking at it upside down thinking it's a block of wood, but no, the magic. Danny Cook It's two blocks of wood screwed together with a big gap in the middle to essentially wedge his wheel in. A cheap and effective hack. Manon Lennon I love it. Do we throw things at the camera for this? You're a hack. I love it though. Danny Cook We need to pick a winner. The winner is, of course, going to get maybe not even this specific one, but a GMBN race jersey. Manon Lennon Stunt jersey. I like the pincer cassette, the cassette pincer. That is using a needle. Danny Cook Peter's pincers. Manon Lennon Peter's pincers, well done. Danny Cook This will be shipping its way to South Africa. You got a GMBN jersey. Congratulations. Manon Lennon Richard, you're looking rather dapper today. Danny Cook Thank you. Called by my full name. How slightly strange, but thank you. It's because I'm wearing the Horizon t-shirt in coffee. Other colors are available, of course, over at the GMBN shop. What else have we got, Anna? Manon Lennon We've just dropped two new long-sleeve jerseys ready for the spring. You've got the Riser and you've got the Duo Tone as well. Check that out if you want to look as dapper as this guy here. Danny Cook Thank you very much. Yes, don't forget as well, people, obviously, the maintenance book is still available. For every order, you get- Manon Lennon Not all three, but just one. Danny Cook A mudguard, but you can choose whatever color you want. All that and loads more over on the GMBN shop right now. Time for some things that we like this week. This is bits and bobs that us presenters have picked out on the internet. Manon Lennon This is killing mountain biking. Danny Cook That have stood out to us. The first one is a submission from Martin, actually. There's a bit of a motorbike trials phase going through the office at the moment. He's put in this insane clip from the X-Trial with Tony Bowe. Tony Bowe, multiple legend, world champion, and he's just doing more motorbike wizardry. Manon Lennon Yes, and this is him taking the world champs victory. Danny Cook Yes. Basically, this- Manon Lennon Have you got a trials bike yet? It seems like every presenter's buying a motorbike trials bike at the moment. Danny Cook No, I'm on the motocross side of things at the moment. I like to go a bit faster, but I can appreciate the skill involved in this is insane. The 180 at the end, it's bonkers. It's mind-boggling. I see it's not boggling your mind. Manon Lennon No, no. You had to talk about that because I was not going to get excited about it. What I am excited about, though, is Scott Seiko sharing a clip from his new video solo with Jackson Goldstone. It's shot in monochrome, but you can tell it's a really quality production. He's mixing in the sounds of the riding with the sounds of wind. It's like birdsong, and it really pulls on all my senses. Obviously, not you. Danny Cook No, no. Manon Lennon I just think it's a great edit. Danny Cook It's very artistic. I do like that. It's a good little one. Now, exactly what we were talking about earlier, but still pretty wicked, is Dan Booker shredding Kodrona Bike Park. Manon Lennon Has he squared off a corner? Danny Cook He has, but look at this rear tire slide on a wall ride before. Watch this, Anna. Manon Lennon Oh, this is nuts. Danny Cook He comes around this turn, big wall ride, but gets a back wheel slide up around it, scrubs, big trouble. Manon Lennon Did he mean to do that? Danny Cook He did mean to do that, yes. Manon Lennon Days. Danny Cook Yes, it's cool, isn't it? Manon Lennon I would do that accidentally. Danny Cook I would love to see that. Those are some things that we like this week. Caption contest time, Anna. Manon Lennon It's the best part of the show, this. Danny Cook I've been hustled again with this picture. Manon Lennon It's always you, isn't it? This time, you're sniffing your saddle. Danny Cook Making a very peculiar face, I am. But what we should say, we got many captions sent in, and the winner is going to win a stunt mug. Manon Lennon This is the time, isn't it? Danny Cook One of our lovely enamel mugs. We get to throw at the cameraman. Manon Lennon Seen some action already. Danny Cook Yes. First up, Michael DMTB. His saddle is paying the price for his choice of the spicy Indian food last night. Joke's on you, don't like spicy food. Manon Lennon Graham3399 says, Rich riding the tandem was certain that Martin was still sitting. Here, just a minute ago. Danny Cook Good one. Manon Lennon That would be scary. Danny Cook Hugo Denuden8774, when you have no MTB friends and still want to take a group photo. Do you want to pick the winner? Manon Lennon I like the spicy Indian food. Danny Cook Michael DMTB, you are getting a stunt mug. Manon Lennon What? Danny Cook Oh, wow. Manon Lennon Is there stuff in here? Danny Cook No, that's the enamel off of it. There is enamel flying everywhere, people, but you have got a stunt mug coming to you. In fact, here's next week's caption contest. I know some of you can't see it, but for those who can, here it is right now. Captions in the description down below. Oh, like a rocket. Okay, time now for a few things we've got coming up this week, which we are specifically looking forward to, right? Manon Lennon It's got to be Blake on a unicycle. Has he actually ever done this before? Danny Cook Don't think so, and they're really hard to ride. Manon Lennon Yes, they are. I hope we get a video out of it. Find out. He's gone 10 meters. It's a very short video. Tune in. That's in on Saturday. Coming out on Sunday, does indoor training actually make you fitter? I went on a quest to find out with help from Garmin and their new Tacx Neo 3M Smart Trainer to see if actually with a bit of indoor riding, I can get fitter for my upcoming challenge. Manon Lennon I was going to ask, but then let's not spoil it. Okay, Rich, it's bike vault time where we look at your bikes and judge you on it drastically. Rich Flake But don't worry, they're never rubbish. Manon Lennon Oh, no, no. They're always nice and super nice. Am I right? Rich Flake Yes, they are. First up though, we're coming in strong. This is Matt's Scott Scale Hardtail from Orange County, California. Now, this is a very nice stealthed out hardtail. Manon Lennon Stealth, yes. Rich Flake Very black on black on black here. Manon Lennon The don would like that, wouldn't he? Rich Flake He would. Manon Lennon Black on black. Rich Flake What are we saying? Manon Lennon It's nice. We don't use that. Only for super nices. Rich Flake Super nices only. We can't just go ring-a-ling-ding-a-ling. It's a cool picture, nice backdrop. Nice. Next up, we're throwing it back in time a touch, aren't we? Manon Lennon Santa Cruz Blur circa 2006. I love it. Rich Flake Yes, in Swindley Forest in the UK. It's cool, isn't it? Manon Lennon Yes, that's an old-school place to ride as well. Rich Flake Yes, it is. It says, waiting for parts on my bike. Manon Lennon Obviously, because it's old. Rich Flake Pulled an old blower out of the shed and gave an overhaul with parts lying around. We got some exo-carbon cranks on this. We've got a push-tuned rear shock. No internal routing here, of course. Manon Lennon I'm going for it. Rich Flake I think super nice. Who's next, Anna? Manon Lennon We've got an orange Alpine here from Ollie in Brisbane, Australia. Rich Flake Nice. Manon Lennon It's non-drive side. I believe you guys get upset about that. Rich Flake I'm pretty strict on this, Anna. Sorry. Manon Lennon It's just nice. Rich Flake It is, but it is cool. I like the blue pops and I like the orange coordination, but it's non-drive side. Manon Lennon Next up, I guess, George has gone drive side, so you might be a bit more impressed here with a Giant Reign. Rich Flake It's cool. I like the oil slick paint job. Manon Lennon It is. It's like a two-tone burgundy, blue, purple, like that. It's a slight TBR color, isn't it? Rich Flake It is like an old Chimera or something. Yes, that's cool. What are you saying? I've got to let you judge this one. Manon Lennon I like the paint job, I think. Rich Flake It's super nice, George. I'll have a go next time, shall I? Manon Lennon Yes, you do. Rich Flake Rob with a Nukeproof Mega 2020 Carbon. This looks like a monster, doesn't it? Manon Lennon Yes. Rich Flake So this thing here is gray with purple anodized parts here and there. It's got some Schwalbe tannels on it, big gray zeb on there. I like it. From Steakley Woods. Rob, I don't know where Steakley Woods is, but I like them. Manon Lennon It's like a snow camo theme. It's got a little camo seat as well. Rich Flake I quite like that. I like the graffiti backdrop. I think I'm going to give that a super nice. Manon Lennon Are you? Rich Flake I've got another one. I've got a Trek Marlin here, hardtail, from Bradley in Greensboro, North Carolina. What are you saying? Rich Flake A lot of spacers under the stem on this one. Manon Lennon That is nice. Rich Flake Three-inch of spacers on that and the layback seatpost is a little funky. I like the tannels. I like the blue. It's a nice. Next up, oh, look at the dog. More dogs in pictures, please. Manon Lennon Super nice dog. Rich Flake Eric's Commencal Meta hardtail from Thriston Forest, East Sussex in the UK. Manon Lennon Nice. I like it. Is that gray or green? I like it. Rich Flake Green, I think. Fox 36 Kashima. Manon Lennon Chef's Kiss. Pedals aren't in the right position though. Is that upsetting you? Rich Flake A little bit, but it's a super nice because it's got the- Manon Lennon Okay, we've got a T1 and a Scott Spark 70 from 2015. This is throwing it back from France. I like it. It's a carbon-framed one. I think it's got a dropper on there. That's cool. That's a nice bike. It's good to see. Manon Lennon Good to see some old-school FCs being done. That's probably one of the lightest bikes around as well. Rich Flake Yes, exactly right. We've got a couple more coming. Let's fire through these. This is Mina's Scott Gambler from Norway. Mina, Mina, Mina? Manon Lennon Wow. Rich Flake Mina, do tell me. Manon Lennon Oh, I'm just taking it. Sorry, I'm not looking at the name because I'm just taken aback by those. Are those stickers? Rich Flake I think they're decals added on. Manon Lennon I don't remember that paint job. Manon Lennon That looks awesome. I love that. Rich Flake I think that's a super nice. What do you reckon? Manon Lennon Yes, I'm going for super nice. Rich Flake And then last but by no means least. Manon Lennon Amelia, we're going to see you coming on this thing. This is a bright pink custom-painted Kona Process from 2015. Manon Lennon That is a feast for the eyes. I'm going for a super nice. Rich Flake Yes, go for it. Manon Lennon It looks like a Tutti Frutti. I love it. Big upside-down fork, externally rear dropper, fluoro green parts. This thing's what? Even though it's non-drive side, which you broke the rule there, but mental. Manon Lennon She's broke the rules with that. Rich Flake Don't forget, you can upload your bikes for the Bike Vault in the uploader in the description down below. Anything, everything, or we like to see more, get involved. Anna, the time has come for us to depart. It's been an absolute pleasure. Don't forget, you obviously can watch us on YouTube as you are right now, or if you're listening to us on all your various favorite streaming platforms. We are now a podcast as well, aren't we? Manon Lennon We are. Coming in your ears. Rich Flake Wow. On that note, see you later.