Olympic MTN biking

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a suspension
seatpost.

What was the couse like? Would suspension have been of any benefit? Rocks,
roots, technical downhills?

Phil

Prophet said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a suspension
seatpost.

That wasn't a sus seatpost if you're talking about the Gold medal winner..
It looked like that 3" drop auto-adjustable seatpost with a remote switch
on the handlebar. I can't find the maker's website.

--
Slacker
"Riding up hill is like masterbating with a sandpaper glove...You knew it
was a bad idea the instant you heard about it." bikecowboy69

"Phil Squire" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a suspension
seatpost.

What was the couse like? Would suspension have been of any benefit? Rocks,
roots, technical downhills?

Phil

Tame, including the "monster" hill the men tackled.

"Slacker" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:opsdh894t8m83lxu@slacker...

TBF said:

"Phil Squire" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a suspension
seatpost.

What was the couse like? Would suspension have been of any benefit?
Rocks,
roots, technical downhills?

Phil

Tame, including the "monster" hill the men tackled.

And zero rocks from what little they showed. You could've rode that thing
on a fully rigid SS... belch...

Wonder why noone used a cross bike then, do they have to use a MTB?

--

TBF said:

"Phil Squire" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a suspension
seatpost.

What was the couse like? Would suspension have been of any benefit?
Rocks,
roots, technical downhills?

Phil

Tame, including the "monster" hill the men tackled.

And zero rocks from what little they showed. You could've rode that thing
on a fully rigid SS... belch...

--
Slacker
"Riding up hill is like masterbating with a sandpaper glove...You knew it
was a bad idea the instant you heard about it." bikecowboy69

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a suspension
seatpost.

.... and not very many disc brakes either (seemed to be a higher %age in the
women's race).

Joe Roach says:

Quoted message said:

... and not very many disc brakes either (seemed to be a higher %age in the
women's race).

Too much rotating mass.

Steve "short, simple, to the point...."
for a change.

"Stephen Baker" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Joe Roach says:

Quoted message said:

... and not very many disc brakes either (seemed to be a higher %age in

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

women's race).

Too much rotating mass.

Steve "short, simple, to the point...."
for a change.

It didn't put everyone off though....... not that I was counting. It was
just good to get some live TV coverage for a change.

"Stephen Baker" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Joe Roach says:

Quoted message said:

... and not very many disc brakes either (seemed to be a higher %age in

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

women's race).

Too much rotating mass.

Steve "short, simple, to the point...."
for a change.

It didn't put everyone off though....... not that I was counting. It was
just good to get some live TV coverage for a change.

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a suspension
seatpost.

YUP - noticed that. I also realised I'd rather be _doing_ a sport than
watching it

off to ride

"Phil Squire" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a
suspension seatpost.

What was the couse like? Would suspension have been of any benefit?
Rocks, roots, technical downhills?

Phil

There was a hill that most if not all of the riders were dismounting and
running up. It's pretty hard to tell how steep something is on a 2d,
screen, I know, but it didn't look THAT steep or technical (no rocks that I
saw, tho it might have been sandy or loose), especially in light of how
quickly they were running up it. Perhaps it was just technical enough that
to attempt it would have meant that they MIGHT not make it (and thus really
slow them down as they recovered), and it was just quicker to not take that
chance and just to dismount?

[email hidden] (Stephen Baker) wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Joe Roach says:

Quoted message said:

... and not very many disc brakes either (seemed to be a higher %age in the
women's race).

Too much rotating mass.

Whose turn was it and why bring religion in to it?

They didn't even look like they ever rode real trails or were MTBikers.
They just looked like roadies who did't have any real tech skill. Not
putting down roadies but there is a big difference. To me that wasn't even
MTBiking at all.

Brett Jaffee said:

"Phil Squire" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

"Prophet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

So, did you notice the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were using
Aluminum HARDTAILS, straight bars and barends!!! As a matter of fact
MOST (id say 95%) were useing the same config. I even saw a
suspension seatpost.

What was the couse like? Would suspension have been of any benefit?
Rocks, roots, technical downhills?

Phil

There was a hill that most if not all of the riders were dismounting
and running up. It's pretty hard to tell how steep something is on a
2d, screen, I know, but it didn't look THAT steep or technical (no
rocks that I saw, tho it might have been sandy or loose), especially
in light of how quickly they were running up it.

I heard Paul Sherwen say it was a 45-deg. hill.

--
- Zilla
Cary, NC
(Remove XSPAM)

Scott said:

They didn't even look like they ever rode real trails or were MTBikers.
They just looked like roadies who did't have any real tech skill. Not
putting down roadies but there is a big difference. To me that wasn't even
MTBiking at all.

Hmm.. So you're saying that people competing at an elite level, and chosen by their countries, to race MTBs had no real skill? Were just roadies? I dare you to say that to their face or go against them in a race...

To be fair, TV coverage never conveys just how fast, difficult or skillful the riding is. True, it wasn't a highly technical course (as is the case with most World Cup cross-country courses these days), but I have no doubt that it was incredibly strenuous and the medal winners (and all competitors for that matter) deserve a round of applause.

And i must admit, I thought it was nice to see a race using relatively simple equipment! Makes it more about the rider than about the latest fancy technology...

Scott said:

They didn't even look like they ever rode real trails or were MTBikers.
They just looked like roadies who did't have any real tech skill. Not
putting down roadies but there is a big difference. To me that wasn't even
MTBiking at all.

Yeah right. Hope to see you in Beijing.

--
--
Lynn Wallace http://www.xmission.com/~lawall
"We should not march into Baghdad. ... Assigning young soldiers to
a fruitless hunt for a securely entrenched dictator and condemning
them to fight in what would be an unwinnable urban guerilla war, it
could only plunge that part of the world into ever greater
instability." George Bush Sr. in his 1998 book "A World Transformed"

eddiec said:

Hmm.. So you're saying that people competing at an elite level, and chosen by their countries, to race MTBs had no real skill? Were just roadies? I dare you to say that to their face or go against them in a race...

I would never say they weren't skilled and to able to go around a 6KM course what 6 times can't be easy but one of the announcer said that an american Jeremy something or other was the only person who trained just in mountian biking so that sounds to me that most of them are road bikers that migrated over and alot of them were mentioned to also be in the road biking events. I guess they keep the equipment simple cause there really isn't a fixing support and light so Hardtails make the most sense there.

R White says:

Quoted message said:

Whose turn was it and why bring religion in to it?

I could ask you the same question... ;-)

Steve

Aurawolf said:

I would never say they weren't skilled and to able to go around a 6KM course what 6 times can't be easy but one of the announcer said that an american Jeremy something or other was the only person who trained just in mountian biking so that sounds to me that most of them are road bikers that migrated over and alot of them were mentioned to also be in the road biking events. I guess they keep the equipment simple cause there really isn't a fixing support and light so Hardtails make the most sense there.

Announcers don't always know what they're talking about - especially in an 'obscure' sport like MTBing.

I know for a fact that the Australian riders were dedicated MTB riders - and anyone who follows the World Cup series would recognise many of the competitors - I'm sure they all do ride road bikes as well for the fitness aspect (which may be what the announcer was indicating), but I have no doubt most riders on that course were dedicated to and highly skilled in MTB.