Jessie-May Morgan's 2024 Predictions
Suspension with Integrated Telemetry is Coming
While the vast majority of bikes on the market have suspension that is meaningfully adjustable to most riders, making good use of some of the high-end models that offer 4-way adjustability isn’t particularly straightforward. The plethora of combinations of damper positions, combined with nomenclature that can hardly be described as intuitive, doesn't make things as simple as they perhaps could be.
While a manufacturer’s recommendations serve as a reasonable starting point, they’re unlikely to be the best settings for you and the terrain you like to ride most. There’s just too much variation out there. As a result, a lot of riders are, sadly, missing out. It’s not unusual to see $10,000 bikes being ridden with the shock at a woefully low pressure, or the rebound damping wound on such that the proverbial paint dries faster than the shock returns to sag.
To be clear, I am not throwing shade.
These things can be truly bamboozling, and not everyone is a fettler. Most people don’t want to spend hours watching YouTube videos to learn how the adjustments work, and many certainly don’t have the time to do back-to-back laps of the same track, making a single change at a time. They just want to ride their bike. Rightly so, I say.
![photo]()
That’s why I was pleased to see a recent patent from SRAM that could, if it comes to fruition, be incredibly useful in helping riders get the most out of their expensive suspension components. It essentially describes telemetry-integrated forks and shocks.
Of all of the weird and wonderful patented designs I’ve written about over the last year, I feel this one is highly likely to make it to market. Not only could it help out with the basics, like setting sag, it could help riders dial in front-to-rear balance of their suspension in terms of compression and rebound speeds, while also considering other important adjustments like tire pressure.
SRAM has all the hardware, firmware, and whatever-ware to implement this, it’s simply a case of how it’s implemented. It would basically be the next generation of ShockWiz, only much cleverer, with the potential for harvesting some seriously useful data.
The patent also mentioned combining that telemetry data with GPS, opening up opportunities for the technology to predict the best suspension settings for any given track – so long as it had a sufficiently large database of rider data on that track – I see no reason why your future AXS app couldn’t do that. It would have a mass of data about you and your bike, and how you work together on different types of terrain, and it would have a mass of data about the track in question, collected from other users.
I don’t believe for a moment that RockShox are the only suspension manufacturers looking into developing such a solution. So, my prediction is that in 2024, or possibly 2025, we’ll see some of the big names introduce top-end suspension products with integrated telemetry. It is a logical next step that stands to improve the user experience hugely. And, I am absolutely here for it.
![Manitou Mattoc Pro review]()
Continued Concern for Comfort and Compliance
Nothing mind-blowing, here. I think it’s safe to bet that we’ll see more wheels, handlebars, (even stems, perhaps) and tire inserts, marketed on the basis that they will reduce rider fatigue.
There’s good peer-reviewed research out there to suggest that the vibrations we experience while mountain biking are worth paying attention to; Dr Lewis Kirkwood’s research showed that levels of vibration can be equivalent to, and often exceed, levels that are associated with some rather unpleasant nerve pathologies.
Besides the science, we all know the pain of peeling our fingers off the bar after a bone-rattling day (or even single run) in the bike park, and brands have good awareness of the appetite for comfort-conveying solutions like vibration-damping grips, flexible handlebars, and so on. Certainly, it seems that OneUp Components and BERD have been finding traction in these areas (pun absolutely intended).
![photo]()
A recent patent (again from SRAM) gives us more insight, here. You know the ButterCups (elastomers) found inside RockShox Ultimate forks? Well, it looks as though RockShox want to implement those into shock end-mounts, too, in the hope of eliminating some of the harshness associated with seal stiction.
More comfy bits. Please.
![Hattie Harden gets stuck into her warm up.]()
Harriet Harnden Will Arrive at the Pointy End of World Cup DH
3rd in the UCI-EDR Overall for 2023 (and EWS Overall for 2022) was Great Britain’s Harriet Harnden. The 22-year-old Trek Factory Racing Gravity athlete comes from an XC and cyclocross racing background, having won numerous National Titles, and podiumed at a handful of UCI-XCO as a U23 racer. Since then, under the mentorship of MTB Hall of Famer, Tracey Moseley, Harriet (or Hattie, as she is more commonly known) made the switch to enduro.
It’s here, in the gravity-based disciplines, where Hattie has seen the biggest on-paper successes of her career, including EWS wins at Burke and Whistler in 2022. Last season saw her take her first tentative steps into DH, kicking things off with a National Series Round win.
In conjunction with racing a full season of UCI-EDR, Hattie raced three UCI World Cup DH events, as well as World Champs. While finals saw her take an unfortunate excursion off the track, we saw enough glimmers of excellence in qualies to become aware of the threat she poses. Then, in Mont-Saint-Anne, she put down a heater to place 5th at the final round of the season on, as she put it, “the most savage track I have ever ridden”.
![Hattie Harden takes home her first DH World Cup podium.]()
Besides the results, we know this is an athlete with a track record of successfully adapting to change, one that learns quickly and is able to seemingly disregard the concept of a comfort zone. Her attitude is impeccable, and her work ethic the same.
Next season, she plans to race the entire UCI-EDR season again, with extra appearances at the UCI World Cup DH events in Val di Sole, Les Gets, and Mont-Saint-Anne, where she’ll hope to go one or two better this time around, I’m sure.
So, there’s my prediction. No podium is safe from Hattie Harnden in 2024.
![photo]()
More Kids Riding eMTBs
For better or for worse, eMTBs for kids are here, and they’re probably here to stay. Mondraker’s electric balance bike, the eGrommy, is the tip of an iceberg, the depths of which could prove to be very deep indeed.
To be clear, I am not a parent, so my understanding of motivations here is limited. However, it’s not so hard to see the attraction. Family weekends at the trail center bring with them great potential for “I don’t want to pedal up the hill” based-tantrums, resulting in deflated parents sitting somewhere on the spectrum between providing gentle encouragement, to complete resignation, pushing or carrying their kid’s bike up the hill for them.
If a low-torque, low-powered eMTB is presented at a reasonable price-point, the temptation will be great, I’m sure.
The caveat of my prediction is that this phenomenon is likely to be region-specific. In some countries, it is flat-out illegal for kids to ride e-bikes on the road, something that could hinder uptake. In the UK, it’s illegal for a child under the age of 14 to ride any kind of e-bike on the road. In the US and Canada, the legal age varies from state-to-state, or province-to-province, with some regions having no stipulated age limit.
While the vast majority of bikes on the market have suspension that is meaningfully adjustable to most riders, making good use of some of the high-end models that offer 4-way adjustability isn’t particularly straightforward. The plethora of combinations of damper positions, combined with nomenclature that can hardly be described as intuitive, doesn't make things as simple as they perhaps could be.
While a manufacturer’s recommendations serve as a reasonable starting point, they’re unlikely to be the best settings for you and the terrain you like to ride most. There’s just too much variation out there. As a result, a lot of riders are, sadly, missing out. It’s not unusual to see $10,000 bikes being ridden with the shock at a woefully low pressure, or the rebound damping wound on such that the proverbial paint dries faster than the shock returns to sag.
To be clear, I am not throwing shade.
These things can be truly bamboozling, and not everyone is a fettler. Most people don’t want to spend hours watching YouTube videos to learn how the adjustments work, and many certainly don’t have the time to do back-to-back laps of the same track, making a single change at a time. They just want to ride their bike. Rightly so, I say.
That’s why I was pleased to see a recent patent from SRAM that could, if it comes to fruition, be incredibly useful in helping riders get the most out of their expensive suspension components. It essentially describes telemetry-integrated forks and shocks.
Of all of the weird and wonderful patented designs I’ve written about over the last year, I feel this one is highly likely to make it to market. Not only could it help out with the basics, like setting sag, it could help riders dial in front-to-rear balance of their suspension in terms of compression and rebound speeds, while also considering other important adjustments like tire pressure.
SRAM has all the hardware, firmware, and whatever-ware to implement this, it’s simply a case of how it’s implemented. It would basically be the next generation of ShockWiz, only much cleverer, with the potential for harvesting some seriously useful data.
The patent also mentioned combining that telemetry data with GPS, opening up opportunities for the technology to predict the best suspension settings for any given track – so long as it had a sufficiently large database of rider data on that track – I see no reason why your future AXS app couldn’t do that. It would have a mass of data about you and your bike, and how you work together on different types of terrain, and it would have a mass of data about the track in question, collected from other users.
I don’t believe for a moment that RockShox are the only suspension manufacturers looking into developing such a solution. So, my prediction is that in 2024, or possibly 2025, we’ll see some of the big names introduce top-end suspension products with integrated telemetry. It is a logical next step that stands to improve the user experience hugely. And, I am absolutely here for it.
Continued Concern for Comfort and Compliance
Nothing mind-blowing, here. I think it’s safe to bet that we’ll see more wheels, handlebars, (even stems, perhaps) and tire inserts, marketed on the basis that they will reduce rider fatigue.
There’s good peer-reviewed research out there to suggest that the vibrations we experience while mountain biking are worth paying attention to; Dr Lewis Kirkwood’s research showed that levels of vibration can be equivalent to, and often exceed, levels that are associated with some rather unpleasant nerve pathologies.
Besides the science, we all know the pain of peeling our fingers off the bar after a bone-rattling day (or even single run) in the bike park, and brands have good awareness of the appetite for comfort-conveying solutions like vibration-damping grips, flexible handlebars, and so on. Certainly, it seems that OneUp Components and BERD have been finding traction in these areas (pun absolutely intended).
A recent patent (again from SRAM) gives us more insight, here. You know the ButterCups (elastomers) found inside RockShox Ultimate forks? Well, it looks as though RockShox want to implement those into shock end-mounts, too, in the hope of eliminating some of the harshness associated with seal stiction.
More comfy bits. Please.
Harriet Harnden Will Arrive at the Pointy End of World Cup DH
3rd in the UCI-EDR Overall for 2023 (and EWS Overall for 2022) was Great Britain’s Harriet Harnden. The 22-year-old Trek Factory Racing Gravity athlete comes from an XC and cyclocross racing background, having won numerous National Titles, and podiumed at a handful of UCI-XCO as a U23 racer. Since then, under the mentorship of MTB Hall of Famer, Tracey Moseley, Harriet (or Hattie, as she is more commonly known) made the switch to enduro.
It’s here, in the gravity-based disciplines, where Hattie has seen the biggest on-paper successes of her career, including EWS wins at Burke and Whistler in 2022. Last season saw her take her first tentative steps into DH, kicking things off with a National Series Round win.
In conjunction with racing a full season of UCI-EDR, Hattie raced three UCI World Cup DH events, as well as World Champs. While finals saw her take an unfortunate excursion off the track, we saw enough glimmers of excellence in qualies to become aware of the threat she poses. Then, in Mont-Saint-Anne, she put down a heater to place 5th at the final round of the season on, as she put it, “the most savage track I have ever ridden”.
Besides the results, we know this is an athlete with a track record of successfully adapting to change, one that learns quickly and is able to seemingly disregard the concept of a comfort zone. Her attitude is impeccable, and her work ethic the same.
Next season, she plans to race the entire UCI-EDR season again, with extra appearances at the UCI World Cup DH events in Val di Sole, Les Gets, and Mont-Saint-Anne, where she’ll hope to go one or two better this time around, I’m sure.
So, there’s my prediction. No podium is safe from Hattie Harnden in 2024.
More Kids Riding eMTBs
For better or for worse, eMTBs for kids are here, and they’re probably here to stay. Mondraker’s electric balance bike, the eGrommy, is the tip of an iceberg, the depths of which could prove to be very deep indeed.
To be clear, I am not a parent, so my understanding of motivations here is limited. However, it’s not so hard to see the attraction. Family weekends at the trail center bring with them great potential for “I don’t want to pedal up the hill” based-tantrums, resulting in deflated parents sitting somewhere on the spectrum between providing gentle encouragement, to complete resignation, pushing or carrying their kid’s bike up the hill for them.
If a low-torque, low-powered eMTB is presented at a reasonable price-point, the temptation will be great, I’m sure.
The caveat of my prediction is that this phenomenon is likely to be region-specific. In some countries, it is flat-out illegal for kids to ride e-bikes on the road, something that could hinder uptake. In the UK, it’s illegal for a child under the age of 14 to ride any kind of e-bike on the road. In the US and Canada, the legal age varies from state-to-state, or province-to-province, with some regions having no stipulated age limit.
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You are never going to get your bike dialed, or anywhere close to dialed with taking it out and riding it.
Not to mention having to go without your bike for a few weeks. most shops take a week or more for a basic tune up.
Also, it’s a bad idea.
KX-80 says VROOM!
If you follow the socials its clear that she is the all round rider - one day smashing muddy berms on a slipper hillside, the next seems to be out with Evie Richards doing centuries on some beautiful ribbon of black tarmac at a training camp somewhere.
Also no coincidence that she appears to be such a multi-skilled, all round awesome rider, given the relationship with/coaching by Tracy Moseley. T-Mo has been around so long its easy to forget what she acheived - she won a LOT of races for a long time, across multiple disciplines. Absolute UK legend.
I think there's one small builder that does something like that, but I can't remember the name. Saw it on here IIRC.