Beta Launches Their Fall 2021 Beta Tests

 You really must like the artsy content if you only try hitting the ones with the locks.

 @encorp: who you calling a hippie, hipster? I see you've already bought into this outside plus garbage by the huge banner beside your name.

 When your really an independent craft brewery guy but Anheuser-Busch pays the bills.

 “How can we make these individuals feel as awkward as possible?”

“I know, let’s make them sit on bar stools with no backs, don’t give them a table, and stick a beverage in their hands.”

 @gnarlysipes:

 Serious '????' around that choice of magazine name.

 @mm732: beta males on mountainbikes

 It's the bike industry, nearly every product is "still in development."

 @brianpark: So, we're paying $15k for beta products? Not really a good look if that's the angle you want to try to spin.

 @nickfranko: have you ever actually paid $15k? If not then there isn’t much “we” going on.

It’s also notable that Brian’s job description is to inform consumers about the bike industry. The idea that he spins to sell expensive bikes is itself a spin invented by consumers and he has no responsibility to live up to the tropes of your imagination.

 Star citizen is a video game in ALPHA and people drop a lot more than 15k

 In my neck of the woods, ‘beta’ is an insight into something. For example: “Anna has the beta on that new zone they’re building. I’ll text her to see how we can find the trail”. I assume they were looking at the term from that perspective? Either way, I agree with you - stupid name.

 @garneau565: no thats a lame ass 90's slang

 @makripper: also a fish. And an 80’s home video technology.

 @brianpark: Are you trying to say then that their name makes sense? If that’s the case, your explanation makes more sense than the one they released when the site was launched.

At any rate, my comment was genuine — I really did think that what this article was going to be until I clicked on it. Then I was like, “oh yeah. Forgot about them.”

 @mariomtblt: LeL those dudes must be desperate. I admit I dropped 100USD some years ago.
I must say it makes still more fun than most crappy AAA games who try hard.
At least SC is a tech demo ...

 @pb-kg: oh yeah I had some of those fish a few years ago lol

 @Serpentras: true, visually it’s amazing also

 @pb-kg: Is it ironic here that beta / betamax was actually superior to VHS, but lost out due to the latter being more popular?

 @mariomtblt: yah, its stunning in 4k on a 50" screen. This actually ruined most other stuff for me because I compare it always to that and well everything lose against SC, haha.

 @nickfranko: I have no idea what you’re upset with me for here? I don’t make bike products, and I’m not trying to spin any angle. Just poking some gentle fun at the industry and it’s running changes.

 @makripper: "90s slang" lol
Except the word is still used in that exact meaning every day by climbers.

It does originate from those times and recording climbs on betamax but it's still very much alive.

 @bananowy: Then it sounds like a great name for a climbing mag.

 @TheR: And where exactly did I disagree with that? Quote?

I just pointed out it wasn't really "90s slang" as it's still in use. But then again, what did I expect from PB, reading comprehension? No chance haha.

 Yep...sad but true

 Hmmm ....video not locked for me.

 Remember Theresa Roncon and Erica Ehm? Those were the days...

 @numbphase: Thought Much Music was such a sad parody at the time... unappreciative plebian.

 Amen. This is the one thing they should have overhauled after Bike Mag went under. They're a joke compared to the Pinkbike reviews.

 @stevemokan: Nah, they’re just a different review, and I’m stoked to see them on PB. The Betas make great stuff, but commenters here are used to Kaz and I saying dumb shit on camera, not Palmer, Nicole, and Anthony haha. I’ve known them for ages and good things are happening

 @mikelevy: we really just want Vernon back.

 @adrennan: me too.

 @adrennan: same tho

 Is there paywall in this content? @mikelevy:

 @mikelevy: I dont mind palmer, or his flip flops LoL. Glad the staff was able to bounce back, in a tough industry, during a tough time.

 Alpha males on Beta blockers George Carlin

 @adrennan: Bike Mag turned Beta once Vernon split

 They just seem miserable. Being paid to ride free bikes and ending up sat there with depressed faces and finding zero joy in it all. I can't sit through their videos at all.

 They need editing in a bit way. Whatever your opinion on the content, the paywall or whatever, that site needs an editor in a big way.

 @likeittacky: Vernon had moved on long before the Beta switch

 @mikelevy: Palmer is the man, I really like his videos... those one he puts out where he's bitching are hilarious. His Enduro bike build video is must watch viewing in this Enduro household.

Yes, we miss Vernon too

 Variety is the spice of life. I like how they’re different than every other review.

 @TheBearDen: You're stoned

 I noticed that they don't like Banshee, for obsure reasons (see their video about the Banshee Prime, it's eloquent).

 Walk or crash, maybe a manual and you could survive

 Seems like such a weird thing to be on about. I find my high pivot bike is one of the best cornering bikes I've ever ridden. It's super stable when you push it into corners due to its axle path.

 I own two high pivots. They are kinda hovercraft-ish, but nowhere near as bad as they are made out to be. At 48, I'll take stability of the rearward axle path and deal with the downsides any day. Always get a chuckle when looking at the axle path graphs of some of these bikes as most of the 10mm worth of rearward path is eaten up in the first 50% of the travel. To each their own.

Just my crap 2c

 My high pivot bike is the best cornering bike I've had

 Not to pile on, but my Druid is THE BEST cornering bike of well over 20 I have owned. Cornering and technical climbing were two of the most pleasant surprises I immediately discovered. I don’t understand the basis for Ryan Palmer’s criticism.

I’m going to go against the grain here though on the Beta bashing and say that I have really enjoyed Ryan, Travis and Nicole over the years. I wish them all the best, and want to thank them for all their contributions.

 …although I have not and never will pay to get behind a paywall.

 @mtnbkrmike: Seems an odd business model? Can't imagine many people pay up.

Especially when comparable free sites with ad banners are a mere click away.

 @ATXZJ:
Agree, my experience on HPP bikes is defined by the cornering and handling, not just the smoothness. I definitely feel their cornering is a step above everything else I've ridden.

 There seems to be a disconnect between reviewers and owners of high pivot bikes. It’s possible there’s some cognitive dissonance but maybe it just takes a bit of time to adapt to a high pivot? I notice way better cornering in flat or unsupported corners with mine. Maybe in berms it’s not as quick to smash or to come around? I don’t notice but is that the reviewers beef?

 @Vlad-Putin: Who knows. All I can say is that cornering has always been, by far, my worst skill. When I got my Druid, I almost instantly felt like a hero in the twisties, bermed or otherwise. As with a few other things, that Druid made me feel a little like I was cheating. There was instant improvement.

There may be other things to pick apart with high pivots (e.g.; manualling), but cornering isn’t one of them. Not for me anyway.

 @Vlad-Putin: i think you're onto something. As a counter point,I used to have a high pivot bike and hated how it cornered - the extending wheelbase made every corner feel odd - I had to move my weight around and traction seemed to change.

 @mtnbkrmike: Another Druid owner here and I second this. I was very confused when I read that subheading. The druid corners wonderfully even on flat corners and bermed corners are a DREAM.

 For me I've wondered if the cornering of the Druid is helped by the scaled chain stays. I'm on an XL and it certainly has the longest chain stays I've ridden. Weight distribution may be playing a big part too.

 @als802: Yeah that's exactly what I was thinking.... I now have a long -452mm- chainstay and like everybody say, it corners really well! Just have to stay centered on your bike. I don't think it corners well on super tight 90deg corners thought.... I would prefer to be in the middle at like 440, maybe 445 max. You see some high pivot having like 460 something chainstay at sag and even more if deeper in your travel! Good for landing but not for everything. I was afraid of high pivot bike because of that but the spartan seems really perfect (at least for me)!!

 @Timo82:
One of my HP experiences is based upon the Dreadnought. It's probably the best cornering bike I've ever ridden, and that's with 464mm rear centre before sag.

 @The-Reverend: Yeah I was waiting for their long travel but then I saw all those numbers... oh boy, maybe not for me! lol

It corners well in big, long, fast speed, berms but how about slow, tech trails with really tight corners?

 @Timo82: I have a Dreadnought and even on slow, cluncky, tight stuff it's totally fine. Like any large enduro bike it takes a bit of wrangling but it does just fine. You just get used to it. Setting it up mullet makes it way more flickable. They've always got the druid tho if you want super nimble.

 upvoted!

 Yep that’s the plan. We’ll be merging the Beta Tests and Field Tests in the future. This isn’t about boosting traffic to Beta (the videos are embedded here anyway), it’s about using our platform to share something we think is worth watching.

Pinkbike has always been a platform and not just our own content. I’m really not sure what’s so offensive about sharing more interesting reviews.

 Only a matter of time before Beta gets folded into Pinkbike entirely.

 @stiingya: yes

 Yes let ebike to beta

 @brianpark: Can you just get rid of it and make a Pink Bike magazine? I wouldn't pay for outside plus but id pay for Pink Bike magazine.

 @fracasnoxteam: “bEta…”

 @brianpark: Merging the tests will be a terrible idea. Typical corporate approach to cut overhead costs…
It may salvage the idea if the Beta crew is actually filmed on bike and the stupid & awkward AB-InBev product placement is rethought…

 @brianpark: just curious, why not embed Vital reviews if they’re interesting and worth watching?

 @brianpark: at the moment theres 12 bikes from pinkbike and 14 from beta. When you merge will you be doing 26 bikes or 12? These field tests are awesome but thier value to us buyers increases massively the more bikes there are.

 @brianpark: ".... I’m really not sure what’s so offensive about sharing more interesting reviews."

That statement is indicative of why there are concerns. When a brand stops seeing through the eyes of its consumers only trouble lies ahead.

Don't write us all off as resistant luddites. It will be to the detriment of the brand and the business over the long run.

 @dubod22: exactly.

Can't wait to come to PB for the best of the best curated MTB content from all sources, including Vital, Freehub and countless others.

 @dubod22: he's not going to respond to that

 @brianpark: Pinkbike never shared a single Beta article prior to the acquisition. Funny how we don't see any Vital articles linked. I realize it's literally your job to promote Outside, but your response is disingenuous at best.

 @blackercanyons: 100% this. Don't piss on us and tell us it's raining. Either admit to what is slowly happening or don't comment on it at all, but don't tell us it's out of the goodness of your heart because you simply think their content is worthwhile to PB viewers.

 @blackercanyons: if you're gonna be disingenuous, might as well be smug about it too

 This feels like one those '80s sitcom crossover shows where Laverne and Shirley show up on Happy Days, or Mrs. Garrity is on Diff'rent Strokes.

 @ReformedRoadie: Mrs. Garrett was on Diff’rent Strokes first. Facts of Life was a spin-off. But I hear ya! They need Levy to join their beer circle with a box of Tim Horton’s.

 @SchalkMarais: zero overhead costs are getting cut—we've got a lot more resources now. Looking at what we have planned, I'm pretty sure I'll have to spend more money on Field Tests in 2022 than Field Tests + Beta Tests cost in 2021. And yes, lots to rethink in terms of formatting.

@dubod22: because we aren't joining up with Vital.

@Bobadeebob: We're going to add a fourth Field Test in 2022 with Beta, for a total of ~50 bikes in the year on top of standalone bike reviews. One thing we'll probably lose is that we'll go from 3 testers (Beta style) to 2 testers and sometimes a moderator (Pinkbike style), to make sure testers are able to spend more time on each bike.

@pourquois-pas: I'm all ears, please explain. If you're bummed in general that Pinkbike and Beta are owned by the same company, then hey that's fine and not much I can do about that. Change is weird and as we evolve I'm sure not everyone will be happy, but I'm still not sure why there's a downside to posting these free reviews from Beta to Pinkbike. Oh and we've posted plenty of content from Freehub over the years.

@thegoodflow: see above.

@blackercanyons: @DBone95: I should have been more clear, we're sharing Beta's stuff here because we're on the same team now. But we do try to generally support MTB people and media—we shared the news of Bike Mag's passing, and the news of Beta launching, long before we were acquired by Outside.

 @brianpark: You're looking at this too black and white my friend. See the big picture... I've seen countless hobby/interest based web sites be acquired and over a period of about 2 yrs they dilute the free content, cross-pollinating between platforms, become overly reliant on press release and "easy" content while building paywalls and reducing frequency of original content. Staff gets squeezed, quality goes down... it's a bad scene for everyone - including people in your position - except the owners who ultimately make less per site but do well enough across the portfolio. It happens over and over and over again. Your diehard dedicated membership is genuinely concerned this is the direction of Pinkbike because we heard the same stuff from other sites when the same thing happened - more resources, better content, broader perspective and in the end it rarely if ever feels that way. And the more you guys publicly try to diminish these concerns the stronger they become. It isn't just this article, it was trailforks subscription and cycling tips news before Outside was (publicly) in the picture... death of a thousand cuts.

Give up the change BS. Seriously. Heck I even called that out before you responded and you still couldn't help but insinuate it is just because we don't like change. I'm all for change that adds value in the relationship. Pinkbike is vastly different than it was when I first logged on and it has become an amazing resource, a real influence in the industry. I'm genuinely happy for everyone involved who made that happen. But if you can't see why we're concerned about the future that's too bad. I understand you're not in a position to publicly acknowledge it, but stop coming back like "I dunno what the problem is..." it looks terrible on you and the site.

 @pourquois-pas: ehh fair enough, it's probably better to show than to tell.

 @brianpark:
Sure… Let’s wait and see. Our firm was taken over by a big US corporate in 2012… It went great for a good number of years, but now we are a shell of our former selves. Good if you can keep the momentum going and the bloody accountants out of making “design & technical” decisions…

Sort of applicable when things get bigger & more corporate… What is the definition of a donkey…? It is a horse designed by a committee…

 

 That's how news generally works. We are just used to free content. A lame daily newspaper costs $350/year.
I'm not saying i want to pay, but at some point if they continue to deliver the goods we have to give them something besides our data.

 except the content generated is the advertisement itself, and the product being traded here is your attention. PB did pretty good for 20 years, employs dozens of people and rest assured Radek lives in a nice house with no mortgage. All making that content you call 'free'

 @weebleswobbles: if you have to go around telling everyone you're an alpha, you're not an alpha.

 Is it free? Good for them.

Previously when I've clicked on Beta I hit a paywall so I just stopped clicking.

 No they’ve wasted at least 3 months figuring out how…

 @surfhard987: oh, they aren't figuring anything out. they're following the exact same script on how they ruined every other site they acquired.

 Honeypot!.. ....don't go it's a trap

 I read everything.

 Did you hack into my meta account? Nailed it! The club has been coined the Pinkbike Keyboard Savages. I pretend to drink micro but actually drink BLL. I post pictures next a Tacoma but actually it isn't mine I drive a minivan. My other bike is an eBike, I have won a bunch of prize on PB contests and I actually loved season 1 on PBA.

 Pinkbike always insist that they ask for bikes and Evil won't supply. Have Evil ever rebutted this?

 Yes, that is a good point haha

 I think we finally found a loophole!

 Agreed. Gotta happen.

 Actually a very valid point… With the actual reviewers not on film riding, it detracts from the believability of the review…

 Ive always understood them to take the more "artsy" approach to their articles and reviews. More focused on mountain bike "culture" than statistics and features.

 @jubs17: that's what NSMB is for?

 I hope next time to see head tube angles in degrees and seat tube angles in radians.

 What a bunch of nonsensical jargon…

 I can't tell if you are joking or not.

 it's literally the opposite of "promotion of diverse sources." Pinkbike and Beta are the same company. it's a media monopoly.

 @blackercanyons: I'm not a fan of Outside as much as the next guy but you're really being a bit dramatic now. "Media monopoly" hahaha oh lord. It's just two silly little niche pushbike sites merging.

 @bananowy: you don't know much about Outside do you? They own Gaia, Trailforks, Ski, Peloton, VeloNews, Beta, Bicycle Retailer, Warren Miller, multiple running sites, multiple climbing/mountaineering sites, etc. They've acquired somewhere in the neighborhood of 40+ outdoor media websites.

 @blackercanyons: I obviously know that as those titles are plastered all over their website and were mentioned in the first atricle about pb acquisition. Stop acting like you've discovered some secret knowledge, it's really trivial stuff.

Ask yourself: so what? If you think Outside is "big" you're being dramatic like I said before. If you think 40 tiny titles about niche nerdy hobbies that have always been 90% adverts being under one roof is somehow "important" then I envy your lack of real problems in life.

As for pb/beta, where's the "monopoly"? Are they preventing anyone from running or reading other outlets? Shutting down or taking over vital, nsmb, gmbn, enduromtb, mbr, mtbr, bikeradar, hundreds of others? Oh wait, they're just adding a few people to pb from a dead print magazine that Outside didn't manage to resurrect before it died again. If you want to protest against media monopolies, go spend your precious energy on some real ones, not on geeks trying to sell you toys.

What's your actual fear here? You won't know which bikes you like without "diverse sources" telling you what to buy? You'll get lost and die in the woods without trailforks? All of Outside's assets can disappear tomorrow with zero impact on your life. It's not that deep.

 @bananowy: I might actually get lost and die without trailforks.

 @bananowy: " All of Outside's assets can disappear tomorrow with zero impact on your life." not exactly. for starters, I spend a great deal of time in the wilderness and remote rural areas and depend heavily on Gaia. I've spent literal years building my backcountry data set of routes, areas etc in Gaia for, and if it disappeared, it would genuinely f*ck my life up. Trailforks to a lesser degree, it would be annoying but not life changing. outside is changing those things and not in totally great ways.

also I work in the ski and bike industries in multiple capacities, and like it or not, Outside holdings do actually have some influence.

the rest of what you said is shortsighted and misunderstands some major things, but you're set on being condescending and dismissive, so I'm not going to put energy into trying to change your mind about it. Mountain biking is no longer a small niche sport.

 You forgot to mention “rich white girl” politics in every other article.

 Wait till they give it the makeover to look like all their other sites. Let me go on record saying that I do not like the interface they are using on beta etc. yes its clean and fresh but bland as well and the amount of content in view without loading a new page is greatly reduced. Don't water down our Pinkbike Outside!

 @unrooted: This is the inevitability of being bought by Outside. That’s what I hate about that publication. I’m not worried about paywalls. It’s that I know this is exactly what’s going to happen—wokeness, rich white girl politics, etc. You’ll see more of it as they fold Beta under the Pinkbike umbrella. That’s also an inevitability — there’s no way two mountain bike publications continue to exist under one publisher, and Pinkbike is by far the more established and successful of the two.

 Yeah Ferrentino (Grimy Handshake) was definitely the best part of Bike Mag.

We know how this ends. With Chevy, hair loss, and ED medication advertising on every review.

 @huffman88: the guy who wants to keep bikes out of the wilderness???

 @unrooted: ?

 @huffman88: www.patagonia.com/stories/why-wilderness-matters-more-than-you/story-90114.html

 @unrooted: yeah, great article. I don't necessarily agree with him, but I get it. He just never comes off as self righteous to me. I live in a mountain town and see both sides of the story. Unbelievable views and solitude on one hand. Garbage graffiti and a general lack of respect for trails on the other hand.

 @DDoc: It isn't even clean and fresh there have been thousands of websites formatted like that for years, it's corny now. See Dirt Magazines website, which is arguably better but still annoying.

PBs website is old and nothing has really changed, aside from the Pod/Vod being removed from the top right, it's really undergone no dramatic changes. Consistency is important imo. Look at successful publications like Time, Nat Geo ect, they have not changed their formatting forever. It shows confidence in their product not trying to bamboozle anyone with fancy home page.

Also. check vital, same small icons as PB, it works. Check Reddit and P-Hub too, same shit.

 They’re owned by the same company. Beta gets a fraction of the traffic of PB, so they’re trying to leverage one property for the other. If this doesn’t work, Beta will either be shut down or merged into Pinkbike. Along with their paid content.

 @stevemokan: Exactly, it's not like these are two different bike company's competing for customers.

It's a matter of 1 person going to pink bike, clicking 3 articles and generating x amount of money by doing so, and then going to Beta and generating x amount by doing so, rather than going to Vital or where ever.

As far as Robin could GAF, PB and Beta are the same website.

 Hah it's a fair point, although he did top 10 this year.

 If only there was some kind of link to click on which would show you.

 In legends of old world they were known as bikemag

 Biked.

 Kebab nite kip?

 OnlyBikes

 Nipples and more

 BinkBike

 @DDoc: BIkeFUC&ERS








youtu.be/eYb22BLBqGw

 Setec Astronomy

 BikeOut+

 Pinkbike Should Know Beta

 Peta?

 @surfhard987: OnlyMTB was ahead of its time.

 I wont be getting mine for a year, so I guess for me it'll have to win bike of next year.

 @blackercanyons: I can get you one sooner...

 Holup.... Are you... Bitching and complaining?!

 Getting worse? It’s fricking tame here now

 It is so bad that folks think the bitching and complaining is sub standard since Outside took over

 Isnt this completely the opposite? Links to free stuff on other websites?

 @Bobadeebob: Well, since you can't read the articles without paying, that's what I call a paywall.

 @cool3: except that you can read all of the bike reviews without paying. That's called not a paywall.

 Is not a payway it's a " Membership Spotlight " according to Beta ..

 These days I trust the Vital crew a lot more than I trust Beta MTB. I used to love Bible of Bike Tests when Beta was still Bike Mag, but since then I feel like things have taken a turn for the worse. The Beta crew these days seems to be very afraid of saying anything negative at all, even when criticism would be due. It's a theme throughout all of their video reviews. They'll hint at aspects they disliked, but they don't say anything openly anymore.

 Sounds like you missed the beta on Beta