A-HIGHLY-EDUCATED-PROFESSIONAL

As ^ said, core. Good stretches include hamstrings, hip flexors, glutes/IT bands, and sometimes just good old quads. Hip flexors seem to be especially helpful to me.

@thisisme: Not gonna lie, I don't think the weight distribution makes that much of a difference on how fast the bike goes down the track. We're talking about what, 40lb bikes here? It doesn't seem to be worth the hassle of the different technology to overcome how good people are riding current bikes. Maybe... it's not even about the bike.

@powellriviera: Minions + 130mm travel bike. Having grippy tires doesn't mean your bike has to weigh more than 30 pounds.

@dresendsit: yeah they're not holding the bike back, but it sure could be cheaper!

@Td5819: I have this pipe dream that some company will use some decent geometry and pair it with tried and true (and cheap) manufacturing practices with a material like aluminum and make a bike that performs well for a low price. My $.02 from my economical armchair based on my view of the mountain bike world over the years: [prices at cost to consumer given purchase of full bike] -Make an aluminum full suspension frame with geometry that's approximately 1 year old [+$700] -Put some middle of the road suspension on it [+$800] -Middle of the road SLX-esque group [+$1000 with wheels etc.] -House brand bits and bobs including a dropper [+$400] I think that's reasonably conservative and gets you a great bike someone could buy for less than $3k that performs just below the Norco above. I'd love for a product manager/rep from a big company to open up a book and tell my why they couldn't do this with a bike any day of the week. It bothers the hell out of me that employee pricing is almost always 50% off. Can we open up the middle of the road, high-performing bikes to some people by making margins more like 25%? It just pisses me off.

@tuftjse: Try gloves made for Nordic skiing. All the insulation is on the back of the hand. Same bar feel, better warmth.

Do people not own gloves?

@Hogosha: This guy knows what he's talking about. How do I know? Only real one's use apostrophe's for plural's.

Most bent hangers I see are from whacking stuff. Well—that, and sticks in the spokes. OTB and the bike whacks a tree. Dump it in a corner and bike whacks the ground. Bike tips over when a dingus kicks it outside the weed store and the derailleur lands on a curb. Will this and the auto-move-out-of-the-way derailleurs fix this? Maybe. Will this just make the derailleurs break more? Maybe!

Nah, they'll still pay for it.