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Bikes & Big Ideas

BLISTER
Mountain Biking
E-Bikes
Red Bull Rampage
Downhill Racing
Bicycle Manufacturing
Women's Freeride
Red Bull Hardline
Tour De France
ENVE
Tigon Shock
BLISTER Summit
Downhill Mountain Biking
Biking
Injuries
Enduro Bikes
Bikes
Gear
Yeti Cycles
Bike Design
Suspension Technology

Bikes & Big Ideas is the weekly podcast from BLISTER that's dedicated to bringing you the most interesting conversations, news, and developments in the bike world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes349Founded7 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
WildernessSports

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Latest Episodes

Greg Hardy started sewing his own bikepacking bags while getting his PhD in materials science, which led him to put his career on hold, move to Asheville, NC, and found Rockgeist — which became one of the top bag makers in the bikepacking world. But ... more

Was the Soldier Hollow World Cup XC race the first true test for 32” wheels? Blister Reviewer Xan Marshland had boots on the ground at the race, and joined Simon for a recap of the racing action, thoughts on the big wheels, course design, and Bjorn R... more

Simon Reiberg’s journey into fork damper design began with him modifying a RockShox Yari to feature a shimmed rebound circuit, and after stints at Trickstuff and Intend, he just launched Simons.Lab and the Zeta aftermarket fork damper. So we sat down... more

Yeti has a long history of unconventional suspension layouts, and they’ve just given their lineup a big shakeup with the new LT & MT, both of which use the Sixfinity six-bar layout from Yeti’s eMTBs rather than the Switch Infinity design from their l... more

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Recent Guests

Greg Hardy
Founder of Rockgeist, bikepacking gear designer
Rockgeist
Episode: Making Innovative Bikepacking Gear & Rebuilding After Hurricane Helene with Rockgeist’ s Greg Hardy
Simon Reiberg
Founder of Simon's Lab; damper engineer
Simon's Lab / Intent
Episode: Simons.Lab on Dampers, Tuning, & the New Zeta
Peter Zawistowski
Yeti engineer
Yeti
Episode: Yeti on the LT & MT, Six-Bar Suspension, & More
Eric Olsen
Enduro racer and rider with on-the-ground perspective
Professional Enduro Racing
Episode: Enduro World Cup Racing is Dead. Long Live Enduro?
Vali Höll
Professional downhill mountain biker
YT Mob (former)
Episode: Vali Höll on the Implosion of the YT Mob
Anna Newkirk
Elite downhill racer, Team Frameworks
Frameworks/Blister interviewee
Episode: Anna Newkirk on Her First Career Win
Hayden Zablotny
5th? 2025 winner, freeride mountain biker
Freeride Mountain Biker
Episode: The Poacher
Xan Marshland
Reviewer
Blister
Episode: Reviewer Reports: Yeti LT, Specialized Epic 9, Orbea Rallon, & More
Martina Haggerty
Representative, People For Bikes
People For Bikes
Episode: Building Safer Bike Infrastructure: PeopleForBikes on their 2026 City Ratings

Hosts

Simon Stewart
Host with Blister/Bikes & Big Ideas; long-running presence guiding episodes and interviews.
David Golay
Co-host and bike editor with testing background; leads discussions and interviews.

Reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars from 297 ratings
  • Eh

    I used to enjoy the monthly news review show when Mike ferrintino was the cohost. I’ve always enjoyed his takes on things since the 90s bike mag days. New guy is a downhill racer / announcer, not in the same league. Also, they started having draft King ad reads the same week. The technical information in the bikes and big ideas shows with David Goulet are interesting but really bad badly need to be edited to remove the long pauses. Think I’ll be unsubscribing from this feed.

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    CarloRossi4130
    United States19 days ago
  • Great show very informative and entertaining

    Love the show. I do have a conspiracy theory that Simon isn’t really Irish but other than that it’s a very authentic bike nerd show.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Avid book listener
    United States3 months ago
  • The ultimate story time for bikes, and other big ideas

    Tired of sound bites and click bait? Listen to the B&BI podcast to dive deeper into the subject, with serious discussion for e]people who actual like to think about stuff

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    rider-reader
    United States6 months ago
  • Best mtb podcast out there

    The range of guests on this podcast and honest technical depth David brings is unparalleled in the mtb world

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Sven405
    United States7 months ago
  • Stop with all the EMTB content

    I subscribed because I’m a lifelong rider and 10+ years as a pro mechanic and want to stay up on new tech. I also don’t ride EMTBs by choice. They seem to always return to this EMoto BS. Blech

    Apple Podcasts
    2
    Pabl049
    United States7 months ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Audience appreciates technical depth and practical gear insights, though some critique delivery style of the host.
Guests bring varied expertise from testing to design and policy.
The host delivers thoughtful, in-depth bike discussions with strong guest lineups.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Simons.Lab on Dampers, Tuning, & the New Zeta
Q: So start from the beginning part of that. What were you looking to improve?
The core issue with the Yari was a non-linear damping due to the large orifice, making it hard to set a good rebound; Simon chose to build his own damper with a more flexible shim-stack approach and later evolved this into the Zeta cartridge.
Yeti on the LT & MT, Six-Bar Suspension, & More
Q: How do athlete feedback and racing realities influence the design choices for both LT and MT, and how does that balance with everyday rider needs?
Racing serves as a proving ground for durability and suspension performance; improvements tend to trickle down to everyday riders, but adjustments are calibrated to meet the distinct needs of pro racers and recreational riders, with careful attention to durability and usability.
Yeti on the LT & MT, Six-Bar Suspension, & More
Q: What was the logic behind parabolic anti-squat and how does its shape and magnitude drive bike performance across sag and travel?
The parabolic anti-squat curve provides elevated pedaling platform around sag and then drops off later in travel to maximize suspension use; the magnitude is tuned based on power input (e-bike vs pedal) and the vehicle type, balancing efficiency, traction, and geometry preservation.
Yeti on the LT & MT, Six-Bar Suspension, & More
Q: I'd be curious to have you talk a little bit about just the differences between how you go about tuning the MT versus the LT, and how the intended use cases influence those choices.
LT has more external adjustments and weight allowance, allowing more drastic tuning for racing scenarios, while MT has fewer adjustments to keep weight down and simplify setup, yet still offers size- and per-size tuning to preserve consistent kinematics across sizes.
Vali Höll on the Implosion of the YT Mob
Q: When did you start to have any indications that things weren't right with the team finances?
Early indications appeared as payments arriving late month after month, with bonuses split oddly and a growing sense of uncertainty about funding and continued sponsorship, culminating in a lack of clear communication and an abrupt insolvency announcement.

Audience Metrics

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Frequently Asked Questions About Bikes & Big Ideas

What is Bikes & Big Ideas about and what kind of topics does it cover?

Bikes & Big Ideas covers a broad spectrum of cycling, from World Cup racing and gear tech to infrastructure, testing, and industry shifts. Episodes frequently feature deep-dive conversations with riders, builders, brand representatives, and journalists, blending race analysis, product development, and policy or data-driven insights. The show stands out for its hands-on testing perspectives, thoughtful discussions on bike culture, and a willingness to explore emerging trends such as e-bikes, framebuilding, and city planning for safer streets. This combination makes it a go-to for listeners who want practical implications for riding, sponsorships, and brand strategy, as well as thoughtful storytelling about the sport and its ecosystem.

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Which podcasts are similar to Bikes & Big Ideas?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Bikes & Big Ideas:

1. The Pinkbike Podcast
2. Vital MTB
3. Downtime - The Mountain Bike Podcast
4. MTB Podcast
5. BLISTER Podcast

How many episodes of Bikes & Big Ideas are there?

Bikes & Big Ideas launched 7 years ago and published 349 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact Bikes & Big Ideas?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for Bikes & Big Ideas?

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What guests have appeared on Bikes & Big Ideas?

Recent guests on Bikes & Big Ideas include:

1. Greg Hardy
2. Simon Reiberg
3. Peter Zawistowski
4. Eric Olsen
5. Vali Höll
6. Anna Newkirk
7. Hayden Zablotny
8. Xan Marshland

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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