Lennard Zinn on the Physics of Mountain Biking, Bike Fitting, and Fitness

Singletracks Mountain Bike Podcast

Singletracks.com

Wilderness, Sports

4.7 • 574 Ratings

🗓️ 14 February 2023

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Lennard Zinn is a bike designer and frame builder with a shop in Louisville, Colorado. He was a member of the U.S. Olympic cycling team and worked with Tom Ritchey on some of the earliest mountain bikes. He’s also the author of Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance, one of the world’s best selling guides to mountain bike repair.

In this episode we ask:

How did you get into designing and building bikes?
Zinn and the Art of MTB Maintenance was first published in 1996, and it’s now in its 6th edition. What’s changed over the years?
Are today’s bikes easier to work on than bikes were 10, or 20 years ago? Why?
What are the challenges involved in fitting taller riders?
What have you learned about crank lengths over the years?
Do tall cyclists have any particular advantages when it comes to power or bike handling?
What are the considerations in terms of frame design for bigger and heavier riders? Is any of this applicable to more aggressive mountain bike designs, and vice versa?
What are the main factors that influence a bike tire’s rolling resistance?
What led you to write about heart conditions in athletes in your latest book, heart conditions in athletes? What did you learn through researching the book? Did your own heart condition influence your decision to build your first e-bike?
Is there room for further bike fit improvements in the future? Which tech trends are you excited about?

Find out more at zinncycles.com or order Haywire Heart from Amazon.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, just leave and work now. Sorry, it's a bit loud. Um, basically, so I was thinking we could get Macies tonight. Had a big Mac on my mind all day and delivery fee on the app is now from 99P. So you win? Of course you are. Love you. Bye.
0:13.2	Exclusively on the McDonald's app. 18 plus service fee and small order fee may apply. Participating restaurants. Serving times and teas and sees apply.
0:20.0	Hey everybody. Welcome to the single tracks podcast.
0:23.3	My name is Jeff, and today my guest is Leonard Zinn.
0:27.3	Leonard Zinn is a bike designer and frame builder with a shop in Louisville, Colorado.
0:33.0	He was a member of the U.S. Olympic cycling team and worked with Tom Ritchie on some of the earliest mountain bikes. He's also the author of Zinn and the U.S. Olympic cycling team and worked with Tom Richie on some of the earliest
0:37.8	mountain bikes. He's also the author of Zen and the art of mountain bike maintenance, which is one
0:43.9	of the world's best-selling guides to mountain bike repair. Thanks for joining me, Leonard.
0:48.8	Thank you. So tell us a bit about your background. How did you get into designing and building bikes?
0:56.9	Well, as you said, I was on national cycling team, and once that happens,
1:04.0	you generally have sponsors providing you with your equipment.
1:09.2	And I had won there. There's a race, the Iron Horse Classic in Durango,
1:15.6	and the classic to stage race, but the main event is the race from Durango to
1:22.6	Silverton where you're actually racing the iron,
1:25.6	it's called the Iron Horse because you're racing the narrow
1:29.1	gauge train that's famous oh cool silverton and um and i won that race in 1980 and i set the
1:38.0	course record by like more than five minutes and and um and so i was you know kind of a heavy favorite to win it again and
1:49.3	81 and but by then you know I was on a little tiny team in 1980 when I wanted and and so now I was
1:58.9	you know on a strong trade team and had a sponsor-provided bike that I just got.
2:07.4	And there's two 11,000-foot passes in that stage.
2:11.7	And coming down the backside of the first pass, my bike just started shaking uncontrollably.
2:21.4	Oh, no.
	...

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