With no MTB trails nearby, he designed portable ramps for practice anywhere

Singletracks Mountain Bike Podcast

Singletracks.com

Sports, Wilderness

4.7 • 574 Ratings

🗓️ 5 August 2025

⏱️ 42 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

If you want to get better at jumping, or you’re trying to progress your riding without a mountain in sight, this episode is for you. Tadas Puodžiūnas is the founder of MTB Hopper, a Lithuanian company that designs and sells portable bike ramps.

What was it like learning to mountain bike in Lithuania?
How did the idea for MTB Hopper come about?
Do you think growing up in a flat place gave you any advantages as a rider?
Why is it generally easier to follow someone into a jump than to try it solo?
How do you figure out how much speed you need to clear a jump?
Is there a good way to ‘test’ a jump without hitting it full-send the first time?
How much suspension travel do you really need for small to medium-sized jumps?
How do MTB Hopper ramps help with that progression? And how do they compare to DIY setups?
Are there any MTB trails in Lithuania you can recommend for someone visiting the country?

An automatically generated transcript will be available at Singletracks.com later today. More info about MTB Hopper at mtbhopper.com.

This episode is sponsored by Trailbot. Trailbot is the smarter way for trail managers to communicate updates without relying on social media. Don’t let The Algorithm bury your posts—easily share conditions and closures to your web site, social media and the app all at once. Best of all, it’s free.

Trailbot is used by over 260 trail systems in 17 states and growing fast. Over 50,000 riders have installed the free iOS and Android apps to get official updates with optional push notifications, without having to see what their weird relative posted on social media.

Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠trailbot.com⁠⁠⁠.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Everybody wants to know the latest trail conditions, but not everybody wants to go on social media to get them.
0:06.0	Some riders, especially younger ones, are missing your social posts entirely.
0:11.0	Trailbot is the smarter way for trail managers to communicate updates without relying on social media.
0:18.0	Don't let the algorithm bear your posts, easily share conditions and closures
0:22.6	to your website, social media, and the app all at once. Best of all, it's free. Trailbot is used by over
0:30.1	260 trail systems in 17 states and is growing fast. Over 50,000 riders have installed the free iOS and Android apps to get
0:40.4	official updates with optional push notifications without having to see what their weird relative
0:45.5	posted on social media. So spend less time babysitting Facebook and more time building,
0:51.5	maintaining, or advocating for trails with TrailBot.
0:55.0	Learn more at Trailbot.com.
0:58.0	That's TrailBOT.com.
1:01.2	Trailbot, no algorithms, just trail conditions.
1:05.3	Hey, everybody, welcome to the single tracks podcast.
1:08.5	My name is Jeff, and today I'm excited to talk with Tadas Pujunas,
1:13.1	the founder of MTV Hopper. If you want to get better at jumping or you're trying to progress
1:18.5	your riding without a mountain in sight, this episode is for you. Tadas has a super unique
1:24.2	perspective on mountain biking. He grew up in Lithuania, which is pretty flat. And he's
1:29.0	built a company around helping riders learn to jump and progress their skills in a safer,
1:34.1	more repeatable way. We're going to get into how to figure out the right speed for a jump,
1:39.6	how much suspension you really need, and why following someone into a jump often feels easier than going it alone.
1:46.6	Tadas, welcome to the podcast.
1:48.8	It's a great honor to having me here.
	...

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