For Laurie, this visit to Vancouver Island was about putting in the laps. The riding was always going to be good. That part was not in question. The more valuable part was getting him into the environment behind the brand, onto the terrain that has shaped a lot of our thinking, and into a proper test block with the people building the bikes.

The bike Laurie rode during the week was an early proof-of-concept acoustic DH build using a Dreadnought E front triangle and a number of custom parts. It was not built to answer every question. It was built to get the gravity project moving in the real world, giving the team something to ride, change, measure, and question while putting early ideas underneath a rider who can give accurate feedback at speed.

Vancouver Island is a useful place for that kind of work. The terrain does not hand out easy conclusions. Steep entries, off-cambers, repeated compressions, braking bumps, square edges, tight trees, and constantly changing grip make it a good place to find out where a bike is calm, where it is working hard, and where the rider is having to compensate.

The first two days were kept loose. Laurie spent time learning trails, finding lines, building speed, and getting a feel for how the bike behaved before the week moved into more structured testing. For a rider at that level, the first few laps are already full of information. Where the bike sits in the travel, how it reacts under braking, whether it holds support in compressions, how quickly it recovers, and how much freedom the rider has to move with the terrain all start showing up quickly.

Once there was a baseline, the bike was fitted with data acquisition sensors from BYB and the testing became more focused. Runs were repeated, setup changes were made, and Laurie’s feedback was checked against what was happening on track.

Speed is one part of it. The bigger value is how clearly Laurie can describe what is happening underneath him. A change might look small on paper, but when the rider is loading the bike properly, a click of damping, a pressure change, or a small shift in balance can show up fast.

Away from the trails, Laurie spent time at Forbidden HQ with the engineering, product, and wider brand team. It was a chance to connect the riding and testing back to the people behind the project, and to give Laurie a better look at what the team is trying to learn. Coming straight from a surf trip with all his gear, he also managed to find a few waves on the West Coast, making the “work block” a little more fun.

The final day was set aside for filming and photos. By then, Laurie had time on the trails, the bike had gone through a few setup passes, and the team had enough useful information from the week to stop looking at every run as a test and just let the riding breathe.

No laptop between laps. No stopping to chase every detail. Just Laurie, the bike, and a full day on Island dirt.

There is still a lot to work through. More testing, more versions, more feedback, and more decisions to make. This was the first step, and we are stoked to have Laurie helping shape the project from the start.

Riders: Laurie Greenland
Video: Magnus Manson & Liam Morgan
Photography: Magnus Manson & Natalie Carriere
Music: Scream Drive Faster by Laurel
Special Thanks: Owen Pemberton, Ollie Blight, Mark Alison