Fox Podium fork: The real deal or expensive cr@p?

Has Fox cracked the single-crown upside down fork code with the new Podium?
That’s the question we ponder in this episode of the MBR Show.

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:11 Looking back at previous forks
3:30 Podium fork tech highlights
11:40 Podium ride impressions
18:25 Will there be a DH version?
19:50 Every brand has tried it – will Fox crack the code?

Plenty of brands have tried, and failed, to deliver the performance that backs up the looks, including the likes of RockShox, Marzocchi and Manitou. We could even go further back to the mid-90s and curiosities such as the Halson Inversion fork, and pioneers like Mountain Cycle. Flops like the RockShox RS1 are not even a distant memory, mostly ending up as novelty toilet roll holders in bike shops.
So will the new Fox Podium end up as an expensive loo paper dispenser? Or has it done enough to maximise the benefits of inverted forks while minimising the drawbacks?
The pitfalls of inverted forks have always been weight and stiffness. Two factors bound together in a catch 22. Make them stiff enough (torsionally) and they’re really heavy. Make them light enough and they have the structural integrity of a damp noodle. But find the right blend of the two and then the impressive fore-aft stiffness, constantly lubricated seals, and better bushing overlap can really shine, delivering more grip and control.
Fox spent a lot of time making sure the stiffness of the new Podium was acceptable. Using 47mm upper tubes and 36mm lowers, a burly crown, and 20mm steel axle held by four pinch bolts gives it the claimed torsional stiffness of a Fox 36, along with fore-aft stiffness approaching the 40 downhill fork.
And Fox went on a heavy friction reduction program that allowed them to run a lighter compression tune in the Grip X2 damper.
So how does that translate into performance on the trail? Danny gives his ride impressions from testing in Leogang, BikePark Wales, and at home in Surrey.
Let us know in the comments if you think the Fox Podium is just a dentist’s toy, or a genuine step forward for suspension performance?

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