Random thought, but the new SRAM Red levers have a 3rd bonus button that you can map to whatever you want, including an AXS dropper.
Why the hell don’t they have a bonus button on the Transmission pod shifter? I know it’d take some learning to get used to, but it seems so stupid you need to have a 2nd wireless controller for the dropper.
But with this you need to give up multishift up or down since it requires a wireless blip with no multishift support, to me that’s not worth it, I have no problems having a left pod/controller vs losing multishift
TBH, I’m ok with giving up multishift on a MTB. I had my Blur with Transmission down in Shenandoah for a long weekend, and I found that it was a lot easier to use single shifting in the software, and just press the button as many times as I thought I needed. Whenever I hit the button 5 times, it shifts 5 times very quickly - much faster and more precise than the multishift setup. With multishift, I have to hold the button down for what I think is the appropriate amount of time to get the shifts. With single shift, I just hit it as many times as I think I need, and it responds with what ends up as basically a single shift across several gears.
I would agree completely - I don’t find that I really use multi-shift often at all. I’m on normal 12 spd AXS but I just click however many shifts I want and I feel as though that’s faster than multishift and I know exactly what I’m getting.
I once again had to slow down on a descent in my race this weekend when catching a rider, in a different class, who was on a long travel bike with a dropper while riding my old school 100mm high post Oiz running the near slick Peyotes. This was a rather rocky and loose descent.
Equipment just isn’t going to make you “better” in the downhills.
I mean it kinda does… imagine what they’d be like on that 90’s 26-er. 
I assume you mean equipment alone doesn’t make you good on downhills which is reasonable, but if the right equipment doesn’t make you faster why don’t we see downhillers racing on straight posts?
Clearly very skilled riders can be faster than average joes riding with more forgiving equipment as evidenced by XCO riders doing pretty gnarly stuff on straight posts and file treads, but the extreme ends of either side of the argument of ‘droppers are always faster’ or ‘droppers are slower’ are logical fallacies. Droppers are clearly faster for some based on course and their level of skill, and not necessary for others based on the same reasons. There’s a point of technicality beyond which there is no level of skill that compensate, and the right equipment just becomes objectively faster for 100% of people.
No but some equipment changes can help A LOT.
The swap from 2 piston to 4 piston calipers on my XC bike was transformative on the amount of control and confidence I have on the mega long (3+ mile) downhills in my area. ZERO fade. Same discs, same levers, same brake compound, just 4 pistons. I can go faster between braking zones because I now have the confidence that when I need to brake they’ll be there, vs the 2 piston starting to show signs of real fade about halfway down.
By far the best component upgrade I’ve done on my XC bike, just slightly ahead of really excellent wheels which cost about $2k than two XTR 4 piston calipers.
Right on, changing from a high post to a dropper isn’t going to magically make you 10% faster on a descent.
I’d wager that most average riders would be better served by getting an E bike and using that to learn how to ride single track at speed than tossing money at some of the smaller stuff. Obviously another bike is a big investment, but there is no substitute for riding fast to learn how to ride fast.
I’m not going to argue against practice and skills training being more effective than buying the latest gadget and hoping that will solve the problem, but an e-bike is 20-30x the cost of a dropper 
Speaking for myself, I would probably be better served by doing a skills camp with Lee McCormack than 99% of the equipment I could buy though.
pick the right e bike and have a dropper you can switch between two bikes! Get two birds stoned at the same time!
My experience with riding the local XC circuit… a lot of people don’t really know how to turn on the downhills. A dropper give you more room to move around, but you gotta move around… weight that front wheel, get the bike leaning, don’t touch the brakes (as in, do all the braking before the turn), etc. It’s all technique and none of it requires or is even really benefited by a dropper post.
I’m a roadie who’s new to mtb, have an xc bike and I’ve started going out with friends who are into XC but we also spend some time just working on skills. I’d like to buy a dropper for my ZFS-5 and I’m looking at OneUp. I’m leaning toward the v2 due to the lower price and I’m a beginner.
Reasonable choice?
(yes, I read the comments about going dropperless…I’d like a dropper)
Hard to go wrong with OneUp, I’ve had good experiences with their V2 dropper.
I have no personal experience with the OneUp, but my general impression from other users is that the V2 is one of the most reliable droppers out there.
The newer V3 is also the lightest out there for the travel.
I’m “Team Dropper” too. I won’t ride without one on my XC bike.
Just a quick point of reference. I was looking at a OneUp V3. Because of the geometry of my frame and saddle height, I couldn’t go with a 90 or 120mm, and that made the 125mm Fox Transfer SL lighter in my case.
I personally don’t have any function issues with the Fox either, don’t need 150+, so elected to stick with the Fox. (And plus, the Fox matches my Fork and looks sweet on my bike)
Make sure that you take measurements to see what will fit on your frame, making sure you can get both enough height, and enough insertion.
IMO, if you’re decent technically, then Poto is maybe the best trail to test going dropper vs no dropper. It is pretty technical but from what I remember (moved away 2 years ago) there aren’t any features like drops or super steep descents where a dropper would be a huge advantage. There are spots where a dropper can make you feel more comfortable or confident but maybe not much faster. With the relentless up and down of that loop, without a dropper you also remove a lot of the decision fatigue of where and when to use it or not. So you leave yourself with no choice but to attack and you then can get on the pedals faster after a feature without having to put the post back up.
Yeah I’ve had a V2 for 4(?) years now. In that time I think I’ve added air to it twice and just rebuilt it this year. It was dryer than it should have been but literally no sign of wear on the inside and other than slow return speed (because of low pressure) it was still working perfectly.
I’m the opposite at Poto. I already know all the spots to use a dropper so there’s no decision fatigue, and a lot of the lines I take, I wouldn’t feel comfortable doing without one. Areas where the hardtails and rigid posts swing around the roots, but I can boost off the first root and clear the whole root ball, and just in case my rear tire clips one of them there’s no worry of a saddle kicking me off. But that’s the beauty of testing with and without, I know plenty of FAST local guys that never use a dropper (even after trying), and others who are faster by using them. My brother’s PR is right at 1:19 with a rigid post hardtail.
In regards to the OneUp V2, my experience is that it’s the best performing post per dollar, but they do seem to need more regular maintenance. I assume a lot of the performance is due to low friction seals, which also means they get dirty quick. I’ve had a few BrandX Ascends for 6 or so years now with thousands of miles on them, never opened them up, they work just as good as day one. My OneUp V2 was faster and smoother out of the box, but after one year and ~1500 miles it seized up, needed to pull it apart, clean everything out real good and regrease. Then after this year I’ll do a full rebuild. Other local guys reported the same thing, and there’s a lot of posts in the MTBR forum about needing regular clean/grease. Not to say it’s a bad post, it’s fast and smooth when it’s fresh, and has super low stack height, but does seem to need more regular maintenance than the average post.
