{"id":649884,"date":"2026-05-05T18:49:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T18:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/649884\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T18:49:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T18:49:12","slug":"laurie-greenland-joins-canadas-forbidden-bikes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/649884\/","title":{"rendered":"Laurie Greenland joins Canada\u2019s Forbidden Bikes"},"content":{"rendered":"

After more than a decade racing the World Cup, Laurie Greenland is getting back to what really matters. He\u2019s shifting focus from full-time competition. He\u2019s trying to find the joy in riding again. And in this new endeavour, the British rider has joined Canada\u2019s Forbidden Bikes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got a real desire to experience a life outside of racing,\u201d Greenland says in A Different Line<\/a>, a new short film documenting the decision.<\/p>\n

From Syndicate to something new<\/p>\n

The news comes months after parting ways with the Santa Cruz Syndicate<\/a>. He raced with them for four seasons. He was always a fan favourite and always a podium threat. But health challenges and the constant pressure of racing didn\u2019t add to Greenland\u2019s desire to ride. Now, instead of lining up every weekend, Greenland is linking up with a Canadian brand known for doing things a little differently.<\/p>\n

Forbidden confirmed the signing this week, pairing Greenland with its high-pivot platform.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Why Forbidden made sense<\/p>\n

For Greenland, the timing made a lot of sense. Burnt out from chasing podiums, he was simply looking for something different.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love racing, but I love riding bikes more. I just really didn\u2019t want that to change,\u201d he said. \u201cThe thought of stepping back was almost as daunting as carrying on. On the day, something inside me told me it was time to simply love riding my bike again.\u201d<\/p>\n

It makes sense that chasing race results for over a decade would get tired. Greenland\u2019s reset includes this move to Forbidden. The partnership offers space for him to ride, to create and to contribute without the massive pressure of a World Cup calendar.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt all comes down to a shared vision,\u201d Greenland said. \u201cI was super honest about where I was at and they liked my vision.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

New bike, new terrain, new role<\/p>\n

Greenland has already put that vision into motion.<\/p>\n

In a first video with the brand, he heads to New Zealand, pointing his new Forbidden downhill bike down steep, raw terrain. It is less introduction, more proof of concept.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never had the opportunity to ride a high-pivot bike,\u201d Greenland said. \u201cI liked the idea of exploring a new platform. New beginnings, new platform, new vision.\u201d<\/p>\n

That exploration will continue on Vancouver Island alongside the Forbidden team, working on prototype development and testing.<\/p>\n

Still chasing speed, just differently<\/p>\n

Even without a race plate, not much has changed in how Greenland approaches a bike.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I have a DH bike, I want it to be the fastest version of that bike it can be,\u201d he said. \u201cConfidence equals fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

That mindset, built over years chasing marginal gains at race pace, is part of what Forbidden is tapping into. Greenland brings the kind of feedback that only comes from riding at the limit, and the brand is giving him the space to apply it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am passionate about making bikes go fast and it hypes me up when I feel I\u2019m being listened to,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s so cool to feel like you helped with a product.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not the end, just a reset<\/p>\n

Greenland has not ruled out a return to racing. In fact, he expects it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still know I\u2019m capable of top 10 World Cup results,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re still figuring out how and when it will be, but I\u2019m excited for that feeling when it happens. At my last two World Cups I had massive crashes. There\u2019s no way I can leave it on that note.\u201d<\/p>\n

For now, the goal is simpler.<\/p>\n

Ride good trails. Work on bikes. Find the spark again.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After more than a decade racing the World Cup, Laurie Greenland is getting back to what really matters.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":649885,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,1700,82],"class_list":["post-649884","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cycling","tag-mtb-features","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/649884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=649884"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/649884\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/649885"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=649884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=649884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=649884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}