Was out with Steve-O the other day, and some know-it-(not-at)-all came up and told of how he rode through Europe. Sounded like he was pretty into his bikes for that bit - but then asked about our bikes.
According to him, we want brakes with lots and lots of modulation, more so than any other type of riding, 'cause an on-off brake just wouldn't work.
Also reckoned that the weight of the bike is absolutely irrelevant - make tubes thicker for more strength.
After that last one was put right, he said that it's fair enough that we have ally forks, 'cause there's not that much stress going through them.
Finally, he claimed that we must obviously run tubeless setups.
I've told a few people of this event. I just can't get over how wrong someone could be, when they have some form of knowledge of a related subject.