Given that rock guards have only started coming on bikes as standard in the last couple of years, not sure it’s an ‘admission of guilt’ on not fit for purpose, it’s a nice to have feature, like fork bump stops on down tubes, but nothing more.

Well, perhaps, but downtubes generally tended to be straighter in days of old. Frame designs have moved on in recent years, and whilst they may be stiffer and/or lighter, my perception is that whilst big swoopy hydroformed downtubes and lower bottom brackets may be great news from a handling point of view, they seem to be more susceptible to damage.

I think we all accept that every time we go out for a ride there is a chance that we’ll break ourselves. The same goes for our bikes I’m afraid. It’s a pain when it happens, but a fact of mountain biking; stuff gets broken. Simplest solution is probably just not to ride anything that you can’t afford to replace, because sooner or later it is all going to break.

Sadly I think this is along the same lines as, say, breaking your phone after dropping it in just the wrong way after dropping it harder loads of times before with no damage. Or getting a puncture in your Schwalbe Marathon Pluses in the first mile rather 10000th. Nothing’s indestructible and stuff happens.

Appreciate it must be gutting though when it’s something that spendy.

Looks more like you have bottomed out the BB onto a rock to me.

Could have been an imperfection that made it more likely to fail to that extent but I think the likelihood of a severe impact is just too high.

Get it fixed, paint touched up and fit a rock guard and forget about it.