Victory Racing Northwest

I told you Mike!!

2010-03-07T22:05:00.001-08:00

I would update my blog before you!! lol

riding Syncline today.

2009-10-18T21:36:00.000-07:00

my friends Schmitty(from Universal), Mike, Rick(not from Universal) and I rode Syncline today and I must say it was near perfect! the sun was out and the dirt was sublime. for all the people who didn't make it on today's ride missed out big time.

some more candy from the show

2009-09-27T21:19:00.000-07:00

The man, the Myth, the Legends bike that won Worlds this year. The man is Steve Peat. The bike is a Santa Cruz v10

Some stuff from Spank, what I didn't take a pic of was the grips on the other side of this rack. They were different colors and had different smells. Red= apples, blue= raspberry etc.... Pretty cool if you ask me.

Straitline had some cool ano colors plus a chainguide that is new for 2010. now moving parts make it light and sweet!

finally the pedals that might make me go back to platforms. Point 1 make these super slim pedals and they were light to boot. pair those up with some 5.10 shoes and I think you have a winner!

a little more from Interbike

2009-09-26T21:13:00.001-07:00

Here are some random goodness from IB.

That bike has been ridden around the world..Amazing.

The Epic Stealth cam looked pretty good and is not as bulky as the Gopro box on top of your head camera

SDG's collaboration with Geekhouse = a pretty sweet looking saddle

About as close as I will every get to an Olympic medal, this was Mellisa Buhls Bronze medal from China for ladies BMX

Finally Michelin brings out some new DH tires. I thought the day would never come

Solid Gold and more

2009-09-26T21:06:00.003-07:00

Phil Wood always has pretty eye candy for your bike and the gold edition is no exception

we're the Flying Elvis's

2009-09-26T21:01:00.000-07:00

You know Vegas has a lot of them!

New bikes to consider

2009-09-26T20:47:00.001-07:00

My Friend Jan Karpiel made some of the best DH bikes back in the late 90's and my favorite bike to this day is the Disco Volante. It is great to see Jan making bikes again and the new Disco looks great, this was in the Elka suspension booth and I did drool a little bit..

Rocky Mountain did a little retool of the Flatline with the help of team Maxxis. This is a world cup winner right here!

Morewood bikes really wasn't on my radar when I came down to Vegas but after looking at the Makulu and seeing that they come with a BOS rear shock, I think I found my new bike! everything seem pretty tight on the bike and the price will be just right from what I hear!

The Kalula is the freeride version of the Makulu and looked pretty sweet as well

The Intense 951 was the bike I had on my mind when I came down and when I saw this beauty I thought I had found my bike. The bike is a freakin Ferrari in bike form.

I hate Vegas but I love Interbike

2009-09-26T20:25:00.000-07:00

Las Vegas is a strange place, lots of people come here to play the odds and more than often than not they leave here with nothing. Or they come to find a job or who knows what other reasons. This is the place the bicycle industry chooses to hold its annual gathering, and for this reason only I make an annual trip to sin city. The loathing I have for Vegas ends the minute I step onto the floor of the show and see all the booths and banners that are waiting for me to explore. I have taken a lot of pics of different things from the show and so here we go.....

hangers made of old rims and spokes which I thought was pretty cool

A very large Sram XX cassette

a very big wheeled penny farthing bike

Me and Steffan at the video premiere of Bones & Dust

views from the plane to Vegas...

Mountain bike oregon

2009-08-02T00:49:00.000-07:00

Best use for a Giro helmet

2009-07-22T23:25:00.001-07:00

they make good chew toys! lol

Fluidride cup #3

2009-06-28T20:07:00.001-07:00

So it looks like JD swanguen won the DH today. here are a few pics from the day. My buddy Phil Wiering was 3rd!

For Ryan who is moving to Japan

2009-06-16T17:09:00.001-07:00

The Vapors - Turning Japanese
Uploaded by mg217. - Watch original web videos.

ODI boys ripping it up!

2009-06-16T17:03:00.000-07:00

I had a chance to meet up with Brad and JD at the Fluidride race last month and they are good kids who kill it on a bike! here is their story.

Adventures of J.D. Swanguen & Brad Oien from J.D. Swanguen on Vimeo.

Follow the Tour here

2009-06-16T09:27:00.001-07:00

Tour de France news widget by LeCyclinggreat free widgetsWidgetbox

ProGRT race #1

2009-05-02T22:03:00.000-07:00

Well I am at the Fluidride cup race #2 and so far so good. Curtis Keene has the best quailifier run and Katie Holden has the ladies best time, the JuniorX rider had a time that would put him in second place in Pro men.

My new bike!

2009-04-26T21:10:00.000-07:00

I am contemplating getting one of the following bikes for DH racing, can you help me choose please

Funny funny

2009-04-26T21:08:00.000-07:00

Some great old school propaganda!

Fluidride cup action

2009-04-15T20:42:00.000-07:00

more pics rom Port Angeles

2009-04-08T09:04:00.000-07:00

here are a few more to wet your whistle!

FR Cup #1, Port Angeles

2009-04-08T08:47:00.000-07:00

If you were not there this weekend you missed not only a great race but an absolutely beautiful weekend to boot! The sun was out (which has been a rarity here in the NW) and was warm all weekend, the trails were in tip top shape and over 400 riders were there to throw down. I was racing the new Firebird that I got just last week and was stoked on how great it was riding. Although I didn't do so hot on my race run I couldn't complain because the riding was just perfect all weekend. I was riding most of the weekend with my friends Jason, JR and his kid Joe. I also did some riding with my buddy Mike Estes (no explanation needed for Mike if you were at the race you heard his voice somewhere on the mountain all weekend!) and Ted from Recycled Cycles in Seattle. I have a full race report going up on www.sicklines.com shortly as well so head over there for a full report. but do enjoy some of these pics that I took.

Be There or be square

2009-03-26T20:49:00.000-07:00

Next weekend is the 1st race of the year for us folks here in the NW, are you going? have you been training at all? I know I haven't!!! but I will be there regardless

Real Old School DH

2009-03-16T13:42:00.000-07:00

this is my rig from '97, I raced for Dirtworks that year and this was the build. The zzyzzx forks (pronouced zie zix) looked impressive but were the biggest piece of shit you have ever ridden. I had to put those big boots on the stanchions because the first race I did on this at Plattekill they completely locked up. You see when the seals got wet they caused a pnuematic lockout of the fork because of the pressure that built up inside the huge legs. the brilliant fix was drilling holes in the bottom of the forks so air and water could escape. I worked on these forks all the time because they were always breaking down. Jan Karpiel made some sweet wet bath seals for them that helped out a lot but they still sucked big time. I remember that I could have bought a Marzocchi bomber fork with 4 inches of travel that would have been better than the Zzyzzx fork with 6 inches of travel. The bike on the other hand was awesome it was light and stiff and I wish I had that frame still because it would be an awesome trail bike today with it's 5 inches of travel. (BTW the alligator on the bars was the DH mascot! I had that thing on my bike from '91 to '98 when finally decided to retire the guy, he was broken and fixed so many times that his squeker didn't work anymore!) The build went like this

Dirt Works Monster Frame 5" of travel with a Fox Vanilla shock

Bullit bros Zzyzzx fork 6" of shitty travel

crappy red stem

Club Roost bars with cross bar

Magura HS33 brakes, blue

Curve cranks

Shimano 105 rear derailluer with Bullitbros tensioner

Ringle fron hub with Rhyno rim

Hugi rear hub with Rhynolite rim

I still have those wheels!!

Shimano 646 pedals (the best clipless pedal ever until the Crankbros mallet and Acids)

oury grips

IRC Missle Tires( some of the best ever)

Knappa Trails and bicycle destruction!

2009-03-13T08:55:00.001-07:00

went riding at the Knappa trails a few weeks back and had a great time. Eric Loney did an amazing job on the trails along with some other great trail builders. I would have taken some sweet riding shots but half way down my 4th run I had total carnage! took a turn a little wide and an angry stick jumped out and attacked my bike. the ensueing carnage was 1 destroyed XO derailleur, 1 deastroyed 991 cassette, 1 destroyed hollow pin chain, 5 broken spokes! all in all a fun day followed by an expensive mishap.

More pics from the sales meetings

2009-02-02T21:03:00.000-08:00

So on Wednesday we did this ridiculous road ride. It was a 7 mile hillclimb up to the top of South Mountain. It actually wasn't too bad and I did alright the last 200 yards is a 14% grade which hurt real bad! but the view at the top and the fast twisty ride down was well worth the trip up.

on Friday I got to take the new Firebird down Geronimo and that made the whole week very worth my while!

more pics

2009-02-01T16:29:00.001-08:00

Have you hugged a cactus today?

Magura sales camp

2009-02-01T16:19:00.002-08:00

Well I was in Phoenix AZ this week at the Magura and Pivot/BH sales meetings. It was a lot of fun and I learned a whole bunch about brakes and forks. With the magura meeting we went over all of the new features on the brakes and the forks. We got to take apart the forks and saw how they work as well as taking a new set of brakes and bleeding them and putting them together. the following are pictures from the meetings. We did a whole bunch of riding while down there, Phoenix has some great trails with lots of cactus and rocks to get hurt on.

Geronimo

2009-02-01T16:19:00.001-08:00

Geronimo run with the Firebird from Ken Bennett on Vimeo.

The snow if falling!

2008-12-22T18:06:00.000-08:00

We got a big arctic blast this week and here are the pics from the nice winter weather!

Post Canyon sloppy ride

2008-12-03T20:27:00.001-08:00

Here are some pics that my friend Carl took from the weekend trip to Post Canyon. My friend Mike was super jealous of the new 2009 Sombrio pants that I was rocking! they kept me dry and looking sexy! haha enjoy

Bike Hero

2008-11-21T20:30:00.001-08:00

Bike Hero @ Yahoo! Video

Awesome video of the day! enjoy

2008-11-03T21:10:00.001-08:00

http://view.break.com/596529 - Watch more free videos

Rocky Horror

2008-10-23T20:52:00.001-07:00

Clinton street theater has been showing the Rocky Horror Picture Show for 30 years straight! are you gonna be there on Halloween at Midnight?

Cove in the USofA

2008-10-19T20:50:00.000-07:00

My friends at Empyeran Distributors just picked up Cove bikes for US distribution which is super cool. They are already doing Brodie bikes and now with Cove they are bringing one of the hottest bikes in Canada to the states, The Shocker! Although Cove has been distributed before in the states the availability has been spotty, but with Jessie and Earnest now on board I would bet that they will have a lot better stock than in years past. I look forward to my friend Mike rocking a shocker next year at the races. And maybe Steve Smith will rock a few more Fluidride cup races next year! eh.

New Bike

2008-10-12T19:41:00.000-07:00

Just got a sample bike in from BH it is the new nano carbon G4 bike. It was fun putting it together yesterday and it will be even more fun riding it tomorrow I am sure. It will be a little cold first thing in the morning but it will be worth it!

Intense, Corsair and Turner

2008-10-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

Here are some more pics from Interbike. The new Intense SS had a sweet paint job and they were showing the Tazer HT. Corsair had their bikes on display and the red finish on the Crown was beautiful! I am still not too sure about the new Turner I just don't like the way it looks, but I bet it rides like a dream!

Traitors!

2008-10-05T20:32:00.000-07:00

The boys from Transition have started a new fixie and commuter line called Traitor. They did this because they all ride to work and didn't want to buy someone elses bike! They looked good the bikes and know those guys they will sell a boat load of them.

Boone Dog bikes

2008-10-03T18:05:00.000-07:00

Here is Jason from Boone dog, he is one of the shops I call on. He is a bit crazy but a fast racer(when he rides!) and an all around good guy. Enjoy

random stuff from Vegas

2008-10-01T11:15:00.000-07:00

Here are a few random shots from Vegas! in no particular order and no explanation provided.

New Dollar bill

2008-10-01T11:13:00.000-07:00

So here is what the new Dollar bill will look like after they print up a few hundred billion of them for bailing out corporate America

something cool

2008-09-29T19:57:00.000-07:00

I will post some more from Interbike but in the mean time enjoy this gem of a video

Hammertime!

2008-09-28T19:45:00.000-07:00

The new Hammerschmidt from Truvativ looked pretty cool. I like the idea of it, the price is a little high but I think they are on to something. I have never been impressed with Truvativ cranks but I think this could change that. Lets see how they hold up this year. They did have some very cool bash guards on display.

Lance is back!

2008-09-28T19:40:00.000-07:00

I got to meet Lance at the show, he was signing autographs at the Oakley booth next door to the Magura booth were I was working. This is a good thing for bike shops since Lance has brought alot of people to the sport of cycling. I got the poster signed for one of my shops in Bend since he really wanted a poster signed and I have no room for any posters in my office. So I got to meet him and James from Sagebrush got the poster! win win situation.

New Magura Brakes

2008-09-28T19:32:00.000-07:00

Magura has a new Marta for 2009. the Marta SL Mag is sub 300g per brake with the rotor! and I do plan on getting some and putting them on my DH bike to test them out. Also we have some new forks for 2009, the Thor is a 140mm travel fork with a 20mm thru axel that is made for all mountain riding. This will be going on the Pivot mach five I will be getting very soon!

Secret training information

2008-09-26T19:09:00.000-07:00

So I figured out why the Atherton's are so fast. Off season training at the stratosphere!! So now that I am on this secret training program I should be kicking ass next year in the DH scene. World Championships here I come!

Sombrio crew

2008-09-26T19:03:00.001-07:00

Well like I did this summer in Whistler I went out to dinner with the Sombrio guys and as always we had a blast! after eating more than I could at a Mexican joint in the Venetian we hoped in a super stretch limo and cruised to the Stratosphere to do the big shot at the top of the tower! there were 12 of us causing a ruckus in the elevators and on the roof top. but we had a super time! thanks Kevin

In the presence of greatness!

2008-09-26T18:55:00.000-07:00

got to check out the fastest DH bikes on the circuit this year! plus I got to meet and talk to the owners of the bikes and the fastest siblings on the planet. It was cool because there was no one in the 661 booth getting autographs from them so I went up to them and asked them some questions and BSed with them for a little while. They were super cool and down to earth, like most DH racers. I always like rooting for the good folks and the Atherton's are those kind of people. I told them they need to come to the NW and ride since we have some pretty awesome trails that I would bet are similar to some of the trails they are used to riding.

New Rep vehicle

2008-09-26T18:53:00.000-07:00

I also found my new rep car! it is environmentally friendly electric hummer! now I just need a roof and I am set!

Feather brakes

2008-09-26T18:47:00.000-07:00

Here is a new product at the show and I will be the rep for them here in the NW which I am very excited about. the brakes weight in at 199g for the set with the pads! these will give the ZeroG brakes a run for the money. plus you can get them in many different color accents. great way to improve the braking of your bike and add a little something,something to it.

Now for the good stuff!

2008-09-26T18:39:00.000-07:00

OK here is where is gets good, there were a bunch of cool little things in the show this year. The first of them is Pivot!!! the Firebird is going to be my new bike, and also the new company I rep for here in the PNW. I also picked up BH bikes which has a great lineup of road bikes for 2009 including a 13 pound out of the box bike the G$ and we had one on a scale that came in at 11.44 LBS which is insane. The buzz on the Firebird was amazing with alot of shops telling me how sweet the bike rode and how great it pedaled up hill for 6.5" of travel

Zion and Hoover

2008-09-26T18:35:00.000-07:00

Then flew past Zion National Park which is Kristie and my favorite park, We stayed there a week 11 years ago on our honeymoon. Then got a glimpse of Hoover Dam as well.

Super Mega Terrific Interbike update!

2008-09-26T18:23:00.000-07:00

OK here we go. I had terrible internet access this week so I haven't had a chance to update the site from the floor but now I am waiting for my flight and I have some time to update the site. lots of pics.

First are from the flight to Vegas, flew right by mount hood and took these sweet pics!

Las Vegas Here I come

2008-09-23T10:27:00.000-07:00

Well I am standing in the airport waiting for my yearly journey to Interbike. This year I have alot more business than I think I ever have. I will keep you posted and check back everyday because I will be doing a daily Interbike update with pictures and commentary!!

Funny poster from the good ole days

2008-09-18T21:17:00.003-07:00

This one just made me laugh! I think more ads need to look like this today, make me want to buy this product!

Mike back in the saddle

2008-09-17T19:53:00.000-07:00

My friend Mike broke his elbow at the first Port Angeles race this year, but a little flesh wound couldn't keep him down! Great to see Mike back in the saddle racing. as for me I am on sabbatical until next year! haha I am going to ride my road bike a bunch this winter so I am going to be in super shape for next season! look out

NWD 9: never enough

2008-09-01T15:00:00.000-07:00

See you in Vegas!!

2009 Sombrio samples

2008-09-01T14:20:00.000-07:00

Hello All,

I am sorry I haven't put up any posts but I have been busy like a bee. Well the 2009 Sombrio samples are in and I am showing them off to shops everyday until Interbike. I will put up some pictures asap.

Vic

Windell's School of FreeRide

2008-08-10T19:13:00.000-07:00

Because if your paying for a lift ticket it ain't a free ride. Well Windells has finally started a bike camp and from the buzz it is going to be a killer camp for beginners to experts. Word is that there will be some Pro instructors to help you get your riding to the next level. Check it out

Alpenrose race

2008-07-20T23:48:00.001-07:00

I know another non mountain bike post but the Alpenrose event is awesome. I was there becuase Pro-Lite shared a booth with Jack from Enselle. Thank Jack! here are the pics

Funny Video!

2008-07-20T23:44:00.000-07:00

Cascade Classic

2008-07-14T14:15:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more pics from the team support car and some other various pics from the weekend.

Cascade Classis TT and Crit

2008-07-14T13:58:00.000-07:00

Well I can't tell you how much respect I have for these ladies, the team we helped out this week was awesome and they ranged in age from 15 to 40 with all of them really do well despite having a rough week of bad luck which included crashes, flats and colds! but they all did great and I walk away with way more respect than I think most people who have never been to a road race before. in fact I am inspired to try some road races myself, after all I have been racing mountain bikes for 18 years! Also I have been racing DH for most of that time and after watching the crit on Friday I would prefer DH racing to that. They go so fast into the turns it's scary and at least in DH if you crash it's most likely your own fault but in Crits you can get taken out and be 20 people behind the person who crashed! but I must say they look fun!

Cascade Classic

2008-07-14T13:36:00.001-07:00

OK sorry for no updates lately but I have been a busy boy! Secondly I know what you are thinking Road Racing on this blog!! WTF is going on. well I was in Bend last week for the Cascade Classic since one of the lines I rep was sponsoring a pro women's team. So I was there to sell Pro-lite wheels and help out with anything that I could. Well I ended up being the mechanic for the ladies, so I was fixing the bikes at night and making sure they were in good order. That was the fun part for sure and the topper was riding in the team car on Saturday and helping with the feeds and keeping track of positioning of the riders. So I took a boat load of pics and have put them up here. enjoy

Gee vs. Sam, Worlds addition

2008-07-01T20:58:00.000-07:00

Freecaster is doing some really cool stuff this year with the racing scene and this head to head format is killer, now if they just got some better announcers! like me! haha

Greatest garage in the world

2008-06-27T21:33:00.000-07:00

I stayed at one of the Sombrio reps house while in Vancouver and when I entered his garage I nearly had a heart attack. He had every single suspension fork that was ever produced hanging from the walls and tons of super sweet old frames. it is called the graveyard for a reason but it was so cool to see all these sweet parts in one place. He had so many parts it was unbelievable and he uses the parts to make super cool art with it. the picture below is from the Sombrio booth a few years ago. check out his site www.bikeartist.ca you will be amazed at the sweet stuff he is making. Thanks to Steve for letting me crash at his house and taking me on some sweet North Shore ride!

Live recast of the men's world's

2008-06-27T21:30:00.000-07:00

it takes a while to load but is well worth it to watch some of the American runs

watson road gap at the Tour De France

2008-06-27T18:19:00.000-07:00

a video of my new boss jumping the tour

Sombrio Sales Meeting

2008-06-27T17:55:00.000-07:00

OK here is the mega super update you have been waiting for. I am the new Sales Rep for the NW for Sombrio and this week I was up in Whistler for the sales meeting which was awesome! Dave Watson who owns Sombrio had us all up in Whistler for meetings and riding of course. Well the meeting were great but after we went riding for a few laps in the park then it was off for dinner. The first night was a fine dinner at 21 in Whistler which was great with all of us doing tequila shots and drinking port to finish it off. Even yours truly had a shot of tequila which wasn't that bad. The second night was when all hell broke loose! we went to Ka-ze in Whistler which is a Japanese sushi joint, which you know I am not a big sushi fan but they did fix up some veggie tempura for me which was great. The fun started when Jessie the rep from Colorado decided to do a Sake bomb in which you take your chopsticks and put the glass of Sake over a glass of beer and hit the table and watch the sake fall into the beer and shot it all down. Even I got into the act since I didn't want to spoil the fun. Well Jessie did a mega bomb with 2 beers and who know how much sake and chugged it down. After about 3 liters of Sake and unknown amount of Sapporro we climed out of the booth we were in which was supposed to seat 8 but we fit about 15. and one thing led to another and arm wrestling broke out with Jessie killing everyone, except Kevin in which he paid $15 to let him win!haha even the ladies got into it. All in all it was a great trip and I am super stoked to be selling Sombrio and if you don't know what it is then goto the link on the side and see for yourself, it is the best mountain bike clothing on the market bar none.

seeding runs for worlds DH

2008-06-19T23:04:00.000-07:00

check out the end with Sam hill!!!!! so ridiculous! but the Athertons hold the top seed could it be an Atherton world sweep!

World's 2008 from Valle di Sole Italy

2008-06-13T23:14:00.000-07:00

East coast update

2008-06-12T21:20:00.000-07:00

My friend Kyle sent me a quick update with pictures from some east coast racing here is what he had to say
Hey Vic
Just wanted to check in let you know for the US Open I missed qualifying in pro by like 2 seconds real bummer although the field was very stacked. A lot of fast pros and I missed qualifying in dual slalom by .007 seconds, I'm alright with that one since I never raced slalom before and I got stuck in pro had a wicked time

some more fort bill practice from MTBcut.tv

2008-06-07T21:16:00.000-07:00

Fort Bill Friday Practice

2008-06-07T21:09:00.000-07:00

Peaty interview

2008-06-06T21:39:00.000-07:00

Day 1 practice at Fort Bill

2008-06-06T21:34:00.000-07:00

Fort Bill preview

2008-06-05T22:55:00.000-07:00

Let's all see what we are missing this weekend!

the fastest family on dirt

2008-06-05T22:49:00.000-07:00

Sam vs Gee in Anndora

2008-06-05T22:42:00.001-07:00

This is a great side by side of the 2 in the Anndora WC

Slacker

2008-06-05T22:30:00.000-07:00

Well I have been totally slacking with the updates lately! I picked up some new lines to rep lately. I am the Magura, Marwi and Syntace rep for the PNW as well as the Sombrio rep in the PNW. I am totally stoked to rep these brands since I have used their products for a while now and the new stuff they have is dialed. I will post some pictures up real soon of the new forks, brakes and clothing.

Side note I think the Athertons are the fastest siblings in the world and I hope they can repeat that feat at the worlds, although I am pulling for Peaty because after all these years I think its his turn to win the Worlds.

The Alien Riding

2008-05-20T22:25:00.000-07:00

I won an auction on Ebay the other day and it was of a cool handout that Vouilloz racing used to hand out at World Cups. Well I was emailing the guy and we got talking about DH racing and I was telling that I have been racing for 17 years and I loved that bike. So in addition to sending me the card he sent me some super sweet pics of Nico riding and of his bike. so here they are, Thanks for the pics Charlie

The Alien's bike

2008-05-20T21:58:00.000-07:00

Nico Vouilloz was called the Alien back in the day because he rode like no other. Calculated, calm and super duper fast!! I saw him at a World Cup in Squaw Valley California and he was practicing the DH on a hard tail going balls out, on a course that most people were having a hard time with a long travel full suspension bike. I heard of his training sessions and they were amazing, him and his father would go out to a track and time certain corners over and over again seeing how fast he could do it. He would do it for hours, everytime getting faster and faster seeing how much he could push himself and the bike. Well check out the pictures of his bike. This was his own bike and his own company, when his sponsorships dried up for whatever reason he decided to go out on his own using BOS engineering to set up his bike. Those were the guys who designed the SUNN bikes which I think to this day have more WC and World Champ wins than any other bike out there. Maybe Sam Hill will change that on the Sunday but not yet he has about 14 world champs and who knows how many WC wins to go before that can happen. but I digress, check out the bike with the telemetry box on the top tube, Yes just like F1 race cars, he could see exactly how fast he was going in each section, when he was braking, how the suspension was reacting to the terrain! think of the advantage he had with this, no doubt he was the most talented DH racer around but he had even more help with the technology, and he was smart enough to know how to use this information to ride to the absolute edge. I still drool over this bike and wish I could obtain it someday just to ride and admire what a piece of moving art it is.

East Coast update

2008-05-19T19:27:00.000-07:00

I got this email from my friend Kyle showing me pics of his new Intense M6 and boy it is killer! and a pic of his sweet race van! going to Diablo in style for sure, I should have an update on what is happening at the Diablo race by the end of the weekend.

Riding the Ridge

2008-05-19T19:18:00.000-07:00

this weekend we rode at Raven Ridge and let me tell you the conditions were absolutely perfect! the dirt was grippy and the trail was in primo shape. The people working on that trail have been busy clearing it out from all the blow down this winter.

Cool thing was we rode with Pablo Tafoya from Corsair and got to look at the bike close up and get to bounce up and down on it! Alex even got to take the bike for a run and in his words it was awesome!

The pic of the drop is Aaron N. squishing the last little drop to perfection. Above is Mitch getting his money's worth from his Rockgardn Trailstar

Bummer of the weekend

2008-05-14T22:11:00.001-07:00

Well as you know the race was spectacular with the weather perfect. My friend Mike broke his elbow this weekend though. First run of practice and he was done. He will be out for a few weeks but he will be back stronger than ever, infact he was on the hill rooting for everyone else

My time with Justice

2008-05-12T20:57:00.000-07:00

I posted previously that the Justice chute was the hardest part on the course. Well I had some super clean practice runs and my race run went great, I cleaned the Justice fairly well I wasn't the fastest but I didn't crash either so that was the big goal. My biggest gripe of the weekend is the lack of trail etiquette that people have during practice runs, I like stopping at sections to check it out but I do it from the side of the trail so I don't block anyone. People were standing right in the middle of the line all day Saturday and not very quick to move out of the way. Early in the day for practice is OK but later in the day people just want to get some full speed runs in and that just messes with your timing. So spread the word and learn some race etiquette, if you are stopping to check a section out make sure no one is coming and if they are move out of the way as quickly as possible because people can get hurt otherwise. OK rant over.

These pics were from my friend Carl Warren check out his link on this page. if you were at this race send him an email for a few bucks he will send you a picture of yourself at the race

Fluidride DS race

2008-05-12T20:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday's Dual Slalom was a picture perfect day with just a short rain shower at the start of the finals. Lars Sternberg was on another level with the way he was flying through the course I don't know how he was getting traction in some of those corners! Joe Perrizo showed up to race on his Atomlab hardtail dirt jumper and made the cut of 16, his prize for qualifying was a first round matchup with Lars and sorry to say I don't think anyone had a chance against him this weekend. Aaron Nactrab was looking smooth and fast in his heats but a crash out in the 3 round ended his day early, I think he could have made it to the semis the way he was running.

Justice will be served

2008-05-12T20:28:00.000-07:00

Indeed Justice was served this weekend at round#2 of the Fluidride
Cup series. Justice was the name of the new section that the ODS boys built for this weekends race and it didn't disappoint. Lots of carnage and close calls, and just some downright sickness. Some pros and semipros went through that section so fast I couldn't believe it, because the Justice wasn't just steep and rocky but to do it at speed meant you had to make the turn at the bottom which some boys did at warp speed! This was the hardest part of the race with the rest of the course just wide open fast and furious.

Maribor World Cup DH race

2008-05-12T20:26:00.000-07:00

Well it looks like Sam Hill is already showing the DH world no mercy! Winning the Maribor DH by 4 seconds over Julien Camelini and Steve Peat. Scary note of the day is when Brian Lopes was interviewing him for Freecaster he said he felt slow and could have gone faster! YIKES how much faster could he possibly go. goto www.freecaster.com to check all the footage

Mongoose Amp

2008-05-07T22:41:00.000-07:00

The first full suspension bike I ever bought was this beauty! I origianlly had ProForx with a super long travel 3" of travel! then I upgraded to the Manitou EFC which had the breakthrough technology of Elastomers with oil damping, boy those were the days! I remember at the National at Mt. Snow in '96 I had Manitou put the new Mach5 internals in the fork which made the fork super plush with MCU elastomers. Check out the long stem and high seatpost and the great Magura HS-22 that were way too strong for any bike in the day and flexed the hell out of the chainstays, even with the brace. Thank God that disc brakes weren't too far off in the future because rim brakes suck!

World Championships Test race

2008-05-04T23:36:00.000-07:00

Well this past weekend was the test race on the new course that will be run for the DH world champs in Val di Sole Italy in July. The course from reports was fast and technical. the big surprise was Sam Hill won by nearly 6 seconds! ( that was a joke, does it surprise anyone that he slays everyone these days. If he keeps this up Nico Vouilloz's record of 10 world champs will be in jeopardy for sure) here is how they finished

1) SAM HILL (MONSTER IRON HORSE) 3:19.42
2) STEVE PEAT (SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE) 3:24.60
3) FABIEN BAREL (SUBARU) 3:26.92
4) FLORENT PAYET (SUBARU) 3:27.77
5) JUSTIN LEOV (YETI) 3:28.67
6) JOSH BRYCELAND (SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE) 3:29.37
7) SAM BLENKINSOP (YETI) 3:29.40
8) GREG MINNAAR (SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE) 3:29.58
9) FABIEN PEDEMANAUD (TEAM PYRENEES/ MOREWOOD) 3:30.04
10) PASQUAL CANALS FLIX (MASSI) 3:30.85

Long before

2008-05-02T23:32:00.000-07:00

This year there will be a National at Windham Mountain in upstate new york. Well long before this they used to have a bike series that had XC, Hillclimb, trials and Dual Slalom. Not just any slalom but single pole slalom. This pic is from 1992 and yes I obviously didn't win this round but I sure had alot of fun doing it!

Fluidride Race Clinic set for May 3rd and 4th

2008-04-25T00:03:00.000-07:00

Fluidride is pleased to announce the "Pre Fluidride Cup # 2 race clinic" in Port Angeles, Wa on May 3rd, & 4th- The weekend before FRCup # 2. Ready to improve your results and ride faster with more control? Come and attend the first racing clinic of the 2008 season at Port Angeles’ Dry Hill on Saturday and Sunday May 3rd and 4th.

The clinic will offer riders the opportunity to learn with Pro riders/instructors Simon Lawton and Lars Sternberg. The use of our follow cams and our Freelap timing system will allow riders to make tangible improvements to their race times.

We’ll start each day with an hour of ripping time to get the blood flowing, then it’s on to in depth analysis of PA’s varied terrain and rider movement over technical ground. Our instructors will be ready to follow you with HD head cams, and Simon will be on hand to revue each riders footage to help make positive changes to body position as well as line choice. Beginner through Pro racers are welcome as we’ll have several instructors working the hill each day. Keep in mind that Dry Hill will otherwise be closed during this weekend for course preparation for the race the following weekend. The clinic will go from 12-6 on Saturday and 10-3 on Sunday to ensure everyone gets plenty of time on the hill.

Cost for the two day clinic is $329.

Call the Seattle store to book your spot at 206.547.0712, or email Simon at Simon@fluidride.com

Missing Ledbetter!

2008-04-22T22:56:00.000-07:00

Ledbetter was a patch of woods right down the street from me that lots of people had built trails and drops in. Well now it is home to McMansions and it sucks! but its making a comeback with some new building going on, including yours truly building a sweet one minute DH run. stay tuned for more pictures but in the mean time enjoy this one from 4 years ago

Willamette Pass race video

2008-04-22T22:49:00.000-07:00

A pic of me hitting the latter bridge on my second race run and having so much fun doing it at speed!

Post Canyon dude

2008-04-22T22:44:00.000-07:00

Here is a pic of my friend Mike ripping it up on his new Brodie DH bike and he is rocking some new Rockgardn gear as well!

Post Canyon Trail day

2008-04-21T15:11:00.001-07:00

looking for a few good men! The boys up in Hood River are looking for any able bodied people to help with trail maintenance.

go to this link to find out more http://www.pinkbike.com/news/post-canyon-cleanup-day-2008.html

any help would be much appreciated and will go a long way to all the good Karma you will need this summer of injury free riding! haha

Fluidride Cup #2 venue changed

2008-04-19T19:49:00.000-07:00

Fluidride Cup #2 Moved to PA DUE TO HEAVY SNOW AMOUNTS on Mt Hood
Published by Simon Lawton
Hello fellow racers! After a bit of deliberation we have decided to move the second FR Cup race to Port Angeles where the first race was held. There is still about 4-7 feet of snow on the lower course at Mt Hood, and much more at the actual resort where we normally race there (Ski Bowl). So…bring your dh bike and your slalom rig, and get ready for another round of fun May 10th and 11th. We are currently trying to work out putting on a racing clinic the weekend prior to the race (May 3rd and 4th - waiting on approval from the land managers). Stay tuned for more on that. We broke the record for attendance for a regional nw gravity event last time; let’s do it again! Tell your freinds to come out and ride! Looking forward to seeing you all again soon.

taken from Fluidride.com

Mt Snow Nationals Circa 1993

2008-04-19T19:40:00.000-07:00

This is a gem from way back in the day! I just crashed my brains out about 200 feet before this picture was taken! notice the bar ends and my helmet all askew. this was my first expert DH race and I think I ended up like 25th out of 40 or something like that. Also the whole week of practice I flatted nearly every run so I only got about 3 complete runs without flatting the entire week, it sucked to say the least.

Sea Otter photo

2008-04-18T20:28:00.000-07:00

Came across this sweet pic of Nathan Riddle during Pro DH practice!! Let's hope Nate smokes them all!!

Sea Otter Classic this weekend

2008-04-17T20:31:00.000-07:00

Well it supposed to be a decent weekend down there will no rain forecasted. which will be the first time in 3 years that will have happened.

Now you get beautiful weather for the worst DH in the country. Flat and lots of pedaling! if you are going enjoy the atmosphere but your legs will hate come monday

Race Schedule

2008-04-15T19:12:00.000-07:00

I stole this off of my friend Mike's blog but is very relevent to my blog as well!
Pacific NW MTB DH Race Schedule for 2008
(All Dates are as of Feb 9th 2008 and can be changed, to verify check the appropriate websites for changes prior to race)

#1 April 4th-6th Fluidride FR NW Cup #1 DSL & DH
Port Angeles, WA
#2 May 3rd-4th OBRA Spring Thaw DH
Mt Ashland, OR
#3 May 9th-11th Fluidride FR NW Cup #2 DSL & DH
Mt Hood Ski Bowl, OR
#4 June 6th-8th Fluidride FR NW Cup #3 DSL & DH
Port Angles, WA
#5 June 21st-22nd Shiloh Challenge DH
Mt Hood Ski Bowl, OR
#6 June 28th Return of the Jedi DH
Grants Pass, OR
#7 June 28th-29th Willamette Pass #1 SuperD & DH
Odell Lake, OR
#8 July 11th-13th Fluidride FR NW Cup#4 DSL & DH
Mt Hood, OR
#9 July 19th-20th Willamette Pass #2 SuperD & DH
Odell Lake, OR
#10 Aug 16th-17th Willamette Pass #3 Super D & DH
Odell Lake, OR
#11 Aug 22nd-24th Fluidride FR Cup #5 DSL & DH
Port Angeles, WA
#12 Sept 13th-14th MHSB Series Scotty G Memorial DH
Mt Hood Ski Bowl, OR
#13 Sept 26th-28th Fluidride FR NW Cup #6 FINALS
Mt Hood Ski Bowl, OR