Gravity Day 08 Results

Results for Team Bigfoot's Gravity Day have been posted:

• Super-D results
• DH Results

Congrats to Super D winners Matt Wittler, who edged Justin Graves for the Men's Pro, and Heidi Faller, who took the Women's Pro. Don't feel too bad for Justin, though -- he took the Men's Pro DH win. Gossett Sebray was the top female DH racer.

NorCal HS Rider Qualifies for Worlds

Good news from the NorCal HS League:

"2008 Varsity Champion John Bennett (El Cerrito High School), with his victory at Santa Ynez on May 17, has qualified for a spot on the the U.S. National Team. The team will travel to Val di Sol, Italy for the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships on June 16-22, 2008 (more info).

This remarkable accomplishment is a first in League history and also a tremendous honor for the El Cerrito High School racing team. John's spot on the U.S. National team is partially funded, so John needs your support to raise the other half of the expenses. Help us raise $1500 and send John to the World Championships!" Via NorCal HS League

You can donate to the cause at http://www.norcalmtb.org/events/worlds.htm.

2008 12 Hours of Weaverville Results

Results from Saturday's 12 Hours of Weaverville have been posted.

Congrats to:
Men's Beginner Solo: Loren Swenson
Men's Sport Solo: Steve Westberg
Men's Expert Solo: Adam Pressman
Men's Pro Solo: Dezmond Wilder
Men's Jr Solo: Noah Hanagan
Masters Solo: Chris Carroll
Super Masters Solo: Tim Wykle
Super Duper Masters Solo: Glen R. Shook
Women's Sport: Jeanna Leahy
Singlespeed: Zach Jarrett
Unicycle: Chris Kennedy
Clydesdale: Darrel James

Race reports are posted over at MTBR.

2008 CCCX Downhill Race #6 Results

2008 CCCX Downhill Race #6 results results have been posted. As always, RickR's SmugMug site for has the photos of the event.

Congratulations are in order for:

• Men's Pro/Semi-Pro: Jimmy Amaral (Point 1 Racing)
• Expert Women: AnneMarie Hennes (Family Cycling Center)
• Jr Expert: Keith Morelan (Ride SFO/Cerk Racing)

2008 Summit Shorty Series

BikeMonkey has links to a new dirt crit (short track) in the North Bay:

"Come race at the cross-country course atop the hill at McInnis Park this summer. The short course mountain bike race format makes for exciting racing and great spectating. The action happens for six Tuesday evenings in a row starting May 27th and ending July 1st. Compete in all 6 races for the series title!

Entrance fee is $10 per race. Register at Summit Bicycles in San Rafael or register on site the day of the race starting at 5:00PM.

Three categories of racers:
- Beginner racers race for approximately 25 minutes starting at 5:30PM.
- Intermediate racers race for approximately 30 minutes at 6:10PM.
- Advanced racers race for approximately 35 minutes starting at 7PM. "

Via Summit Bicycles San Rafael.

Races start tomorrow (Tuesday, May 27th) in San Rafael, CA:

View Larger Map

2008 CCCX XC 6 Results

Results for Saturday's CCCX XC #6 have been posted:
Beginner
Sport
Expert/Pro

Series results will be posted shortly at the CCCX page.

Rick R has posted photos on his SmugMug site. The photo to the right is courtesy of that site.

2008 PCRS #8 Results

This week's PCRS #8 results have been posted.

Photos are also up.

Remember that there are no PCRS races this week due to the Hangtown Motocross.

Norcal MTB Racing This Weekend: Memorial Day

It's a big holiday weekend of MTB racing in NorCal:

Saturday (5/24): Going south towards the coast, you have the first CCCX Cross Country (XC) race since April. It's the last XC race of the series that will be held at Toro Park (instead of the usual Fort Ord). For those of you in the Sierras (and not at Northstar), the second leg of the Nevada Cup, Gardnerville's Pine Nut Cracker is also Saturday. Finally, for those of you looking for a longer ride, Team Bigfoot's 12 Hours of Weaverville will be the third race in the Silver Cup of the Solo series.

Sunday (5/25): Closer to the Bay Area, the 2008 Friends of Tamarancho headlines the Fairfax Fat Tire Festival. A cross country (XC) race held on Tamarancho Boy Scout Camp trails. Also on Sunday, the second day of CCCX racing brings the CCCX Spring DH #6 to Toro Park near Monterey. The course is described as:

"The race route for the May 25 DH will be fast and wide open in most sections, as well as tight and technical in others. Many of the technical corners are extremely challenging due to loose dirt combined with the off camber nature of the trails. Set up speed and braking into the corners will determine who can get thru the turns and onto the the speedy finishing portions of the route fastest. This race route will have possibly the highest overall speeds of all the courses used for the CCCX Series."

Finally, there is also another day of racing up North. Team Bigfoot presents the second race in the NorCal Super D and DH series in Weaverville with the 2008 Gravity Day.

Northstar Open Today

Northstar at Tahoe's MTB park opens today. The good folks at Northstar have even posted some videos at their MTB website to keep you up to date on the conditions:


Find more videos like this on Lake Tahoe Mountain Biking


You can check conditions and more movies out at http://tahoemountainbiking.ning.com/

NMBS #3 Santa Ynez Coverage

Although you've probably seen the dhRENO recap of their DH finishings and the MTBR pictures, here is the endurace racing roundup from last weekend's NMBS event in SoCal:

"Kelli Emmett (Giant) took her first-career National Mountain Bike Series cross-country win at the third round of the 2008 series ... Visiting Australian Sid Taberlay (Avanti) took his first NMBS victory in the men’s race. Both events saw riders tackle the course in 100-degree heat.

Gould, who spent April in Europe racing the opening three rounds of the UCI World Cup, sprung to an early lead in the women’s race. As she did in 2007, when the Chamberlain Ranch venue hosted its first NMBS stop, Gould built a two-minute advantage on the rest of the women’s field. But up the final climb of the day, roughly 15 minutes from the starting line, Gould dismounted her bicycle suffering from heat stroke and dehydration. The 2006 national champion was taken in an ambulance to a nearby hospital where she spent four hours being hydrated with an IV.

Taberlay took a tactical victory in the men’s race, outmaneuvering Geoff Kabush (Maxxis) and Barry Wicks (Kona) to take his first-career NMBS win ... Kabush edged Wicks and Horgan-Kobelski out in Sunday’s short-track, held again in 100-plus degree day temperatures. Luna’s Katerina Nash took the women’s race ahead of Emmett and Heather Irmiger (Subaru-Gary Fisher).

Men XC
1. Sid Taberlay (Aus), Avanti-SRAM, 1:43:38
2. Geoff Kabush (Can), at 0:36
3. Barry Wicks, Kona, at 1:00
4. Todd Wells, GT, at 1:59
5. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski, Subaru-Gary Fisher, at 2:26

Women XC
1. Kelli Emmett, Giant, 1:45:08
2. Catherine Pendrel (Can), Luna, at 0:11
3. Lea Davison, Trek-Volkswagen, at 2:05
4. Jennifer Smith (NZ), Trek-Volkswagen, at 3:04
5. Mical Dyck (Can), Trek-Terrascape, at 5:30
7. Katerina Nash (CZ), Luna, at 5:55
8. Rachel Lloyd, Proman-Paradigm, at 6:54
9. Susan Haywood, Trek-Volkswagen, at 7:21

Men ShortTrack
1. Geoff Kabush (Can), Maxxis
2. Barry Wicks, Kona
3. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski, Subaru-Gary Fisher

Women ShortTrack
1. Katerina Nash, Luna, 25.17
2. Kelli Emmett, Giant, at 0:07
3. Heather Irmiger, Subaru-Gary Fisher, at s.t."

Via VeloNews

Giant Demos This Weekend in NorCal

Although I don't ride Giant, I thought this might push some people over the edge if they were considering rolling up to Northstar for the MTB park opening this weekend:

"Look for the Ride Giant Tour rig – a Giant blue trailer, big blue tents that say “Ride Life Ride Giant” and LOTS of bikes for you to ride! Come on up, say “hello” and then check out a Giant bicycle, and Ride Life Ride Giant. To demo a bike, here’s all you need to bring with you: (1) a valid driver’s license, (2) a bicycle helmet, (3) your own pedals if you want to ride something other than platform pedals, and (4) your signature on the Ride Giant Tour waiver form.

Giant bicycles featured on the 2008 Ride Giant Tour will include (but may not be limited to) the following: Trance X1, Anthem 0, Reign X1, Glory DH, Glory 0, Glory 1, TCR A1, TCR Advanced 2.

May 23: Northstar/Ride Giant Season Opening Demo (map)
May 24: Ride Giant Tour – Auburn, CA (map)
May 25: Evans Creek Canyon Ride Giant Tour – Reno, NV (map)"

Via RIDE GIANT DEMO TOUR webpage.

2008 Tahoe-Sierra 100 Changes Course

While I am sad to see the uninformed "not in my backyard" folks win this round, I am glad they've found an alternative starting point:

"After talks with the Tahoe National Forest Service and the Placer County Planning Department, the Tahoe-Sierra 100 start location has been changed, and will no longer begin from the Royal Gorge Ski resort.

The new start will be at French Meadows Lake--59 miles outside of Auburn, Califorina in the Tahoe National Forest. A 10 mile section of the course has been modified in response to environmental concerns about the event's impact.

Opposing groups that collaborated against our efforts to present the Tahoe Sierra 100 include SaveTheSummit.com, The North Fork Association, Serene Lake Home Owners Association, and other groups fighting against anything related to Royal Gorge Ski Resort and their plans for development. They have outright attacked the mountain bike racing community stating that we are bad for the environment and that the impact from mountain bike riding is everlasting." Via Global BioRhythm Events.

I don't mean to sound biased on this, but the organizations cited above have repeatedly linked to my sites in an effort to "prove" their case. It's one thing to raise legitimate concerns and negotiate settlement, it's another to spread propaganda.

2008 Spring PCRS #7 Results

Results for PCRS #7 have been posted. Photos are in the usual place.

It looks like the PCRS courses are getting a bit longer -- this week's race clocked in at 3.26 miles and 300' climbing per lap.

Whistler MTB Park Opens

It looks like Northstar at Tahoe's MTB Park isn't the only park opening this week:

"Whistler Mountain Bike Park opens tomorrow, May 17 which is pretty incredible given that the average snow depth is still more than 35 inches on the mountain. As a point of comparison Keystone in Colorado won’t open for mountain biking until June 20, more than a month later despite its location almost 1,000 miles south of Whistler!"

Via the Singletracks website.

Singlespeed brand Acquires Maverick

Interesting industry news from the people over at Bike Magazine: "Spot has purchased the Maverick brand from Turner and will take over sales of the bikes and forks."

NorCal MTB Racing This Weekend: May 17 -18, 2008

Not much racing going on in NorCal this weekend. The previously mentioned Grasshopper Series is really a RIDE not a race (which I'm sure is perfectly nice also).

The real action is in SoCal where NMBS #3 "The Santa Ynez Valley National" is being held.

2008 Skyline Finalized

We announced this back in April but they just opened registration:

"Skyline Mountain Bike Race June 29, 2008
Register Online Today at BikeReg.Com!!

RACE SPECIFICS
400 Racer limit
5 riders to make a class, some small classes may be combined
Race is held under NORBA  permit and insurance

COURSE
A fun, demanding and challenging course. 8 miles & 1600 feet of climb per lap (subject to change) 80% single track. Uses parts of the 1999 World Cup course. Number of laps to be determined by category.

AWARDS
$300 Pro/Elite/Expert purse. Awarded by fastest times to the top five male and female finishers. Medals to third place in all classes."

Via Skyline MTB Race website

2008 Alta Alpina Weeknight Series

The Alta Alpina Cycling Club, based in Gardnerville, NV (the folks who run the Pine Nut Cracker race) have announced their MTB XC series dates:

"Saddle up your your fat tire machine - the AACC MTB race series commences Tuesday, May 20th and ends June 24th. There are a total of 6 races scheduled. There is a change in this year's staring point, please meet at the west side of the Douglas County Fairgrounds (outside the chain link fence). The fairgrounds are located at the end of Pine Nut Road, across from the County Dump.

The race course will range in distance depending upon the race class you enter:
A Class: 12-14 miles, B's and women: 10-12 miles, C's and Single Speed: 8-10 miles.

Racer fees are as follows: junior racers $3.00, club members $5.00 and non-club member's 10.00."

Via Alta Alpina Cycling Club blog. Gardnerville is just down the mountain from South Lake Tahoe on the Nevada side.

2008 CCCX DH #5 Results

CCCX DH #5 results have been posted. This weekend's race was the first leg of the NorCal SuperD Series.

Congrats to Ian Massey (Marin Bikes/WTB), Keith DeFiebre (Calabazas/CVC) and Eryn Hughes (Team Wrong Way), who won the Pro/Semi-Pro Men's, Hardtail and Women's Sport competitions, respectively.

Rick R has photos up on his site. The photo at right is courtesy of his site.

2008 Lake Sonoma May Results

Results from the May edition of the Lake Sonoma race series have been posted at BikeMonkey.

Congrats to Kris Sneddon, who edged Mark Weir for the Pro Men's win. Liza Hartlaub won the Experts Women.

2008 Spring PCRS #6 Results

Results are posted for PCRS #6 and photographic evidence is again in the usual place.

Congrats to Brian Rouse, who again took the Men's Expert Plus, and Bonnie Darrah, who captured the Women's Expert.

Downieville Shuttles Update and Contest

The folks at Downieville Outfitters have revamped their site to include bi-weekly mountain conditions and have launched a contest for some free services:

Win a Free Day of ShuttlesRides! Downieville Outfitters is giving away full day shuttle rides to 10 lucky riders!

The winners will get a day of shuttle rides for themselves (2 shuttles) for use anytime during the week of May 24th to May 30th. That includes Memorial Day weekend!

From the latest update, it looks like they are still going to open on May 24th.

2008 Grasshopper Series Finale

I haven't really covered this series as the sum total of the information comes from a poster (reproduced at right, click for larger size), but it seems there is a mountain bike race at Lake Sonoma on May 17th. And no, it doesn't appear to be one of the Lake Sonoma Series (like this weekend's race).

The poster reads "May 17: Lake Sonoma, Mountain, 25 miles or so" and it starts at 10 AM behind the Union Hotel.

Anyway, this is the last race in the 2008 Grasshopper Series and (scant) information can be found over on the SoulCraft blog or the Grasshopper Adventure Series blog.

Thanks to reader Daniele for the tip.

UPDATE: just got an email update on this: "oh, keeper of mountain bike race info: a fair bit of concern on the posting of the last grasshopper on your blog... it's not a race, just an organized ride, and we'd hate to see folks making the long haul up there expecting something different. no support, no course markings, no nothing."

2008 Rainbow Ridge Results

Race Results for last weekend's Jetway Chevrolet Rainbow Ridge Challenge in Fallon, NV have been posted over at USA Cycling. Rainbow Ridge is the first race in the Nevada Cup series (Northern Nevada State Championship Series).

Congrats to Men's Pro/Semi-Pro winner Kenny Burt.

NorCal MTB Racing This Weekend: May 10 - 11, 2008

A lot of racing around NorCal this weekend, but you'll need to choose because everything is going down on Saturday:

• CCCX Downhill #5 near Monterey is on for Saturday. Keith posted the series standings yesterday and the Junior Expert competition is fierce. Expect the groms to be out in force.



• Saturday is also the May edition of the Lake Sonoma Series XC in the North Bay: "This weekend we are teaming up with Bicycles for Humanity Santa Rosa chapter (http://www.Bicycles-for-Humanity.org/santarosa). This organization was formed by some super-cool local bicycle advocates who are trying to spread the power of cycling to Africa through the B4H non-profit organization. THIS IS A GREAT THING! So.... To show our support (because we need more local advocates like these guys), Bike Monkey is letting anyone race for free if they donate a working bicycle to B4H at the May 10th Lake Sonoma race. They will have a booth, and will share information with you about the program."



• A little further south is the Fresno Cycling Festival with their cross country racing in Woodward MTB Park near Fresno (see a few articles below for details on the park).

Sick Lines offers Free Bike

Sick Lines is offering a free bike to a lucky reader:

"let us know why you deserve this 2008 Canfield One
Last week we posted our review of the prototype Canfield ONE and this week you have a chance to get a hold of the bike for yourself!
We realize that everyone doesn’t have the funds to buy a bike like this so we’ll be offering it up to someone who can use it for an amazing deal!
Email us why you think you deserve it and we’ll pick a lucky winner."

Via Sick Lines » Bike Deal for ONE Lucky Reader

2008 NorCal HS MTB Series #5 Results

I haven't covered the NorCal High School MTB Series in the past (mainly because I didn't really know what it was), but since they started sending me regular updates it just seemed neighborly to pass them along:

Racers from the NorCal High School Mountain Bike League were greeted with a cold and foggy wind this past Sunday in Toro Park, Salinas. However, with 800 feet of climbing per lap riders warmed up quickly as the race got underway. The large climb was followed by a roller-coaster single track with off-camber turns and challenging drops, but ultimately it was a race that favored climbers.

The sixth and final race of the League’s series is just around the corner. The State Championship race will be held on May 18th at Bogg’s Mountain (near Calistoga). Anticipation will be hovering all around that day as results pour in through the finish line, as this race could be the make or break for many riders in their overall series standings.

Full results are available at www.norcalmtb.org. Photo highlights available at http://www.norcalmtb.org/img/2008_race_5/.

Fresno MTB Park Grand Opening

Woodward MTB Skills Progression Park in Fresno is holding their grand opening on May 10th, 2008.

The newest MTB park in NorCal (joining recently completed Folsom) features "10 Acres of progression based riding in Fresno, California. Beginner, intermediate, and Expert level riders will find one of the most dynamic mountain bike parks in the country." You can check out a map of the park here (PDF). The park was designed by HILRIDE Progression Development Group.

May 10th is also the Fresno Cycling Festival, which features MTB races in the new park.

2008 Coolest 24 Results

Results have been posted for the 2008 Coolest 24 Hr Race Against Cancer.

Congrats to:
8Hr Solo Master Men's: Christopher Holmes
8 Hr Solo Men's: Miles Wadsworth
8 Hr Solo Singlespeed Men's: Matt Zanner
8 Hr Solo Singlespeed Women's: Sasha Evans
8 Hr Solo Women's: Shannon Sobeck
Solo 24Hr Masters Men: Michael Chastaine
Solo 24Hr Masters Women: Pam DeBruin
Solo 24Hr Men: Brian Sevall
Solo 24Hr Women: Dawn Infurna-Bean
Solo SingleSpeed 24Hr Men: Dezmin Wilder

I'm still trying to figure out the teams, will list them later today.

There are also some photos posted:

• Coolest 24 hr Mt. Bike Race 2008 - ibikegal
• James Pratt Photography

2008 CCCX Downhill #4 Results

Results from yesterday's CCCX Downhill #4 are posted (Full Results up now, series points on the way).

Congratulations to:
Pro Men: John Hauer (X-Fusion/Mongoose)
Hardtail: Keith DeFiebre (Calabazas/CVC)
Expert Women: Kelly Moore (Monterey)
Jr Expert: Alex Amaral (Point 1 Racing)

Race 4 photos by Rick Rasmussen are also posted over at SmugMug. Photo at right courtesy of Rick's site.

Cal State Championship Moves to SoCal

Team BigBear's California State Championship has been moved from Northstar at Tahoe down to Los Olivos in SoCal:

"California State Championship
Sept 20-21 Santa Ynez Championship @ Los Olivos <-- new location
Cross Country / Downhill / Super D " (Via Team Big Bear - Race Schedule)

This wasn't a terrible surprise -- when I talked to the Northstar people a few weeks ago, they didn't know anything about it.

Sand Hill Races Paused ...

Looks like Sand Hill is retooling a bit and will come back with gravity races in the fall:

"There are no mountain bike races scheduled at this time. We are temporarily closed for re-building. We are planning a second benefit race for Tara Llanes ('Race For Tara-2') for sometime in the fall. Exact date TBA." (Via Sand Hill Racing)

In the past, Sand Hill has held various gravity races in the spring.

2008 PCRS #5 Results

Prairie City Race Series #5 results are up. Photos are in the usual place.

2008 CCCX Downhill #4 Preview

The course preview for tomorrow's CCCX DH:

"The course for this Saturday's DH will be an extended version of the race #2 course, with some add on sections, and small changes to spice things up. The course features fast fire roads, switch back turns, bermed corners, gravity drop sections, tight single track, and some pedaling sections. It is a fine test of DH racing on a 1.8 mile course that descends for 1000 vertical feet. The dirt is dry and loose with traction extremely slick in some sections. All of the course is very fast and fun to challenge your DH skills and fitness on."

Via 2008 CCCX Downhill Race Series.

NorCal MTB Racing this Weekend: May 3 - 4, 2008

It's a big weekend for NorCal racing:

• Saturday: CCCX DH near Monterey, CA. The fourth race of the series will also be a memorial fundraiser.
• Saturday/Sunday: Coolest 24 in Cool, CA. The big 24 race in the foothills, it will be live audio blogged by Karl over at Ride424.
• Sunday: Rainbow Ridge in Fallon, NV. The first race in the Nevada Cup.