ROADTRIP: 2007 12 Hours of Temecula series

The 12 Hours of Temecula endurance mountain bike series has announced their 2007 race schedule. This three race series debuted this year, becoming a stable on the SoCal endurance scene. This coming year's races will be held on:

RACE #1 - January 20th , 2007
RACE #2 – June 16th , 2007
RACE #3 – November 17th , 2007

All three of the races will be held from 9 AM to 9 PM at Vail Lake Resort near Temecula, CA [MAP]. The course for each of these races can be viewed at GeoLadders.

2007 Bigfoot Schedule Rumors

A few rumors from the MTBR boards about Team Bigfoot's upcoming 2007 mountain bike race schedule:

The 12 Hours of Weaverville endurance race will be Saturday, May 26, and we're thinking of adding "Gravity Daze," a DOWNHILL on Sunday and a SUPER-D on Monday. Both gravity events would be run on the same long courses that we use for the LaGrange Fall Classic.

We're working on a couple of new events and should be able to announce our '07 sched by Jan. 1. We'll definitely have the Bigfoot Classic (XC, DH, Super-D, Short-Track XC), Whiskeytown (XC & possibly Short-Track), LaGrange (XC, DH, Super-D) and at least one more and possibly two more dates with XC and DH and possibly Super-D.

These are probably a little more than rumors since the promoter is posting them, but I'll make sure and post the full details when I see it finalized. To see coverage of this past year's Team Bigfoot races, check the archives.

One of my New Year's resolutions will be to get up north for more of these races.

USA Cycling Announces 2007 AMBC Calendar

USA Cycling has announced the 2007 American Mountain Bike Challenge (AMBC) race calendar. This year, there will be 30ish events, but not a single race in NorCal. Which is pretty much like last year. I'll update this with the events, when I get some time.

ROADTRIP: Trans-Iowa III Registration Open

Jeff Kerkove has announced the opening of registration for the third annual Trans Iowa: "The Trans-Iowa Mountain Bike Race is a non-stop, self-supported, solo competition along the gravel roads of rural Iowa." This year's event will take place on April 28 - 29, 2007, starting and finishing in Decorah, Iowa [ MAP ]. Along the way, racers will cover about 300 miles. Check out the details over at http://transiowa.blogspot.com/ and get your entry ready -- registration deadline is December 15th.

Simulating The 2006 Downieville DH

Decline Magazine has posted a dot race of this year's Downieville Classic downhill. Watch Mark Weir (1st place), Jason Moeschler (2nd place), Ariel Lindsley (3rd place), Henry O'Donnel (6th place), Kirk Desmond (13th place) and Olivier Bock (23rd place) race against each other on your screen. They also have links to each of their Motionbased.com GPS logs.

Thanks to the Motionbased Blog for the heads up.

ROADTRIP: 2007 Firestone Walker

RideSB.com has announced the 2007 Firestone Walker MTB Classic for April 27 - 29th, 2007 in Los Olivos, California [ MAP ]. This race offers cross country (XC), marathon (5 laps of the XC course, around 75 miles) and downhill (DH) events. The events run the entire weekend, with a variety of non-biking activities also.

In the past, I haven't covered races this far south (i.e. just north Santa Barbara) but it seems like a lot of people headed down for this race last year.

UPDATE: This is now a NORBA event.

24 Hrs of Adrenalin Announces 2007 Races

The folks over at 24 Hrs of Andrenalin have posted their 2007 race schedule. It looks like they will have two events are Laguna Seca in Monterey this year:

Hurkey Creek Park #1	Idyllwild, SoCal	04/28/2007
Laguna Seca #1	Monterey, CA	06/02/2007
Canmore Nordic Centre	Canmore, Canada	07/07/2007
Laguna Seca #2	Monterey, CA	09/01/2007
Hurkey Creek Park #2 -	Idyllwild, SoCal	09/22/2007
Georgia International Horse Park	Conyers, GA	10/13/2007

The website is its usual mess and there doesn't appear to be details for the new races, but I am sure that they'll update it -- eventually. The 2007 championship venue and dates will be announced on December 15th, 2006.

RACE REPORT: CCORC Short Track #1

The results for the first Central California Off-Road Cyclists short track XC race has been posted. Congratulations to:

Men's Beginner: Dusty Glass
Junior Girls: Katrina Howard
Men's Sport: Russ Freeman
Men's Expert: Keith DeFiebre

Photos from the race are supposed to be posted, but I only see CX pictures.

RACE REPORT: Sand Hill Fall #4 (Finals)

After a rainout the previous weekend, the final race in the Sand Hill Fall series were held last Saturday. Congratulations to the winner of this dual slalom event:

15 and Under: Cody Stegmiller (Danville), Hue Joss Bikes
14-23 B-Class: Chase Andrada (Benicia)
16-18: Tim Mangini (Benicia)
Vet Sport: Dave Kranich (Scott's Valley)
Vet Expert: Ryan Stayshal (Los Gatos)
Pro/Semi-Pro: George Stephenson III (El Dorado Hills) Northern Lights/Kenda/Bicycles Plus

As usual, Halfro.com and A Finished Product have all the action photos from the event.

Single Speed World Championship 2007

After the hootenany that was SSWC 2006 in Stockholm last year, the circus has moved on to Scotland for 2007. Although no dates are posted, expect hope for it in August. Strangely, Scotland will also be hosting the 2007 UCI MTB World Championships in September at Fort Williams.

Photo is of the 2003 and 2004 SS Male World Champs. Photo taken by Wendy Gasson. Courtesy of Wikipedia. Her main website is http://wendysphotos.fotopic.net/.

UPDATE (09/03/07): Go here for results for the 2007 SSWC (Singlespeed World Championships) in Scotland.

2007 Downieville Classic Dates

Rumor has it that the 2007 Downieville Classic will be held on July 13 - 15, 2007. As this is the only weekend in July that isn't a NORBA or USA Cycling event, it makes a lot of sense. I'll keep an eye out for the official announcement.

Boggs 8 Hour XC Returns for 2007

BikeMONKEY.net has announced that Bogg For Africa, an 8 hour XC event to raise money for AIDS relief in Africa, will return in 2007. While the final date hasn't been set, it appears that it will be sometime in March 2007.

Last year's event information can be viewed in the archives.

2007 Howell Mountain Challenge

The 2007 Howell Mountain Challenge has also been announced. The event, organized by the same people that bring us the Napa Valley Dirt Classic, is billed as a "10 mile circuit, hilly, smooth to medium-rough trails, service roads, double track and single track, lots of trees.... fun course." It is also located in Angwin, CA and will operate under NORBA rules.

This XC race will consist of multiple laps, depending on your racing category. Beginners will do one lap, Sport will two laps and Expert/Pros will do three laps.

You can see last year's course map, elevation plot and race report in the archives.

Event: Howell Mountain Challenge
Dates: August 12th, 2007 (10:30 AM)
Location: Angwin, CA (Near Calistoga, CA)
Competition: XC
Cost: $30 ($35 after Aug 6th)
URL: http://www.puc.edu/Pioneers/HMC/
Registration: TBD (probably active.com)
License: NORBA

2007 Napa Valley Dirt Classic

The Napa Valley Dirt Classic has been scheduled for 2007. The XC event is a "22 mile circuit, hilly, smooth to medium-rough trails, service roads, double track and single track, lots of trees.... fun course" and will be held at 10:30 AM on April 22nd, 2007 in Angwin, CA (near Calistoga, CA in Napa). The race entry fee is $30 until April 14th, then $35 afterwards. This is a NORBA event and licenses will be required (one day NORBA licenses are available).

Last year's race was won by Aren Timmel, who edged out Jason Moeschler by less than a minute. You can check out all of last year's Napa Valley Dirt Classic race coverage in the archives.

Event: Napa Valley Dirt Classic
Dates: April 22nd, 2007
Location: Angwin, CA
Competition: XC
Cost: $30 ($35 after 4/14/2006)
URL: http://www.puc.edu/Pioneers/NVDC/
License: NORBA
Registration: not yet open

CCCX Announces 2007 DH Series

As a companion to the previous 2007 CCCX XC series schedule, the Central Coast CycloCross people have also announced their 2007 downhill (DH) season (and they haven't even finished this season yet!). Still rounding out it's first season, the CCCX DH has quickly emerged as the most popular NorCal MTB gravity series. Here are the new dates:

• Race #1 : Sunday March 11, 2007
  
• Race #2 : Sunday April 1, 2007
  
• Race #3 : Sunday April 28, 2007
  
• Race #4 : Sunday June 24, 2007
  
• Race #5 : Sunday July 1, 2007
  

Awesome. I thought we were going to end up with a real lull in the gravity schedule next year, but with this, the Reno Super D series and the CHDH series, I think next year is going to be a huge gravity season.

CCCX Announces 2007 XC Series

Wow. It's been a big week for the 2007 NorCal MTB calendar. First the Cool races and Sea Otter, now the CCCX cross country and downhill MTB series. I've separated the two announcement (XC and DH) so that people can find exactly what they want. Here are the XC races for 2007:

• Race #1 : Sunday February 11, 2007
  
• Race #2 : Sunday February 18, 2007
  
• Race #3 : Saturday March 3, 2007
  
• Race #4 : Saturday March 10, 2007
  
• Race #5 : Saturday March 31, 2007
  
• Race #6 : Saturday April 27, 2007
  
• Race #7 : Sunday June 10, 2007
  
• Race #8 : Saturday June 23, 2007
  
• Race #9 [FINALS]: Saturday June 30, 2007
  

For those of you who haven't been down to Monterey for these races, start training now. When I went down for CCCX XC #2 last season, I got dropped in the first half mile. They're also some of the most popular, rowdier (more cowbell!) and well organized races in NorCal. Check out the archives for more info on last season's races.

2007 Cool MTB Race

According to the Auburn Endurance Capital events calendar, the Cool MTB race will be held on March 10th, 2007 in Cool, CA. No news of this on the official website, but you can check out last year's shenningans in the archives.

UPDATE (12/06/06): The date is actually one day later. It will be held on MARCH 11th, 2007. See the full story here.

2007 Sea Otter Classic Website Live

After months of preparation, the 2007 Sea Otter Classic website is up and operational.

I am still going through the site, but it looks like a lot of changes for 2007. New events (adventure racing ?), new sponsors (SRAM appears to have replaced Shimano this year), new rules. It looks like they have a basic XC course map up and a bit of the scheduling also. Registration is open too.

More on this as I sift through the site. Full coverage of last year's Otter in the archives.

2007 Coolest 24 Hour Race

The 2007 version of "The Coolest 24Hr Race Against Cancer" (aka the Coolest 24 or Cool 24) has been scheduled for May 5th & 6th, 2007. Held in Cool, CA (near Auburn, outside Sacramento) on the Olmstead Loop, last year's inaugural event was a huge success.

2007 Sea Otter Slopestyle

Probably stung by the growing popularity of Whistler's Crankworx, the Sea Otter may be holding a slopestyle competition:

Sea Otter Organizers are in serious talks with sponsors and media partners to bring a Slopestyle competition to Sea Otter Classic in 2007.

"We're still ironing out the details at this point and hope to make an 'official' announcement in a couple weeks," says Sea Otter's Director of Athlete Services, Jeff Frost.

Details as they become available.

2007 Sea Otter Camping Registration Open

Registration is now open for this year's Sea Otter onsite camping spots. While the main site will not open for business until later this week, camping reservations have been opened for early registration. Judging by the look of the car/tent sites, about 60% of the spaces have been reserved by mid-day today. These car/tent sites are $240/3 nights or $320/4 nights. If you are looking to stay onsite this year, you should scoot over there and get a site before they're gone.

Sand Hill Finals Rained Out

Yesterday's Sand Hill DS finals have been rained out and rescheduled for next week:

The rained out dual slalom race from today will be made up next Saturday, November 18, same time, same place. Accuweather.com is predicting no rain for that part of the week.

I've changed the schedule to accommodate it.

2007 CCCX XC Kickoff ?

Rumors on MTBR say that the 2007 CCCX cross country (XC) races will begin "the first weekend of February." That's the same weekend that the TBF MTB Challenge races start near Sacto.

New Date for CCCX DH #5

The date for the final CCCX downhill of the season has been moved back one day to Sunday, December 17th, 2006.

MotionBased Deal

For those of you who are using Garmin Edge 205/305 GPS cycling computers and like the Google Earth topos that I post on this site, you might want to take advantage of Motionbased.com's holiday promotion. Basically, they are giving you 2 years of service for the price of 1 year. The offer is valid through the end of the year. Check it out.

RACE REPORT: CCCX DH #4

The results have been posted for the fourth CCCX Downhill event. RickR's photos have been posted at Smugmug.

The course ended up being far longer than the previous races with 1600'+ drop over 3.26 miles. True to the scouting reports, it started at the top of the park, winding it's way down to the parking lot over a few parts of previous courses:
The elevation looks very consistent:
Congratulations to the winners (who are also NorCal SuperD Champs):

• Pro-Semi Pro: Curtis Beavers(WTB-Santa Cruz)
• Expert Men 19-34: Shawn Siebe(Trail Head Cyclery)
• Expert Men 35-44: Keith DeFiebre(Calabazas Cycles- Bay Bikes-Ritchey-WTB)
• Junior Expert: Miles Payton(Another Bike Shop/Gamut USA/Fox)
• Expert Women: Lainey Aldridge(Utopia Optics)
• Hardtail Men: Keith DeFiebre(Calabazas Cycles-Bay Bikes-Ritchey-WTB)
• Single Speed: Shawn Siebe(Trail Head Cyclery)
• 45 + Open Men: Joe Fabris(Trail Head Cyclery)
• Junior 13 & Under: Grant Dettmer(Team Proper/Ride SFO)
• Junior 14-16: Forest Belluzzi(WTB/Santa Cruz/Fox Shox)
• Junior 16-18: Sam Hutson- Capitola
• Sport Men 19-34: John Guio(Pico Performance/Utopia/Fiberwise)
• Sport Men 35-44: Anthony Trujillo(Fox Racing Shox)
• Beg Men 19-34: Brad Wilcox- S.L.O.
• Beg Men 35-44: Daniel Abernathy- Santa Cruz
• Beg Women: Crystal Theesfeld- Santa Rosa

The final race in the CCCX series is December 16th.

UPDATE (11/09/06): Curtis Beavers (Pro/Semi-Pro winner) posted his race report over at the COMMUNITY.

USA Cycling Plans New National MTB Race Calendar

Interesting news out of USA Cycling. Apparently they are actually going to create a clear racing series of MTB events. Let's hope the calendar has better proof reading than their press release:

Beginning with the 2007 competitive cycling season, USA Cycling is introducing a new mountain bike calendar designed to recognize and support top-level regional, national and international events through a season-long calendar similar to the National Racing Calendar model that is currently utilized in road cycling. The new USA Cycling National Mountain Bike Calendar is specifically designed to provide a more open access opportunity for those top-level events that have, for one reason or another, not participated in the traditional “NORBA National Series” model.

So the interesting bits are actually deeper in the release. Interesting bit one:

All events added to the calendar must meet pro prize purse requirements specific to each calendar tier set by either the UCI or USA Cycling.

Hmmm . . . prize money ? At national events ? Really. Interesting bit two is:

Please note that the “National Mountain Bike Series” (NMBS), which has not been a property of USA Cycling for three years, will continue to operate under the independent ownership and organization of Team Big Bear and Blue Wolf Productions and fit within the framework of the USA Cycling National Mountain Bike Calendar.

Wow, that is one huge step away from NORBA. In the past two years, NORBA was really the entire MTB National events (although AMBC held some good smaller events) and USA Cycling made it seem like they sponsored it. Of course, USA Cycling is also the organization staged this year's US MTB Nationals so I would take anything they say with a grain of salt.

First Date For 2007 CHDH Series Announced

The folks over at RideSFO have announced the first date for the 2007 Corral Hollow Downhill Series:

It can only get better from here ... we have a date for our 1st race for the 2007 CHDH Series. This will be the 1st of 3 races. More details and dates to come! See pics from last year's CHDH in the new rideSFO gallery...1st race date lands on Earth Day!

And the date is April 22, 2007. Check out more information about last year's CHDH coverage in the archives.

SCOUTING REPORT: CCCX DH #4 UPDATE 2

New update on this weekend's CCCX DH #4 race:

The Super "D" course is 4 miles long and it drops an amazing 1800 vertical feet. The top section is pure fire road with speeds reaching freeway limit. The trail gets very steep near the bottom of the upper portion so have your hands on the breaks! There is a tight turn waiting for you, leading to some more fire road sections. Then the trail joins the single-track route used in Race #2. This single-track continues for 2 miles toward the same finish as Race #2. This Super "D" time trial course is going to be a true test of strength and riding ability. The times will be considerably longer then any race in the series as will the hike to the start! Please allow 1 hour to make it to the start of your selected start time ... This 1800 foot plunge will test, fitness, skill, nerves, and strength. NorCal Champions will be crowned in all divisions and series points will be awarded to all finishers. This route starts at one of the highest points in Toro Park, the route is fun and challenging, and this is a chance to test yourself on one of the longest DH races in Northern California.

Good luck.

ROADTRIP: 2007 OBRA Races

The good folks up at OBRA (Oregon Bicycle Racing Association) has released their tentative 2007 race schedule. While I won't bore you with the entire schedule, I will point out that two races that we covered this year:

• 05/05/07 : Spring Thaw XC & DH
  
• 06/10/07: 12 Mile Super D

Both of these are held at Mount Ashland, within shouting distance of the Oregon / California border. Okay, I may be lying there, but it's relatively close if you've already driven 5 hours North.