"Saturday April 11 & Sunday April 12, 2009 - Superslope will be the first Slopestyle contest at Woodward West. The slopestyle course is sure to be a rider favorite with a huge assortment of big drops and massive jumps. We will be taking the already amazing slopestyle playground and grooming it for flow and amplitude. We are also working on a nice big purse. The judging will be done by top pro riders. The event is the weekend before Sea Otter so you can be sure that it will have an International field.
Saturday April 11 - Qualifying - 2 runs, best run counts Sunday April 12 - Semifinals/air contest in the morning, Finals in the afternoon. There will be a big party and awards banquet after the finals. Entry Fee - $100 Click here to register ($150 after March 15)
SUPERSESSION 2009 - April 13-15, 2009, Woodward West Supersession will be three days between the Superslope contest and the Sea Otter Classic. Supersession will be 3 days of riding at the premiere action sports training center on the west coast. The entry includes meals and drinks. Entries are limited to Pro riders who are over 18. Entry Fee - $180 Click here to register ($225 after March 15).
CABINS- If you wish to stay in the cabins, it will be $37.50 per night. The cabins are like a camp dorm with bunk beds with 15 people per cabin. It's a lot of fun and a good bonding experience. You will need to bring a sleeping bag and pillow if you are staying in the cabins. Click here to register. Enter how many nights you need in the Quantity space and list the nights you want in the Special Requests.
-Mark]]>BMX and 24"s Are Toys and... (read below)
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081218-181018
What do I think it means? Aerican Bikes, baby! This new law will bring the bikes made in America by Americans into a competitive price range with the bikes made overseas. Sure there are some benefits to the buyer and even to the producer to make bikes overseas, but if both bikes are not the same price, I'd pick an American bike any day. Maybe this will bring some more of the bike industry back to America. Won't that be f'in sweet?!
-MarkI just saw this on The Come Up]]>Mike Montgomery
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081218-175001
Thrash and The Sensus. The Sensus is a new site which is pretty dope, run by the Zink boys, Kyle Strait and Taylor Sage.
Now, they look relatively standard, but there's something special inside. These hubs are supposed to have zero backlash -- the quickest engagement of any hub on the market. Ordinary hubs, even I9 and King's hubs, freewheel with ratchet pawls, which work just like a ratchet to allow you to pedal in one direction and coast in the other. No matter how many stop points you have on the pawls, you'll still need to pedal foward a tiny bit before the hub starts driving. On crappy hubs, you'll have to pedal up to 12 degrees before the hub engages. On Chris Kings, 6, and on Industry 9's, 3 degrees. The Stealth hubs claim to engage in 0 degrees.
True Precision's hubs come in a whole array of axle sizes and hub types. BMX, DH, Singlespeed, Disc, Non-Disc, 12mm, 15mm, 20mm, QR, Bolt On, you get the idea.
Having picked these hubs up and held them in my hand, I should note that they are a little heavy. I don't have numbers, but I immediately noticed that they weigh more than a standard mountain hub, at least for the rear one.
I think these are cool because the technology is proprietary (they own and probably invented it) and because it offers something that no other manufacturer has figured out how to do. For that reason, I'll try to get some numbers and info on these daddies. I do know a hubset can be had for about $550. Pricey, but that's what you pay for quality (I9, C.K., Profile will all run you about that).
Here is an interesting thing: True Precision and Industry Nine are not specifically mountain bike or even cycling companies. No. They're both high precision machine shops who use their machinery to make bad ass bike parts. Word up.
-Mark]]>Oh, you been where?
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081208-003835
I'm working to get some product review action flowing through here again, so sit tight. Also, at least one Ray's trip this winter. Drop a comment or something if you're interested.]]>Quickie
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081122-165240
Supersession Replacement Jam
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081110-135807
Supersession 4 was cancelled, which sucks because that's the event of the season, and because it takes place at Woodward West.
But, Nick picked the weekend up by organizing a Replacement Jam in San Diego that same weekend. It's not a contest, just a 3-day jam including dirt, park, and street. That Saturday is also Rick Nolte's birthday party. If you don't know him already, he's the dude whose been behind most of the ThrashBike jams. He rocks and has the photos on his phone to prove it, just ask him...
Check the flyer: ]]>FBM East Coast Road Trip
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081106-071219
-Mark]]>Mike Aitken Fundraiser
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081030-154454
They're having a trail jam at "Rancho Relaxo" next weekend to raise some money for him...the entry fee is $20.00 and there will be trails and a good time. It's in PA, but follow one of these links, probably the first one, to get the nitty gritty. I'll be there for sure, hope to see you too.
-Mark]]>DIABLOWEEN
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081023-160525
Click it to pick it ]]>Trails
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081016-173826
]]>Little Devil Funeral
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081016-073639
Think I could go dressed up as a mountain bike rider or would that not work? Mwahahahaha
Click it to pick it
]]>Thrashbike Sin City Jam Pics
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry081016-065846
For now, I'm posting a couple of pics that my buddy Jeff took from the jam. The jam wasn't hyped up or advertised too much so it was really more of a chill session at an awesome concrete park. (Anthem Skatepark, if you're ever in Vegas...) Everybody did compete though, and here's how things turned out:
1) Adam Hauck 2) Carter Holland 3) Micah (no last name, sry dude)
Best Trick: Carter Holland with a huge transfer line (see pic)
Carter's Gap
Carter doin' an x-up on the hip
Micah, toboggan. Met him last December at Supersession, then ran into him wandering down the strip. Small world eh?
Micah, tuck no hander on the hip.
Hauck, tailwhip to tire tap. Adam ate it manualing across a 4" strip of coping that had to be 9 feet up and he dropped all the way down. It was burly, especially onto concrete, but he walked it off.
Nick, looking smooth. The trick, not his ass. Shit.
I don't even know. Looks like it's about to be a jaw full of concrete in a second, but I think he's coming around on a 360.
Thanks for letting me use your bike Micah, and let me know your last name so I can fix things straight.
-Mark ]]>Sin City Thrashbike Jam
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry080915-114230
Link to some photos I found of the park -- on some skateboard site.
-Mark]]>Dobermann Slopestyle Prototype
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry080915-092337
Dobermann sent over a few shots of one of their production-run dual suspension slopestyle bikes. If you saw any coverage of the Highlands event this summer, you saw Clinton riding the prototype of this frame.
Notice that the rear end pivots around the bottom bracket. That and the lack of a derailleur hanger should scream "Dual Suspension Singlespeed" in your face! I love how the shock goes through the seat tube. It obviously limits your seatpost depth, but a long seatpost is just extra weight anyway. I don't think these are supposed to be ridden up hills anyway.
That's all the info I have on it for now, as it isn't up on their site yet. Their blog has some pertinent info though. For now, some photos ought to do. Click 'em to pick 'em.
-Mark ]]>Wallride Gone Bad
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry080914-195431
-Mark]]>BikeCAD
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry080911-160609
The Bicycle Forest. The site has a ton of free frame building applets, for everything from bmx frames to full suspension frames. It even has a spoke length calculator applet. If you're thinking about building a wheel though, you'll want to check out Sheldon Brown's site first, 'cuz he has the easiest instructions to follow. Anyway, I ran through some stuff on the CAD program and built my rendition of the Black Market MOB, which is below. It's easy to get on there and start making a bike, but a lot of the in-depth features are lost because of the simplicity of the viewing screen (you can only see one dimension!). They make a $400 version of the software, which I presume is more detailed.
Oddly enough, they have a list of frame fabrication companies that use their software, and Lucky 13 Bikes is on there. Reggie, the guy behind it used to work out of NYC, but moved his operations to Portland, OR recently. Check his site, as he's got a nice looking bare-bones jump bike in his lineup. If I didn't have a brand new Dobermann, I'd probably try to get on one.
That's that for a random ramble. Shoulder still hurts, better get fixed before the ThrashJam in Vegas after InterBike. More on that in the soon.
-Mark ]]>Tech Spot
http://www.njdirt.com/07/blog/index.php?entry=entry080905-065133
Trek belt driven singlespeed: The belt is supposed to offer a completely silent ride, require no maintenance, and last much longer than a chain. Chains last around 3000 miles, while the belt is projected to last somewhere in the neighborhood of 50,000 miles. It's 280grams lighter too, but who's counting. I don't think it has a place in MTB jumping and BMX, since the frame needs to have a slot cut in it near the dropout to get the belt in. It is a really cool idea though. Imagine this with an internally geared hub... :)
CLIX Wheel Release System: Most of us ride bolt-on hubs to make our wheels stiffer, but if you ride XC or anything on the road, you can attest that this device is useful. It is a quick release skewer that doesn't require the user to unscrew anything. Just flip the lever and pull the washer to release. I like the idea, but I wonder how much these things cost, and if they weigh any more than a conventional quick release. It'll be interesting to see if they take on though. Wait and see
Click the link to see a video of what I'm talking about. It's short, so go look:
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