Thi past Wednesday I bought a new pair of mountain biking gloves, the DAKINE Cross X Bike Gloves. I was getting my gear ready for a ride and my old Fox Gloves turned up missing. On my way out I stopped at one of our local bike shops and more or less picked based on price and durability.

Unfortunately my only color choice was black and being a warm night I figured for sure the material was going to bleed and turn my hands black from persperation.. to my surprise this wasn’t the case.

After riding with my new DAKINE Cross X Bike Gloves… I love them. They fit really well… I really like the extra padding on the outer palm. The index and second fingers have a great sticky coding on them which is nice.. no slippage on the brake levers.

Read more…

Trail building and trail maintenance is a lot of fun and very rewarding but all trail work needs to be sanctioned.   Meaning you have to go through the proper channels and do things the right way.  I bring this up because I came across an article via the Associated Press about illegal trail building in Lake Tahoe. The article has since popped up with weak attempts of  casting a local spin on it.  I found the original article via Las Vegas Review Journal.

The illegal trails are laced with stunts and jumps which points the finger at free riders. But casts a very negative shadow on the entire mountain biking community.

Read more…

Altrec.com is having their 3rd annual garage sale with discounts from 50%-80% off name brands like The North Face, Columbia, Marmot and more.

But you better hurry because the Altrec Garage Sale ends today. I picked up a sweet Marmot Precip for winter mountain biking.

Visit the Garage Sale – Up to 80% off

Kinda late notice but better than none at all… the California Golden State Mountain Bike Championships are happening right now in Mammoth. The event runs through Sunday September 6th. Read more…

This ain’t mountain biking but a sick video none the less. As I mentioned once or twice before that I just simply love bicycles and I have great admiration for those who huck themselves in the air spinning in multiple directions like Mike Spinner as you will see in this video. Thanks PinkBike.com.

The 18th Annual Kernville Fat Tire Festival is taking place October 16-18, 2009. This years theme.. Monster Mash. The great thing about The Kernville Fat Tire Festival is it has something for all levels of mountain bikers from beginner to extreme.

Complete festival details and how to register can be found on the Mtn River Website.

Good info to remember:

• First to sign up, first to receive guaranteed shuttle -
• Pick-up event packet at MRA Campground (Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Only)
• Weather is unpredictable! Be ready for rain, shine or snow!
• Elevation ranges from 2,650′ to 9,000′. Be ready to ride and make sure your bike is checked over.
• Ride and event schedules are subject to change – check with MRA Registration.
• Caravan shuttle for some rides.
• Be at ride departure location 30 minutes early for loading.
• Bikes can get scratched when being shuttled.
• NO WHINING! Just Ride! Enjoy!

I promised my friend Lou I would put this work out together. I’ve had a bad back for years… herniated disc to be exact. To avoid flare ups, surgery and to keep me riding my mountain bike, I have a back workout that keeps me healthy.

First I recommend buying these 2 books: Treat Your Own Back & Pain Free. Treat Your Own Back has a strategy to treat your back while a flare up occurs.  Pain Free has threapy options for multiple injuries including the lower back. I’ve incorporated some of these exercises into my DAILY routine. Some of these exercises came out of the books and others come via a friends brother who practices sports medicine.

I recommend buying the books so you can learn about the theory of the workouts and so on. Please read the books, read through the exercises below and consult your physician before proceeding. I’m only sharing what works for me… you know your body so proceed at your own risk. Just saying.. I have NEVER been prescribed theses movements by a doctor or sports therapist. I’m simply treating my own back and sharing what I do so it might help others.

Ok onto the workout.

Read more…

Whistler BC Kicks Ass. This is a sweet little video. Thanks PinkBike.com

The Jersey Off-Road Bicycle Association (JORBA) presents the 2nd Annual JORBA Bike Festival. The JORBA Bike Festival is scheduled for Saturday, September 12, 2009, at the Waterloo Concert Field, 10 Kinney Road, Stanhope, NJ.

The goal of the “fest” is to promote responsible trail stewardship and cycling advocacy and awareness in New Jersey. The festival will feature events and activities for all ages and multiple cycling disciplines; mountain, cruiser, BMX, unicycles, you name it. All are encouraged to visit and enjoy this fun filled day, for the whole family. JORBA

Highlights of the festival include…

• Guided trail rides in Allamuchy, Deer Park and Stephens State Park for all skill levels, including womens only rides and a kids ride.
• A massive raffle,with tons of great swag.
• Demonstrations and group rides with IMBA Trail Care Crew members Kelly and Collins.
• Bike Demos from top names like Giant, Specialized and Trek.

For complete details and Event Schedule visit the JORBA site.

Just got a newsletter for IMBA. If you’re not familiar with IMBA, they are the International Mountain Biking Association. They advocate for the building and maintaining of trails around the world.

IMBA is raising funds to build more trails. They have 50 major projects slated. There were 90 projects up for recommendation but not enough money to do all 90. In partner ship with major mountain bike brands like Trek, SRAM & otheres they’ll double whatever you donate. Donate $100 and $200 will go to building new trails.

Give what you can… even if its only $10. Think of this way, with $10 you can buy a shovel for use on IMBA trail work projects.

Here’s the full newsletter I received..

Read more…