Dirtscrolls

Courtesy of Access4Bikes Marin County Bicycle Coalition and Access4Bikes want to expand Marin’s bike trail network and increase access to singletrack trails. Support their efforts by purchasing raffle tickets and you could win a 2015 Marin Mt. Vision. Marin Bikes, MCBC and A4B are giving away a XO1/Fox equipped Mt. Vision XM9 (click here for specs) ...

We recently got our first look at Transition’s new lineup and its move to a four-bar rear suspension they’ve dubbed the Giddy-Up link. In the 2015 lineup it’s found on four new models in all three wheel sizes. Here’s the gang explaining its, um… “inspiration.” https://vimeo.com/106423928

Smith is excited to dedicate the month of October to honoring the Strong. Beautiful. Unstoppable. women in action sports by not only highlighting some of its most decorated female athletes, but also donating to First Descents, giving young women fighting cancer the opportunity to “out live” their diagnosis through outdoor experiences. In addition, Smith will donate ...

By Jeremiah Bishop For me, last week was bike mega-week! First, my family hosted our fourth annual Alpine Loop Gran Fondo in our hometown of Harrisonburg, Virginia; then I rode the toughest ride of my life in my self-created “SDS1 Mini Munga;” and then I followed it all up with the 70 mile Iron Cross ...

IMBA Trail Care Crew Jordan and Lani.  Courtesy of IMBA. Photo by Joshua Lawton. IMBA is now accepting applications for Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew (TCC) visits in 2015. This is one of IMBA’s oldest and most successful programs, now entering its 18th year. Trail Care Crew visits present an opportunity for land managers, trail organizations and ...

In the early years of Dirt Rag, I got a package from some guy out west, a guy by the name of Charlie Kelly. In the package were some magazines. Fat Tire Flyer it was called. It was the first MTB magazine, published from 1980 to 87. Charlie had come across a copy of Dirt ...

Ross from On-One Cycles takes the fun route to work on the world’s first 24-inch wheel fat bike.   While Chris Akrigg gets rowdy on the new Mongoose Argus.   Have a big fat weekend everyone!

We’ve spent many an hour around Dirt Rag headquarters talking about how valuable an online trail database would be to the mountain bike community. Throughout the years there’s been a multitude of attempts, but few of those efforts gained lasting traction. That is, until now. In May of this year, MTB Project celebrated its first ...

There must have been something in the water back in 1989. Along with the launch of a certain mountain bike magazine (ahem, ahem), brands like NiteRider, Camelback and Paul Components got their start. But NiteRider didn’t start with bike lights. Tom Carroll was looking for a way to surf his favorite breaks at night, when ...

By Oxburger Studios

Courtesy of Enduro World Series. Photos by Matt Wragg. The Enduro World Series 2014 has created many stories in the last seven rounds – but none quite as compelling as Finale Ligure this weekend. Not only did the Enduro World Series crown new World Champions but we saw one of the most impressive comebacks cycling ...

Courtesy of Red Bull After a week of building in the desert it’s time to ride. While Andreu and Kyle are pre-qualified Tom has some unfinished business to attend to before qualifying. As Tom confronts his goals in qualifying, Kyle and Andreu prepare for two runs and one chance at Rampage gold. The entire season ...

One of our favorite reasons to love the proliferation of action cameras is mounting them to dogs. Casey Brown is a human who is wired to go fast. Poppy is a dog who is bred to chase things down. Check out the teaser for the next Sony Dream Capture episode, “Tail Gunner”, featuring Casey Brown ...

After a long season for Steve Peat and Co., it all came down to the final round out in Meribel. Could Rat take the overall or would nerves get the better? Could Peaty regain some end of season form and hit the podium? After all was said and done out in France, there was no rest ...

Photos courtesy of Red Bull Scott sent no less than seven athletes to Red Bull Rampage this year, each armed with the latest Gambler downhill bike. Three made it to the finals with Brendan Fairclough, above, and Paul Basagoitia, below, cracking the top ten and Louis Reboul nearly cracking himself when he came up just a bit ...

Way back in Dirt Rag Issue #1 appeared, along with a majestic buck in all his 8-bit glory. Now what’s old is new again with our latest limited edition T-shirt. Get yours now before it’s gone, perhaps for another 25 years. [portfolio_slideshow id=14941276]

Courtesy of Cut Media For the first time in one of his films Danny climbs aboard a mountain bike and returns to his native home of the Isle of Skye in Scotland to take on a death-defying ride along the notorious Cuillin Ridgeline.

If mountain biking is going to continue to mature and grow, it’s essential that we prepare the next generation of riders to be good shepherds of the trails. IMBA does its part each year by hosting Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day—an opportunity to share your passion with some little rippers. The event always takes ...

Defending World Champion Jerome Clementz at Finale in 2013. Who will succeed him as champion?  Courtesy of the Enduro World Series The Enduro World Series will crown its new world champions this weekend – and all that stands between the riders and glory is the incredible trails of Finale Ligure, Italy. The Italian Riviera resort is ...

Courtesy of Red Bull After three straight years of coming in 4th place, Spanish athlete Andreu Lacondeguy broke his curse in a big way, coming out on top with an emotional victory after fighting back nerves and a stacked field of competitors. Set against the picturesque backdrop of the Southern Utah landscape, 20 riders thrilled ...

Modern all-mountain bikes are really redefining what is possible with a single bike: controlled singletrack climbing and all-out downhill performance. With the machines pushing boundaries, riders are looking for versatile protection that remains comfortable up and down the mountain. Many enduro races also require a full face helmet for the timed stages, and carrying two ...

Photos courtesy of Peter Morning/MMSA USA Cycling has announced that the 2015 cross-country and enduro national championships will move from Mt. Bachelor in Bend, Oregon, to Mammoth Mountain in Mammoth Lakes, California. It will now coincide with the Gravity Mountain Bike National Championships. All events will take place July 14-19. According to USA Cycling, the ...

Courtesy of Red Bull It’s finally time to put some shovels in Utah’s red dirt, so Kyle, Tom and Andreu make the pilgrimage to Rampage. With a new venue comes a lot of new unknowns and our 3 riders must battle and collaborate with the other 35 athletes to find the perfect line. You can ...

REI has secured exclusive rights to Ghost bikes for 2015, with the high-end German line available in stores and at REI.com starting in January. The bikes are already distributed in more than 40 countries, and now include the US and Canada. In the exclusive agreement, REI will sell high-end models through its retail stores, including ...

Images courtesy of Scott Sports Red Bull Rampage, the annual pilgrimage to the most insane freeride lines anywhere is already underway with teams digging out new lines in the event’s new location outside of Virgin, Utah. Scott Sports is leading the charge with no less than seven athletes attending this year with Brendan Fairclough pre-qualified and Nico ...

By Big Col Music: “Fish Dance” by ronrauscher.de | soundcloud.com/ron-rauscher-1 “Been riding blues” by Conway Hambone.

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in Dirt Rag #178. Order a subscription to make sure you never miss an issue. By Kristen Jones Neff, Photos by Forrest Arakawa Construction on the much-anticipated Stafford Lake Bike Park in Novato, California, has begun—with  some dramatic twists along the way, and a whole cast of characters working ...

Courtesy of Access4Bikes Marin County Bicycle Coalition and Access4Bikes want to expand Marin’s bike trail network and increase access to singletrack trails. Support their efforts by purchasing raffle tickets and you could win a 2015 Marin Mt. Vision. Marin Bikes, MCBC and A4B are giving away a XO1/Fox equipped Mt. Vision XM9 (click here for specs) ...

Video courtesy of the Hutchinson UR team. Learn more about the event at www.pinnaclechampionship.com  

Aaron Chase has been filming his riding for more than 15 years, but it wasn’t until the GoPro cameras came on the market that creativity of athlete-mounted photography could really be explored. The New Yorker recently posted this video of Chase discussing his setup and how he and a partner will construct a shot as ...

In this issue On the cover: Steve Storey rails a turn deep in Columbia. Photo by Justa Jeskova   The Dirt World Cup racing came back to the U.S. in Windham, New York; our tech editor rants about the merits of carbon fiber and we catch up with legendary mechanic Steve “Gravy” Gravenites.   Readings ...

Courtesy of Red Bull It’s time for the last stops in the chaotic season leading up to Rampage. Kyle and Andreu head to Retallack Lodge to take on some of the biggest  jumps ever built for a mountain bike but first they will have to take on the local weather. With time ticking down Tom ...

Electra, the southern California seaside cruiser bike company acquired by Trek in early January, is introducing the Moto—one of its more accessible models–in November. Two models (a singlespeed and three-speed internal) will retail for $549-$659. The company calls the Moto a “blend between a cruiser, mountain bike and a BMX racer.”  The Moto has 29-inch wheels, disc ...

By Jeremiah Bishop One of the U.S.’s biggest mass-start mountain bike races, The Chequamegon [say “sha-wa-mu-gun”] Fat Tire Festival has taken place in the north woods of Wisconsin for 32 years. It’s been on my bucket list, so I thought I had better tick it off before The Munga! I made a whirlwind trip of ...

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Jeff Jones has been toying with the 29+ concept for years, long before it became a reality thanks to widely available tires. After a lot of experimentation, he has unveiled his second model, aptly named Jones Plus. Built around a 29×3.0 tire, it bucks many industry trends in achieving what Jones said is a spirited ...

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FSA K-Force FSA’s top tier carbon K-Force comes in 29er and 27.5 and as such FSA says these are more than just two mountain bike options, they are actually perfect for four different disciplines crossing over into road use. The 29 is perfect for cross-country as well as doubling as a 700c wheel for gravel ...

  Few brands conjure the reverence in hallowed mountain bike circles as Fat City. Born in the early 1980s from the mind of framebuilder Chris Chance, the Fat Chance bikes were the gold standard in the early days of mountain biking. In this middle of this week word began to spread around Interbike that Chance ...

Courtesy of Red Bull As the clock ticks down for Rampages it’s time for the biggest mountain bike festival of the year, Crankworx Whistler. Kyle pursues a title that has alluded him for years against his biggest competitor and best friend Cam Zink. Tom heads to the foam pit to test his shoulder and get ...

Speedplay is one of the best-known players in the road bike pedal scene, but it hasn’t had nearly as much success with riders in the dirt. The Frog series has some loyal fans, but they are few and far between. Speedplay hopes to change the game with the long-awaited Syzr pedal system. Just like its ...

For those who have been around the downhill and freeride scene for a while, the name Chumba should be pretty familiar. While it’s been laying low for a few years, it has been resurrected with new owners and a new focus on building fun, aggressive, American-made bike hard tails, with hints of more to come ...

There are big changes afoot for the storied SoCal brand, with a new owner and some new models on the way. Having been acquired by BST Nano Carbon, a San Diego-based composites manufacturer, Ellsworth is debuting the last of its Asian-made carbon fiber frames, as it will soon shift its carbon fiber production to the ...

While it’s certainly true that most of this year’s Interbike hype will be focused on buzzing categories like 130mm to 150mm travel all-mountain and trail bikes as well as the fat bike phenomenon, you can rest assured that manufactures haven’t forgotten hardtails. Walking through the outdoor Dirt Demo most makers had the classic frame style ...

It’s hard to spend all that time at the biggest mountain bike event in the world with some of the best riders in the world and not coming away with an awesome video. The SCOTT Crew was in full force at this year’s Crankworx in Whistler. ShapeRideShoot was on hand to follow Brendog, Vinny T, Nico ...

Courtesy of Red Bull Amazing tricks, top-notch riding and an electrifying atmosphere – the world’s best 24 mountain bike slopestyle athletes put the ancient city of Nuremberg at the pinnacle of action sports during Red Bull District Ride. Over the course of two days, 84,000 fans filled the weaving alley ways in this historic city. ...

In the information age, it is rare to be surprised by a new product release. But this is one of those rare cases. Transition redesigned all of its trail bikes for 2015, with new model names as well: Smuggler, Scout and Patrol. For right now, all bikes are aluminum, with carbon frames in the works, ...

Jeremiah Bishop has set his sights on The Munga, a 620-mile, non-stop, two-person team race across South Africa. While the challenge is huge, the prize money is even bigger: a cool $1 million. We will be running Bishop’s personal diary as he prepares to conquer The Munga. As of yet he has no teammate.