bike-industry-news

A new fork from Otso Cycles boasts the largest tire clearance of any cross/gravel fork and is the next product in the component brand Lithic. Lithic is a project of Otso, with the aim of bringing very specific components to market.  The new Hiili full carbon fiber fork joins the Corundrum drop handlebar and Beryl wheels ...

I have a warm place in my heart for Paul. Just look at that happy camper. Paul Components and Dirt Rag Magazine both started in 1989 and we’re both pushing 30 years as companies. We met at Interbike before either of us were big enough to even have a booth. And we’ve grown together over the years ...

There have been rumors about major teams and fast riders showing up for a World Cup downhill race on 29ers this year, but Santa Cruz is the first major team to confirm it with news of a 29-inch V10. I can already hear the comments; “but XXXX did it first!”. Yes, there have been a ...

Both FOX and RockShox have been moving to larger negative spring in rear shocks, and now we see them moving to forks as well. The 2018 36 has a new EVOL air spring that promises “plushness off the top, extra midstroke support, and more tunable bottom-out progression.” I’ve been riding a new 36 the past few ...

By Jordan Villella This morning I awoke to my social feed flooded with posts and remembrances of Steve Tilford, shock and sadness filled my mind. It’s hard comprehend giving kudos to someone for a ride and the next day hear of their passing. Tilford was 59 and just starting to race again after a serious ...

For more than a decade, the Ride Centers and Epics designated through the Model Trails program have become iconic mountain bike destinations that influence communities across the country and the world to raise the bar on great places to ride. “It was time for IMBA to evolve its Model Trails program to mirror the evolution ...

Two new organizations, Trips for Kids and Little Bellas, have joined the program for 2017 while the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) and the Amy D. Foundation both return as beneficiaries. BikeFlights.com has also increased its fundraising commitment for 2017 to $10,000. “Giving back has always been important to us at BikeFlights.com,” said William Alcorn, ...

Created for all women who love mountain biking, the Bell Joy Ride program continues its mission with the addition of six new ambassadors and four new regions. “In only the first year of the program, everyone involved at Bell has been amazed by the dedication, growth and enthusiasm of the Joy Ride ambassadors,” said Heather ...

This new event will take place at Big Bear Lake Trail Center, near Bruceton Mills, WV, July 14-16, 2017. Pivot Cycles is very excited to be such a big part of yet another big east-coast event. Carla McCord, Marketing Manager of Pivot, says it’s great to see more and more events like this pop up in the east, ...

Davison has been on the upswing lately, earning a silver medal at the 2016 world championships in Czech Republic, and competing in the Olympics for the United States a second time. She is also an eight-time U.S. National Champion and has been a Clif Bar sponsored athlete – albeit on another trade team – for the ...

She’ll still be riding, but as she puts it, now she “just wants to have fun and share her passion with as many people as possible.” Anne-Caroline Chausson, aka Anne-Caro, or simply ACC, has been racing mountain bikes, and winning, since the early-90s. Amongst her list of awards are 19 World Championship wins, several World ...

She will oversee the online platforms for both Dirt Rag and Bicycle Times magazines and their growing portfolio of events.  Kotala has a degree in Geography, but as a senior in college, she decided to pursue her passion for writing. Around the same time, she rekindled her love for cycling, adding yet another activity to ...

Quality Bicycle Parts (QBP) has partnered with some heavy hitters of the bicycle industry (such as SRAM, Park Tool, Michelin, United Bicycle Institute (UBI), Jagwire, Saris, Kryptonite, White Lightning, Stan’s No Tubes, DT Swiss, Swiftwick, and Dero) to help promote the role of women in the bicycle industry and to drive the growth of women’s ...

The BC Bike Race is the ultimate proving ground for riders, bikes and gear. Charging through seven days of stages across British Columbia, racers push themselves and their equipment through tough times and tough terrain. Over the years, we’ve seen many broken bodies, bikes and spirits. As an exciting stage to test its recently-released electronic ...

Like any good event, TSEpic is evolving, and for the better. Last year the event moved from seven days to five, making it much more manageable for those with limited vacation days. In 2017 the race will run over the Memorial Day weekend. TSEpic says: “You should be the first to know we’re shaking things up ...

Commencal has released an updated Meta, a downhill-oriented all-mountain/enduro bike designed around 160/170 mm forks and Boost spacing. The top tube length, seat tube angle and reach are the same as version 4, but the head angle is half a degree slacker (65.5 degrees) and the wheelbase a tad longer. A new, two-piece top tube is compatible ...

If you follow this stuff at all, you knew this one was coming from Trek Bikes: a carbon Stache 29plus. And you won’t have to wait long, with aluminum models available now and carbon models hitting your local bike shop in September. The newly expanded Stache lineup includes two OCLV mountain carbon models—Stache 9.8 and 9.6—plus ...

The Marin Museum of Bicycling announced the 2016 inductees into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame. More votes than ever were cast this year. Here are the winners, with introductions provided by the museum. To learn more about this group, the museum, the hall of fame and the upcoming ceremony, visit the museum’s website. Hank ...

Blue Bicycles was once based in Georgia but is now in California. It was once struggling to survive but now has new life breathed into it. It was once only (or best) known for triathlon and cyclocross bikes but now has three different mountain bikes in its line. We took a peak at what’s coming ...

At this year’s bike Press Camp in Park City, Utah, Cannondale released several new models, as well as existing model updates and an expanded women’s line for 2017. Keep reading for details on the new plus bike and refreshed carbon rigs. Cujo 1 27plus The Cujo is a new 27plus bike based on Cannondale’s other ...

At this year’s Press Camp in Park City, Utah, Smith introduced a new helmet, Camelback launched a new protection hydration pack, Ryders Eyewear showcased its fog-free lenses and Thule showed us its GoPro-specific backpack. Keep reading for details on all of those new and nifty goods. Smith Rover Helmet Smith’s first mountain bike helmet, the Forefront, ...

At this year’s bike Press Camp in Park City, Utah, GT released several new models and significant updates for 2017, including a plus bike, more women’s models, a sub-$2,000 full-suspension bike and a throwback bike you’re probably going to want. Read on for details. Pantera 27plus The Pantera is a GT model not seen since ...

We just returned from a week at Press Camp in Park City, Utah, where several companies announced new stuff for model year 2017. Cannondale, GT, Blue, Ridley and component maker 3T all trotted out fresh bikes at the event for industry journalists to check out. Full disclosure, Press Camp is not a standard bike industry event, which ...

The all-new Transfer seatpost features an infinitely adjustable design with the choice of internal or external cable routing, three drop options, and two lever designs. Low lever force and great modulation make it easy to regulate return speed and small height adjustments. Specs: Low lever force provides consistent actuation pressure even with saddle weighted or ...

For 2017, Kona has updated its full-suspension, cross-country Hei Hei with two 29er models in carbon: the DL and Race DL.   Kona increased bike stiffness and dropped the weight by giving the two-bike line full carbon frames weighing 1800 grams (just under 4 pounds). Kona’s own Fuse Independent Suspension—a design that eliminates a pivot at ...

For some riders the name Pipeline will bring up old memories of adjustable travel URT suspension and Giro Switchblade helmets. But put those thoughts out of your head. This new bike might as well be an alien species for how little DNA is shares with that early freeride bike. Much like the Sherpa, Rocky’s first ...

Bets around the Dirt Rag virtual water cooler (which is located in the virtual Dirt Rag HQ) put money on Trek releasing a 27plus full-suspension trail bike or a Stache 29plus full-suspension ripper. Neither guess was accurate, obviously. Instead, Trek dropped a 27.5 x 3.8 Farley EX trail bike with full suspension at the Sea Otter Classic. Actually Trek ...

XTR M8050 In not altogether unexpected news, Shimano trickles-down electronic shifting to XT level with a new M8050 group. Before you get all excited, this stuff isn’t hitting the shelves until September 2016, so you might still be pulling cable and not pushing electrons to shift for a while longer. The new XT group gets most ...

In an era when consumers can research and purchase almost anything online and have it shipped directly to their door, bicycle consumers must take the extra steps to visit their local bicycle retailer to get bikes from major brands. It isn’t as though consumer direct sales are impossible for something like a bicycle—similarly high-risk products ...

It’s that time of year, SRAM is dropping the new product news on the regular. The latest out of Chicago is a Reverb with all new internals and more travel options. The changes aim to improve reliability, and offer longer travel options for modern trail bikes. Bushing overlap is increased, which should increase longevity. SKF, ...

Photos: Josh Sawyer and Emily Walley A community is a village, a town or a city, but a sense of community is not defined by proximity. It’s the nurse and the lawyer, the photographer, designer and the park ranger; it’s the social media specialist, the bike shop salesperson and the mom all pursuing a common goal. ...

Round 2! More bikes that impressed me at NAHBS 2016 Collin Schaafsma – Matter Cycles “Single pivot 4 life” award I’ve spent a lot of miles on good old single-pivot mountain bikes, including the most recent incarnation of the Santa Cruz Heckler. In my opinion the single-pivot is still a viable option in a world of ...

At this point most everyone knows the who, what, where and why of the North American Handmade Bicycle Show. I haven’t been since 2009, and the increase in quality for both bikes and booths was easy to notice. Here is a selection of some of my favorite bikes from the show. Rick Hunter – Hunter Cycles ...

Frostbike is an annual dealer gathering hosted by Quality Bicycle Products (QBP), the parent company behind several brands such as All City, Foundry, Salsa, Surly and others. The event takes place at QBP headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in late February and allows shop owners and media types to gather, drink beer and talk shop. With the Taipei International Cycle ...

Updated March 1 with information from the bike’s official launch at Frostbike 2016.   Heller Bikes, the carbon-only mountain bike brand from Quality Bicycle Products (also the parent of Surly and Salsa, among others), announced its presence at Interbike in 2015 when it dropped a fat bike on us. Heller has now added to its ...

REEB Cycles is the American-made bicycle brand offspring of Oskar Blues Brewing. The company’s first foray into suspension bikes, aluminum frames and curved tubes has resulted in the SqWEEB, a full-suspension trail bike built on the Boost platform with 135 mm of travel. Using a mix of 6000 series aluminum tubing, the first prototype will be the ...

SRAM just announced Guide brake technology in a more compact, lighter package for cross-country and trail applications. Five different models of Level brakes will replace the SRAM XX, X0 and DB5, and Avid DB3 and DB1 models. All models of Level brakes feature SRAM’s DirectLink lever design with 2-piston calipers and reach adjusters hidden from ...

This newest Mojo has almost nothing in common with the steel hardtail that first wore that nameplate. But like the original Mojo, the Mojo 3 is a pretty lust-worthy trail bike. This bike doesn’t break any new ground for Ibis. It continues with Ibis’ successful combination of the industrial design ascetic of Roxy Lo, the smarts ...

SRAM has been slowly trickling down 1×11 tech to lower and lower price points over the last few years, but with the release of this newest 1x group, even those with a less-than-sizeable bike budget can get in on the 1x evolution that is taking over mountain biking. Read on for full details and our ...

If you’re a woman-identifying undergraduate student searching for a unique summer internship, Quality Bicycle Products (QBP) has an opportunity for you. With distribution centers in Minnesota, Utah, Pennsylvania, and Nevada, QBP serves a network of more than 5,000 independent retailers while also being active in cycling advocacy and bicycle design. QBP is currently looking for ...

Want to upgrade your frame to Boost spacing but don’t want to buy all new kit? The Lindarets Boostinator allows the use of existing 12x142mm and 15x100mm hubs and wheels with 12x148mm and 15x110mm Boost frames and forks. Boostinator Overview: Allows for frame or fork upgrades without the need for new wheels Kits become part ...

Registration is now open for the seventh-annual Dirt Rag Dirt Fest, aka the most awesome mountain bike festival in America, aka the most fun you can have camping and riding your bike. This year’s event, presented by Pivot Cycles, takes place May 20-22, 2016, at Raystown Lake in central Pennsylvania. Sign up now! You’ll find 36 ...

The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) is looking to hire a professional two-person team (usually spouses or long-term significant others) for the highly successful Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew program. This full-time exempt position requires a passion for mountain biking, excellent communication and volunteer organizational skills, basic knowledge of trailwork, and team compatibility. The crew will ...

The Wheel Mill in Pittsburgh and Ray’s MTB Indoor Park in both Cleveland and Milwaukee are hosting women-only weekend clinics this winter and spring. Boost your mountain bike and BMX skills in a supportive, no-pressure environment even as the snow flies. The Wheel Mill, Pittsburgh Ride Like a Girl Weekend Date: January 9-10, 2016 The weekend ...

American cyclists know full well that beer and bicycles go as well together as 90-pound European roadies, white Spandex and strong espresso. Along Colorado’s Front Range, one company takes that pairing particularly seriously, building bikes in the same way it brews beer: one at a time, with a guiding ethos of fun, craftsmanship and quality. ...

Bellingham, Washington-based Canfield Brothers has launched its redesigned 2016 Balance, a 165-millimeter all-mountain bike drawing heavily from the company’s downhill heritage. Now in its third generation, the Balance combines gravity oriented geometry with the patented Canfield Balance Formula™ suspension. “Long before the enduro craze, we had our own idea of what an all-mountain bike should be—just as capable of ...

PRESS RELEASE — Bell Helmets today announced an important extension to its new Joy Ride women’s program – the launch of six Joy Ride grassroots program cities, each with a dedicated female mountain bike ambassador. These ambassadors will help inspire and enable female mountain bikers with regular, structured, fun and social rides that appeal to all levels of riders where they ...

Fat bike car racks were a bit slow to come to market even as frames shod with four- and five-inch tires took off out of the gate. Now, RockyMounts is offering a fat bike roof rack for $160. The TomaHawk can fit almost all wheel sizes: 20 inches to 29 inches, and up to 5-inch fat bike ...

PRESS RELEASE — Crankworx World Tour announced it’s adding Les Gets, France, to the family. Crankworx begins in Rotorua, New Zealand, March 9-13, 2016, and will hit Les Gets the following month for a June 15-19 run. The event returns to its Whistler home base in British Columbia, Canada, for a 10-day event staged August 12-21. Nestled in the 12-resort ...

Filmed over the course of four rides near the Jones Bikes headquarters in Southern Oregon, this latest Jones Bikes video combines riding footage, from rocky trails to urban settings, with Jeff Jones’ explanation of what makes his bikes ride the way they do. Learn more about the riding and the rider that created these bikes and ...

Dirt Rag is pleased to announce that Pivot Cycles is returning as the Presenting sponsor for the seventh-annual Dirt Rag Dirt Fest, taking place May 20-22, 2016, at Raystown Lake in central Pennsylvania. “We are bringing a big fleet of bikes with all the newest models in every size for riders to try, including our ...

Kona’s Precept line of entry-level trail/enduro bikes offers three full-suspension models each under $3,000 (the 120, 130 and 150). In September, Kona sent a crew to the Swiss Alps to ride these bikes. Two Days in the Alps – Kona Precept from Kona Bikes on Vimeo.  

(Waterloo, WI) — Trek and Trek Factory Racing announced today the creation of a marquee World Cup-level Downhill racing program for the 2016 season. The new team will take on the full UCI World Cup series as well as select regional Red Bull events. Joining Trek Factory Racing Downhill for its inaugural season will be ...

Sea Otter Classic, the California event that “kicks off” the road and mountain bike race seasons each April, has announced it will host an e-mountain bike race at next year’s event. While plenty of battery-powered technology has seeped into mountain biking via electronic shifting and suspension adjustment, this move strikes me as ominous. The manufacturers ...

Oskar Blues’ Old Man Winter Rally had a wildly successful first year in 2015, with nearly 700 riders from Tour de France participants to 10-year-olds on fat bikes, and is set to go even bigger in 2016. The event takes place in Boulder County, Colorado, on February 7, 2016, and you’re invited.   Choose either the ...

Years ago, in search of more stiffness, cranks with 30 mm aluminum spindles were introduced. Unlike the steel 24 mm spindles already on the market, those new oversized spindles didn’t work with the established threaded BSA bottom bracket. This led to a new standard: BB30. The BB30 standard involved bearings installed directly into frames and snap rings ...

Asheville, NC – Industry Nine, a cycling components manufacturer in the heart of Western North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, has announced new rim options for mountain and fat bikes, and a new plus-size rim option. Fat Bike Two new tubeless fat bike rim options join the well-received BigRig 825 Carbon. The new BigRig 975 Carbon and ...

Female mountain bikers, take note: There is only one week left to apply to be a Bell Helmets Joy Ride ambassador! If you are excited about welcoming more women into mountain biking and wouldn’t mind doing it with significant support from one of the sport’s most recognizable brands, get your application in by November 1. ...

Charlie Cunningham gave a lot to the world of cycling. From custom frames to roller cam brakes, 135 mm axles to the founding of Wilderness Trail Bikes, he has shaped the sport of cycling as much as anyone. Now it’s time for us to give back. After suffering a serious brain injury as a result ...

The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) is now accepting applications for 2016 visits from the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew, IMBA’s grassroots educational program. Featuring a traveling team of two as well as nine regional staff members, the program offers everything from sustainable trail building schools to high-level land manager trainings, as well as organizational support ...

Fox Factory Holding Corp. (FOX, as we know them) announced October 19 that it will acquire some assets of Marzocchi’s mountain bike product line. This follows FOX’s acquisition of Race Face and Easton less than one year ago, a move that led some to speculate FOX would either ramp up its purchasing of other bicycle ...

The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) announced that its 2016 World Summit will be held November 10-12, 2016, in Bentonville, Arkansas. “Bentonville, specifically, and Northwest Arkansas, regionally, have shown a commitment to developing world-class mountain biking trails,” said IMBA President and USA Executive Director Mike Van Abel. “I look forward to introducing mountain bikers from around ...

It’s safe to say the modern mountain bike would be very different today without the innovations of Charlie Cunningham. From aluminum frames to roller cam brakes, sloping top tubes to 135 mm rear axles, Cunningham’s influence can be seen far beyond just mountain bikes. After all he has given the cycling community over the years, ...

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – October 2, 2015 – After seven years of service as Dirt Rag Art Director, Matt Kasprzyk is moving on to a new career at SCOTT Sports. Issue #188 will be his last with Dirt Rag. “I’ve been challenged and inspired during my tenure at Rotating Mass Media and Dirt Rag Magazine. I’ve ...

PRESS RELEASE: The Women’s Bike Mechanic Scholarship Program is back for its third year! Title sponsors for the upcoming iteration include QBP, SRAM, RockShox, Park Tool, and United Bicycle Institute (UBI), along with Gold level sponsors Jagwire, Saris, Michelin, Surly Bikes, and Liv and Silver sponsors Ergon, and Dero. Together, these sponsors are pleased to ...

Here’s just a small sampling of the new and interesting things we saw during the whirlwind week that is Interbike, America’s largest bicycle industry trade show. Spank A handful of things stood out in Spank’s small, tucked-away booth. The company tries out new ideas in single product types before expanding them to the full line, ...

Allow me to set a scene for you: It has been a long and arduous journey for women in cycling, from those who work with bicycles for a living to those who simply find joy when riding them. For decades, we haven’t been seen as equals or deserving of either employment or representation because we ...

Cover story from issue #187 Words by Chris Milucky Photos by John Shafer   Amanda Batty gained a degree of notoriety earlier this year, not because of her race results as a professional downhill and enduro racer but because she abruptly resigned from a position as an online columnist due to sexism, double standards and ...

Rotating Mass Media has hired Katherine Fuller to be the new online editor for Dirt Rag and Bicycle Times magazines. Fuller replaces Adam Newman, who was named editor-and-chief of Bicycle Times in July. As online editor, Fuller will oversee the care, feeding and growth of each magazine’s online presence, from the websites to social media. ...

Courtesy of Cannondale At Cannondale, the quality and safety of our products are of paramount importance. We build world-class bicycles, components and parts for riders who demand the highest levels of performance. During the course of regular testing, we identified a potential safety issue with the OPI stem/steering tube assemblies used in certain Mountain Bikes. We ...

Courtesy of IMBA For more than a decade, IMBA has recognized trails and trail systems around the world that stand out as models for the best that mountain biking has to offer. From rugged, long-distance treks to front-country networks that challenge and excite riders of all ability levels, the Model Trails program is designed to ...

Photo by Eric Lenseth, Windham Mountain Resort On July 10 Windham Mountain Resort celebrated the grand opening of its lift-serviced Mountain Bike Park of downhill trails for pro and intermediate- level riders, a skills park,  and a pump track. The park was officially opened when New York State Assemblyman Peter Lopez, Elite U.S. Downhill Racer Neko ...

We got a sneak peak at some for the new Kona’s for 2016. The website should be going live soon, but here are the highlights that stood out to me. Honzo The Honzo has been successful enough for Kona to spur development of two new aluminum models, although it seems the steel bike is now ...

Have you noticed any of your favorite pro cyclists sporting tattoos in the shape of the Crankbrothers logo lately? They’re certainly fans of the brand but rather than make a permanent mark on their skin the temporary tattoos are a way to raise awareness for their favorite cycling-related charities. Participating athletes span the disciplines of downhill, enduro, ...

Rotating Mass Media, the parent company of Dirt Rag and Bicycle Times, is currently accepting applications for the position of online editor. This individual will be responsible for operating, managing, maintaining and developing RMM’s digital properties, including the websites of Dirt Rag and Bicycle Times, as well as auxiliary sites and services. The online editor will ...

Today, RockShox announced significant updates to the Lyrik as well as as a completely new model based on the Lyrik chassis called Yari. Lyrik The Lyrik was well liked among the hard-charging set, but was stuck in 26-inch wheel purgatory, a sad place to be for such a well made fork. No longer. The new ...

Santa Cruz Bicycles, founded in 1993 and still led by Rob Roskopp, has been sold to a Dutch conglomerate that controls several major bike brands, including Focus, Cervelo, Gazelle and others. While the entire Santa Cruz management team will stay, as will its headquarters in Santa Cruz, the new venture will likely be able to streamline ...

Riding high after Greg Minnaar’s victory at the Ft. William World Cup, the Santa Cruz Syndicate heads to the second of back-to-back races in Leogang, Austria.   Rayboy’s race run What’s it like to go warp speed? Check out Josh Bryceland’s helmet cam from his race run.   Keep watching Catch up on all the ...

Editor’s note: This piece originally appeared in Issue #185 but due to a printing gremlin, the final few lines were cut off. It is reprinted here in its entirety. To read the reviews of the two singlespeeds in the issue, order a copy today. Words by Eric McKeegan, photo by Kyle Tingly Let’s get this out ...

Ruckus Composites is working hard to diminish the idea that carbon fiber frames are disposable. While steel is always touted as easily repairable, the crew at Rukus can do the same for just about any broken carbon fiber frame. Working with a new motto, Remade in the U.S.A., check out the new website for more ...

Kona Bikes has been a busy bunch. Its line of Process bikes have been a huge hit—see our double review in the current issue—but it isn’t exactly coasting. The brand has recently opened a flagship bike shop in its home town of Bellingham, Washington. It will carry, naturally, Kona bikes, but it will also serve ...

After an exciting vote, Bell Helmets and IMBA have announced that the Appalachian Mountain Bike Club of Knoxville, Tennessee, is the 2015 Bell Built champion. Situated in the heart of Knoxville, the Appalachian Mountain Bike Club will receive the full $100,000 grant to build their Urban Wilderness Trail Project. The bike park is being constructed with ...

Joe Breeze has been a busy guy. In addition to popularizing the very concept of mountain biking back in the early 1970s, he also steers the ship at his own brand, Breezer Bikes, and has taken stewardship of the original Mountain Bike Hall of Fame. Breeze has brought the collection to his home—and mountain biking ...

The three 2015 Bell Built finalists have been named, and the final voting period is now LIVE through June 4. Unlike prior years, only one finalist will be dubbed the Bell Built grand prize winner, where they will take home the full $100,000 to build their dream trail. See the finalists below and cast your vote at bellhelmets.com/bell-built. ...

“What the proverbial fuck?” That’s pretty much what I thought the moment I was told that Fat City Cycles would be shuttering its Somerville, Massachusetts, doors and, in the process, laying everyone off. I had just spent the better part of a year of my life trying to get a job in the bike industry. ...

Salsa Cycles has just released updated build specs and colorways to their Warbird models. While the frame specs will remain the same as the 2019 models there are lots of great builds to get the gravel fanatics wound up for the springtime. The Warbird is the perfect machine for tackling epic gravel events like the ...

As terrain and riding styles have gotten rowdier and rowdier, and bikes have gotten more and more capable, the need for bomber suspension that feels buttery and bottomless has never been greater. The industry has fondly embraced recent trends towards coil-sprung rear shocks yet none of the major players have stepped forth with a complete ...

YT Industries is kicking the new year off with all new builds and colors. Each bike category will be available in Titan Silver, Ghostship Green, Dune Grey, Twotone Blue, and Black Magic depending on the spec. On top of the new skins, the 27 and 29 builds have been updated with the latest gear. Both ...

Whisky has just released a new fork that should make the minimalist mountain biker and weight-conscious bikepacker quite happy. Sticking with their number system, Whisky has assigned this model as the No. 9 Boost LT. Coming in at 660g, it is quite lite for a mountain bike fork.  I mounted this sleek beast on my ...

As of today, Chris King will be ramping up their production of Shimano Micro Spline freehub options to make them available for purchase on January 31st. Chris King Micro Spline driveshell uses a new bearing and axle design making them their lightest ever ISO hubs! Micro Spline conversion kits will fit all ISO B Boost ...

Calling all women! Are you ready to get rad on mountain bikes in a welcoming and encouraging environment? Whether you’re interested in getting into mountain biking or already ride or race and want to take your riding to the next level, join the Ladies AllRide crew this summer to play on bikes in awesome locations ...

Jones has made titanium versions of his Plus SWB Spaceframe and Diamond Frame as well as titanium Truss forks. Geometry on both frames will remain the same as their steel counterparts so if you have been waiting for that Spaceframe that will carry you through a post-apocalyptic landscape, fear not dear two-wheeled warriors your time ...

Renthal was founded in 1969, with 50 years associated with the World’s fastest riders. To celebrate this anniversary, we have made a short film, taking a look back at the company, from the early days, through to the present day. Jeremy McGrath, Mitch Payton, and Rachel and Dan Atherton all feature, to give their experience ...

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, or at least that is what I have heard. Does that mean the machine that is mountain biking world at large takes a break from all the technological advances of tire compounds and mullet bikes? Do shralpers stop shralping to hang up stockings by the fire? Most ...

The whiskey bottle was in the air before I could even register what was happening. A long, beautiful arc across the artificial daylight of too many streetlights, the only witnesses being the hidden stars … and literally everyone at the party. There was a cacophonous silence of anticipation as the bottle hit its apex and ...

Today, Pivot Cycles introduces the new limited edition Trail 429 Enduro build – a spec that replicates the custom builds of hard-charging customers and Pivot employees, unleashing the bike’s limitless potential. Build highlights include a 140mm travel, 44mm offset Fox Factory 36 with GRIP2 damper in Team Orange, a new Factory DPX2 Shock with a custom Pivot ...

Santa Cruz Bicycles commits to giving away $1 million to projects that increase access to trails Santa Cruz Bicycles is making a commitment to increasing access to quality trails. They are pledging to give $1 million over the next three years to trail development projects, local and national advocacy organizations, events, and programs geared toward ...

If you were trying to find Eric Estlund in a crowd it may not be as easy as you think for a guy sporting a head covered in tattoos and piercings. The soft-spoken Estlund is the sole driving force behind Winter Bicycles and on Saturday I combed the floor looking for his booth during the ...

With storms in the mid-west and high winds up and down the east coast on Halloween,  Peter Olivetti sat deep into the night in a Chicago airport wondering if he would make it to this year’s Philly Bike Expo. Eventually, Olivetti made it to Philadelphia but his bikes were still in limbo, victims of the ...

Philly Bike Expo is easily one of our favorite events of the year. Despite our cross-state hockey rivalry, we love to visit Philadelphia. As noted by many of the attendees, the vibe at the Philly Bike Expo is always so positive, warm and welcoming and each year there are new vendors, new builders, and always ...

Photos by Brian Lorence Well, its that time of the year again when a large portion of the mountain bike community drops everything to watch an elite few push the boundaries of what is possible on a bike. Red Bull Rampage has gone down in the deserts of Utah since 2001 and the amount of ...

Photo by Justa Jeskova I am by no means an expert gravity rider but the Whistler Bike Park is easily one of the most amazing places I’ve ever had a chance to ride. There are dozens of trails for all skill levels and the quality of their build-out and design is second to none. It’s ...

A thru-hike or mountain bike trip along the legendary Arizona Trail is high on the bucket list of many would-be adventurers. But while exploring the diverse terrain along its route is a lot of fun, making sure you have transportation to and from the trailhead plus food and camping supplies isn’t always an expedition highlight. Hermosa Tours ...

Photos courtesy of Trek Bikes Back-to-back Enduro World Series champion Trek Factory Racing returns with with eyes focused on an unprecedented three-peat in 2015. The team’s European-based squad consists of 2013 and 2014 series champion Tracy Moseley (GBR), Rene Wildhaber (SUI), and Justin Leov (NZL). American enduro power-couple Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (USA) and Heather Irmiger (USA) ...

We’ve ridden a lot Fox 34 forks and Float CTD rear shocks and they’ve been reliable performers that just needed a few changes to really bring them to the next level. While you could send your suspension bits away for tweaking, it seems that Fox has been paying attention to what riders are after, and updated the ...

Being around the industry as long as I have I know a lot of people, many of whom congregate once a year in a different location to look at the fashionshow we call The North American Handmade Bicycle Show. Where artisan framebuilders show off their latest and greatest creations, which are judged and given giant ...

Photos by Gary Perkin and David Smith. Juliana Bicycles has announced the launch of the new Juliana-SRAM Professional Mountain Bike Team. Anka Martin (RSA) is joined by Kelli Emmett (USA) and Sarah Leishman (CAN) to complete a trio of female athletes who will be racing the Enduro World Series and select international events in 2015. A ...

In its unending march of product development, Shimano has announced its latest Acera line of mountain bike and trekking components will feature many of its technologies that once debuted at a higher price point. The new M3000 series features a new compact triple crank, the introduction of the Shadow rear derailleur design, and shifters that stand ...

If you buy an American-made steel or aluminum frame and it isn’t from a small, boutique brand, there’s a good chance it was made in Portland, Oregon, by Zen Fabrication. Born from the ashes of Ellsworth’s U.S. manufacturing business and the withdrawal of the Sapa framebuilding enterprise, Zen has been building frames for other bike ...

Riding fat bikes in the snow isn’t as simple as many folks might believe. Just like skiing, different conditions can make for vastly different experiences, as anyone who has pushed their bike while post-holing through deep snow can tell you. 45NRTH is hoping to help, with a new website called Ride Groomed that tracks trail ...

It’s the end of an era. The Aptos Post Office Jumps and the accompanying pump track in Aptos, California, are being razed in February. Earning notoriety for their death-defying vert doubles and the local kids that have grown up with these jumps—both the jumps and kids are now internationally-known entities. While on Saturday, February 14, ...

The Bell Built trail building project, a partnership between Bell Helmets and IMBA, will award a $100,000 grant to a single mountain bike project in the USA this year to construct an advanced and aggressive technical trail. The award is a departure from previous years where the grant was split into three winners, one in ...

Oregon has a lot going for it: some of the best beer, wine, food, and of course riding anywhere in the world. Hailing from Portland, Limberlost is a new guide service that can help you experience the diverse riding opportunities throughout the state with a series of four, premium guided tours in 2015. The tours include ...

Courtesy of Pivot Cycles Pivot Cycles is pleased to announce the addition of Aaron Chase to their roster of riders. Chase, a master in the world of freeride, is best known for pushing boundaries and for his technical and creative style, both on and off the bike. He has graced the covers of countless magazines, ...

We first brought you news of the resurrection of the Fat Chance brand back in September, and now it’s one step closer to a reality. The new Yo Eddy Team will be an American-made, steel, trail hardtail with all the modern touches, including a tapered head tube, dropper post compatibility and 142×12 thru-axle. It will ...

We were recently invited to the Boa Technology’s offices in Denver, Colorado. What was once an industrial eyesore and waste dump on the wrong side of the tracks is now a revitalized commercial community that hosts several like-minded businesses. The corporate center Boa resides in is another case study of modern gentrification with reclaimed building ...

The retail experience can vary widely throughout the local bike shop universe. Some are mega stores, some are tiny “mom and pops”. What is essential to their long-term survival, however, is the retail experience for customers. Now a new project will give a “retail makeover” to one chosen bike shop. Bicycle Retailer and Industry News, ...

Last week’s news of Fox Factory Holding Corp. buying Canadian companies Race Face Components and Easton Cycling for a cool $30.2 million should be raising more than an eyebrow in the fiercely competitive world of OEM spec and branding. After letting the news sink in over the weekend and reading Dirt Rag’s Facebook comments, we ...

Courtesy of the International Mountain Bicycling Association: The MTB Project website and mobile apps have been updated and improved with new functionality. The apps are available in both Android and iOS versions, and are completely free. MTB Project continues to grow in popularity, with a catalog of user-generated content that now exceeds 34,000 miles of trail. ...

With the hard-charging soul of Santa Cruz Bikes and the enlightened guidance of the legendary Juliana Frutado, Juliana Bikes is proud to have some of the most fun and fast ladies on earth on their team, including Anka Martin and Katrina Strand. If you think you’ve got what it takes to join them in 2015, ...

Winter has barely made its presence known but we’re already looking forward to the Sedona Mountain Bike Festival in March. Scheduled from March 6-8 at the Talaquepaque Arts and Crafts Village, it promises a great way to enjoy the sunshine, red-rock trails and power of the Vortex. Hosted by Over the Edge Sports, the event will feature ...

Several brands including SRAM, Liv, United Bicycle Institute (UBI), Quality Bicycle Products, Pedro’s, and Park Tool have joined together to offer ten scholarships for women to attend United Bicycle Institute. Recognizing the bike industry needs to reach out to more women, these industry heavyweights have collaborated to fund a scholarship program for women. Additional support ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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) ...

  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 ...

Elected by a vote of past inductees and current Hall of Fame members (including our esteemed Publisher, Maurice Tierney), the latest members of the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame will be formally inducted September 10 at Interbike in Las Vegas. The Mountain Bike Hall of Fame & Museum was founded in 1988 in Crested Butte, ...

Boehmke, on the right, with Dirt Rag’s Publisher Maurice Tierney. Longtime industry veteran Steve Boehmke has been hired by Rotating Mass Media—publishers of Dirt Rag and Bicycle Times magazines—as its newest advertising sales account representative. Boehmke is based in Orange, California, and replaces Gary Boulanger, who was named Bicycle Times editor in late March. Boehmke ...

Apart from wheel sizes and the number of gears involved, the biggest trend in the mountain bike industry in the last decade has been carbon fiber. You can get carbon anything these days: frames, rims, handlebars, brake levers, stems, seatposts, cranksets, chains… ok, maybe not chains, but the Gates Carbon Belt Drive is pretty close. ...

Our correspondent Jay de Jesus is in upstate New York for the only stop of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in America. He’ll be bringing us the latest from Windham, New York.

UPDATE: The survey is now closed. Thanks to all who participated! How much wrenching do you do on your own bike? Our friends over at Feedback Sports wants to know. Take our super-quick survey and you could win a Pro Truing Stand. Enter to win here.

Recently we brought you the details of the new 27.5 Scott Gambler downhill bike and the Voltage freeride. Today our friends over at ShapeRideShoot bring you some behind-the-scenes details of how they were created and some prototype testing with Alex Evans, Nick Pescetto, Nico Vink, and Vincent Tupin.

There’s nothing quite like a magazine you can hold in your hand, but more and more readers are choosing to read their favorite mountain bike magazine on digital devices. Today we’re announcing Dirt Rag will be available in Magzter. Magzter has become one of the fastest growing cross-platform digital newsstands in the world with over 17 ...

Yesterday we brought you news of a new Specialized downhill bike with bigger wheels, and today it’s Santa Cruz’s turn. Seems the gap in the World Cup schedule was the perfect time to finish off the new products and we’ll be seeing a lot of new stuff at Monte St. Anne this weekend. The new ...

Bikes like the new Yeti SB5c pack a ton of technology, and usually carry a price tag to match. Lots of folks write to us criticizing the crop of new bikes that are, admittedly, pushing the price envelope at five, seven, even ten thousand dollars. Is that a bad thing for consumers? Not at all, I say.

In the current issue of Dirt Rag (#178, on sale now) you’ll find a ground-breaking interview with Reverend Bob Seals of CoolTool, Kleen Kanteen and Retrotec fame. This multi-faceted artist, activist, frame builder, race promoter and team owner, if not agitator, ran his whole operation out of his ranch just outside of Chico, California. Seals was ...

In the current issue of Dirt Rag (on sale now) you’ll find a ground-breaking interview with Reverend Bob Seals of CoolTool, Kleen Kanteen and Retrotec fame. This multi-faceted artist, activist, frame builder, race promoter and team owner, if not agitator, ran his whole operation out of his ranch just outside of Chico, California. Seals was first ...

Photos by Craig DeMartino With experience and aesthetics honed at Black Sheep Cycles, Moonmen Bikes are both cutting edge and decidedly retro, inspired by moonlit rides on the Front Range of Colorado. And it’s not just the custom, one-of-a-kind titanium frames being crafted in Fort Collins—the team is building its own custom titanium bars, stems, seat posts and forks ...

Oskar Blues Brewery hails from Colorado but has made western North Carolina its second home, first building a brewery there in 2012, and now it will open a 145-acre farm as a beer and bike vacation destination. Located about eight miles from the Brevard-based Oskar Blues brewery, the former Shoal Falls Farm soon will be ...

Summer is in full swing and that means it’s only a matter of time until we get to head north to the biggest of all mountain bike festivals in Whistler, B.C. Aside from the competitive riding there is some competitive creativity going on as well, with riders and photographers shooting to be the best in the ...

One of our favorite rides every year is the Mt. Tam Dirt Fondo that samples some of the sweet singletrack where mountain biking was born on Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County, California. The original, 46-mile ride will still take place September 7, but this year the Marin County Bicycle Coalition has added a Summer Solstice ...

Downhill mountain bike enthusiasts have been eagerly awaiting the opening of the Whistler Mountain Bike Park and this week the anticipation comes to an end. On Friday the Whistler Mountain Bike Park will open for the season thanks to the hard work of an army of trail crew. The trail crew battled snow, weather, drainage, ...

With voting live for the past two weeks in the Central region, Bell Helmets has announced that the Cottage Grove Bike Park in Cottage Grove, Minnesota pulled in the most votes out of the four Central region finalists to earn a share of the 2014 Bell Built Grants. The project, headed up by the Minnesota ...

By Karl Rosengarth and Eric McKeegan. Photos by Justin Steiner and Jon Pratt. For all of Pittsburgh’s endearing qualities, its wet, pre-spring weather sucks. There are weeks on end when the trails are just too wet and muddy for responsible riding. The optimal solution is to load Dirt Rag’s “trusty” Ford E-Series van with test ...

Peaty turns 40 this year, but it isn’t slowing him down one bit. Expect nothing less than the usual carnage with #allthelads and the rest of the Santa Cruz Syndicate as they travel the globe taking in the full UCI World Cup and World Champs, whilst hooking up with some famous friends along the way. ...

The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship in Northern California, along with partners Santa Cruz Bicycles has announced another “5 Bucks A Foot” campaign. Up for grabs this time is the eventual winner’s choice of any complete Santa Cruz bicycle with a value up to $10,000. Every purchased foot of singletrack for $5 is an opportunity to win, ...

As you might have heard, we’re celebrating our 25th Anniversary this year. As a bit of a thank you gift to the head honcho around here, Publisher Maurice Tierney, we partnered with BaileyWorks to produce this custom, one-of-a-kind Citi Pack backpack.

$100,000 in prize money? Split between three winning trail networks? That’s what’s at stake in the annual Bell Built Grants. Bell Helmets and IMBA have teamed up to build three dream trail projects and after whittling the contenders down to 12 finalists in three regions, the West Coast winner has been decided by popular vote.

The National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA), the governing body for interscholastic mountain biking, announced recently that Alabama and Virginia will be the newest states in its growing nationwide school cycling program, bringing the number of leagues in NICA network to 13. One of the key features of NICA is its structural ability to work in ...

I’m not much of a mountain bike historian but I have run into Don Koski many times over the years at bicycle trade shows and such. Nice guy. I knew he was around back in the day and was currently making ski bikes. He had called me a few times recently, asking to show me ...

Bell Bike Helmets and the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) have announced the 12 finalists for the 2014 Bell Built Grants: $100,000 in technical assistance money put up by Bell for three bike projects to be built in 2014 by IMBA Trail Solutions. Public voting to choose the winners is open now and ends May ...

The international cycling community lost two of its own recently, Steve Worland and Fabio Rattazzi, and our staff mourns their passing.

Words and Photos by Ryan Thibault I smile at the customs agent. She’s scrutinizing my passport—one glance down at my mug shot, one up at me…and again. The photo is dated, and my Afro has long since been quaffed. “An’ why are you tra-ve-ling to Ca-na-da?” she asks in a French accent as cute as ...

We had heard that the fastest man on dirt had parted ways with his longtime ride at Ibis, and now it’s been confirmed he will be on Intense for 2014. Will he be shredding on the new Tracer 275 Carbon? Sounds likely.

Whether you are a racer, freerider, coach, photographer, writer, film-maker, weekend warrior, newbie, or just checkin’ out nature, Shine Riders Co. has you covered this weekend with a low-risk, co-ed instruction day at the Chanticleer Pump Track in Santa Cruz. The event is one of many monthly meet-ups of the Shine Riders Co., a group ...

Author and journalist Molly Hurford rides a lot—and knows countless women who ride a lot—and inevitably all that riding can lead to a little… discomfort. It’s a subject that she found nearly all the women she knows, from beginners to pros, were reluctant to discuss at the their local bike shop or with their male peers. ...

SRAM, in partnership with Troy Lee Designs, announced today the formation of its own mountain-bike team for the 2014 season. SRAM has had a longstanding tradition of supporting racing, from grass-roots contests through the World Cup level, and now, the company will also fly its own colors in local, national and World Cup competition. The ...

Last weekend while doing trail work Cannondale-WTB OverMountain rider Mark Weir was crushed by a 300-pound tree limb, breaking his pelvis in three places. We talked to him by phone from his home in Novato, California, where he’s recuperating for the next six to eight weeks. Mark was especially disappointed about the accident because he ...

I recently got back from my first ride in Marin County, California, and I was blown away by how nice the trails were – especially in February! Access4Bikes is working hard to turn the tide in Marin and open up even more riding opportunities for our vibrant mountain bike community. They are selling raffle tickets to ...

Last year we got a preview of the first full-suspension bike from Redline. Now the D880 29er with its new Binary Link suspension design is closer than ever to the trail.

British brand Empire Cycles has partnered with a Belgian firm to create what they are calling the world’s first 3D printed mountain bike frame. Renishaw, a first that specializes in advanced 3D printing techniques, builds the frame layer by tiny layer from titanium. The finished product is said to be one third lighter than a ...

Last week Dirt Rag’s Publisher Maurice Tierney and Karen Brooks, the former editor of Dirt Rag and the founding editor of our sister magazine Bicycle Times, mutually decided to part ways. “I’m proud of the work I’ve done with both Bicycle Times and Dirt Rag, and am excited to go off in new directions,” Brooks said. “We ...

It’s hard to imagine a more unassuming guy than Joe Breeze. Unlike his contemporaries Gary Fisher or Tom Ritchey, who are easy to spot in a crowd, Breeze could be the guy standing in line in front of you at the grocery store, or your friendly neighbor who always greets you with a wave and ...

Photos by Maurice Tierney and Shimano In response to its rapid growth, Shimano American Corporation has expanded its Irvine, Calif., office building by some 48,000 square feet turning it into a massive 51,000 square foot distribution center. An entirely new, modern business center also opened directly across the street for Shimano’s marketing, R&D and inside ...

Marin County, the birthplace of mountain biking, has suffered for decades with lack of good, legal singletrack. Access4Bikes is working hard to turn the tide in Marin and open up more riding opportunities for our vibrant mountain bike community. Funds raised from this campaign will go to building more trail miles at Camp Tamarancho, one of ...

Bike factories I love? Ad Intense to this list. Every effort is made to have raw local materials come in one end and bikes out the other. This was evident on a recent tour of their facility in Temecula, Calif. We heard there was a new bike on its way so we stopped by to ...

I remember when I first moved to the East Coast and Team CF (Cystic Fibrosis) formed in Philadelphia. They were a small group of mostly local riders who had a lot of heart, some notable results and now a big vision: Take it all up a notch and create a larger regional, and maybe national, ...

Ladies, there’s no reason to park your bike for winter if you live near one of Ray’s Indoor Mountain Bike Parks. Especially with the hugely popular Women’s Weekend coming up quick. On the Friday of each weekend the ENTIRE park is closed to men from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and pro rider Leigh Donovan ...

X-Fusion has been stepping up its game big time in the past year, picking up more OE specs and topping off its range with the limited-edition, American-made, inverted Revel HLR fork. Watch as lead engineer Paul Turner discusses how its unique dual air spring system works and watch as it gets assembled.

Last spring Bell Helmets and IMBA partnered to award a total of $100,000 to three trail projects in the first Bell Built Grants. With the hope of making it even bigger in 2014, Bell and IMBA hope to spread the word so riders all around the country realize the opportunity they have for a trail ...

Cyclocross season may be winding down, but if you’ve got Holiday Fever, the only solution might be MORE COWBELL. Moots is happy to obliged with the annual release of Ti Sticks, a noisemaker made from excess or scrap tubing from Moots frames. The titanium tubes are cut and finished in just a way to provide ...

A long-standing Pennsylvania tradition, Bilenky Cycle Works has hosted a… unique cyclocross race each winter through a salvage yard. There are no UCI officials measuring tire widths, the barriers are not to spec, and #handupsarenotacrime. This Saturday the annual event was pushed to new levels with the influx of humanity (and inhumanity) in town for ...

Folks, the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship, along with partners Santa Cruz Bicycles and Yuba Expeditions, is proud to announce another “5 Bucks A Foot” campaign. Up for grabs this time is the winner’s choice of ANY Santa Cruz bicycle, along with ONE YEAR’s worth of free shuttles courtesy of Yuba Expeditions! Every purchased foot of ...

Hanging out in the Lexus booth at the Tokyo Motor Show was this concept bike dubbed the NXB, for “Neo Xtreme Bike”. Oh my. The  Y-shaped frame looks like a relic from the 90’s (where it should have stayed) but the construction is fairly high-tech, being built from Lexus’ carbon-fiber loom that was previously used ...

Crested Butte in 1980 still echoed with the hammers of miners, not the rumble of knobby tires on singletrack. But that was about to change as a young blue-eyed man named Mike Rust wrenched madly, transforming old Schwinn cruiser bikes into some of Colorado’s first mountain bikes. When the Californians like Gary Fisher and Joe ...

WTB OEM Sales Manager Jason Moeschler, a dedicated and decorated racer by heritage, is used to the hectic schedule his business title and passion for elite level racing mandates of him. Crowned the 1997 US Junior National Champion as well as three-time Downieville All Mountain Pro Champion, Moeschler somehow also finds time to coach high ...

Rocky Mountain Bikes sent along this sweet video of Wade Simmons and Kevin Calhoun as they take the Instinct 29er into some early season snowfall.

Want to know what it takes to get the amazing shots that you see on the covers of your favorite cycling magazines? This video from F-Stop Gear follows one of the preeminent photographers in the industry, Sven Martin, and the pinnacle event of the season, Crankworx Whistler.  

Spirit Mountain in Duluth, Minnesota, has been named one of IMBA’s Model Flow Trails. This year, IMBA is recognizing five Ride Centers, four Epics, three Flow Trails and two Gateway Trails in locations from the Czech Republic to Kentucky. These trails should go on your short list of riding destinations. These are the trails worth ...

Got this note today from Fox about certain 2013 Evolution-series forks. According to the recall notice, some 32 and 34 Evolution-series forks the damper cylinder / damper assembly can overextend, possibly allowing the wheel to detach from the bike. Not good. Fox says there has been one recorded instance of this happening, and they’re looking ...

In just three days time BikePark Wales will open its doors to the public after five years of planning and construction. Today see’s the release of the final episode in the making of BikePark Wales triology “Go for launch” featuring guest riders Tracy Mosely, Joe Smith, Al Bond and Joel Moore.

This episode gives a great insight as to what the riding at BikePark Wales will be like. To find out for yourself, you’ll have to go check it out on Saturday, August 24.

There is no lack of bad blood between Sho-Air owner and team founder Scott Tedro and USA Cycling. Earlier this year his US Cup series broke ties with USAC over its mandate that riders follow UCI rules banning them from participating in non-USAC races like the Leadville Trail 100 and the BC Bike Race.

Looks like we’ll get our first glimpse of them at Crankworx next week, but today Norco sent out some details of its forthcoming lineup: 

The Mountain Bike Hall of Fame announced its 2013 inductees today, and said it is moving from its longtime home in Crested Butte, Colo., to Marin County, Calif., long-considered the "birthplace" of mountain biking. 

The 2013 inductees are: 

Advocacy

By Eric McKeegan,

Kona continues to keep moving and shaking for 2014. With additional manpower in the bike design department, we’ve seen a ton of new bikes out of the Kona camp the last few years, and 2014 looks to be no different.

Most interesting is the Process enduro line up, which replaces the 26-inch, 150mm 2013 bike with three platforms, utlilizing two wheelsizes and three travel lengths.

By Geebeebeemedia

Walking into the workshop at BTR Fabrications, you’d be forgiven for thinking you were in an ironmongers, a car repair shop or a man-shed of epic proportions. Surrounded by both familiar and ‘what on earth does that do’ engineering machinery, you quickly realise you’re at the heart of where something special happens. This is where bikes are born.

By Gary J Boulanger. Photos by Maurice Tierney.

Yes, there were winners and prizes in multiple categories at the 19th annual Skyline Park Mountain Bike Race June 23 in Napa, Calif. Yes, there was awesome wood-fired pizza served under the big oak tree afterward. And yes, local rider Levi Leipheimer won the Pro/Expert category at the site of the 2008 Singlespeed World Championships and the 1999 Grundig UCI World Cup cross country race.

"Missy said she wanted a picture of me with one of the MANY Schwinn cruisers that were parked everywhere. I struck a Missy pose for the photo without thinking about it on account of being such a fangirl. She said ‘Oh, I see what you’re doing there.’ I was actually so insanely embarrassed for being called on it that I aggressively feigned ignorance."

Photos by A. E. Landes, Matt Kasprzyk and Maurice Tierney.

Then and now. On the left she is showing off Gonzo, the pirahna she wore around her neck during races. 

ROS 9

Niner pulled the wraps off its newest model today, the ROS 9, a slack, all-mountain or trail hardtail designed around a 120-140mm fork. The name—Ride Over Shit—was chosen from hundreds of suggestions from Niner fans.

Join damn it. That’s the message Niner has applied to its limited edition run of nine custom painted Jet 9 RDO frames that will be auctioned off to raise funds for the International Mountain Bike Association. Each is paired with a painted to match RockShox SID XX fork.

By Joh Rathbun

Cycling fans from as far away as Pennsylvania flocked to the Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival this past weekend with approximately 6,000 folks in attendance on each day. The genesis of the festival was showcasing mountain biking as a great form of recreational tourism in Santa Cruz County, driven by the Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz.

Many riders will be forced to choose between racing events like the Whiskey 50 or staying home to stay in the good graces of USA Cycling and the UCI. 

By Mike Cushionbury. Photo courtesy of Epic Rides. 

By Eric McKeegan. Photos by Justin Steiner and Jon Pratt.

Santa Cruz didn’t seem to need another trail bike. It already has the well-regarded 26-inch Blur TR and Blur LT with 125mm and 140mm travel respectively; the 29-inch Tallboy LT at 135mm; and the evergreen single pivot Heckler at 150mm. Bookend those with the Nomad at 160mm, and the 100mm Tallboy, Superlight 29 and Blur XC, and it gets hard to see a gap in there to fill.

The Breck Epic stage race traverses 240 miles of Colorado singletrack over the course of six days and is one of the most popular mountain bike events on the calendar.

Our friends over at Hermosa Tours announced today a new trip offering beginning in Summer 2013: Monster Enduro Weekends: Durango & Telluride. These self-guided trips will take place over three days in Southwest Colorado, as Hermosa shuttles riders thousands of feet into the San Juan Mountains for some of the biggest rides anywhere totaling nearly 15,000 feet of descending over the three days.

Ever wanted to do the BC Bike Race but it was ‘Sold Out’? Ever wanted a Rocky Mountain Bike but couldn’t afford it?

Four lucky finalists have a chance to ride the 2013 BC Bike Race with the ‘Godfather’ of Fun, Wade Simmons, on a brand new Rocky Mountain Element 970 RSL BC Edition bike with a huge pile of other prizes. 

By Eric McKeegan, photos by Adam Newman

By Estela Villaseñor, photos by Bob Allen Images

For 2013 Shimano will offer multiple 650b mountain bike wheels at various price points and new Dyna-sys Deore XT and SLX components designed specifically for 650b and 29-inch wheels.

By Eric McKeegan

Problem Solvers

Every few months Problem Solvers comes out with a widget or two that makes me think, “Why didn’t I think of that?” Here are three quick ah-ha items they were showing off at Frostbike.

By Eric McKeegan.

Frostbike is the annual dealer expo put on by Quality Bicycle Products (QBP). While February in Minnesota might not sound so inviting, this is a great event, full of people who really, really love bikes. Besides QBP’s roster of house brands (Salsa, Surly, Foundry, 45NRTH, All-City, Civia, Problem Solvers, and more) there are more than 100 other companies in attendance.

Portland framebuilders Ira Ryan, left, and Tony Pereira joined forces to create Breadwinner cycles.

By Karen Brooks

By Karen Brooks

Sometimes you just want to imagine yourself sailing down a silky-smooth country road, wine and cheese in the bag, and sun shining… Here at the 2013 North American Handmade Bicycle Show there are plenty of classically beautiful road bikes to inspire just such a vision. Here are a few.

Shamrock Cycles Fluid Druid

Simply a traditional road frame with fender capability. Pretty fenders, too. I love the little Brooks tool roll on the back of the saddle.

By Karen Brooks

Building a bike to be an everyday vehicle gives a lot of opportunities for creative framebuilders to add all kinds of amenities to their NAHBS show bikes. Here’s a few that have stood out so far.

Donkelope

This Donkelope caught my eye right away. Builder Greg calls it a steampunk bike. It has an actual bike lamp—yes, a lamp—from the early 1900s, retrofitted with a modern LED light inside. 

By Adam Newman

Riders are always looking for new challenges and new places to ride their bikes. Adventure touring and bike-packing are two of the fastest-growing segments of the industry, and like every year, the North American Handmade Bike Show is setting trends that the rest of the industry is likely to soon follow.

Though adventures can be had on any bike, more and more riders are designing, building, and riding bikes specifically designed around touring or racing on unpaved roads or rough terrain.

Cherubim by Shin-Ichi Konno won the President’s Choice award and Best of Show at the 2012 NAHBS.

By Gary J. Boulanger

By Adam Newman. Photo above by A.E. Landes, photo at right courtesy of Team CF.

Editor’s note: Each year we cover dozens of the most beautiful bikes in the world at the North American Handmade Bicycle Show and other local shows. But what happens to them after the display booths are disassembled and the lights go out? After all, bikes are built to be ridden, not to sit around and look pretty. So we followed up with some of the bikes and builders we’ve covered in the past to see how these works of art are holding up.

Dejay Birtch at the 2012 Trans-Sylvania Epic. Birtch will represent Ride for Reading in 2013.

Ride for Reading is teaming up with professional mountain biker Dejay Birtch to create an innovative, professional mountain bike team. Birtch will not only represent Ride for Reading through racing, he will serve as an ambassador of the organization by collecting books, visiting classrooms, and spreading Ride for Reading’s mission as he travels from race to race.

The high school cycling movement continues to gain momentum in California

"Singletrack High", a documentary about a progressive approach to body, mind and character developmentthrough the sport of high school mountain biking premieres tonight in Mill Valley, California. The premiere is at the 142 Throckmorton Theatre, at 8 p.m.

By Neil Browne. Photo by Todd Trisch.

These past weeks the cycling world has been rocked by the admission of widespread doping from several riders. The parade of cyclists willing to unburden themselves from the guilt, or perhaps to reduce their suspension under undeniable evidence, continued with Danish rider Michael Rasmussen. Nicknamed “The Chicken” from a Danish cartoon, Rasmussen’s professional cycling career started with mountain biking and ended this week as a member of a professional road racing team.

It’s October and in the mountain bike world, which means Red Bull Rampage, the most iconic freeride event of the year. Marzocchi riders have been Rampage frontrunners ever since the godfather, Wade Simmons won the very first edition in 2001. Beginning on Monday, October 21st, in an ode to Marzocchi’s heritage, all team riders will ...

Sometimes an edit is so dang good you want everyone to see it. The latest from Commencal Bikes is just that and a little more. Introducing the latest version of the Furious, this video takes viewers to epic landscapes and even more epic riding. Sit back and enjoy!

The YT Mob welcomed 22 racers from America, Brazil and Canada to Windrock Bike Park located 161 Miles east of Tennessee’s state Capital Nashville. Built by Whiteley’s protégé Neko Mulally, Windrock hosted the fifth of six Young Talent Camps. The young racers had three days to soak up as much knowledge as possible passed on ...

Joining a growing list of bike and outdoor brands, in August, Kitsbow announced they would be moving its operations to North Carolina. We reached out to David Billstrom, the chief executive officer of Kitsbow, and asked him a few questions on what helped make that final decision. Dirt Rag: I know that you were looking at ...

This year the team from Mountain Bike Radio set up shop at Dirt Fest PA. Over the weekend they grabbed a bunch of folks from the world of mountain bikes and sat them down for a chat. They even managed to wrangle our very own Maurice Tierney to talk about 30 years of Dirt Rag ...

Zwift, the online cycling platform that ties together stationary biking and video games, has agreed with UCI to host the first ever UCI Cycling eSports World Championships in 2020. First! This is eSports, not E-Bikes. eSports started in the 1970’s with video game competitions. (You could argue that e-bikes might have started in the 70’s ...

Over the next few months Race Face will be releasing a collection of short films as part of the ‘Creator Series.’ First up is Skye Shillhammer’s “From Slide to Ride.” Skye Shillhammer’s film From Slide to Ride is a story of how a natural disaster brought a town together and how mountain biking could bring ...

Welcome the Remote 160 to the Kona family of trail bikes. Like it or not E-bikes are here to stay and Kona has joined the ranks. Based off of the popular Process models, the Kona Remote 160 is designed around fun and efficiency. Check out the Remote 160 in action here and visit Kona Bikes ...

This Friday, October 13th a new show, ‘Peaking’ will premiere on the CW network featuring record-breaking Olympic mountain biker, Jenny Rissveds. The eight-episode docu-series produced by Red Bull Media House, will premiere on The CW and takes you behind the scenes each week with a different athlete. Each athlete has a unique story to share ...

Ibis has just added an aluminum option to their line up by way of the Ripmo AF and it is available as of today. Mimicking the lines and attitude of its carbon sibling, the AF looks to get riders on a big mountain killer at a much lower price. Starting as a complete for $2,999 ...

I don’t know about you but we are still flying high from the big World Cup Weekend down in Snowshoe, WV. If you weren’t there well, sorry you missed out, but don’t fret, you can still experience how awesome the weekend was via WynTV. GT Bicycles fluffy-haired pro is back with what we consider his ...

Our friends in Gunnison are throwing a big party on the trails of Hartman Rocks. Race 10 hours individually or as a team riding on a bike, running or both! Come have fun while enjoying the fall biking at Hartman Rocks! They have also partnered with ROMP Skis so all racers get a chance to ...

It’s a big and busy week in the world of mountain biking and all eyes are on Mont-Saint-Anne for this weekends World Championships. Things got kicked off this past Wednesday with a relay race where the American squad captured second place. There was also an E-MTB World Championship (honestly didn’t know that was a real ...

In less than a week the UCI mountain bike World Cup will descend upon Snowshoe Mountain, West Virginia. The resort sits virtually secluded in the Appalachian mountains but is no stranger to big-time mountain bike events. Snowshoe had been a regular stop on the once-massive NORBA series and just last year hosted the US mountain ...

Today, Pivot Cycles introduces the new LES SL – a bike engineered to the Nth degree to deliver the kind of handling, extreme power transfer, and weight that transforms every last watt of output into a race-winning performance. Already proven by the Stan’s-Pivot Pro team with a Short Track National Championship, Leadville 100 win, and ...

Liv may have cracked the code on how to sell a women-specific mountain bike. While some other brands fuss about paint color and handlebar length (both important!), Liv was taking measurements on how women ride bikes: The average ranges of our body dimensions (inseam versus torso length, for instance), where our power comes from, how ...

The latest and perhaps the most anticipated (at least on this side of the country) update to Santa Cruz’s line up is the Tallboy. The Tallboy entered the scene back in 2009 as the flagship cross-country bike for Santa Cruz. What began as a short travel 29er, the Tallboy has evolved over the last decade ...

Race Face announces today its new Æffect R crankset, dropper post and lever. The crankset is designed to keep an enduro-strength crank in the weight-range of a typical XC crank (632 g for DM alloy without bottom bracket, or 696 g for DM steel without bottom bracket). It uses forged 7050 AL construction added stiffness ...

Sunday mornings in the small town of Quincy, California, are quiet. The occasional person or two can be spotted strolling down the sidewalk, perhaps the distant bark of a dog or even the crow of a rooster can break the stillness, that is until recently. Outside of Feather River Outdoors there is a bit of ...

Editor’s Note: This message is paid for by our partners Hutchinson Tires Hutchinson Tires has been in the bike tire business since 1890. That’s right. They’ve been hand-making bicycle tires for just shy of 130 years. Though some know the brand as being pioneers of road tubeless, they’ve made a name for themselves within every ...

Selene Yeager, Kristin Gavin, and Kathleen Harding are part of the dominate Women’s Elite team. Photo by PJFreeman Photography.

Team CF, the rolling brainchild of cystic fibrosis researcher Dr. Jim Wilson is racing into its fourth year with some fresh faces and a new Club Team that is open to the public.

Editor’s note: Each year we cover dozens of the most beautiful bikes in the world at the North American Handmade Bicycle Show and other local shows. But what happens to them after the display booths are disassembled and the lights go out? After all, bikes are built to be ridden, not to sit around and look pretty. So we followed up with some of the bikes and builders we’ve covered in the past to see how these works of art are holding up.

Trek has announced a new cross-country mountain bike race team for 2013 dubbed Trek Factory Racing. Forged with Olympic veterans, the team will feature US National Champion Sam Schultz, Canada’s Emily Batty, 23-year-old rising star Annie Last, two-time Olympian Dan McConnell, and U23 podium finisher Rebecca Henderson. Managing the team will be industry veteran Jon Rourke.

BMC, best known for its bikes in the pro road peloton, has signed on to partner with the NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic (TSEpic) mountain bike stage race. Presented by Dirt Rag, TSEpic is the fastest growing mountain bike stage race in North America.  

Jaroslav Kulhavy on his way to Olympic gold in London.

Photos by Karen Kefauver.

Santa Cruz county-based Fox Racing Shox returns as title sponsor of the popular event April 13-14, 2013, that includes professional and amateur competitions, skills clinics, a kids’ practice area, bike demos and shuttles, an industry expo, and food court/beer garden.

Photo courtesy of Specialized.

Former U23 World Champion, Olympian, and World Cup winner Burry Standar was killed by a taxi while riding in his home country of South Africa today. He was 25 years old. 

The collision occured in Shelly Beach on the Kwazulu-Natal South Coast. Details are under investigation.

By Adam Newman

Profile Racing has been building high-end, race-worthy chromoly and aluminum parts since before BMX hit it big and before mountain bikes were but a glimmer in the Klunkers’ eyes. But it wasn’t bicycle parts that got the wheels turning—company founder Jim Alley opened his first motorsports racing shop in New Jersey in 1968 and a few years later moved his growing brand to Florida.

Join us for a garage sale and swap meet and make some room in the bike room for spring or find that item you’ve been looking for! Head on down to The Wheel Mill, the new indoor bike park being constructed in Pittsburgh, on Saturday, January 26, from Noon to 7 p.m.

The National Interscholastic Cycling Association Awards were established in 2010 to honor student-athletes, coaches, volunteers and partners that have made outstanding contributions toward the development of high school cycling and the national high school mountain biking movement. This year, awards were awarded to 13 individuals in 10 different categories that were selected from a field of more than 222 nominees from NICA Leagues across the

Harlan Price

By Mike Cushionbury.

French brand Commencal will be bringing its line back to the US after a several year absence. Best known for its mountain bikes, its line is expanding in to road and commuter bikes as well.

The return is thanks to a new distribution system based in Las Vegas, Nevada, in partnership with JM Gagne, which will allow consumer-direct sales.

Beginning immediately customers can place phone or email orders for 2013 models with an expected January or February delivery. Some 2012 models may be available immediately.

By the Dirt Rag staff

This is our first attempt at a holiday gift guide, and, in typical Dirt Rag fashion, we had to do it our way. We’ll share a dirty little secret with you: most magazines’ gift/buyer’s guides are not created based on the recommendations of riders, but by the wants and desires of advertisers.

By Matt Kasprzyk, 

If you like to trade the mud and gray skies of winter for florescent lights and gray floors, then Pittsburgh can soon accommodate. The town totes plenty of all the aforementioned and plenty of vacant warehouses.

By Gary J. Boulanger. Photos by Carmen Freeman-Rey.

German by birth, Austrian by nationality, Hans Rey has been an ambassador for adventure riding for nearly 25 years. Beginning as a trials competitor, he first shifted to extreme riding through exotic locales, then transitioned to a seasoned evangelist, all the while making films to bring the world along for the ride.

The popularity of enduro racing continues to rise, and a new series is poised to become the hottest ticket of 2013. 

Better head on over to your local shop and make nice. Some bike shops attending Interbike in 2013 will be allowed to invite their favorite customers to the annual tradeshow in Las Vegas, opening the door to consumers for the first time.

The limited-access initiative, called Interbike by Invitation, will allow registered retailers to invite customers to attend. These special invitees will be treated as special guests of that shop and will be afforded preferential treatment at the show.

Yes, Milwaukee. As in, Wisconson, where you don’t expect to hear about things like gravity riding and lift-served trails. But it’s true. A local developer is planning to biuld a recreation complex that includes baseball fields, snow sports, and mountain bike trails.

By Mike Cushionbury, photos by J. Andres Vargas.

By Maurice Tierney. Photos by Maurice from 2011. 

There’s something for everyone at the SF Bike Expo this weekend, November 10 and 11. If you are in the Bay Area and reading this, you need to be there.

Dirt Rag Magazine—the independent voice of mountain bike riders for more than two decades—is excited to announce Mike Cushionbury has joined the staff as Editor. He brings 20 years of industry experience to the role as the magazine continues to grow.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the Dirt Rag family. I’ve always been a friend and fan of the publication since day one so this is a truly great honor to be leading a group of core mountain bike riders who also happen to be the best and most creative people in the business,” he said.

From the team’s website:

By Adam Newman

Interbike can be a stressful time for exhibitors working hard on their booths, and attendees working hard to damage their livers, but for the cycling media, it’s just hard work. Trying to cover the entire show and still find time to sneak away for some of this elusive "fun" doesn’t always happen. 

By Adam Newman

650b

There’s not doubt we’re going to see a lot of "tweener" items at the show this year. Several bike brands including Norco, Rocky Mountain, KHS, Scott, and others have new models debuting. Both Fox and RockShox now have dedicated 650b forks and nearly ever major tire brand is expected to show new treads. In fact, the only real surprises might be what we don’t see. The Big 3 (Trek, Specialized, and Giant) are biding their time and slipping into the waters slowly.

Building on growing success and expansion, Dirt Rag and Bicycle Times magazines have created a new parent company, Rotating Mass Media LTD, to oversee a collection of growing products.

“We realized we are now more than just Dirt Rag, and we needed a new name—a new brand—to include all our efforts in the world of cycling,” said founder and Publisher, Maurice Tierney. “We didn’t get bought out by some corporation, we’re making it our own.”

Join our team of independent, hardworking bike geeks to spread our love of mountain biking far and wide. We’re looking for someone with a grounded understanding of how Dirt Rag serves our current readers, and a strong vision for where you think we should be headed. We’ll be placing a lot of weight on the strength of your vision, and its alignment with our vision, during this hiring process.

By Jeff Lockwood,

Thousands of bike industry insiders, retailers, and media poured through the aisles of the Messe in Friedrichshafen, Germany this past weekend to see what’s new for 2013. Attendees chowed on some true Bavarian meals and downed many hefeweizen beers. The cold rain may have dampened the farmlands around the convention hall, but it definitely didn’t ruin the atmosphere of the show. Here are some of the more interesting items we gathered over a few days.

The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship employes 15 full-time trail builders, has clocked in more than 30,000 volunteer hours, maintains 30 trails, has built 25 miles of new trails in the past year, and serves more than 200,000 riders each year in the Downieville and Lakes Basin areas of California. 

A 1983 Cunningham R1 built in Fairfax, Calif., for Charlie’s future wife, multiple NORBA champion Jacquie Phelan. Weight is 27 lbs.

By Gary J. Boulanger

Portland Design Works and the Northwest Trail Alliance recently to announce the grand opening of the Ventura Park Pump Track in Northeast Portland. The facility is the latest effort by the NWTA to increase access to and awareness for mountain biking in the Portland region. Late last year PDW donated $4,500 to the NWTA and Portland Parks and Recreation to pay for construction of the track.

CLIF Bar’s Meet the Moment program invites outdoor enthusiasts to inspire and be inspired, empowering them to Protect the Places We Play by shar

Crankworx Les 2 Alpes will launch July 9-15 and a partnership with Red Bull Media House will share the action from France with the rest of the world. Red Bull Media House will power live webcasts of three events; the SRAM Dual Speed & Style on July 12, the Teva Best Trick Showdown on July 13 and the Crankworx Les 2 Alpes Slopestyle presented by iXS on July 14.

The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) chose Santa Fe for its 2012 World Summit, October 10-13, 2012. Coming to town will be 400 of the most dedicated, experienced, and well-traveled mountain bikers in the country including national cycling journalists, bike manufactures, and IMBA members.

Outside Television today announced a long-term programming partnership with Red Bull Media House that includes original series, films, and future productions involving Red Bull athletes and the two partners’ complementary television, print, online, mobile, and social media activities.

Join in as the creators of "Ride the Divide" take you on an adventure that will leave you with an eager desire to chart your own course to far away lands or simply to discover with eyes wide open what’s right around the bend.

For the third year in a row, the world’s best professional mountain bikers will converge on Windham Mountain as the town hosts the eighth in a series of 10 World Cup events held all over the world. The 2012 edition of the RockyRoads.net UCI Mountain Bike World Cup presented by Shimano makes 10 stops worldwide with the Windham event taking place from June 30 through July 1.

By Adam Newman

Foundry Cycles was cool enough to stop by our office last fall and let us take the first spin on its upcoming carbon-fiber hardtail, the Router. It was expected to be available by now, but some manufacturing issues have led Foundry to cancel the model outright, citing a commitment to quality and a replacement model that is ahead of schedule.

We set up our photo studio in the back room of the Sacramento Convention Center during the 2012 North American Handmade Bicycle Show and sat down with the builders to get the behind-the-scenes story of their creations.

See more coverage from NAHBS 2012.

We might be a bit bias since our founder and publisher, Maurice Tierney is an inductee (Class of 2002), but the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame is an important collection of the history and personalities of our sport.

Now they’re accepting nominations for the Class of 2012. Below you’ll find the instructions for nominating someone you know. The deadline is April 15, so get to it. Know of anyone you think deserves to be inducted? Let us know in the comments below.

By Josh Patterson, photo by Robert Ligon

From your iPhone case to your tattoos, everything these days is about personalization. Santa Cruz Bikes announced this week that they’re going to extend that trend to their aluminum bikes too, thanks to their Custom Color Choice Program, or CCCP.

We got a ton of new info from Shimano today, including the details of the redesigned SLX group, additions to the XT and XTR groups and some all-new wheels.

Built to perform like XT and XTR, SLX now includes many of the same Trail options including award-winning Shadow Plus RD technology, and three new Rider Tuned 2×10 crank set options are available on the new style SLX crank. Look for it to be available in July.

Dirt Rag and Bicycle Times magazines are seeking a West Coast based sales executive for our print and digital publications. This individual will cultivate sales for both print magazines, their related websites, and email newsletters. We’ve been at this for 23 years and still retain the DIY ethic that got us to where we are today. Don’t mistake our irreverence for ineptitude, our employees are expected to operate at a high level with little need for management.

By Eric McKeegan

An unseasonably warm weekend welcomed bike dealers (and a few media folks) from around the country to Minnesota for Frostbike, Quality Bicycle Products’ annual dealer expo. More than 150 companies were on hand to show off the goods and services you might see this spring in your favorite local bike shop.

The Southeast Bike Expo will be bringing manufacturers from all over the country to show and demo their products February 25 and 26 in Conyers, Georgia. Companies like Trek, Niner, Specialized, Scott, Jamis, Felt, Tifosi, Pearl Izumi, Ergon, Maxxis, Shimano, and SRAM will be there to show off their latest and greatest products. Many more have committed.

Niner’s expanding line of RDO (Race Day Optimized) products got a big new addition with the unveiling of the Air9 Carbon RDO, an even lighter and more refined version of the Air9 Carbon.

Thanks to the year-long efforts of many dedicated individuals and Mountain Bike Idaho, the state is the first in the nation to feature a mountain bike-themed license plate. Under the law passed by the Idaho Legislature, this new mountain bike-themed plate will benefit all trail users of Idaho’s 17,000-mile recreational trail system.

The 2012 crankbrothers dreambikes auction is off to an exciting start. The total raised for Wheels 4 Life is already up to $19,227. Thatʼ s enough to purchase 192 bikes for people in third world countries to use as transportation to work, to school, or to receive health care. We are already at 38 percent of our goal to raise $50,000, and we still have nine beautiful dreambikes that will be auctioned over the next few months.

On Monday, Ethan from Maverick Bikes posted on MTBR.com the following: 

Its time for me to post a short message regarding Maverick. As of Jan 1st Maverick has ceased operations. Paul Turner has reclaimed the brand and licenses. What he will do with it remains up in the air, some rumors have floated around but none for me to add to! I don’t think the technology will disappear, it’s too good and other manufactures are looking for ways to beat their competition.

By Adam Newman

Specialized is warning local bike shops that a new app from Amazon.com could seriously undercut their business. In a letter to dealers from Specialized’s founder and president Mike Sinyard warns that the app, which allows customers to scan a bar code and find an item for sale online and make the purchase from their phone – often cheaper than in the store – would effectively turn a local bike shop into a fitting room for online retailers.

Vittoria Cycling Shoes’ US Sales Manager Michael Musil shows the staff the 2012 shoe lineup.

By Adam Newman

SCOTT Sports announced today the formation of a new XC team based in North America. The Team, named SCOTT– 3Rox Racing Team, will include Geoff Kabush who will target the UCI World Cup series, the 2012 Summer Olympics and select North American events aboard the SCOTT Spark and Scale mountain bikes.

The complete team consists of:

You might have thought we’d never get here, but here we are: A 26/29 comparison test. No, we’re not going to pick which one is "better", but with Specialized offering its legendary Stumpjumper in both flavors for 2012, it’s a great time to compare and contrast the two models and see how they fit with our riding style.

We chose the Stumpjumper FSR EVO models for their bumped up travel and all-mountain versatility. The bruisers of the Stumpy line, the EVO bikes have different geometry and parts specs for more aggressive riding. Check out the specs below.

Ok, it’s not a bicycle product, but it’s close enough. The bike world’s favorite brewery, New Belgium, announed it is launching an all-new brew called Shift. It’s a pale lager named after the brewery’s tradition of offering employees a free beer after each shift (and obviously a nod to their cycling fans, with a chain and ring motif on the can)

Forbes Magazine is known for their rankings of the richest individuals, the "most powerful people" and more. Their latest ranking of the "most promising companies" includes two brands from the outdoors industry: Niner Bikes (No. 63) and Contour Electronics (No. 14).

How do they come up with these rankings? 

Pedal-Driven: The Official Trailer from Howell at the Moon Productions on Vimeo.

By Jon Pratt

Portland isn’t know for being the most accomodating city for mountain bikers, but finding a place to ride is about to get a bit easier with the construction on a new indoor park dubbed the Lumberyard.

By Adam Newman

Sidi might be a household name in the cycling business, but as a share of the shoe market, they are a surprisingly small player. With most cycling shoes selling in the $99-$150 range, Sidi refuses to compromise quality and fit and thus commands a higher price premium.

Between 2007 and 2011, Rachel, Dan and Gee claimed no fewer than 52 victories, 17 of which were World Cup events.

Obvious highlights include world championships won by Gee and Rachel in Val di Sole in 2008. That same year, during the Vallnord World Cup, on COMMENCAL’s home turf, Gee and Rachel dominated the DH while Dan, the eldest of the three, won the 4X final. A truly epic weekend, almost beyond belief.

By Adam Newman

Two interesting announcements this week regarding online bike sales. For years online retailers have been taking a larger and larger piece of the pie in accessories, apparel and components. Now the industry is faced with deciding when, if, or how to sell complete bikes online.

Born and bred in Anchorage, Alaska, FatBack knows a thing or two about snow bikes. In a continued effort to bring as much of its manufacturing to the USA as possible, aluminum frames now join their steel and titanium counterparts in domestic production.

Details include an oversized heatube, direct mount front derailleur, new dropouts, and clearance for Surly’s new 4.5-inch Big Fat Larry tires.

As mountain bike component standards inevitably evolve, it comes as no surprise that builders would begin incorporating new technologies into their products. Mike Ahrens of Ahrens Cycles blogged this week about developing a hooded fork dropout for 15mm QR.

By Karl Rosengarth

Photos by Adam Newman and Justin Steiner

Read Part 1 of our report on Specialized and 29ers.

Words by Josh Patterson

Photos by Emmanuel Molle and Josh Patterson

Printing in 3D might not be a new technology, but we just saw this amazing video of how Trek has put it to use in their prototype and R&D facitilities to cut the turnaround time for new parts from weeks to just hours.

For example, the backlog on their CNC facility is running 28 days, but the designers in this video can build a prototype rocker arm in just a few hours. The machines are even capable of building objects with moving parts and from two different materials, as you can see in the second video.

Words and photos by Adam Hunt

You may have never heard of Paragon Machine Works. That’s okay, they’ve probably never heard of you either. Chances are if you’ve purchased a bike from a custom frame builder, you are already using some of their products.

Read Part One of Team Dicky’s exploits at Interbike here.

By Rich Dillen

By Rich Dillen

By Jeff Lockwood

By Jeff Lockwood

The annual bicycle trade show circus season opened this week in Friedrichshafen, Germany. Eurobike can boast being the largest show of its kind. As such, the show floor scenery is diverse, interesting and colorful. And since Eurobike precedes the Interbike trade show in Las Vegas by a couple weeks, many companies use Eurobike to unveil new product.

Hometown?

Sioux City, Iowa

Current location?

Hayward, CA

What do you do for/with/to bicycles?

I am the Global-Go-To Guy at Panaracer tires. I help design and market bicycle tires

What’s the best thing about your job?

Hometown?

Born in Oceanside, Long Island, New York. Lived in Valley Stream, Elmont, Smithtown, Coram, Hauppauge and back to Smithtown – all on Long Island. Then lived in Pickerington, Ohio for the past 14 years.

Current location?

Beautiful Peachtree City, Georgia. It has over 98 miles of paved bike/golf cart/running paths in the community. Nice!

What do you do for/with/to bicycles?

Bicycle Retailer and Industry News recently put together this map of bike companies’ US headquarters and where their products are made. Obviously not every bike brand has made it onto the map, but it gives you a sense just how much foreign manufacturing is dominating the industry and just how global our economy has become.

By Josh Patterson

Today was my first day at the Scott Bicycles press camp, in Sun Valley, Idaho. Accompanying our merry band of journalists was none other than Mountain Bike Hall of Fame’er, frame builder, and founder/component designer of Ritchey Designs, Tom Ritchey.

By Josh Patterson

By Adam Newman

Carbon fiber isn’t just for risk-averse racers any more. That’s the ethos behind Foundry Cycles, a new brand specializing in hard-working carbon frames for hard-working riders.

Professional mountain biker Alex Prochazka, who goes by the name Alex Pro, seems to have thrown away his career after several photos of him rioting in the aftermath of the Vancouver Canucks’ loss in the Stanley Cup Finals surfaced online.

By Justin Steiner

Quality Bicycle Products, the bicycle industry’s largest wholesale distributor and parent company of Surly and Salsa bikes, pulled the cover off their new carbon fiber forks and accessories brand, Whisky Parts Co.

In late July they will be offering a complete line of high-performance road, cross and mountain bike forks, with carbon handlebars, seatposts and bottle cages following in the fall.

By Adam Newman

For the past decade or so, Mavic has moved its thinking that bicycle wheels are made from individual components to a philosophy of "wheel systems". Since a change to any piece – hubs, spokes and rim – affects the other, the French manufacturer designs and builds wheels with all the components working together to provide the best ride.

By Justin Steiner

Shimano’s venerable XT group is turning 30. To celebrate, Shimano has infused the groupo with a host of new technology trickled down from last year’s completely redesigned XTR. We briefly covered the group’s public introduction at Sea Otter, and I’m at Lake Tahoe to put the new group through its paces. Shimano invited a group of us media hacks out to take what may well be the first public rides aboard the 2012 group.

Yeti’s president  discusses the new Switch suspension platform and the new SB-66 all-mountain bike

By Josh Patterson

First off, there were rumors and speculation about a new suspension platform being developed but Yeti did a surprisingly good job of keeping things under wraps. How hard is it to keep something like this a secret in this day and age?

Specialized has now joined the growing green movement with an Eco-Index initiative that will evaluate their products during design and production, and joining a carbon-fiber recycling program.

By Kyle Lawrence

SRAM could raise as much as $300 million in an intial public offering, according to Bicycle Retailer, after the company filed preliminary paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The number of shares and the prices have not been determined or disclosed, but it was revealed that the stock ticker would be "SRAM". The rapidly growing company reported net sales of $524.1 million in 2010, and has grown at a rate of about 16 percent annually in the past four years. The company estimates it holds about 15 percent of the $3.5 billion bicycle components market.

A dozen Race Face employees are back at work at their desks this week after the company’s new owner, Chris Tutton, purchased it out of receivership, Bicycle Retailer is reporting. Tutton is currently the director of OE sales at Easton-Bell and is the former vice president of sales at Race Face.

“We purchased everything, the trademarks, intellectual property, buildings, machines, raw material and inventory. We expect to ship Race Face product on Friday,” he said.

Editor’s note: Freeride superstar Darcy Turenne spoke with us about her impact on the development of the Vixa, which we reviewed in Issue 156. You can learn more about Darcy at her web site, hellodarcy.com.

What specific input did you have in the development of the Vixa?

Trek has instituted a new recycling program at its Waterloo, Wisconson, manufacturing facility for all the scrap carbon fiber created by domestic production. Trek has been building with carbon since 1992.

Discarded trimmings, damaged frames and other parts are collected by Trek and sent to Materials Innovation Technologies, a South Carolina-based company that specializes in recycling carbon fiber.

Though most Trek bicycles are now built overseas, some high-end and prototype production is still handled in its Wisconson hometown.

Chris Currie, founder of the bicycle equipment retailer Speedgoat Cycles announced today that he was leaving the brand he began 14 years ago.

In a short note released today, Currie say as of May 1 he would no long have any active stake or operational role in the company, which was aquired by Spire Holdings LLC in 2010.

By Jeff Thrasher

We’re heading west for the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California, this week.

By Eric McKeegan

So recently I headed down to Birmingham, Alabama, for the Michelin Press Camp. I don’t know much about the state, and I’m pretty sure the last time I was there involved old vans, good-cop/bad-cop routines and a drug-sniffing dog. I’m a few years and a few haircuts removed from then, which is a good thing, since the fancy pants golf resort we stayed in might have thrown a younger me out. Anyway, other than one presentation, our time at the resort was mostly spent eating, drinking and sleeping, a fine thing since I don’t know a nine iron from a polo mallet.

Note: You can read about Santa Cruz’s other new offering, the Blur Carbon here.

(L to R: Santa Cruz staff Josh, Nick, Ariel, some fellow journalists, and Mike, giving his "serious face")

By Karen Brooks

We traveled to Western North Carolina this past weekend to visit two more companies for our Made in America series and naturally, get some riding done.

Online retailer Competitive Cyclist is best known for selling, but in this case it was doing the buying, having purchased Merlin Bikes from American Bicycle Group.

Merlin has been a pioneer in the development of titanium frames since 1986 and will reach a broader audience through the new venture. Currently the Merlin web site simply features a logo with he words "Brand rebirth underway".

The rumors you’ve been hearing are true. Race Face is out of production and likely to be liquidated. A reciever took over the company’s assets from its bank, and in a letter to Race Face employees dated March 14 the reciever, Grant Thornton Limited, announced that it was terminating all Race Face employees at its New Westminster factory, and at its operations in Taiwan.

Andrew Watson of Watson Cycles is a young builder from Connecticut who brought this snowman to the show. It puts big feet on the ground with 3.7” Surly tires and luggage racks, but unlike many bikes with those features, it isn’t merely a pack mule. Andrew calls it “my utilitarian utility bike,” but it’s pure mountain bike too, with modest chainstays, derailleur drivetrain, and plenty of standover height.

Listen to Andrew go over some more of the details in our interview.

The Industry Insider Series is our look behind the curtain at the folks who keep the bicycle industry rolling. This interview features Paul Sadoff, who has been building custom bicycles under the Rock Lobster brand for more than 30 years.

Hometown? 

Los Angeles, Calif.

We’ve just gotten some new product updates here at Dirt Rag HQ from Shimano for 2012. Some of it is completely new and some is trickle-down technology from higher spec components. Anyway you slice it, it looks cool to us. Here’s what we can share with you:

SLX group: SLX brakes receive many of the updates that show up for Deore XT. With Servo-Wave, Ice Technologies brake pads, oversized 22mm ceramic pistons, and the one-way bleed integrated into the new design. The brake lever mounts are also Ispec compatible for reduced system weight and simplicity.

Frostbike is Quality Bicycle Products annual in-house tradeshow. If you’re not familiar with Quality Bicycle Products—known as QBP by bicycle shop employees the world over—you’ve certainly had dealings with them via your local bike shop. QBP bills itself as "the shop behind America’s shops" they supply small parts, service items, and even complete bicycles to over 5,000 shops in North America. Frostbike is a chance to get the scoop on what you’ll be seeing in your local bike shop in the year to come.

This episode of the Industry Insider profile series features Steve Garro, the man behind Coconino Cycles.

Hometown?

Tuba City, AZ. {for reals}

Current location?

Flagstaff, AZ

What do you do for/with/to bicycles?

This episode of the Industry Insider profile series features Steve Garro, the man behind Coconino Cycles.

Hometown?

Tuba City, AZ. {for reals}

Current location?

Flagstaff, AZ

What do you do for/with/to bicycles?

Dan Powell

Hometown?

Born in Detroit, Michigan. But I grew up in Lansing and went to college in Marquette, so really I consider the entire state of Michigan my hometown. Michigan is America’s high-five you know.

Current location?

Portland, Oregon.

What do you do for/with/to bicycles?

Custom bike builder Independent Fabrications, a long-time Massachusets icon, has announced it will move its operations to New Hampshire in the coming months.

Its new facility is a 200-year-old mill in Newmarket, N.H., about an hour north of Boston. The space will allow the company to include a showroom and a fitting area, said IF President Gary Smith in a press release.

Freeride Entertainment, an action and extreme sports filmmaking company, is taking freeriding back to its roots with Where the Trail Ends, a feature film based on natural terrain riding in international locations.

The project started deep in the Gobi Desert this year with riders Darren Berrecloth, Kurt Sorge, and James Doerfling. Freeride is keeping quiet about the other locations, but you can use your imagination…

The good folks at Airborne Bicycles stopped by at Dirt Rag HQ this week to show off their revamped model lineup for Spring 2011.

Sounds like a cool holiday gift to us. Ikea announced last week that all 12,400 of its U.S. employees would recieve a new bike courtesy of the Sweedish furniture retailer.

The company’s self-congradulatory press release cites all the benefits of cycling as its reasons for the gift, including excercise and sustainability. Certainly two great causes a company would like to be associated with. Though Ikea hasn’t always played nice with the cycling community.

Editor’s note: Sal Ruibal covered endurance sports for USA Today for more than 20 years, including more Olympic Games, Tours de France and other sports than he’s probably like to admit. In 2007 he was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame for his coverage of a sport that had previously been considered too far outside the mainstream.

As many readers may have heard, things are not looking good for Titus Bikes.

The company has been taken over by its primary lender, Factors Southwest, who is now shopping for a new buyer, Bicycle Retailer and Industry News is reporting. Factors Southwest says it is not expecting to break up the company or sell of its assets.

Retailers were notified last week that all remaining stock would be liquidated, but that has not yet happened and most are still waiting for news. 

The Industry Insider series is a peek behind the scenes at the men and women of the cycling industry who deserve a little time in the spotlight. This week we profile our good friend Jeff Lockwood. 

Hometown?

Hazleton, Pennsylvania

Current location?

I’m in kind of a weird, lonely and transient place between: Antwerp, Belgium; Wayne, Pennsylvania; and Tempe, Arizona.

What do you do for/with/to bicycles?

Tony Pereria and his hand-made city bike.

Touring the builders’ shops at the Oregon Handmade Bicyce Show

By Philip Williamson

[Excerpted from Bike Tinker.]

After Interbike organizers announced the bicycle industry’s largest tradeshow would be moving to Anaheim, Calif., the reaction from exhibitors and retailers alike was a collective groan. 

But the industry can rest easy now that the show has reconsidered. The 2011 show will take place September 12-16 in Las Vegas.

"The announcement that we were moving the show dates and location elicited a very real response that surveys and discussions alone couldn’t accomplish," said Andy Tompkins, Interbike show director.

It’s going to take weeks to unravel all the storylines coming out of the show, but watch this space as we continue to bring you all the goodies from Last Vegas. 

Photo galleries

Day 1

Day 2

The all-new Ellsworth Evolve

More bikes and beers, sun and sand from Day 2 of the Interbike Outdoor Demo Day.

Be sure to check out our gallery from today with even more cool bikes and accessories.

Responding to requests from readership and advertisers, Bicycle Times magazine will increase frequency to six issues for 2011, up from the previous two years as a quarterly. “Good gracious, we’ve seen tremendous growth in readership,” says Publisher Maurice Tierney, “and we’re ready to meet the demand for more issues in 2011.”

You don’t have to wait for Interbike to see the new stuff from everyone’s favorite grumpy bike company, Surly. 

First up is an all-new model: the Troll. Designed as a commuter/adventure-tourer/do-it-all kind of bike. It’s got the same geometry as a 1×1 and has a 100mm suspension-corrected fork. The dropouts are horizontal with a derailleur hanger, and feature mounts designed specifically for the Trailer. (The what? Read below) Looks like a very cool commute-crushing machine. Frameset: $495.

Women may make up a fraction of the mountain bike population, but there is no doubt their numbers are growing steadily. 

To help understand why women ride, what motivates them and what they’d like to change, Sacred Rides Mountain Bike Adventures, a tour company, interviewed 710 female riders from around the world through their Facebook page. 

Some of the key findings from the survey include:

Don’t you know?It’s the place to goWhere a bike show will explodeNear the San Francisco Bay if I may be so boldCalled the SF Bike ExpoIn November it’s summerIt will not be a bummerIt takes place on the 6thAnd will be really sick!(That’s HELLA sick, in Bay-speak)Cyclists of all stylesWill come for a whileCheck out ...