Mt. Tam DH helmet cam

Check out this Mt. Tam DH helmet cam footage from Point One Racing athlete Max Houtzager.

Turkey Day and the Snow - Max Houtzager

Looks like Winter may have come a little earlier than planned, meaning no Downieville or Ashland shredding unless the snow spontaneously melts. That just means more riding other sick spots and SNOWBOARDING! Thanksgiving break this week = only two days of school, so I made the most of it.

I can’t not go snowboarding when it is supposed to be clear skies, 90” combined of fresh from one storm, only 16ºF, AND no school. So Tuesday night I finished off the WA team night ride, scarfed down a burrito from Mi Pueblo, and drove to Grass Valley to stay with David Lowe and the rest of his friends. Although the traffic getting to and from Tahoe the next day was the worst I’ve ever been in, I got a solid amount of pow pow in without tiring myself out for the Turkey Day Ride the next day.

Getting ready in the morning for the Appetite Seminar was interesting, since it was 32º out. I thought, “Now I am going to go biking, not snowboarding, in similar temperatures, except I have use layers of spandex?”.

It ended up not being too bad although I got really hot. Besides the fact that it’s a nice change to rip fireroads as fast as possible, the traction was like velcro where there was no mud (especially with Bronson-Nano as usual), and you get to see every mountain biker you know -about 1000- in one ride (whether racing around them on downhills or saying hi while stopped), most of the WA team was back together which was cool. We also finished off with the end of Tamarancho, and I was in the zone. I couldn’t of clipped in any faster on corners or slid around switchbacks more perfectly. Fireroads are fun, but singletracks are what it’s all about. Now to finish off the rest of my break, maybe race CCCX DH on Sunday, hopefully not spend too much time on UC apps... Oh yeah, and Turkey Day Dinner was amazing. I spent all afternoon cooking/baking and am now a pie master. Check it out HERE

Banshee Legend MK-2

Speaking of Team Geronimo, Sicklines is working on another fantastic project bike, the Banshee Legend MK-2. Check out the complete build and review here.

Team Geronimo's End of Season Re-Cap

Hello from Team Geronimo!

It's been an incredibly busy few months and we'd like to catch you up to speed on TG's latest developments and successes.

Below is a quick list of highlights following the conclusion of the MSC series, including media appearances and general team news:

Brian Buell came on incredibly strong toward the end of the season, racking up several wins. His amazing results earned him appearances in a few of the professionally made MSC series videos: Action kicks off around the 3:00 mark in this video from Keystone, and concludes with a few clips showing Brian's win. In the Telluride video, Brian has a short interview around 0:50 and a few riding clips. The conclusion of the Winter Park video features Brian's BIG win in the series finals.

Brian took another win at the Oredigger Challenge at Sol Vista, a local collegiate event. Here he is after the win. Thumbs up!



Following Brian's win at Sol Vista, Brian, Mike and Brandon spent two days filming in the fall colors. This footage will appear as a Spotlight Feature on Vital MTB in the coming weeks. Here's a quick clip from the film shoot and a few teaser pics:





Cody returned to Australia, where he is preparing for the upcoming Australian National Series. Here's a great video capturing Cody and his good friend Ryan on some Aussie turf. He has also been riding/racing motocross as a cross training measure.



Following Interbike, both Brian and Mike headed off to the Utah desert for a 3-day photo/video shoot. The videographers were aided by the use of a helicopter, so it was an amazing experience for both of them. Here is a full photo gallery from the trip. The final video is still being processed, and we're anxious to see what turns up. A few random clips can be found in this rough video preview. Nick Simcik also captured some of the action in his webisode.







Brian took a few weeks off and headed to Mexico for a break before winter hit. Here he is enjoying a fresh coconut for breakfast:



Mike helped with a Vital MTB review of the Leatt brace. We used a pretty unique helmet cam setup ;) The test video is the second video on this page.



A full-page photo of Cody appeared in a recent edition of Mountain Flyer Magazine, thanks to photographer Eddie Clark:



Graeme got his cast off and started the rehab process around interbike. During that time, he attended a few events as a spectator and to lend a helping hand to his local friends/teams. He's now back on the bike 'til the snow hits. Can you tell which one was broken?



Brandon's wrist has *finally* healed to the point where he was able to ride again with the use of a brace. Much love to Allsport Dynamics for getting him on two wheels again! He's starting slow because he still has very limited range of motion, but he is getting there.



Keep an eye on Team Geronimo for their 2011 team announcement, as well as continued updates over the Winter!

Best time of the year: Fall - Max Houtzager

Perfect surf, tacky trails, windless road rides. Not too mention all the food (pomegranates, PERSIMMONS, squash, pumpkin, candy corn, Halloween and Thanksgiving).

I’ve been soaking it all up! Started base training, meaning some real hours (about 14) on the bike and it feels good. Been riding my Epic a lot, mainly just because it’s so capable and easy to climb. Got 2/4 of my trips out of the way so far (Tahoe and Santa Cruz), leaving just Ashland and Downieville hopefully before Winter sets in.



I went to Santa Cruz for the day with Bobby Zidek and Tony Smith, picking up Will Patterson from Stanford and meeting Nick Newcomb and Will Curtis at UCSC for some upper campus SHRALPING, Whole Athlete-Specialized style! It was pouring rain, but that would not stop us. We high posted all the same trails I’ve sessioned before on my dh bike, but in the SUPER wet! Too many berms and turns to count = too much fun. Plus being with everyone on the team again, hanging out and getting some bomb burritos afterwards made the day. Still running the Bronson-Nano combo and my bike corners on rails (mud and hardpack)!



Tahoe, more like Grass Valley, was the best last minute decision I’ve made in a while. Skipping my physics exam to drive up with Daniel Thomson (Redwood MTB) to stay and ride with David Lowe was an all around epic experience. From fro-yo, to 4 wheeling in the mud at night, to doing 8 shuttle runs in an hour at one spot and 2 at another, to ending with some fine Indian food, I had a blast. the first spot was steep, loamy, sweeping, flowy and a little rocky, while the second was just fresh berm slapping the whole way down with some jumps and drops mixed in. And the dirt was like CLAY too.

Turner DHR final specs

Last month we told you about a pending Turner DHR build and test from Sicklines. This bike features our new Split-Second Infinite DM stem, giving riders reach and height adjust-ability depending on their riding preference or which trail/course they are on. Here it is in the flesh, click on the photos below to read more about the parts spec and their real world weights.

China Jiangsu Bicycle Tradeshow

Last month our South Korean distributor EXO attended the 28th annual Chinese Jiangsu international bicycle tradeshow. Check out some of the attached photos...

CCCX DH #5

CCCX DH returns to Toro Park! The Fall/Winter series has been combined with the Spring/Summer series earlier this season for a year-long winner take all event. Last month a race was canceled due to conflicts with the collegiate MTB championship, so this past weekend became the first of three for the series finale.

Torrential rain brought low visibility, but great traction to the bone dry hills of Toro Park. Fortunately the wind did not play a factor, only the rain which forced a lot of riders to race without goggles. Points will be doubled for these final races, therefore making it every bit as important to be there racing. Best of two runs also became the topic of hot discussion and speculation, with the rain, it made it difficult for riders to want to do a second run. However, those who did, certainly had the option of letting it all hang out to chase a fast time.

Ben Vickery opting for a second run managed a great time and a top 10 in pro!


John Hauer showed up on his new KHS bike and put down a clean run, 2nd on the day in Pro class for him.


Co-founder Tim Lukko struggled with visibility, as did most of the other racers. Finishing out towards the bottom of his class.


Ian Massey had some problems with staying on his bike, a couple crashed knocked him off the podium, but still got some good points.


Alex Amaral also had a crash and flat tire, however with two more races left, he will still be in the points chase for first.


Mike Amaral showing everybody how far you can launch off this jump. Finishing in the top three secured him more points for the championship.


Founder Jimmy Amaral had a fairly clean run and therefore a good result, top 3 in Pro will keep him in first place overall.


Results

Intense M9 Renault

Check out part 2 of the custom Intense Formula One inspired M9's. Proudly made in the USA, along with our Podium Pedals.

Transition TR450 review

Back in March, we told you about a pending review of the Transition TR450, well Sicklines spent the summer testing it out and putting not only the bike, but our Podium pedals to the test! Check out the full review here.

Intense Tazer HT

Check out Leigh Donovan's custom champagne Tazer HT, just in time for Ray's indoor bike park opening weekend. Complete with white Podium pedals!