Recently on Cyclingnews.com |
 Giro finale Photo ©: Bettini |
MTB index page for all MTB content
MTB News & racing round-up for October 2, 2005Edited by Steve Medcroft Welcome to our regular round-up of what's happening in the dirt. Feel free to send feedback, news and gossip to mtb@cyclingnews.com Shonny shines in 2005: an interview with Shonny VanlandinghamShonny Vanlandingham is the definition of a professional athlete and deserves the term for a lot of reasons - she's naturally gifted, trains intelligently and consistently and manages her diet. She knows how to recover, has a competitive spirit and carries herself with an air of confidence and calm that lets you know that mountain biking is not only her sport and her passion, but her job. Cyclingnews' Steve Medcroft spoke with Vanlandingham about becoming the best women's mountain biker in the US in 2005. Vanlandingham also deserves the term of professional athlete because when her professionalism is tested, she seems to always rise to the challenge. In the US National Championship Cross Country, for example, when she flatted in the final mile and lost a dominant lead to finish fourth after walking her bike across the line, it took focus to stand at the finish, wipe the disappointment from her face and congratulate Mary McConneloug on her win. On the NORBA circuit she rose to the challenge race after race. After a DNF in the season opener in Texas, she only ever yielded first place twice in seven more cross country races. That menas five wins in seven races - a great winning record for a year. Speaking of the number of wins; the biggest example of her professionalism in 2005 came time and again when almost everyone in cycling referred to her number of wins as one less than it truly was. The confusion lay in the scoring of the second NORBA weekend in Phoenix, Arizona. Top official points in the Cross Country series scoring actually went to the winner of that weekend’s three-race omnium (Trek’s Sue Haywood), not the first woman across the line in the cross country (Vanlandingham). That confusion was so pervasive, Vanlandingham found herself reminding and correcting everyone from journalists, PA announcers, podium presenters, sponsors and other riders. Like a true professional, she smiled and nodded understandingly when everyone made the same mistake over and over, and was patient when she brought the distinction of her accomplishments to the person making it. Read the complete Shonny Vanlandingham interview here. Interbike show coverageWe recently spent an exhausting whirlwind Interbike tour. In five days, we covered the Outdoor Demo in Bouder, City, Nevada and trolled the 306,000 Interbike Trade Show floor at the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. There's was a lot of buzz for mountian biking at the show and we found plenty of interesting products and people to bring to you. Check back to Cyclingnews for additional coverage as we work our way through the piles of information we gathered at the show.
Trek's new Elite 9.9 hardtail: A new era in hardtail performanceOne notable absence from this year's Interbike exhibition is Trek. The company took the opportunity to gather industry journalists at the 2005 US National Mountain Bike Championships in Mammoth Mountain, California and unveil an evolution in their hardtail mountain bike line. Cyclingnews' Steve Medcroft was there to see the new 9.9, which replaces Trek's OCLV carbon honeycomb-based 9.8.
Trek's Brand Manager Zapata Espinoza said that the initiatives that led to the enhancements in the 9.9 came from the top of the company. "We wanted to bring something new to our hardtail line," he said at the meeting. "The goals were to build a frame at least 300 grams lighter than the 9.8 (the 17.5" version of the new frame weighs 1,250g) that rode a little less harsh, to improve wheel clearance for larger-width tyres and make use of some of the things we learned in the Madone project." The most significant thing Trek learned with the Madone was to use OCLV 110 Carbon and build the frame around molded lugs. The one-piece head tube/top tube lug, the bottom bracket lug and a seat tube/down tube lug make up the major joints in the frame. By hand-laying these lugs in one piece, Trek design engineer Scott Neilson said, Trek gains "greater control over the properties of the front end of the bike". The 9.9 is an evolution of Trek's original all-carbon hardtail, the 9.8, which debuted in 1999 and hadn't changed significantly in six years. "The 9.8 was used by championship-calibre riders like Travis Brown, Ruthie Matthes, Allison Sydor and Roland Green to win everything from World Cup, world championship and national championship titles," explained Espinoza. Read the entire Trek 9.9 carbon hardtail roll-out here. The season's over but things don't stop: Gunn-Rita Dahle diary
New things to doThat just about finishes the 2005 season! And now several weeks of work with a new focus await us. We're very much looking forward to something different after many months of focusing totally on training and competing nearly 24 hours a day. We're expecting some really busy weeks, with many big challenges on the schedule. I'm sitting at the airport in Copenhagen as I write. In a couple of hours we'll be heading to China and Beijing. Competition is over for the season, but we need to keep the wheels turning, so we have the bikes along with us. The programme for the coming week is to check out the Olympic conditions - the race course, the competition - along with some photography on the Great Wall of China, press conferences, promotional work for Merida China, and probably a whole load of other exciting things. It's the Birkebeiner organisation that invited us along to Beijing, and with several other groups have arranged an MTB race this coming Sunday. Read the entire Gunn-Rita Dahle here.
IMBA News:IMBA Canada launches membership drive - A membership campaign to recruit 1,000 new members before the end of 2005 is the new focus for IMBA Canada. Mountain bikers are being urged to support the non-profit organization by joining via the IMBA Canada website. The International Mountain Bicycling Association's Canadian arm has grown steadily since its launch in 2004. It boasts nearly 800 individual members and a network of more than 70 affiliated mountain biking clubs nationwide. IMBA's worldwide mission is to create, enhance and preserve trail opportunities for mountain bikers. "We need more members to effectively lead the fight for trail access in Canada," says IMBA Canada coordinator Mark Schmidt. "Our first year in business has been a success, but more members equals more influence. And that's essential for those locations where mountain biking trail access is threatened." The list of IMBA Canada's recent accomplishments is impressive. In the past year they've:
"There are 100 days between Sept. 23 and Dec. 31, and we need 1,000 mountain bikers to join IMBA Canada in that time," says IMBA Canada's Schmidt. "I urge riders to step forward and become part of our effort. We need you!" Learn about IMBA Canada membership at: www.imba.com/canada. 2006 Trailbuilding Schools - The Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crews are going strong in 2005, and planning is underway for another big year in 2006. IMBA's Crews have led more than 1,000 trail projects nationwide since the program debuted in 1997. Most Trail Care Crew visits last four days, allowing time to assess trails, host an evening event at a bike shop, conduct a two-day Trailbuilding School and join local riders on the trails. The visits become more popular each year: Over 200 IMBA-affiliated clubs, land management agencies, and other trail-user groups applied for a visit last year. Only 70 slots are available, so applicants are urged to contact IMBA as soon as possible. The deadline for applications is Nov. 1, 2005. Visit www.imba.com/tcc/visit.html to learn more about applying for a Trail Care Crew visit. Smith Optics rewards IMBA upgrades - During the 2005 Interbike show, Smith Optics launched the national IMBA Upgrade Reward program, essentially doling out a new pair of interchangeable performance riding glasses to any card-carrying IMBA member who stepped up their annual commitment. To be eligible, current IMBA members just needed to elevate their membership from either Basic, Supporting, Big Wheel, Family, or Fat Tire Friend to the level of Trail Builder; or from Trail Builder to Silver Saddle; or from Silver Saddle to Singletrack Society.
Global MTB racing round-up
Subaru Interactive @ Docklands 12-hour, Aus (NE), September 17: Full results & photos
MTBA has designated October 2nd as "Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day".Like most of the rest of the world kids in Australia are suffering from inactivity. The number of overweight and obese Australian children and adolescents has doubled in the last 15 years. It is estimated that between 20 and 25 percent of children and adolescents are now overweight or obese. More concerning is that being overweight and obese are major risk factors for chronic diseases including diabetes, heart attack, stroke and some cancers. Mountain biking is an activity that can help reverse the trend toward childhood obesity," says Tony Scott, president of MTBA. "Mountain biking is a great physical activity and the perfect way for adults and children to enjoy the outdoors and get some exercise together." He added, "Mountain biking builds self-confidence and offers kids and adults an adrenaline-packed adventure while giving them an effective, low-impact workout. It's a great way to spend a day focusing on positive, fun outdoor experiences for children, while teaching valuable lessons about living a healthy lifestyle, personal responsibility and environmental awareness." The following clubs have undertaken to provide a rich and varied program for mountain biking specifically aimed at kids for October 2nd. Victoria:
Queensland:
New South Wales:
Organisations other than MTBA affiliated clubs are encouraged to contact MTBA if you have an event on that date or if you provide specific MTB activities for kids. Let MTBA help promote what you are doing to help stem the tide of childhood obesity.
Lysterfield Park in Victoria launches in OctoberTo celebrate the completion of work at Lysterfield Park (in metropolitan Melbourne) the Victorian Government is planning a community event to ‘launch’ the project. To emphasise the community legacy of the project, plans for the launch include a community bike ride and picnic / barbecue. People will be invited to meet at the Horswood Road carpark. Riders will then ride through a banner and be invited to use the upgraded trails before returning to the lake area for lunch and the chance to meet Karak the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games mascot. Elite riders will be invited to trial the competition course. A small media event will be built into the day, with interviews with spokespeople for the project and cyclists, footage of the elite riders on the course; the breaking of the banner and Karak meeting children. The launch is set for Sunday 22 October. A 10.30 meet time has been suggested, with the cycle commencing at 11am. Lunch will run from 12noon.
(All rights reserved/Copyright Knapp Communications Pty Limited 2005) |
