Maybe this means that some of the On One bikes will make it over to the US:

Planet X, a U.K. based Internet bicycle retailer, purchased all of Titus’ assets from Factors Southwest late Tuesday, November 23.

Planet X sells pavement bikes under its Planet X brand and mountain bikes under its On One brand. Planet X does not sell mountain bikes on its U.S. Web site; only its pavement products are available.

Via Bicycle Retailer and Industry News

 

Next year's Shasta Lemurian Classic has been scheduled for April 23rd, 2011.

Details are available on the schedule or in the archives.

If you recently picked one of these up, contact your dealer:

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Giant Bicycle, have issued a voluntary recall of about 370 Anthem X 29ers from the 2011 model year.

The frame can crack at the junction of the seat post and top tube, posing a fall hazard to riders. No incidents/injuries have been reported.

This recall involves 2011 model year Giant Anthem X 29er 1, 2 and 3 model bicycles. The bicycles were sold in small, medium and large. "Giant" and the model name are printed on the bicycle.

Consumers should immediately stop riding the recalled bicycles and contact any authorized Giant Bicycle dealer for a free inspection and repair.

Via Bicycle Retailer and Industry News.

Murphy Mack's next edition of the SF Enduro (nee Enduro III) is coming up next weekend:

Mark you calendar now... the next Enduro is Saturday, November 20th, 2010.
Route details are getting finalized now.
This is going to be a big one... not only is a fantastic Enduro event, it's also my 40th Birthday BBQ bash.
To accommodate more types of rider, I'm adding a medium and a short route too... you don't have to be able to do 10k in a day to play now!

See all the details at SF Enduro (details from the last SF Enduro are here). We'll post more details as they come ...

I always wanted a Titus RacerX, but never got one:

“Our largest lender is foreclosing on an outstanding loan. Commencing immediately, they will initiate an orderly liquidation of company assets. Please direct any inquiries to support@titusti.com”

Titus has always been one of the more popular brands, however they have seen quite a bit of change in recent years. Titus Cycles founder Chris Cocalis left the company and started a new company (Pivot Cycles) not too long ago. Longstanding employees were recently “let go” a few weeks back. There was much writing in the Titus forum walls.

Via MTBR.  More info over at Bicycle Retailer and Bike198 (after the obnoxious ads).

The dates for the 2011 Howell Mountain / Napa county cross country races have been announced:

• Napa Valley Dirt Classic will be April 10th, 2011
• Howell Mountain Classic will be August 7th, 2011

You can find out more information about these races at their website or in the archives (NVDC and Howell Mountain).

Ride the Divide is an award-winning mountain bike documentary about the Tour Divide race down the Rockies from Canada to Mexico, and won best adventure film at this year's Vail Film Festival. This feature film is about the world's toughest mountain bike race, which traverses over 2700 miles along the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains. The film weaves the story of three characters' experiences with immense mountain beauty and small-town culture as they attempt to pedal from Banff, Canada to a small, dusty crossing on the Mexican border.

• SACRAMENTO -- 7pm on November 15th at The Crest, 1013 K Street, Sacramento. Tickets $11 at the door, but it is recommended to purchase online in advance in case of a sellout. Mad Cat Bicycles is the presenting sponsor for this event.
• TRUCKEE -- 9pm on November 16 at Fifty Fifty Brewing Co. Tickets $10 at the door. Sponsored by Fifty Fifty Brewing Co. of Truckee.

There is more info at www.ridethedividemovie.com.

Here's a preview of Sunday's CCCX DH #5, which is the continuation of the downhill series from earlier this year:

This Sunday's Downhill event at Toro Park will be using the Center Canyon Course, which is the race route that was created specifically for the CCCX DH races.  This course is always ripping, fast, and fun! There is a mix of berms, off camber trails, small drop-in sections, and some natural jumps and rollers to keep things interesting.  Traction has been super dry and slick toward the top of the course, but in the trees toward the lower canyon sections the dirt is grippy and in perfect shape.  A little rain will only make this course better, because it has been overly dry at Toro Park recently. Practice is available on Saturday & Sunday, with racing starting at 12 noon.

All information on the racing plus current point totals for the 2010 season have been updated on the www.cccxcycling.com web site.  Rick Rasmusen is scheduled to make a appearance to shoot his awesome photos, and there will be some video footage of the racing and practice session that will be recorded.

Tomorrow is the 3rd Annual SF Bay Area Bicycle Expo. This year's expo will feature:

• Trade show and community swap meet
• BMX competition
• Dirt Jump competition
• Pump Track
• Fashion show

This year's expo will also have a cyclocross race from the Bike Monkey folks:

Cross Palace once again promises to be one of the hardest CX events around with a nasty cocktail of barriers, run-ups, and staircases straight to the sky ... We’re including admission to the SF Bike Expo ticket with your race registration, so you can absorb all the day’s bicycle delights. Check out the event website at www.crosspalace.com for advance registration, schedule of races, and directions.

It all starts tomorrow (Saturday 11/6/2010) at San Francisco's Cow Palace - $10 Pre-sale. $12 at the Door. A percentage of the door will go to building the potential bike park at McLaren Park.

For those of you making your weekend plans, here is quick rundown of this weekend's MTB racing schedule for NorCal:

1. Sacramento CX (11/06/10): Third race in the Sacto CX series.
2. SF Bike Expo / Cross Palace (11/06/10): bikes. fashion. CX racing. more later today.
3. The Lou Fest (11/06/10): CX under the lights near Fresno.
4. CCCX DH (11/07/10): Continuation of the CCCX downhill series at Toro park near Monterey.
5. Bay Area Super Prestige #2 (11/07/10)

More news on this weekend's cyclocross racing over at NCNCA CX blog.

Registration for next year's 2011 Sea Otter Classic is now open. As usual, the Sea Otter will feature cross country, downhill, super d (canceled due to BLM maintenance), dual slalom and (pro only) short track events on April 14-17, 2011 in Monterey, CA.

Click over to Sea Otter MTB registration to get signed up. Registration closes on April 10th, 2011, but if you register before midnight Pacific on Dec 31, 2010 you can get $10 off with the code "EarlyBird".

Camping reservations are also open.

Although I was without my new cyclocross bike (in the shop over at Folsom Bike & Grind with some rear wheel repairs, thanks guys), I headed down the series opener for the Folsom Rodeo Cross. I've always wanted to race at night, and really like that the Rodeo grounds are so close to my house.

I've captured some video of the Men's A & B race, from near the first downhill in "Sherwood Forest."

Overall, a fine start to the season - good course (although a bit technical at night), good crowd and superb organization as always by Bicycling Events. I am pretty sure that I finished near the back of the pack, but I'm going to blame that on racing my SuperFly (2.2" wheel and all) :)

This year's 24 Hours of Gold is schedule for November 13th & 14th near Oroville, CA:

The Lake Oroville 24-HOURS of GOLD - The mother lode of  24-hour mountain bike racing.

• We offer exquisite trails surrounding a state-of-the-art campground.
• The 7.5 mile singletrack course twists and turns, climbs and drops through oaks and chaparral.
• Entry fee includes camping both Friday and Saturday nights.
• Race time is 10:00AM Saturday to 10:00AM Sunday
• Registration is allowed up to the day of the event, Nov. 13, provided we do not fill up before then.
• Some same day registration will be allowed depending on pre-registered numbers.
• Each rider is asked to display a red light rearward after dark.
• Course map posted.

The organizers have also added an 8 hour race. Full details available at Lake Oroville 24-HOURS of GOLD website.

I hope this means continued growth for the bike park and MTB racing:

Vail Resorts, Inc. today announced that it has closed on the acquisition of Northstar-at-Tahoe™ Resort in North Lake Tahoe, Calif., one of the premier mountain resort destinations in North America. Vail Resorts acquired the stock of the companies that operate Northstar-at-Tahoe from Booth Creek Resort Properties LLC and other sellers for total consideration of $63 million ... Vail Resorts now operates two mountain resorts in the Lake Tahoe region, also operating Heavenly Mountain Resort in South Lake Tahoe. The Sierra-at-Tahoe resort is not part of the acquisition and will continue to be operated by Booth Creek.

"We believe guests of Heavenly and Northstar will greatly appreciate the flexibility to enjoy both the north and south shores of Lake Tahoe as we introduce pass and lift tickets products that offer access to both resorts starting with this coming 2010-2011 ski season."

Via PRNewswire

With this year's MTB Singlespeed Worlds over (see race report here), everyone is off to Ireland for next year's race:

Immediately after the finish of the 2010 Singlespeed mountain bike Worlds on Saturday in Rotorua, New Zealand, the top two remaining candidates for hosting the 2011 Worlds faced off. Ireland defeated South Africa in the horizontal bungee contest deciding next year's hosting rights.

Four members of each team bungee'd out to place a can of Speights [ed: fairly tasty Kiwi beer] on the ground before being dragged back by the bungee cord.

Read the whole story at Cyclingnews.com.

Oh yeah, local Kiwi Garth Weinberg (pictured at right, courtesy of Mike Breen) won the Men's title and Aussie Heather Logie claimed the Women's crown.

The good folks at Global Biorhythm has released the preliminary schedule for next year. It looks like most of the events have moved more towards the summertime, with Coolest 24 slipping into June and the Tahoe Sierra 100 coming up to August:

The 2011 race calendar is open for changes due to permits and regulations within National Forests and Private and State run organization.

• May 21st, 2011: Boggs MTB Mountain Bash, Cobb, CA (Three lap, two lap and one lap courses in Single Track Heaven)
• June 11/12th, 2011: HP Coolest 24 & 8 Hour Race Against Cancer, Royal Gorge Ski Resort, Soda Springs, CA
• July 16/17th, 2011: Boggs 24 & 8 hour Race, Cobb, CA (Single Track Heaven)
• August 13th, 2011: Tahoe Sierra 100, Royal Gorge, Soda Springs, CA (New Course)
• Sept 3rd/4th/5th, 2011: Copper Creek MTB Mountain Festival, Greenville, CA (Big Family Event)
• Sept 24th, 2011: Sugar Pine 50 & and 8hr MTB Endurance Race. Foresthill, CA (Single Track Hades)

Via Global Biorhythm Events website.

For those of you making your weekend plans, here is quick rundown of this weekend's MTB racing schedule for NorCal:

1. Lagrange Fall Classic (10/22/10)
2. Monkey Cross (10/23/10)
3. Sagebrush CX (10/23/10)
4. Sacramento CX (10/24/10)
5. CCCX CX (10/24/10)
6. TBF MTB 50 Miler (10/24/10)

For a more complete rundown of the NorCal CX races (Monkey Cross, Sagebrush, Sacto CX and CCCX), check out the NorCal CX Blog.

Although not really a race (or NorCal for that matter), this weekend is the annual Kernville Fat Tire Festival down near Bakersfield, CA:

Kernville is where it's at for our 19th annual Kernville Fat Tire Festival staged over three days, October 22, 23 and 24, 2010. Come join us for one, two or three days of total immersion in biking activities for all riding abilities. Bring your riding club or come to meet other riding enthusiasts, just like you.

The town of Kernville uses the Sequoia National Forest for a playground, come play with us!

Via Kernville Fat Tire Festival website.

The NorCal High School Cycling League will be holding their annual benefit event this year on November 6th in the North Bay:

It's that time of year again! We are gearing up for our annual benefit dinner: Cyclefest 2010. This year the NorCal League is celebrating its 10th anniversary, and the event is going to be spectacular. Come join us for cocktails, dinner and a fabulous auction with special guest, two-time National Champion, World Cup Pro and Olympic athlete Mary McConneloug. The event will be held at the Mill Valley Community Center on November 6, 2010 from 6:00-10:00. All proceeds from this event go directly to the creation of quality, youth mountain bike riding and racing programs.

Sorry about the false alarm - it turns out the resumption of the CCCX Downhill series has been pushed back to November 6th due to scheduling conflicts:

DUE TO SCHEDULING CONFLICTS WITH THE FINAL WEEKEND OF RIDING AT NORTHSTAR, THE CCCX DH RACE  ON OCTOBER 17 HAD TO BE CANCELLED.  PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR FUTURE UPDATES.

Via CCCX Blog.

That was quick:

Interbike flipflopped its decision late today to move the industry's tradeshow to Anahaim in early August, saying instead it would return to Las Vegas.

The 2011 indoor show will be Sept. 14-16 at the Sands Convention Center, preceded by Outdoor Demo at Bootleg Canyon on Sept. 12-13.

"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. "Due to the overwhelmingly positive response to this year's show and the countless conversations we've personally had with exhibitors and retailers regarding the future dates and location of Interbike, we are reversing our earlier decision to move the 2011 show to Anaheim in August. We are hearing loud and clear that, at this time, the industry prefers September dates and the convenience of Las Vegas."

The 2012 show also will be held at the Sands in Las Vegas September 19-21 with the Demo September 17-18.

Via Bicycle Retailer and Industry News

 

Great articles and pictures of last weekend's Race 4 Tara:

• Tara Llanes Classic, Race For A Reason (Decline Magazine)
• Tara Llanes Classic Recap and Video (PinkBike)

Here's the video from PinkBike:

For those of you making your weekend plans, here is quick rundown of this weekend's MTB racing schedule for NorCal:

1. Hasta Be Shasta (10/09/10) Downhill racing
2. Sacramento CX (10/09/10)
3. Homegrown CX (10/10/10)
4. CCCX CX (10/10/10)
5. Sagebrush CX (10/10/10)

For more in-depth coverage of this weekend's cyclocross races, head over to the NCNCA CX blog.

The Amgen Tour of California (yes, a roadie pro race not MTB) just announced their stage hosts for 2011:

• Stage 1: Sunday, May 15 – South Lake Tahoe to North Lake Tahoe-Northstar at Tahoe Resort
• Stage 2: Monday, May 16 – North Lake Tahoe-Squaw Valley USA  to Sacramento
• Stage 3: Tuesday, May 17 – Auburn to Modesto
• Stage 4: Wednesday, May 18 – Livermore to San Jose
• Stage 5: Thursday, May 19 – Seaside to Paso Robles
• Stage 6: Friday, May 20 – Solvang Individual Time Trial
• Stage 7: Saturday, May 21 – Claremont to Mt. Baldy
• Stage 8: Sunday, May 22 – Santa Clarita to Thousand Oaks

Whether you like road races or not, the tour certainly brings a lot of attention to cycling here in NorCal.

Good news about the 2011 Downieville Classic:

July 8 - 10, 2011
Exciting news regarding 2011 - We have received word from our local Forest Service that we can indeed keep the Downieville Classic happening in July. 

Via Downieville Classic website.

USA Cycling will now offer registration services for promoters:

After the successful development and implementation of an online registration system for its National Championship events, USA Cycling will offer its online event registration system for all USA Cycling sanctioned events in 2011. The system, which is designed to streamline the process and lower the cost of online registration, will be available to USA Cycling promoters beginning Dec. 1, 2010.

USA Cycling’s customized online event registration completes a full suite of online services designed to better serve promoters and riders. The suite of services will consolidate the entire online event sanctioning process from beginning to end, including:

• Event permitting
• Online registration with pre-populated license information pulled directly from USA Cycling’s database so there is no need for riders to set up a separate account for registration
• Sale of one-day licenses online
• Ability to file post-event reports online

If a promoter uses all of the online services available for permitting a USA Cycling event, he or she will be able to resolve their event account without writing a check or using a credit card. The necessary permit fees will simply be deducted from rider registration fees using the online system.

USA Cycling will continue to allow promoters to use online event registration through their preferred provider.

The online registration system will debut Dec. 1, 2010. For more information on USA Cycling’s online registration system, contact a USA Cycling Membership Representative at registration@usacycling.org or 719-434-4288.

Via USA Cycling website.

The folks over at TBF Racing have posted a preliminary 2011 MTB race schedule:

Date	Event
1/23/11	MTB Kickstart, Classic and Challenge #1
2/6/11	MTB Kickstart, Classic and Challenge #2
2/20/11	MTB Kickstart, Classic and Challenge #3
10/23/11	The TBF MTB 50 Miler

This is a bit of a cut back in races ... the early season races have been trimmed from 4 to 3 and gone are the Friday night XC races for the summer. These will be pushed up onto the calendar in a bit.

For those of you making your weekend plans, here is quick rundown of this weekend's MTB racing schedule for NorCal:

1. Race For Tara 4 (10/02/10)
2. Whiskeytown 9-5 / 24 (10/02/10)
3. UC Berkeley MTB Race (10/02/10)
4. CCCX CX (10/03/10)
5. UC Berkeley MTB Race (10/03/10)
6. Private Locust (10/03/10)

This just made it up on the calendar yesterday, but the UC Berkeley MTB racing team is holding a multi-day / multi-site / multi-race event this weekend:

• XC and Super D at Lake Sonoma on Saturday, 10/2/10
• Dual Slalom and Short Track XC at Bailey Bike Park (Pittsburg, CA) on Sunday, 10/3/10

I believe that both events are open to both collegiate and USA Cycling racers. The full details are available on this flyer [PDF].

They've also created a short promo video:

UC Berkeley Bike Race 2010 Promo from Jacob SB on Vimeo.

 

This Sunday (10/3/10) brings another edition of the Locust / MCBC Fun Ride -- "Private Locust":

Private property.  There's a fair amount of it in Marin county.  Usually, there's a locked gate and you can't ride through it. Wouldn't it be cool if someone got the property owners to throw open the gates and let us in?

Especially if it's right in Marin County... giant redwoods, rolling ridgelines, twisty private fireroads and some steep stuff both up and down?  It's almost like ... Endor.

Be at the Java Hut in Fairfax at 9:00 and get a cup of coffee and sign up.  We roll out at 10 sharp.

As usual, Superstar local riders, friendly faces and good times.  Memorable aid stations and lots of snacks and refreshments. We've got loads of prizes from you favorites and a fresh new t shirt too.

The money goes to SFBC so they can continue to make a difference.  Only $15!

Pre-ride data coming soon - Mixed terrain.  Fireroads, roads and the occasional rock.  Ride profile... Six Flags Rollercoaster. Miles and miles of places and stuff you've never seen.  Several chances to let go of the brakes entirely...

Bring a bag with some dry clothes too... there's a chow down/gulp down/bro down at the finish.

More information at Locust Ride blog.

Next year's Pro Cross Country dates are up:

USA Cycling announced today the 2011 edition of the USA Cycling Pro Mountain Bike Cross Country Tour (Pro XCT). With seven total events in 2011, the Pro XCT calendar will provide world-class athletes with a national stage on which to accumulate UCI ranking points and top prize purses.

“The 2011 Pro XCT will expand slightly over the 2010 version, offering one of the best calendars of quality UCI mountain bike races we’ve had in many years,” stated USA Cycling CEO Steve Johnson. “We are committed to our long-stated goals of providing athletes with consistent top-level competition opportunities, increasing exposure for mountain biking domestically, and maximizing U.S. start spots at the sport’s highest stages; and the Pro XCT national calendar provides a sustainable platform to help accomplish these goals.”

2011 USA Cycling Pro Cross Country Mountain Bike Tour

• March 12: US Cup Triple Crown Bonelli Park (San Dimas, Ca)
• March 26: US Cup Triple Crown Fontana City National (Fontana, CA)
• April 16: Sea Otter Classic (Monterey, CA)
• April 30: Mellow Johnny’s Classic (Dripping Springs, TX)
• June 18: Sand Creek Intl. (Colorado Springs, CO)
• June 25: Subaru Cup (Mt. Morris, WI)
• July 24: Missoula, Montana XC (Missoula, MT)

Read the whole article at USA Cycling.

For those of you making your weekend plans, here is quick rundown of this weekend's MTB racing schedule for Norcal:

1. 21st Annual Parkfield Classic (09/25/10)
2. Galena Fest (09/25/10)
3. Whiskeytown Classic (09/26/10)
4. CCCX CX (09/26/10)

As we have officially moved into Fall this week, it's time to look at the continuation of the CCCX Downhill schedule at Toro Park. The final four races of the series will be:

• Race #5- October 17- Sunday
• Race #6- November 7- Sunday
• Race #7- November 28- Sunday
• Series Final- December 12- Sunday

For more details, see the CCCX DH site or browse the archives for years worth of coverage here.

Something out of the ordinary for your October schedule:

The Stick Hop is back! Classic Observed Trials Competition in SF

The Stick Hop Classic @ Candlestick Point Park in SF on Oct. 16th 2010

Registration starts at 9:30 competition start at 11:00 am

• beg stock and mod bikes
• sport stock and mod bikes
• expert stock and mod bikes
• pro open
• vintage open

come and watch or ride it's all free there will be medal for the top three rider in each class

I think this is one of the few observed trials competitions that we've ever had on the calendar. There is a Facebook page setup for more info.

I may not have been paying attention: TBF Racing's CLIF MTB Challenge has been canceled. TBF Racing's last MTB race of the season will be the MTB 50 Miler on October 24th, 2010.

For those of you about to Cyclocross, Mr. Mack is throwing a kickoff party in SF tonight with CX Goldsprints to boot:

NorCal CX Season Kickoff Party!

Teams form all over NorCal will be descending on SF to push each other around and see who's the fastest... Come Friday night, September 17th (7 pm at 1090 Folsom Street, SF, CA) and get in on the fun.  Team competition racing CX style GoldSprints.

Just $15 gets you beers and food all night, non boozy drinks too.  All included for $15!  DJ's all night. Prizes galore.  Check out the sponsor list... we'll probably have TOO MUCH STUFF TO GIVE AWAY.

If you're coming from the East Bay or the South Bay, the venue is the Marin Bike's new factory store in downtown SF.  SUPER EZ freeway access and tons of free, easy parking.  After the event jump back on the freeway and you're in the rocket chair all the way home. Secure bike parking too.

Some people have asked me... "What's cyclocross style GoldSprints?" We set the distance at 800 meters.  You race until you're at the 400 meter mark, jump off the GoldSprint bike, pick up a pixie bike and run a lap around the barriers and then you're back on the Sprint bike finishing the 400 meter distance to the end. We'll run a few heats of standard 500 meter races too as this is also a qualifying event for the 2010 GoldSprints World Championships being held in Las Vegas Thursday night during InterBike.  It could be your ticket to fame and glory!