Blur XC Carbon

The inauguration of a fresh president here in the USA seems like an auspicious time to take the wraps off Santa Cruz Bicycles' most closely guarded secret since, well, ever. Ladies and gentlemen, departing Trek riding Texan Republicans and incoming Illinois hoop shooting Democrats, please lend a hand for the arrival of the totally new and completely awesome, carbon fiber Blur XC!

-105mm travel, next generation VPP suspension
-Super efficient bump absorption, incredible pedaling response, no lockouts or platforms required
-Reliable, serviceable, stiff - next generation VPP links are core of the most evolved suspension on the market
-Ultra-lightweight, incredibly strong carbon fiber frame (4.2 pounds, frame and shock, size medium)
-That wasn't a typo. It's really light.
-How light? 22 pounds, 6 ounces for the XTRxc complete
-Damn, that's light

Rennie and Delfs on Morewood in 09

"Gravity Group is pleased to announce their partnership with Morewood Bikes as bicycle supplier and co-title sponsor along with Kenda Tires for their World Cup Team."

The new team will consist of Nathan Rennie (AUS) and Mitch Delfs (AUS).

Nathan Rennie: “I am super happy to be where I am in 2009. Not to mention that 9 is my favorite number, I am especially happy to be working with new people and working with people I already know. I am impressed with everything so far and how fast the ball has got rolling. I’m stuck in training already and my knee feels good. It wont be long before it will be 100%. I feel like the change for me is for the better for all parties and just want to get racing again. See you at the races.”

Mitch Delfs: “I am super stoked to be working with Gravity Group again for the 2009 season. It’s going to be an exciting year, with a great bike and good factory support to race on. I’m sure there will be a few World Cups with my name on it. With a new team mate as fast as Nathan Rennie I know my riding will improve, which will make TEAM KENDA/MOREWOOD the new power house team on the World Cup circuit.”

Richard Carter of Morewood Bikes: "Gravity Group has a reputation for running one of the most professional teams on the circuit, so the opportunity of forming a partnership with them was something we just couldn’t pass up on, despite current economic sentiment.

I believe we have one of the most competitive packages on the circuit. Good bikes however are nothing without great riders, and we feel privileged to work with riders of Nathan and Mitch’s caliber.

Filling the shoes of a team as successful and respected as Syndicate is a big task for anyone, but I believe Peter Siulczynski and the Gravity Group are up to the challenge. With the right support and infrastructure I know Nathan will be right at home in no time and ready to retake his place on the podium where he belongs."

World Cup Finals Wrap-Up

Schaladming World Cup Winner!

Sam Blenkinsop 4:10.16
Sam Hill +1.64
Gee Atherton +2.20
Steve Peat +3.04
Greg Minnaar + 7.40
Justin Leov +8.17

Minnaar secured the overall win and Rachel put a hurtin on the women's field with a 13.67 second win! She as well secured the overall win for the series. Some very impressive notes, Sam Hill hit a tree in the first woods section with his right shoulder almost knocking him off the bike. In a turn on the lower half of the course he got sideways and nearly high sided the bike. Still pulled a 2nd place finish. Kovarik bit it hard in the top wood section, the crash was hard enough to cause him to throw the race, he had his helmet off and was sidelined for a while before re-mounting and riding down. Ruaridh Cunningham's inside line was only taken by a few people but it caused him an awkward crash. The only other person to take that line, that I saw, was Brendan Fairclough, his run was maybe the most exciting for me. At the split he was ahead of the entire field by almost 2 seconds and as the 2nd to last man down he stood a good chance of taking the win. In the last exit of woods he washed out the front wheel and slid to the bottom of the 16 foot muddy transition, without his bike. It was a big upset. In USA news, Aaron Gwin was able to grab another top 10 finish, the first being Mt Saint Anne, extremely impressive for his first year of mountain bike racing.

An exciting race for the final of the season. Freecaster will be bringing you the next 3 seasons of UCI World Cup racing. For the rest of the year they have a few more events planned as well as the newly reinvigorated Red Bull Rampage. Stay tuned.

Fontana NMBS "Down Under Domination"

Oh yeah, that's right we have a National Series. Kinda, sorta.
The Fontana NMBS kicked off this weekend and was the first stop for the NMBS series.
As you can imagine Kovarik won. He has been dialing in the Fontana terrain for a few months now and after wrapping up the overall win in the Fontana Series earlier this month he was a favorite for the NMBS win. Media was pretty sparse at the event with John Gibson shooting pics, MBA writing words and Dylan Dean covering both aspects for the rest of the world that still may show an interest.
Chris Kovarik taking the win on the new rig with a 2:19.6
Nathan Rennie placed 2nd with a 2:22.2, establishing two Aussies on the podium.

Justin Leov got third with a 2:24.6 Sam Blenkinsop (pictured above) pulled a fourth place with a 2:25.1 and Cam Cole secured fifth with a 2:25.3 That's three Kiwi's all in a row.

Duncan Riffle made his debut aboard his new C-Dale and UFO kit....paging David Smith...

Thanks to Kathy Sessler for her detailed and picture filled update, she is a god send.

Word on the street is that this will be the last year we see the NMBS in the current form. It may evolve into a race "series" that may be located at better venues, with better courses, better prizes and payouts and of course more altitude. Would'nt that be nice. Stop your griping change is on the way.

Gregs new stem...

Santa Cruz has got their shit together. As far as design goes they have a real cohesive package. The jerseys, website, bike graphics all of this plays a part in presenting themselves as a very professional outfit. Selling lots of high-end bicycles helps fund all of these exploits. I was tooling around the site today after getting the latest newsletter from them. My sometimes keen eye picked up on the stem mounted to the front of Greg's new V10. Truvativ Direct Mount, not available right now, and no info floating around that I could dig up. It makes sense, they make a great fork with a direct mount capable crown, what has been taking them so long? Sea Otter, hopefully will be the release along with all the other new bits.