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That’s my new motto for 2009 as I ride my Rigid Single Speed.  Finishing touches on my rigid singlespeed were done over the holidays.  Last component needed on this project were the disc brakes.  I found a killer deal on Avid Juicy 5s right before Christmas.  Top it off it was free shipping and arrived on Christmas Eve.  Other components added to this beauty are:

·       Ashima Air-rotors.  160mm in the front and 140mm in the rear.  Weight on these are 85 grams (f) and 67 grams (r) – Sweet!

                                                 160mm Front rotors

                                                              140mm Rear rotors

           ·       SASO Carbon Seat post

·    Salsa Seat Clamp (non QR)
·       WTB Pure V, w/Ti rails
·    Bebop pedals

Finishing up I hit several road bumps.  First was the Eccentric Bottom Bracket adjustment.  Fairly simple to adjust however unfamiliar to me I didn’t want to take a chance of ruining it before I could even ride it.  Second was play in my fork/headset/stem.  I’ve tightened all necessary bolts however there was still a little bit of play.  Turns out that there are two screws that need tightening on the compression plug (in-place of the star nut).  First a 5mm on the inner screw then a 6mm on the top-cap. 

These were both simple issues but new to me.  I went to my LBS – JensonUSA for assistance.  Props to Luis w/JensonUSA’s Corona store.  He is one of the most helpful guys I’ve ever met at a bike shop.  Very knowledgeable as well…

Here is the complete spec:

Frame:                ZION EBB
Fork:                   SASO Carbon fork
Spacers:              Carbon
Headset:             Woodman Axis SL COMP
Stem:                 B52s 
Handlebars:         KORE Torsion bars 
Grips:                  Red OURY Lock-ons
Brakes:               Avid Juicy 5s
Rotors:         Ashima Air Rotors 160mm(f) and 140mm(r)
Seat Post:           SASO Carbon Seat post
Seat Post Clamp:  Salsa
Saddle:               WTB Pure V Ti rails
Crankset:            Race Face Deus, silver
Bash Guard:        Race Face
BB:                     Race Face ISIS spline
Chain:                 SRAM PC991
Wheelset:           Sun Ringle laced to XT hubs
Single speed cog: 16t Wheels Mfg SSK-3
Skewers:             SASO Carbon levers
Tires:                  Maxxis Larsen TTs 2.1(f)/1.9(r)
Tubes:                 various brands
Pedals:               Bebop
Misc:                   FSA Compression plug
H2O Cage:           WOOdman Carbon Comp
Weight:              23.54 lbs

I’m sure adjustments or changes will be made after I ride this bike, but for now it’s ready to hit the dirt.

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Today the some of the world famous MtnBikeRiders Racing Team Riders, headed out to Fontana to test ride the Super D, DH and XC course in order to prepare for next week’s race.

First up was the Super D course that was used last week in which Joe Solancho placed 4th in his category. So the group hit the single track at a pretty brisk speed. We also encountered these “bridges” that Moe and Joe had talked about last week. Basically these things are small bridges put in place in order to ride a small gap between the trail. One such bridge was pretty gnarly. You have to go down a steep hill then hit the bridge.

Here’s Kim Finch tackling the steeps.

Then we were off to the lower rock garden. I was leading the way and decided to pull aside to wait for the group. Joe took lead but when he was about to roll through a small drop, his front wheel got planted into a small divot and went over the bars. We all rushed to give him aid and luckily he was only banged up just a smidge. While we were there, we took advantage of the area and decided to practice the technical and rocky area.

One thing we did was place my helmet and goggles on the trail to give each rider an idea on which direction to take…basically it was their guide for the best line. Joe,Val and I stood by the sidelines to make sure that if any of the riders were to fall, we could catch them.



Priscilla was sporting the POC Cortex DH helmet just for added protection. Besides I wouldn’t want anything to happen to her pretty little face in the event of a spill. By the way I have to say that I’m super proud of Priscilla. She was able to tackle the bridge and the rock garden with ease and confidence.

Then it was Val’s turn. I decided to do some drastic measures in order for him to learn to pick the proper line. You have to understand, on 2 previous tries he had, he veered to the left and had the potential of going over the bars if he hit a boulder. So I did something called tough love…see if you can figure it out. Don’t worry, I blurred out the photo to protect innocent eyes…

After our rock session, the rest of the group headed off to do the XC course while Kim and I hit the DH. Fun times I tell you! What really was impressive was Priscilla and David’s workout. After the ride, they would climb up and down the road to the water tower…not an easy task. They did this to feel the burn and to build up their speed, strength and mad skills.

Anyhow I’m very proud of the team’s effort to work together and show each other the best lines and techniques. Constant encouragement also help boost morale in each of the riders through out the ride.

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MtnBikeRiders has been frequenting Whiting Ranch as of late.  Today was just another ride as I showed Val the trails of Whiting Ranch.

What made this ride interesting was when we reached Four Corners there was a Ranger truck parked up top without a ranger. After a brief rest, we headed down Cactus.  I was leading the way when I saw the ranger on the singletrack flagging me to slow down.  When I reached his location, I asked him “is everything ok?”.  He responded with “yes they are just filming down there…”

Not too far away was a camera crew and a female mountain biker (without her bike).  From my standpoint it looks like they were doing an interview.  After the ranger allowed us to pass, we cautiously rode past the crew.  I see the female mountain biker and recognize her face – it was Anne Hjelle. 

For those who are not familiar who she is, she was attacked by a 110lbs mountain lion in Whiting Ranch, January 8, 2004.  It happened on the same trail we were on.  Also earlier that day (2004), the same lion killed a man, Mark Reynolds prior to attacking Anne Hjelle.

Below is a portion of a CBS News report in 2004:

 

Hjelle recalls, “He pulled and tore away at the flesh on my face. I thought this is it.”Hjelle is a fighter. A former Marine, she fought a battle that even her military training couldn’t prepare her for after she was attacked by a mountain lion in January while biking with her friend, Debby Nichols, in the hills of Southern California.  Nichols bravely held onto Hjelle’s legs as the mountain lion pulled her off the trail and into the thick brush.

Right after the attack in an interview Nichols explained the incident, “I was holding on to her the whole time. He would not let go. He had a hold of her face.”

Hjelle says, “He was going for my neck and his goal, as it would be with any type of prey, was to break my neck and paralyze me.”The pain must have been excruciating.

“I had no pain,” Hjelle says. “I didn’t feel pain at the time. But I felt just the strength of it.”

But Hjelle was terrified and fully aware that the lion had just torn away half her face.”

 

 

This was certainly an experience seeing a survivor of what we fear the most out on the trails.  Anne Hjelle is a brave woman and very fortunate.  After passing them, I stopped just a few feet from them.  I waited for Val to catch-up to me then I turned around towards the crew.   They looked at me as if they were going to ask if I needed something.

I yelled out “Anne?”…

She responded with “Yes”.

I wasn’t quite sure of what to say so I just gave her the “thumbs up”.

Other riders that passed the crew also recognized her.  Val and I went on to finish the ride without a hitch.  Val enjoyed his first time at Whiting.  It’s as fun as always but this was a ride I’ll always remember.

To read Anne story you can click here or find more information on the web.

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RL Policar-Eric “The Animal” Hunner is our BIGGEST racer on the team. Not only does he stand at a towering 6′ 24″ tall, he also weighs somewhere around 240-900 lbs, and that’s ALL MUSCLE. This guy is so powerful, his torque when he pedals is strong enough to snap crank arms in HALF! Yes I said in HALF! With all that said, for a big guy like Eric, who can easily outweigh his competition by at least 100lbs…this gentle giant can move like a cheetah.

I did not know if I was going to make it to this race, there were a few issues I needed to take care of. First off the Holidays, need I say more. My training time was more then cut in half. I tried every home baked goody at least three times and ate like a king. The weekend before the race I was stuck in bed with some nasty stomach flu. My training for this race consisted of watching movies and eating junk food.

Next there was the bike, there was this nagging problem that popped up in the last race at Southridge, it felt as if the rear brake was dragging. Upon closer inspection I found that the bearing flanges on the rear axle were binding on the hub under weight, and pedaling due to a tweaked axle. One day before the race I stopped at the LBS and picked up a set of inexpensive Single Speed wheels. I got home slapped some skinny 26×2.1 on rode it down the street and parked it. Well I am almost race ready. I just pack up for the day and get the family in the truck bright and early to make the trip to Fontana.


Driving to the race was an experience in the Santa Ana winds. A Semi trailer was laying on its side on the 60 Freeway near the exit to the race, palm trees were bent over, and dirt was in the air. I knew this was going to to be rough racing due to the winds, my prediction was right. I really thought I was cutting it close to cut off time for SRC registration, I made it in time. Registration took a
while because it was the first race of the season and number plates had to be labeled.

I get back to our base camp and get ready asap to line up at the start line, no warm up riding before this race. I chat with some familiar face’s in our Single Speed group and introduce my fellow Teammate David Sanderson to the group. Thirty seconds to start. The race starts we take off with the pack and we catch a slower rider from the previous group, all of us Single Speeders start to pile up behind this rider. I break out in a sprint to get in front of this rider, the competition follows. I kept the lead for a while until we hit the road to the water tower. The Santa Winds were pushing us back down the hill, my lack of warming up surfaces while climbing this hill, two SS pass me [in another class 35 & up], ouch! That fired me up, I didn’t want that to happen again. Rod Leveque a fellow competitor was having a good day, he was fast, and smart on his lane choices when climbing around traffic. Rod passed me and a few other racers on a technical uphill, I caught up to him at the finish line two minutes off his time. Rod with Team Jenson collected first place, Eric “The Animal” Hunner and David Sanderson with Team Mountain Bike Riders collect second and third place.

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Carbon Fiber Pronghorn Bike

Here’s your chance to ‘Ride on Top’, you’ve probably seen these bikes on our site, in fact we have a big ass banner on the top. Well, all ‘will it shear my nuts’ jokes aside, the Pronghorn bike that I tested at Sea Otter has been one of the best high end XC bikes that I’ve ever ridden.

It will not shear your jewels

You can test ride a Pronghorn at the Southridge Winter series, heck, they will even let you race with one if you wish. I’m hoping to ride their long travel bike in the upcoming Super D race, I would like to see how much it differs from my current ride.

Long Travel Proghorn bike, I have dibs on it!

Proghorn Racing is also running a “Grassroots Sponsorship Promotion” until March 2009, cool think about this program is that comes with racing support!

Go ahead and demo a Pronghorn, all you have to do is ask! Just make sure that you tell them that you read this on MtnBikeRiders.com and they will give you the VIP treatment. (OK, so I made the last part up)

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