Although we just had our official first day of fall on Saturday (Sept. 21), summer is still here on the West Coast. We're riding in shorts and despite rumours of usual rain on the West, the sun has made an appearance every day this week!
DropIn: New TV Series
A new cycling show premiered on SportsNet this September. The 13 episode series -DropIn – focuses on the friendships, stories, travel experiences andsetbacks of the show's stars; a group of five freeriders – riders Darren Butler, Shawn Denny, Dylan Tremblay, Byron Grey and Mike Kinrade are the show'shosts. The show claims that there is no script, no actors, and no holds barred. The best part of this series is that it's filmed by Canadians in Canada, featuring Canadian freeriders!
Fall Line Productions are producing episodes at mostly Alberta and British Columbia locations – including Calgary, Rossland, Vancouver, Whistler/Squamish, Golden, Nelson, and other scenic places. For a television schedule near you, check out their website, dropin.pinkbike.com or Sportsnet at www.sportsnet.ca.
Coquitlam Bike Park Fundraiser
A dirt park/BMX park that was abandoned for way too long has a new future. A group of cyclists approached the city of Coquitlam to develop the land for aBMX/MTN bike park. With no hesitation the city granted the cyclists use of the lot to develop the land. A fundraiser was held in early September that raised close to $3,500.00 for the project.
Cycling enthusiasts showed up to wash cars to raise money and win donated prizes. The same day offered another fundraiser in the form of a dinner andentertainment at a local pub.
Widely supported by the cycling community, the new bike park is unique in that it is trying to unite mountain bikers with BMX'ers. The park will consist of a four-lane BMX/MTB racetrack, some dirt jumps and a training area. Kevin O'Brien designed the track and in the future there are hopes to add facilities such as washrooms, stands for fans etc.
Numerous sponsors climbed on board to offer prizes for all participants involved. Offering outstanding support were: Outside 365 Riding School, Spratazine Custom Paint, AKA The Bike Shop, Norco, Steed Cycle, .243 Racing, Brodie, Fox Racing, Race Face, Giant, Black Dog Bikes, Sombrio, NSMB, PinkBike.com, DHRace.com, Car Tunes Sound and Cellular, Trek, Bonz, Radical Films, Fluid Sports, Backwash Skimboards, Mapelcrest Embroidery, Xfm, Coquitlam Center, EA Sports, The Golden Spike Pub, Subway, Starbucks, B&B parts, Little Ceasers Pizza, Boston Pizza, and Milestones.
The park will probably be completed in time for spring 2003 racing however some local races may be held before then. The group, (including Mike Koster-Outside 365 Riding School, Keith White, Matt Michaluk, and AKA Bike Shop) will be hosting another fundraiser in the form of a New Year's party this December. For more information contact: Mike Koster 604-202-0162, dirtjumpers@hotmail.com; Keith White 604-785-5876 or AKA The Bike Shop: 604-936-8885
Burnaby Velodrome
The Burnaby Velodrome, (Canada's only indoor velodrome) is now open to cyclists after being shut down for over one year. The decision was officiallyannounced in early September. The Burnaby Velodrome club has got together and established some club and riding guidelines at their website, www.burnabyvelodrome.ca. Wednesday night racing will start in early October with a weekend of racing scheduled for November 9th/10th.
Sprockids Parents/Kids day
A weekend of bonding took place for both teenagers and their parents when Sprockids riders participated in the Sprockids Parents/Kids day, September 14th/15th. The camp was reported to be successful. Day one consisted of cross-country riding, baseball and a yummy BBQ. Day two was all about downhilling! Most of the riding was videotaped, (to blackmail their parents?!) and parents had a chance to play again. Teenagers were put in the role of teacher alongsidequalified instructors in Whistler.
Sprockids is an initiative that was created by Doug Detwiller. The program is a multi-level approach to blending the sport of mountain biking into any school system's curriculum. The program has aspects that make it relevant to math, language arts, science, social studies, art, PE, personal planning, environmental studies and more. Not only is the Sprockids program meant to teach parallels with the school studies but to develop the self-esteem of the students who are participating. The program has been adapted by IMBA and is also adaptable for community groups as well.
Simmons Injured
Wade Simmons, free rider extraordinaire, was injured last week when he attempted to jump a gap of over 40ft. On the set of a developing MTB film, Simmons landed hard and crashed, breaking his leg in the process. He was the first rider to attempt the gap that day. Simmons, known for not crashing veryoften, surprised everyone when he did. He was expected to compete in the upcoming Red Bull Rampage, among other events. Best wishes for a fast recovery, Wade.
GK Ripper
This past Sunday hosted the second annual GK Ripper. This event holds special significance to a rider name Graham Kuerbis. Kuerbis was paralysed in February 2001 after a fall off his mountain bike. The Tantalus Bike Shop in Squamish created this race in order to raise funds to support Kuerbis in his recovery. The format is unique in that it is a two-man relay race up and down a mountain trail in Squamish! One rider goes up and one rider races down. Last year over 150 teams registered to compete in the race/fundraiser. I'll be posting the results later this week in pedalmag.com's news section.
The Tantalus Bike Shop reports that Kuerbis has been seen riding his mountain bike on the road recently. If you would like to donate money to help Graham in his recovery and rehabilitation, please contact the bike shop: tel: 604-898-2588 or email: bike@tantalusbikeshop.com.
1st annual Whistler Mountain Bike Festival
September 28-29th – Shore Events: Progressive Event Management will be hosting the first annual Whistler Mountain Bike Festival. Three days will host several events including a freeride competition, a 6-hour enduro, a fat tire village crit, a bike toss event, and a Brew Cup, (beer testing competition). Surrounding the events will be tons of exhibitions, a climbing wall, trials demonstrations, a bungee and freeride demos.
Go to www.shoreevents.com for a schedule of events!
Well, that's it for now folks. See you next week.
Leigh Hargrove resides in Vancouver where she lives on a houseboat in the heart of the city, near the mountains and the beach where she is happiest. As a former national team cyclist from 1995-1997, cycling has always been close to her heart, and she still rides her bike, (although right now it's a Dyno Beach Cruiser!). She has been writing for Pedal Magazine for the past three years and also pens Jonesin' for Juniors, a column about junior riders, in the print version of Pedal.