GET OUT & EXCERCISE ...Your right to vote!

Polls close at 8:00pm here in Montana.
Bike to your polling place & vote with the little rippers in mind!

If you don't know where you need to go, go here.

Riding Tip # 1 - How to rail berms like a pro

I finally put down the tool belt this weekend and dusted off the trail bike and headed up to the new Leverich trail for some much needed and well deserved saddle time. I'm glad to see there is the possibility of an honest to goodness DH trail in Bozeman, many props to all who have put sweat into development this far - thanks guys. I would have loved to help early on, but my house wasn't renovating itself, so I had to help it along for a bit.

Anyways, onto the point of this post - I'm going to go ahead and give a shot at posting a few riding tips once in a while. Since the new Leverich trail is likely to many riders in Bozeman the first time you have been exposed to real bermed corners, I thought it would be a good idea to give a how-to on berm riding technique. Knowing how to ride berms not only increases the fun factor for you, but also helps keep the berms from getting blown out. I will only hit on one basic technique this go round, but it should be enough to get you started. I could start an entire separate blog on just berm technique alone. Refer to the photo for reference, that is Gee Atherton, the current World Champion, and obviosly he has this down.

Well here goes...

1. Let's start by setting up for the corner. As like many things, cornering is only as successful as your preparation. All of your braking should be done before you even enter the berm (or any corner for that matter). Gradually apply your brakes in the smooth area approaching the corner while your bike is still upright - braking while cornering through a berm will naturally upright your bike and cause you to blow the corner wide.

2. Now that you have scrubbed your speed, keep a finger on your levers (just in case) and you are now ready to initiate your turn. Apply pressure to your outside pedal by dropping said outside pedal, while you begin to lean into the turn. This will help naturally distribute your weight over your tires. Keep your arms bent and keep your head over your front axle. You may feel more comfortable taking your inside foot off the pedal for confidence, but try to leave it on, or work to that point.

3. The most important piece of advice I can give on mountain biking in general is look where you are want to go. At all times through this corner, your eyes and head should be looking a few yards down the trail. Lead with your head and your bike will follow. Once you have made it to the mid point of the corner, your should switch to looking out of the exit of the berm and down the trail. Now, if there is no one coming up trail you can initiate your exit. (otherwise, shut it down!)

4. Drop your butt back over your rear tire slightly as you level your feet again with the inside foot leading (you should be still looking down the next straight, remember - look). As your bike has started to upright, your weight should naturally be slightly over your rear wheel and have a good amount of traction so you can give a few cranks and regain speed for the next straight. If all went well, congrats - you just railed it!

As I said earlier, this is just one technique, and I promise it won't be prefect for every berm. Some flatter berms require your cranks to be level to the ground, or your tires will slide over the top with the extra weight. My best advice is to work within your limits and keep practicing. On the way up the trail, you may want to stop and try a certain corner a few times. Before any downhill race, I will have ridden each corner individually many, many times before they ever do a full top-down run.

Two final pieces of advice I will give are some of the best lessons I have learned in my racing career. Keep a smile on your face (seriously, it works) and take it slow and easy - If I am aggressive, I will blow it. I cannot think of one course record set or race won where I did not go into it with the mindset that I was just going for a leisurely ride - I promise that with that mindset you will be at the top of your form.

Good luck & Happy Trails!

Don't build jumps on the Leverich DH!

We recently heard the following from the forest service in reference to the jump pictured:

We need to get the word out that this is not acceptable on the
main Leverich route. We have talked about doing something like this on
spur, off shoot parts of the trail, but need to have further discussions
with the Bozeman Ranger on some of this before any work is done.

Here's the deal on the trails as far as I know it from the two meetings I attended with the Forest Service with Greg and Jason and the extremely large number of emails that bounced around between everyone:

The big picture goal is an uphill trail and a downhill trail on either side of the canyon where the two new trails are. We were pushing for the "downhill only" designation, but that isn't something that can just be declared by the people we were meeting with. With that in mind, the western "downhill" trail was mapped and routed with an eye towards being a good downhill on a bike, and the "uphill" (eastern) route as a good climbing route. What it will take to get the "downhill" trail designated as such is still up in the air. Until then, both trails are multi-use, with an emphasis on mountain biking. We are going to try and get a sign up there very soon that recommends the uphill (and hiking)route and downhill route as such.

The amount of enthusiasm and work that this trail has been greeted with is more then I would have hoped for. We just need to keep it harnessed enough that we don't ruin our currently good relationship with forest service and jeopardize any further help from them. Everyone should know that they came to us with money to do this trail because bikers are the primary designated users of Leverich canyon. It's not cheap to cut a trail with an excavator like that. They are helping us out a lot, and in turn we need to play by their rules. This is not mountain bikers getting discriminated against. It's a huge step for us in the right direction.

This was cross posted from MTBR. Call me names if you want.

They also were not happy about these water bars being pulled off the old trail, they are needed to stop erosion on it so it can be reclaimed by the forest.

North Cottonwood

I went for walk up North Cottonwood this evening. If you can handle the rocks, it's in really good shape for riding. The first mile or so through private land is dry, and once you get to the public land the trail is frozen, so that's effectively dry, too.
One of the most stunning views of the valley is up there too. Good times. But not easy.

-DNA

Anything dry(ish)

Anyone been up Sypes or Leverich today?

National Park Service Changes Stance on Cycling

A proposed National Park Service (NPS) regulation change will benefit Americans by improving mountain biking experiences in national parks. The new policy would empower park superintendents to manage trails for bicycles, without sacrificing environmental review or public comment opportunities.

"Bicycling is a good fit for many national parks. It's a quiet, low-impact, family-friendly activity that provides a great way to get adults and kids excited about exploring America's most scenic places," says IMBA Executive Director Mike Van Abel. "We're very pleased that the NPS intends to update its regulations to better serve visitors."

IMBA looks forward to an upcoming NPS announcement on the pending regulation change, and the ensuing public commentary period. Stay tuned to IMBA's website for additional news, and to register your comments with the NPS.

Bicycling Helps National Parks

Expanded opportunities for mountain biking can help energize national parks by attracting new visitors - particularly young ones. According to the Outdoor Industry Association, bicycling is the top gateway activity that gets kids outside and engaged in a variety of outdoor sports.

"Visitation numbers are a concern to the park service at all levels and something we are working with our many tourism partners such as IMBA to address. Having worked with mountain bikers on public lands at gateway communities, I know what a great economic impact they can have on a small town," said NPS National Tourism Director Dean Reeder. "In my experience, we can sustain a balance between resource conservation and appropriate, healthy recreational opportunities such as mountain biking.

Mountain bicycling on appropriate trails in national parks will also enhance visitors' appreciation for the natural world, as parks are better experienced on foot and by bicycle than from inside cars and RVs. Independent scientific studies, including those conducted by the National Park Service, have shown the environmental impacts of mountain biking are similar to those of hiking and less than those of many other user groups.

IMBA's Partnership With National Park Service

Since signing a formal partnership agreement in 2005, IMBA and the NPS have been working together to create and enhance appropriate opportunities for mountain bicycling in national parks. Currently, more than 40 NPS properties host mountain bicycling, on both dirt roads and narrow trails. Each year IMBA leads volunteer work parties to help improve eroded trails and unite trails communities around national parks. Annually, mountain bicyclists contribute almost one million hours of volunteer trailwork on public lands.

"Mountain bicycling is an appropriate activity in many units of the National Park System," says Christopher J. Stubbs, a NPS community planner in Virginia. "I have seen firsthand what bike trails can do for a park. IMBA's folks know how to build sustainable, environmentally sound trails that bring all user groups together. I see a huge potential for bringing a new generation of mountain bicyclists into the park system."

IMBA Has Requested Rule Change for Years

The current policy governing bicycling on NPS trails dates from 1986, and does not account for more than 20 years of research and experience managing bicycling on trails on public lands. The outdated rule is directed at motorized users such as personal watercraft, motorboats, snowmobiles, ORVs and commercial trucking, mining and aircraft. Regulation changes will streamline an overly cumbersome process, while maintaining all review and comment required under the National Environmental Policy Act.

"IMBA first began asking the agency to clarify and streamline this rule in 1992, when IMBA Executive Director Tim Blumenthal met with [then] NPS Director James Ridenour on the subject," says Van Abel. "We hope to see the process for recognizing mountain bike trails will now become more clear and efficient."

History Rock to South Cottonwood

Yesterday (Sunday Oct 19) we rode the History Rock to South Cottonwood shuttle. Conditions were all-in-all pretty decent. Since you can choose either trail as a single ride, I'll split them up.

I had my doubts upon leaving the H.R. trailhead, as there was snow immediately for the first 20 yards or so. The rest of the History Rock trail however, was decent 75% of the time, with 15% being a bit too muddy to ride responsibly and the other 10% being covered in a few inches of snow near the top. Give this trail a few days of dry and it should be tire-gripping tackiness from the meadow down.

Once you reach the sign at the top of the two trails, the snow drops away completely. I cannot recall seeing any snow on the entire South Cottonwood side. There is - to say, quite a bit of evidence of recent snow cover. I would say it is 50-60% wet. Still fun, but if we had not needed to get the shuttle motorcycle at the South Cottonwood trailhead, I would not have stayed off for a few days to maintain trail steward status.

If the weather outlook that I am currently looking at is correct (rain Tuesday, nice beyond that) either trail will likely be IN by the weekend. Definitely recommended for the upcoming weekend, just be back in town by 5:30 on Saturday.

Happy Trails!

Garnet Mountain trail

Assuming anyone reads this, Garnet mountain is in decent shape, if you keep with it through the big snow patch you are rewarded with more dry trail once it starts facing south again. We went up to the junction with the ATV trail, you could probably ride to the top from there without hitting any more snow.

Any one else get out riding around here lately?

Leverich Work Day

from Greg Beardslee:

"NEW DH Trail/Elevator Shaft Reroute in Progress

MANY VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

TRAIL WORK DAY, SAT. OCT. 4 9 AM - ?

MEET AT LEVERICH TRAILHEAD

BRING TOOLS IF POSSIBLE – PULASKIS, RAKES, MCLEODS, CHAINSAWS, PLASTIC BUCKETS, SHOVELS, LUNCH, WATER, RAINJACKET, AND WORK GLOVES ETC.

FREE BEER

Trail update – The Forest Service has excavated a new trail using portions of the elevator shaft. Volunteers are needed to cut roots, pack dirt and contour the trail. Once this work is completed we can focus on trail flow, berms, and jumps. This will be the first official mountain bike/DH trail in the Gallatin National Forest.

If the weather is real bad, don’t show up, OK?" -Greg

As if you needed any more encouragement than being part of our first real DH trail, there is Free Beer.

-DNA

p.s. Free Beer

Blackmore to south Cottonwood

It's a tough climb up to the saddle below Blackmore, but the views of Alex Lowe Peak (and the 10(15?) mile downhill) will make it worth wile. Just follow the cairns from the trail junction sign. This weekend may be your last chance of the year. . .

Clunker DH, Sunday 9-14

Sorry for the late notice, but we'll be having another Clunker DH this Sunday (tomorrow) at Moser. Meet at Spectator's at 1:30pm, we'll load up cars and head on over.

-DNA

Continental Divide Trail Work, this Weekend!

Email from Amy:
"The Montana Wilderness Association, Prickly Pear Land Trust, and the Helena Bike Club are putting on a pair of trail workdays on the Continental divide Trail north of Butte, Saturday and Sunday, Sept, 13 and 14. They have contacted IMBA and have an IMBA Trail Care Crew participating also. The Montana Mountain bike Alliance needs to put up a strong presence. Basically, the MWA and the Helena Club do not take us seriously. We need to put on a show of force. Our plan is to just go there for the Saturday session, but to show up in a big way.

It will help if participants sign up on the Prickly Pear Land trust website. Then they will have enough trail tools on hand. Also the Back Country Horseman are feeding us afterwards on Saturday, so by signing up they get a head count of workers.

This trail is being built as a result of the High Divide Agreement between Helena, Butte, and Anaconda bikers and the Montana Wilderness Association. The work area is up above Basin, MT. Exit 156 on I-15. 9 miles up Basin Creek road #172. ¾ mile past Winters Camp turn left on road #8513. Follow this for 4 miles to Joe Bowers Trailhead. I hope there is signage to assist us. A presentation by the IMBA trail crew is scheduled at 10 am."


-DNA

Shafthouse

The Shafthouse trail is in really, really good shape. Seems to be getting a lot of bike traffic, so if you aren't doing so already, go ride it.

Counterpoint?

From Dirt Rag August 1991.

Your trails were not meant just to hike
You can share them with my bike
for I enjoy nature too
and the climb to a mountain top to for a breath-taking view
and I hear the birds fuss at me
and I listen when they ask that I leave them be
and I thrill to see the baby bunny hop
across the trail and then suddenly stop
and sit up and look and sniff the air
then hop through the bushes to who knows where
and I watch amazed as a deer bounds by so strong and quick
more gifted than I
and I wonder if he gives a care
with what animals he must share
his trails and waters and woods so fair

Sherri Burford

Sent to me by Greg

Clunker DH Details

Here's the details. We'll meet at Spectator's at 2pm (so you've all got plenty of time to get over your hangover) and we'll pack up and head on up to Moser. Greg knows that area well, so we can ride a few different trails and the road if we wanted an all-out drifting extravaganza. Casey can't ride yet, so he graciously offered to run the shuttle.
You can pretty much ride whatever bike you want, as long as it's not a mountain bike from 1990 - present. Cruisers, 80's era mtbs, whatevah.
Shoot me an email if you have any questions.

-DNA

New West Editor's communication

The following is an email exchange betwixt myself and the founder, publisher, and CEO of New West. This is shortly after he disabled the comments due to myself posting a link to the photoshop competition on TheBozemanFix.

New West Editor:

Casey, we're probably not going to chase you down for copyright infringement for stealing the photo, but we're certainly not going to be a vehicle for your prank.

If you think you and and some of the other MTBers on this thread have advanced your cause with this sort of rhetorical beat-down, I'd suspect you are mistaken.

Regards,
jw




My Reply:

Johnathan,

I'd say the sheer volume of the response should speak for itself. That article was nothing more than an attempt at bullying, so you shouldn't be surprised by a reponse in-kind.

Best,
Casey

New West Editor:

Casey, between you and me, I totally understand why the column ticked people off, and in fact I agree with most of the criticism. (And, in case you're wondering, I wouldn't know Jill if I walked into her on the street). But it's the comments, far more than the original article, that come across as bullying. A bunch of tough, aggressive MTB guys gang-tackling and pounding on a somewhat naive young woman...that's what I saw.

Regards,
jw


My Reply:

Johnathan,

That's your opinion and you're entitled to it. But this is an utter slap in the face to anyone who rides a bike and I am quite frankly shocked and dismayed that a seemingly reputable publication would print something so lacking in merit, justification, or quantifiable fact. This entire drama developed and unfolded because your innocent and naive ideologue choose to taunt a peaceful group of people doing something completely analogous to what she herself was doing that weekend. The sign saying 'fat chance fat tire' may as well have said 'fuck you'. That level of hypocrisy is unconscionable. I am generally a reasonable, if passionate, person (especially where cycling is concerned), but this vapid assertion of self-righteousness is so senseless and unfounded that I'm surprised that you felt any shock at our, in my opinion, defense of ourselves, in the face a tyrannical action by an unjust bully. It is nothing more, nothing less.

Incidentally, I am not the individual who posted a picture of JillCo. on The Bozeman Fix, although from time to time I contribute to that blog. Moreover, as far as I am aware that picture originated from this site.

http://www.utahmountainbiking.com/UMBphpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=4793

It appears to have been taken by a camera phone, most likely by one of the cyclists on that ride. So, as to your vague threat of lawsuit, I'm frankly confused.

Best,
Casey



Additionally I sent this:


Jonathan,

In addition to my prior reply, and along with the theme of my frustration with both Jill's article and your handling of it, I have this to say (after this, I will step off of my soapbox, I do of course invite your reply).

There are two individuals commenting on that post, who in their defense of your 'naive' guest columnist, go far beyond 'rhetorical beat-down' and threaten physical violence on us 'bunch of tough, aggressive MTB guys'. One of those individuals posts as mike and the other individual posts as bear bait; he goes beyond the threat of general physical violence and states that he will in fact use a gun. So be quite careful who you stereotype as aggressive here. All in all, from my brief experience with your publication (limited to Jill's article and my exchange with you) your theme seems to be impassioned opinion backed-up by little in the way of quantifiable data or verifiable fact, which make up the core of responsible journalism.

As I stated previously, it is my opinion that the voluminous rebuttal Jill's article received speaks, well volumes, and I dispute your claim of suspicion that we advanced our cause.

Best,
Casey

I then sent this:


Oh, and btw, since I happen to disagree with you about how this helps our 'cause', if I promise not to post links to sites promoting satire of my least favorite wilderness advocate, will you re-allow comments to the post?

Case

New West Editor's Reply:


Casey, the vast majority of the 180 or so comments are attacking and ridiculing the author, I already deleted the most personally insulting ones, since personal insults contribute zero to the dialogue (and are clearly against the rules). There was some good discussion for a while, which is the point of this kind of thing. New West publishes a wide range of stories and opinion pieces, partly in an effort to expose many aspects of an issue. As I mentioned we had invited a counter-point column before this was even posted, I am not sure what the status of that is.

I think the thread on this piece has run its course at this point, but we'll definitely have some more pieces on this topic where we can continue the conversation.

Regards,
jw

New West article comments

The editor of New West has posted this at the end of the comments.

Comments on this story are now closed, for obvious reasons (see terms of service). Any questions send me an email.

When I read it, I laughed and thought 'if you can't stand the heat...'

DNA has a post on TheFix about a little photoshop competition involving our fledgling 'journalist' and her friends.

C

Clunker Downhill, This Sunday!

Old bikes, cruisers, anything but modern mountain bikes. This Sunday afternoon, probably Moser in Hyalite.
A few of us are going to get together for a nice Mt. Tam style clunker downhill. We'll shuttle via truck and send someone down first with a walkie-talkie to make sure the path is clear. Then we'll drink some cheap beer. So get your ratty old jeans and flannel (unless it's hot) and an old cruiser and stay tuned for the details. Nothing competitive, no prizes- just fun.

-DNA

Curly Lake

Curly lake is open now. Here's a gmap link that will get you near the trailhead. Basically once you get to Mammoth, keep going about 2-4 miles until you see what looks like some campsites, followed by some singletrack headed up a nigh impossible climb. Don't cross the creek. There's a sign that says Curly Cr. TR No 159. For actual directions Beartooth Publishing has this and many more rides very well categorized; this can be obtained at any local outdoor shop, bike or otherwise.

For those interested, but uncertain what this ride entails, some quite probably apocryphal statistics follow. It's around 25 miles and has about 5000 feet of elevation. I believe the 'official' description includes the word arduous. It also was hands-down my favorite ride so far...ever. So do it. Just take a lot of water and peanut butter.

A guy did the ride on a Big Dummy. At one point he pulled a barbecued chicken sandwich out of a FreeLoader...we were all envious...until we started climbing again.



Oh and, that's not a beer in the dude's hand on the left, it's a bottle of Glenlivet. Of course he was on a single-speed, so he probably needed something to numb the pain.

Protest update

They wrote a great article about their protest that probably won't help their cause.

Check it out at New West:

It was late when we left Missoula on a Friday night. We planned to sleep at the trailhead, wake early, hike in six miles, stay overnight, and fish and walk out seven miles the next day. We stopped to fill up our gas tanks in Dillon, where an article in the local paper caught our eye. We weren’t going to be alone in the Lima Peaks. A group of mountain bikers, the Montana Mountain Bike Alliance, planned to ride in the Garfield Mountain area in order to protest the pending wilderness recommendation. We weren’t happy about having to share the trails with the group, and, moreover, we weren’t happy about the intent behind their ride. We soon took matters into our own hands, laughing and tearing up a cardboard box. We were going to have a protest of our own.

The comments are REALLY good

By regular joe, 7-27-08
I love how pretentious city yuppies move to places like Missoula and then try to tell Missoula residents how they should live, where they should recreate, how they should recreate.

"Oh those mountain bikers -- they tried to KILL US with their high-speed fun! We were just walking along, 6-across on the trail, having a pleasant conversation about what a miracle Barack Obama is, and here comes this CRAZY mountain bike rider going at least 3 miles per hour! He tried to KILL US! We actually had to interrupt our impressively deep and sophisticated political conversation! CLEARLY mountain bikes should be banned!"

"Signed,

Peter Predenshus
Jill Konducenshun
Bob Sooperyer
Ted Eauppie
Gladys Cnobb"

Look for a response article from the MMBA in New West soon.


Trail report content: We "rode" from Bridger Bowl to the M yesterday on the Ridge. The trail was dry, the cornices were still large and in charge up on the ridge line.