From Rexburg Races: Updated Links to Cube Info and Registration

Here is the updated link to our Cube Page: http://rexburg.org/pages/the-cube-cyclocross

And to the registration page: https://www.raceentry.com/races/cube-cyclocross-race/2016/register

Madison Composite HD

Thanks to Scott Galer for this great photo. You may notice that the group is a little smaller than last week due to potato harvest. Joe decided to reshoot the photo today since several people were missing last week, but still failed to get everyone together.

From Kelson Custom Cycles: DNA Quiver Killer Insider Discount

Many of you have experienced the unparalleled feel of a custom Kelson bike- whether its the timeless feel of a steel or titanium frame or the pro performance of a full carbon machine- Kelson Bikes is still committed to building the best bike possible to fulfill and exceed your expectations. We have been up to a lot in this last year, and we wanted to let you in on it-

With the latest improvements and shift towards disc brakes for road and CX, is it possible to have one bike that will perform well with road/CX/or gravel tires? These where the questions I was asked in the Spring of 2015 sitting around a conference table at DNA Cycling. 'Oh, and could you make it so that it could clear up to a 40mm tire? (Chimed in one of the gurus of gravel riding) I would like to ride singletrack on it every so often...' Sure....Why not! After all, it is becoming more frequent to see someone "multi purposing" their CX bike for road fondos, gravel grinders, and various events. 

(Burke Swindlehurst likes to go where no man has gone before- and with his very own Quiver Killer- here you see him riding the Wasatch Crest Trail in Utah- I guess drop bar "mountain bikes" are all the rage now!)

BUT, there was a lot to consider:

A good road bike is stable at high speeds and can carve through the apex of a corner quickly. Typically, those attributes are a result of a good combination of head tube angle, fork rake, shorter chainstays and wheelbase, plus bottom bracket heights that lower the center of gravity.        

    (Seth Bradley of DNA crushing dirt and asphalt in Italy on his Quiver Killer)

CX bikes have required longer chainstays (typically 425mm) so that larger tires can clear the frame and still have room for chainrings. High bottom brackets have been the norm for varying reasons, one being pedal clearance on off camber hills. With the added height of the modern tubular CX tire and pedals with improved clearance, we are seeing a shift towards lower bottom brackets similar to road heights(around 70mm).

Gravel racing is becoming ever so popular and for good reason...It's big fun! Linking ashphalt, gravel, dirt and occasionally single track together into a epic loop is not uncommon in the various gravel events poping up around the globe. Road racing skills, CX and MTB all apply in a gravel race. Racers are encountering events like the Crusher in the Tushar that features over 10,000 feet of climbing in just 70 miles or events like Rebecca's Private Idaho where the top finishers are approaching average finishing speeds of nearly 20 mph. Not only do course conditions vary drastically from each

event, but the same event might be perfectly smooth one year and tooth rattling the next. I have seen gravel races won on mountain bikes and road bikes 

and everything in-between.

 Keeping all three styles of bikes and racing in mind, a checklist of key features was compiled.
1-Responsive quick turning- Shorter chainstay length (412-415). 
2-Stability at high speeds- trail measurements from 58-61mm.
3-Bottom bracket drop of 65-75mm
4-"Connected" climbing-shorter chainstays and improved weight distribution
5-Clearance for at least a 40mm tire. 
6-Broad range of gearing options either 1X or compact 2X
7-Light weight 900-1050 gram frame weight
8-Torsionally stiff with some vertical compliance. 
9-Interchangable drop out inserts for different axle standards. 

  The result after a summer of careful CAD designing, CNC machining molds in house, (not to mention a lot of restless nights and long hours) was the DNA geometry- AKA "Quiver Killer" born. A bike that does have the capability to perform well on the road and CX course plus adapt to destroy any gravel race. Of course each frame is custom, so top tube, seat tube, and head tube lengths vary for each individual rider. We also layup and build all the tubing in house using the finest materials, fiber orientation and number of carbon plys are all taken into consideration according to rider height/weight. Carbon fiber and the ability to manufacture tooling in house has allowed us to "shape" tubes to fit the desired frame and component clearances while maintaining the geometry we prefer rather than compromising on geometry for the sake of a tube to clear a derailleur or fat tires. 

"Insane, both up and down. 18 miles of pavement, 5 miles of singletrack and nearly 5k feet of climbing. I couldn't be happier with the bike. 
Plenty stiff in the BB, climbs like a road bike (just like I'd hoped!) and is amazingly compliant vertically..the dampening on rough surfaces is above and beyond anything I've ridden without some sort of actual suspension"
                                                -Burke Swindlehurst (RD for Crusher in the Tushar)

So, whats the good news? For now, we are offering a discount on the initial launch of the DNA Quiver Killer. The first 5 people wanting a full custom Quiver Killer will receive $1000 dollars off a FULL CUSTOM frame, ENVE cyclocross fork (12mm thru axle) and Chris King Inset 7 Headset. The total price of this insane bargain for a full custom frame/fork/headset being $4200.00. The other good news? If you are still eating up what you see here, we are offering limited stock size quantities for $3500.00- again, including frame, ENVE fork, and Chris King Headset. The stock sizes are basically a small (52 cm), medium (55 cm), and large (57 cm)- but order quick, these are limited to two frames per size. 

Thank you for your time- keep riding strong! 

Please get back to us with any questions or comments regarding the quiver killer, thanks for being such good customers and future customers!

Dan Griffin

Production/Workflow

Kelson Bikes

Tel:208-403-1193

kelsonbikes.com

(Remember- as beautiful as these custom bikes are, they were meant for hard riding and should be RIDDEN)

From Morris: Women's Mountain Bike Racing

We have all been very excited with the results of the Upper Valley Composite Mountain Bike Team.  All riders have given great effort and should be proud of their accomplishments.  I will focus specifically on the girls this week even though the boys have ridden equally as well.  The girls are few in number but include Ashlee Puzey, Adael Ashment, Ketti Christensen, and Morgan & Emma Hurst.  Many of them have stood on the podium at each race.  That in itself is impressive, but even more impressive is they are pioneering the way for future girl racers from the upper valley.  It is tough to break out of the mold of what we think are traditional women's sports in Rexburg and Sugar City and excel in their first and second years.  The great thing is that all but one of the women racers will be returning to the NICA league for the next few seasons. These early years will give them experience to fall back on in the future.  We have enjoyed watching each of them compete and grow with each race. 

Why is Jay P's So Hard on Tires? Kellen Has a Theory

Three gravel events that locals have participated in quite a bit: Crusher in the Tushar, Rebecca’s Private Idaho, and Jay P’s Gravel Pursuit are all similar in that they feature substantial climbs and extended downhill sections. Here is how I would characterize the prominent feature of the descents.

Crusher: washboard

Rebecca’s: angular rocks embedded in the road surface

Jay P’s: large ruts, often perpendicular to the direction of travel

Tire failure is fairly common in all of these events. Intuitively, I would say that tire issues should be most common at Rebecca’s, intermediate at the Crusher, and least common at the Jay P’s. The number of flat tires that I saw at Rebecca’s this year seems to support that hypothesis. However, based on an unscientific sample of the Rexburg crew, I think we have had more tire problems/tire problems per mile at Jay P’s than at either of the other two.

Kellen offered an explanation that seems very plausible to me: bunnyhopping.  He and I are both pretty sure there is more bunnyhopping at Jay P’s given that nature of the obstacles. Presumably, the hard landings are causing more pinch flats for people running inner tubes and bead burps on tubeless tires than the rocks and washboard encountered elsewhere.

We are curious to hear your feedback. Do you believe that tire trouble is actually a bigger problem at Jay P’s? What do you think about the bunnyhopping explanation? Does someone have another explanation?

 

 

 

Jay P's Gravel Pursuit 2016

 

Jay P’s Gravel Pursuit, which offers 60 and 120 mile options, is on my short list of favorite events. Median times for the two distances are around 4.5 hours and 10 hours. All of the Rexburg locals opted for the 60 mile option again this year which, especially this late in the season, is a good call in my opinion. Everyone had a solid day on the bike. It is probably no big surprise that Shae managed to get onto the podium.

We started the day in cool misty conditions. It was 33 degrees at the top of Baker Draw. Leaving Pond’s Lodge on the Old Chick Creek Road, there were a lot of deep puddles and standing water, but the recent rain made most of the course much smoother and faster than in previous years.

Today was the day that my Clement MSO Tubeless tires finally let me down. I popped a bead on my front tire on the second descent of the Chick Creek Road. My CO2 froze solid when I tried to deploy it and I was mostly unsuccessful in reseating the bead. I limped in to the finish on a mostly flat tire.

I guess it goes without saying that gravel racing is hard on equipment and on balance we were lucky today to not have a mechanical failure that prevented anyone from finishing.

Madison Composite Team Photo

There are high-quality versions of this photo pending. This is a quick one that I snapped with my phone. Good luck to Madison Composite at Magic Mountain this weekend!

 

Tonight! Watch Live: 2016 CrossVegas UCI World Cup Live Streaming Video - Cyclocross Magazine

Update: I am sorry to overpromise on this one. The live stream is blocked in the US. The event is not streaming on NBC Sports Gold. Apparently NBC Sports is a different app. Seriously?!

http://www.cxmagazine.com/watch-live-2016-crossvegas-uci-world-cup-live-streaming-video-geo-restricted

TNR Moving to 5:30

Beginning next Tuesday, September 27^th, the Tuesday Night Ride will be moving to 5:30 to take advantage of the available daylight. Please help spread the word about the time change.

Standard Journal coverage of Grand Charge NICA Race

National Interscholastic Cycling League: Grand Charge race #3

Targhee HS Race

Thanks, Morris for the photos
What a weekend we just had at Grand Targhee!  Hope everyone had as much
fun as I did!  I was extremely proud of everyone's efforts on their bikes
and thankful to all the volunteers and families that helped make this
weekend run smoothly.  I was also stoked that Hal Miller (Mr announcer man)
pointed out that our team was cheering the loudest, and that we were
cheering for EVERY team!  Nice work!  Also rad that our team got 6th for
the day!  Our best team score yet!                               Joe Hill

Nairo Quintana Receives a Hero's Welcome in Bogota | Cyclingnews.com

Big countries like the United States have won so many things we feel entitled and/or get tired of it. Winning a major sporting event has more meaning in a lot of other places.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/quintana-welcomed-in-colombia-after-vuelta-a-espana-victory/

For the HS Team: GCN's Seven Tips for Young Cyclists

LVL Hydration Monitor-Bike Rumor

LVL Hydration Monitor tells just how dehydrated you really are - Bikerumor
http://www.bikerumor.com/2016/09/16/lvl-hydration-monitor-tells-just-dehydrated-really/

The Official 2016 Cube Poster

I distributed quite a few of these to area bikes shops on Tuesday. If anyone would like to place a few additional Cube posters, please let me know.

Moose Cross is Coming!

Moose Cross is Coming! October 15&16

Please mark you calendars and join Mountain Bike the Tetons and the Fitzgerald's Cycling Team for a fantastic weekend of cyclocross in beautiful Victor, ID!


Moose Cross is a month away. We've made some changes this year that should have you rushing to register!
What's new?
Moose Cross was already great. But, we thought a few things could make it even better so some changes are afoot. We've made a few tweaks that will make your racing experience better.
Moose Cross is now run by Mountain Bike the Tetons and the Fitzgerald's Cycling Team. All race proceeds will support the MBT Trail Fund and local cycling advocacy efforts.
Racer Changes
Pro payout $$$.
Numbers on the body.
Pavement start.
Double sided pit.
FREE registration for first-time female racers (18 & under race free, too!).

Racer and Spectator Experience
Food and beverages on site from Nom Nom doughnuts (Saturday), Grand Teton Brewing, Picnic JH and more!
Sweet Moose Cross branded wool socks from Save our Soles.
After party at Grand Teton Brewing right across the street.
2 new pump tracks and dirt jumps next to the start to pass the time between races.
Amazing prizes and give always from our sponsors Hoback Sports, Peaked Sports, Fitzgerald's Bicycles, Picnic, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Revolution Indoor Cycling, Creative Energies and Grand Teton Brewing.
Same Ol' Awesome Features
The whoops, the run-up, the twisty berms and challenging features.
A free kids race on Saturday.
Membership in the Wild West Cross Series.
The ultimate family and spectator friendly event!
FUN! FUN! AND MORE FUN!
For full information, race schedules, lodging, etc. please visit our website at www.moosecross.com
Help us out and register early, save some $$ and get a better call up here: https://moosecross.athlete360.com/

Please like our Facebook page for daily updates and cross stoke. We will certainly need volunteers and opportunities will be posted there as well: https://www.facebook.com/mooseCX/
Photos more your style? See our Instagram at @moosecx
We are open to suggestions as well. How can we make your cross experience more awesome? Hit us up at amanda.carey@mountainbiketetons.org or patkearney24@gmail.com

Our stoke is high, we're warming up the cowbells and we're excited to roll out the course tape for an amazing weekend! We hope to see you there.
Sincerely,
- Amanda Carey, Mountain Bike the Tetons Executive Director
- Pat Kearney, Fitzgerald's Cycling Team
(Moose Cross Co-Promoters and Directors of Stoke)

Cheers to a bang up weekend at Rebecca's Private Idaho!

A NOTE FROM REBECCA:

I've had the privilege of traveling the world and explore new destinations each year, but at the end of the day there is nothing quiet like coming home to Ketchum, Idaho. After your weekend at Rebecca's Private Idaho, you might just now understand what I've been talking about. Each year I look forward to sharing my town with you all, and if you ask me, this was our best year yet. From the Wagon Days Parade to Galande Quaffing it seems like the party never ended. We set a new record with 550 registered riders, gave over $4,000 to each of our charity partners, and the weather gods were kind enough and saved the snow for Monday. I sure hope you had as much fun as I did!

Stay tuned for registration information in January! Here come's year five!

Happy Trails,

American woman rides bike 147 mph, a new world record-world-record. VeloNews

Photo: Project Speed

Read more at http://velonews.competitor.com/2016/09/news/ca-woman-rides-her-bicycle-147-mph-a-new-world-record_420507#I0Y2ZqmIM7ZJlgmR.99http://velonews.competitor.com/2016/09/news/ca-woman-rides-her-bicycle-147-mph-a-new-world-record_420507

From Joe Hill: Clint Mortley Returns to Lotoja Podium

Until I heard it from Joe about 20 minutes ago, I had not even realized that Clint had ridden Lotoja this year. Even following a tough year do not bet against Clint at Lotoja. A big congratulations on a fine second place finish from all your friends in Rexburg!

From Clint's Facebook:

From a hospital bed to 2nd place at LOTOJA. I have the two toughest teammates Micheal and Darren. Shoutout to the Ogden riders helping get back into shape. I love this event and being able to participate in it was a miracle in its self. O yea Zan straight killed it as support. #bikesareawesome

From Joe Hill: HS Galena Race

Here are a few pics from Scott Hurst.  The first picture is of Elijah Kugath coming through the start/finish corridor.  The picture on the singletrack is of Morgan Hurst.  Two photos of Ketti Christensen and Emma Hurst, one on the podium (both of them wearing the "Strong Jersey" which is awarded to the 1st place finisher for the day, Emma having earned hers at the previous race) and the other photo of both of them standing with their medals, Then the photo of Morgan on the podium and last the two Hurst girls, both with their bling.

Upper Valley Composite MTB Team went to Galena with 30 registered racers, ranging in age from 6th grade up to 12th.  The course was a favorite of almost everyone that rode it.  It climbed around 500 feet, with almost all of the uphill being a double track, before topping out and turning into fast and flowy singletrack all the way back down to the starting gate.

The UVC kids, made up of students from Madison and Sugar City school districts, stacked up very well against the competition.  We were proud to finish the day with 3 athletes in the top 10 of the JV Boys field, those athletes were Dugan Merrill, Kelton Williams, and Hunter Brown.  Morgan Hurst rode well enough to earn herself a 3rd place and podium finish in the JV girls, a field of over 30 tough chicas.  Other podium finishers were John Zenger, who got 5th in a mean Sophomore boys category, and Ketti Christensen and Emma Hurst, who pushed each other and placed 1st and 2nd respectively in the Middle School B category.

Everyone that attended rode well and put in a good effort and we came away with an 8th place team finish for the day, and an overall series standing of 8th out of 22 teams.  Of the teams on the Eastern side of the state we trail only Highland High School.

 

Congratulations to 2016 Lotoja Finishers

Without an organized team effort from the Upper Valley, numbers were smaller than usual at Lotoja this year. Congratulations to the local finishers:

·         Bruce Baxter

·         Eric Odell

·         Mike Schjeldahl

·         Cameron Patch and Boyd Berry (two man relay)

Bruce has promised me a picture that I will post when available.

SRAM Red eTap Wireless Groupset - GCN's First Ride

First a disclaimer-this video is just over a year old. But I don’t believe we posted it then. Plus the video may be more relevant as the eTap is becoming more widely available.

How Nairo Quintana Won the Vuelta: Stage 15 Recap

Prior to the Vuelta, I posted a link to a VeloNews opinion piece which argued that the Vuelta is the best of the three Grand Tours. I am not going to be the one to argue that it is not. NBC Sports Gold has provided excellent daily coverage. I regret that my schedule has not allowed me to watch more of it. If you have been following the Vuelta, you know that the most decisive day occurred one week ago today on Stage 15.

Congratulations to Bruce Baxter on his fastest Lotoja ever and to other local riders.

Rebecca's Private Idaho 2016

I do not have enough superlatives for Rebecca’s. It is hard, epic, and fun. The quality of the organization sets a standard for other events. Everyone I know who has ever ridden Rebecca’s has loved it. Two years ago, I commented on bad-tasting water. This year, every aid station had bottled water and bottle hand-ups. The finish has always provided live music, great food, and beverages. Rebecca has traditionally awarded a bolo tie to the first 75 finishers. With increasing participant numbers and a higher level of competition, it is becoming more difficult to get a bolo tie.

It was cold and windy yesterday, but thankfully the rain which was forecast did not materialize until later. I started the day in arm warmers, leg warmers, and a full jacket. I was never tempted to remove any layers. Many of the roads had been recently graded, and paradoxically, the reduced washboard seemed to expose more sharp edged rocks. I do not recall any event in which I have ever seen more people with tire trouble. Kellen rode with the pros for quite a while and finished 25^th overall even after burping a tubeless tire. The pros were not immune to the rocks. Kristin Armstrong had tire trouble. Burke Swindlehurst reportedly suffered four flat tires. My tubeless Clement MSO 36 mm continue to be bullet proof.

 

 

 

Our new BFF, three time Olympic gold medalist and two time world TT champion, Kristin Armstrong.

 

My Ferrari. Some other guy's Subaru.

UTCX Starts Sept 10!

 

UTCX STARTS September 10! Registration for Season and 8 passes:

https://www.bikereg.com/utcx-2016 

New this year to UTCX...

More Prize Money

New VIP Section

New Reg Set Up

Prize Raffles

All Result on crossresult.com

 2016 UTCX Cross Season...

Sept 10 Godfrey Trucking  

Sept 24 Weber Fair Grounds

Oct 1 TBA (Salt Lake City Venue)

Oct 8 Weber Fair Grounds

Oct 15 The Fort

Oct 16 The Fort

Oct 22 Godfrey Trucking  

Oct 29 TBA (Salt Lake City Venue)

Nov 5 Barnes Park

Nov 19 Weber Fair Grounds or Wheeler Farm

Dec 3 Barnes Park (USA Cycling National Qualifier and DOUBLE UTCX POINTS)

(All venues are subject to change, Working on Dec 10 race details to come)

 

From Brian: J-Pow Camp

Overall the camp was very impressive, well organized and way beyond our expectations. The crew from Fast Cat coaching do an amazing job and are all very knowledgable on everything CX. The camp was held on a five acre lot and the home of wearebutter cycling products (they make the B2, B1 chainkeep), the owner has spent the better part of the summer creating a legit CX course that is UCI worthy, and with a little tweaking to the course by Jeremy during the camp it became even more challenging. 

Day one was primarily a meet and greet along with bike fitting, tech talk from Jeremy's mechanic Tom Hopper. There was a company there performing ultrasounds on the major leg muscles to evaluate potential cycling performance, I did not have much time to really look into it but found it very interesting.

Day two started out with stretching, barriers and shouldering. The following afternoon concluded with cornering in mud and off camber mud. It was really impressive to see how far Jeremy would push the tape out of his way in order to get the best line, I attached a photo of this, kinda blurry but you get the idea. The most important lesson he gave was that momentum is everything and that good line selection is crucial to maintaining momentum. Tom Hopper said that throughout the 5 years he has been Jeremy's mechanic he had only flatted 5-6 times during a race and he attributed that to how well Jeremy selects his line and takes care of his equipment during the race. 

Day three was course inspection, starts, bunny hoping. There was always detailed talk during the lunch breaks, where Jeremy and the other coaches would address such things as race day preparation, diet, and other various topics bike related. The camp concluded that afternoon with some one to two lap races where they brought everything together. It was impressive to see how much everyone improved throughout the entire camp. 

I would highly recommend this camp to anyone who is interested in improving their bike handling and overall CX knowledge. Jeremy's enthusiasm and passion for the sport really makes him a fantastic instructor, he worked really hard throughout the entire camp to make sure that everyone made improvements and had an enjoyable experience. 

-Brian

 Kelson Bikes www.kelsonbikes.com 1636 Ashton Hill Loop Road Box 627 Ashton, Idaho 83420 (208)317-1327