This week, our enthusiastic website designers have brought us, yet another update with the addition of a new video. Don’t forget to check back regularly for new videos, podcasts, team updates, photos, and much more... Go check out the newest video here!

Last April was the first time I met Fionn's Team DH and 4X bikes. They'd had a long trip over from the UK and ended up in my hands to be built and prepped for the first day of practice at the Sea Otter Classic. Sometime between putting the final touches on her wheels, overhauling the pivots, and knocking back a third cup of coffee, Fee herself arrived on site. This was the first time we'd met in person and she set a tone of professionalism when she introduced herself with a quick handshake, cracked a bad hair joke (my hair that is) and immediately jumped into figuring out her bike set up.

Over the past year I have had the opportunity to get to know Fee, find out where she comes from, what it is that makes her tick and why she rides bicycles. I believe you can tell a lot about a person within the first few minutes of meeting and speaking with them, but you can tell even more about then when you watch them consistently back up their promises throughout the entire season. I know Fee is a great cyclist; she is known and respected for it by the entire racing community. I believe that her best quality is that she is confident in who she is and she's not afraid to be that person.

All the best in 2008 Fee!
- Jamie Wakeling
Norco Factory Team & Special Events Coordinator

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nsmb - Vitals Fionn Griffiths (Fee) - I'm 25, from Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK 9 years Racing - 3 years with Norco.

3 World Cup Wins (2 DH, 1 4X),
2x World Championship DH Silver Medalist
21 World Cup Podiums

nsmb - What was your first two wheeler like?

Fee - I don't really remember my first bike. I just remember my purple helmet! I think I was too terrified by the idea of learning to ride the bike and I didn't have time to pay attention to the bike itself. We don't have a paved drive, so my father taught me to ride my first bike down a gravel driveway. I guess that explains a lot eh?

nsmb - Who was the person who got you into mountain biking?

Fee - In the very beginning, it would probably be my brother and his friends. The person who pushed me to race though was Helen Mortimer. She was a wicked British rider back in the day and is now the British Cycling Team Manager.

nsmb - How did it go down?

Fee - My mum signed me up for a local training day and Helen was there teaching. Funny enough at the start of the day I was put in the lowest group of riders (based on ability). By the end of the day I was in the intermediate group where Helen Mortimer gave me an entry form for my first race.

Read the FULL INTERVIEW on NSMB.com

Stephanie Masterman loves adventure racing! She met her future husband at an adventure race! Her husband Jamin proposed to her at the finish line of an adventure race! And she has done it all when it comes to the 4th annual Suburban RUSH adventure race: she raced the inaugural event; she was a key team member of the leadership team in year two and in year three at eight and a 1/2 months pregnant she headed up checkpoint 2, 4 and 6!

She's fairly qualified to speak about adventure racing and Suburban RUSH! "Suburban RUSH is a race that anyone can do; from the absolute beginner to the seasoned veteran. The challenge is different for everyone, whether it is to test your fitness, compete against your friends or just to finish with a smile on your face (which I hope to do!). For myself, I am so excited to race Suburban RUSH this year as my post-pregnancy fitness goal. As well as it being totally addictive, adventure racing has been a large part of my life, and I have missed it while being pregnant and raising a little baby. Volunteering was a great way to stay involved in the sport, but nothing beats the thrill of crossing the finish line!" Suburban RUSH involves 30km of beginner and intermediate mountain biking, trail running/trekking and mystery challenges. The race is April 26th. If you'd like more information on Suburban RUSH.
Adventure racing starts here!

Mislav gives us a first-timer's look at riding in the holy-land

Destination: Israel. . .
Mission: Shoot Ride Guide Tv Show
Crew: Cory, Darcy, Jay and me Mislav This fall I was invited again to shoot with Ride Guide TV. Without a second thought, I took that chance and went to Israel. .Flight one – Budapest , flight two and there I was in Tel Aviv, Israel. I took advantage of arriving first and went to hotel to sleep for a few hours before meeting the rest of my crew. Then it was back to the airport again to meet Cory, Darcy and Jay.

Exploring the desert with Hoots

From the airport we piled into a van and headed towards the Dead Sea. When we first arrived, I was little bit afraid because the only thing that I can see on TV about Israel is WAR, WAR, WAR, but it was whole other story when we where there; everything was super safe and nice, especially the Dead Sea Resort!

We were completely surrounded by the deserts everywhere and one road that goes to I like to call it anti-Everest because it is the lowest place on earth "DEAD SEA" -400 m below the sea level…SICK! The sea itself is 11 times saltier than the ocean, is surrounded by big fancy hotels, and lots of tourists. . . and it was hoooot!

The reason that we went to Dead Sea was to check out an event called the Volvo Desert Challenge, one of the biggest XC marathons in Israel and probably the geographically lowest XC race on earth.

Mislav makes a few friends at the Dirt Jump Demo

Our job was to put on a dirt jump show during the event the next day.

Morning
8:00 tuuu tuuu tuuu *that’s my alarm*
Volvo Desert Challenge Day

After a good nights sleep, we all went straight down to beach to check out the jumps. It turned out to be a roll in and one jump with a wooden kicker and a landing build from sand by the locals. It was amazing to ride at that place - we where jumping to -396 m – funny.

This backflip put Mislav up to at least -386m below sea level

The show went really well and there were lots of spectators. Afterwards, we ran down to chill on the sea. Yes, ON the sea, because it was impossible to not to float.

The next day we made plans to ride in the desert. It was my first time in my life that I have ever done this kind of riding. It was amazing!

Camels!

Rocks everywhere, us riding, and camels . . .hahaha yes we saw camels. That was definitely some wildlife I had never seen before while being out on a ride.

Next it was time to head to Jerusalem . . . Jerusalem
We started out at 7am, riding not just on the streets of the holiest place on earth, but on the ROOFS! It was sick!

We ended up sessioning a couple small banks on top of Jerusalem (you’ll see it on Ride Guide – it will make more sense then). It’s very hard to explain the strangeness and the amazing feeling of riding on the roofs of the city of Jesus.

After our morning roof-riding session, we left our bikes in the van and decided to spend a little time acting like normal tourists. Have I mentioned Jerusalem is AMAZING?!

DH time! Our next stop on the trip involved a trip to check out the DH track that the locals had built.

Darcy rides a little DH

I could say it was the oldest ground that I ever rode my bike on because we rode along 2000 year old. Each terrace was connected to the next lower one by a small drop, it was so good, and best of all, the track ended in the coolest place that can be, a small holy fountain. It was like in James Bond movie when they drive like crazy to escape and suddenly end up in a small nice place.

Cory: Ride Guide Cameraman Extraordinaire The 2nd DH track we rode was a bit different – a mix of a happy and unhappy day for me. It started out well, but the course was full of very sharp rocks. At one point when I was following another rider closely, I didn't see one of the rocks in time. I tried to do a bunnyhop, but I was too late and I hit it with my front wheel and made me lose control. I did manage to stop, but only with the help of a tree full of very sharp branches. Luckily, although the sharp branches were aiming straight for my eye, I was wearing my Oakley goggles. My arm though, wasn’t so lucky.

I thought I was ok, but when I got to my feet I realized there was a small hole in my left arm. Unfortunately, that ended my ride since I had to go the hospital to get it fixed.

And, after all that, here I am at home . . . After that incredible trip I came home to a little bit of bad news. I started to feel pain in my knee so I went to my doctor to get it checked out.

He took an MRI and said that I had a broken meniscus. I went in surgery right away but when he opened my knee he saw that my meniscus was perfect, but that there was a problem with a small bone in my knee. I had my surgery on Nov 25th, and today I can already walk normally and pedal my bike. *Ed Note: by now, we’re sure Mislav is already flying high again* Want to see footage of my surgery? Check it out (not for those of you with a weak stomach): Mislav's Surgery Vid

Cheers
- Mislav

Norco Retains Their Award-Winning VPS Design for 2008

Every year, at an event or a show, at least one rider comes up and asks, why, with all the changes Norco makes to our bikes, we continue to use Horst 4-bar linkage. With so many new models and suspension designs hitting the market each year, it's a good question. However, our answer is always the same, "Because, it's still the best!"

If you don't want to take our word for it, he's what Bike Magazine had to say: "The axle path is the key to a good suspension design, the 'Horst link design" creates a near vertical rear wheel axle path which all but eliminates suspension feedback and offers a smooth ride. The Horst 4-bar linkage is still the design standard to judge suspension performance by." Bike Magazine, July 05 The 2008 DH/Freeride line was designed to help riders attain three goals: speed, control, and flight. Although we improve frame design and pull together a stellar parts package every season, the core of these bikes still continues to be their unequaled Horst link 4-bar suspension design. As the highest rated Full-Suspension DH bike on MTBR.com's Reader Reviews, we're confident you'll agree.

What's all the fuss about? Check out the: 2008 TEAM DH

On the trails the Atomik feels like an extension of you. Riders won’t feel nervous about pinning it through a flat corner thanks to the super plush suspension compliments of Rock Shock and Fox.

Since the Atomik frame is designed from the 2007 Team DH, this bike feels right at home on the downhill circuit. The Atomik accurately absorbs all the bumps and rocks without compromising heavily on the pedal performance of the bike. The Sram drive train allows you to pedal hard through flat sections smoothly and helps greatly to keep your concentration on the trail, not the bike. The brakes, provided by Avid, are another perfect example of Avid's quality product line up, showing that you don't need top of the line brakes to have great modulation stopping power when needed. In corners the suspension and Kenda tires team up to create a near "on rail" like experience that had our testing team devoting mass amounts of time to "railing berms".

The 2008 Norco Atomik is an excellent value because is it race-ready out of the box and can satisfy almost any rider. If you are one who is curious about, or new to downhill racing, or if you simply love to rip the local trails, this bike is at the top of my list for a first look. The Atomik is a no compromise, from the balanced suspension to frame set up to its stand over and even to the parts it is built with. Simply put we couldn't keep testers off of this bike while out on the trail.

Read the Full Review on: canadianmountainbiker.com

A Busy Start to 2008 for Fionn.

It is that time of year again. January 1st marked the beginning of pre-season training! Elke Brutsaert is back and you can be sure “coach Ellie” has formatted another wicked series of training programs to build Fionn up for the season. Back to hours at Welti Tennis and Leisure (Fionn’s hometown gym), long road rides and adrenaline filled days of DH. Since the end of last season Fionn has been doing her best to really take some downtime and clear her head.

A trip to Hawaii to put in some much needed hours of surfing and sun-bathing really gave Fee the R&R required to be fresh and hungry for the start of training. When asked about these next 3 grueling months and the coming World Cup Season, Fionn replied:

“I feel pretty good coming into this training season. Elke and I worked really hard last year to build a trust in one another and I have already been pushing myself harder and harder each day in the gym and on the bike. I am starting to get excited for season already, which is really good for me. I want to build on last year’s success and carry my momentum forward through 2008! I want my STRIPES!”

On the sponsorship front, things have been busy since the end of the last season. As always, Interbike was a huge success and it was there the dream of being a UCI Trade Team was catapulted into reality. With the success of Griffiths Racing in 2007 the majority of our generous team sponsors were keen to step back up to the plate. One sponsor in particular wanted to build on the previous year’s success and drive Fionn and Griffiths Racing forward into 2008.

Norco Performance Bikes will once again be the headlining team sponsor. With the combined efforts of both organizations we have created the “Norco World Team”, Norco/Griffiths Racing’s new UCI Trade Team. We will be racing the World Cup Series, World Championships and select international events. Griffiths Racing and Norco will not be alone in their quest for gold. Kenda has assured Fionn that she will have the continued support of her favourite tires. This will now be her 5th season on the reliable tread and Fee is not planning to change anytime soon, having signed a 2-year contract. Zeal Optics are still Fionn’s eyewear of choice. Zeal and Fionn have been working together for the better part of her entire career and she would not trust her vision with anyone else. New to the team this year is Control Tech – makers of some seriously lightweight components. Fionn is excited to get her hands around a new set of their bars! Other confirmed 2008 sponsors are: E-13, THE, Fly Racing, Shimano, ODI, HALO Rims, Ice Toolz, and The Cycle Jersey.

Check out Fee's new home on the web. The site includes her blog, tons of photos, news, schedule, and much more . . .

GRIFFITHSRACING.NET

In the 1970s North Vancouver had one of the coolest BMX race tracks in North America featuring a over/underpass until development stepped up and a theatre and parking lot took precedent. In the late 1990’s a dedicated group of bmx enthusiasts worked tirelessly to try and convince the District of North Vancouver that a Nationals level BMX track would be an amazing opportunity and amenity for the community, it was a long time overdue. After many DNV staff and public consultations the years drifted by and so did the enthusiasm of the group. Proposed site after site was denied after neighbours opposed and rallied against family racing. Supporters and sponsors of the cause came and went and soon the drive for the track dwindled until 2004 when council finally agreed that a BMX track was a great idea and they had a multi use park site that could accommodate the track but it was too late the group had used all their resources and energy, everyone was tapped!

In 2002 I had co founded a non profit club called The DIRT Club for Youth as a way to create authorized Dirt jump parks. We had a successful pilot project in the ground at Myrtle Park in North Vancouver and we were supporting the BMX cause, in fact authorized Dirt jump parks were a perfect way to prove the need for a BMX race track. On the evening that council gave the ‘go ahead’ to the BMX club, they frustratingly had to decline their position… Seeing the opportunity, The DIRT Club stepped up and took the challenge of creating a Skills Park *Megaplex* at the Inter River site.

THE FULL ARTICLE (and lots of pictures!)

In school I remember always having a certain dread for the 'How I Spent My Summer Vacation...' essay. I always knew it was only a matter of time till the teacher would pull that one out. I also knew that my summer of TV watching or summer camp would never measure up to the kids who spent three weeks touring Europe or surfing at a resort in Costa Rica.

However, even the rich kids would have trouble keeping up to Hoots. While most of us might have a few bragging rights from a busy summer, he's the only guy I know who travelled, rode his bike, AND managed to build a few skills parks along the way...

The city of Port Coquitlam asked staff in the mid 90’s to create a vision of the future and several employees combined resources to create a concept multi use non traditional park land space that incorporated bicycles. The city put resources away year after year until almost a decade later they had enough money set aside to ask staff to pursue a feasibility study for the envisioned park. Hoots was contacted by the landscape architect (Paul Whitehead) who was contracted during the study and created 3 versions of ‘the vision’ to help define what possible bike parks would look like and how they could be incorporated into the green space.

After one year council and staff collectively created and approved provisioning for a temporary skills park in order to evaluate its effectiveness and public acceptance. Staff was very enthusiastic and again Hoots was called in to work in consultation with the architect to set the way for a design/build of the bike park within a prescribed budget.

Full public consultation on the park ensued and with feedback from open house meetings a final design was developed, materials list created and all levels of staff were prepped to deal with the imminent construction of The Skills Park.

For the full article and heaps of photos, check out: Hoots.ca

Or, check out this article about the park in the Tri-City News

After a year of chatting with pro photographer Haruki Noguchi (Harookz), we finally managed to get out for a shoot. We decided to go back to my chain line from Crux at night because Harookz had some great ideas for lighting.

I arrived at the shoot hoping to get far enough along the chain to get the photo, not really expecting to make it all the way up on to the jersey barrier at the other end; but after about 30 minutes of attempts, I managed to clean the line again, ahhhhh!

I wrote a little caption to go along with the photo for the magazines, here are those words:

"My fascination with riding the most questionable objects has been so enjoyable. Curiosity is an element, the romance of being 'the first' is an element, but primarily the euphoria felt when cleaning the envisioned line unbeatable."

The most difficult aspect of this line, and most others for that matter, is my mind. It has a habit of focusing on elements of the challenge and blowing them out of proportion. For instance, the fact that the first jersey barrier wasn't in line with the chain drove me crazy; and thinking that I'd end up on my face if my front tire didn't roll on to the chain just right spooked me to an unnecessary level. Working through those issues is enjoyable to me, and getting to that state where I can just let my body do what it needs to do is a fantastic experience.

Hope you're all well! - Ryan -

It is that time of year again when Christmas came and New Years hit like a snowball in the back of the neck thrown by your horrible big brother! Ok, maybe I am just a sneak over the top but this holiday season just didn’t seem to have the zestyness I usually feel, in fact other than relentless ads, horrible manners and millions of wasted kilo watts spent on Christmas lights I don’t think too many people around me really seemed to pull off the exhuberent Christmas cheer either.

By all right s my 2007 year was nothing short of absolute amazing! I am still a smidge bummed that I don’t have protective gear, but shifting from soft goods and struggling with day to day operations and margins to developing bike parks and trails, doing what I love ROCKS!!! Hoots managed to design and build bike parks in 9 different communities including some really fun trail… Dang! Not a day goes by I am not grateful!

After putting together a resume and working my tail off to get educated I got a job instructing Trail Building for the Mountain Bike Operations Program at Capilano College. It is absolutely crazy that there is now a college course for mountain bikers!!!!

I managed to take off 5 days during summer and during the labour day break I managed to get out on my moto and see 1300km of amazing BC over 4 days via logging road, trail and back road.

Read Hootie's full blog at: hoots.ca

Many of us are now settling in to the new year, back to school, back to work, back to routine, and for me, back to riding!! For one month I didn’t ride trials; snuck in a few mountain bike rides, but no trials! I’m just getting in to the groove again as I have a demo coming up next week, and so kicks off my 2008 season!!

I have had some time over the holidays to allow my intentions for the season to form, and one of the areas that I hope to continue developing is my Trials of Life program. The children of today will shape the future of tomorrow, and with a world that is changing so fast, it seems vital that we be sure children have the framework to make sure that change is toward a positive, sustainable world. This is a deep and complicated topic, but one I’m excited to explore.

My sponsorship roster for the year is solid; I’m excited to be on the Norco Factory Team for the 11th year in a row! Shimano has re-signed with me for another two seasons and Marzocchi is customizing some forks for me as we speak. This will also be my tenth season with Ryders Eyewear, and Mace Clothing polishes off the package. I am one fortunate dude to have so many great people to work with!!

I’m building up my new Fluid LT, just waiting for my forks and a package from Shimano, should be a pretty swank bike! This ride will travel with me all over the place, and I’m looking forward to many pedal powered adventures.

I have a new website being designed right now, and will have that live in a month or two. My blog/newsletter will be redesigned allowing me to include more photos, video, and writing topics from my travels. Talking about writing, keep an eye out in Mountain Biking magazine for my column on living a green mountain biking lifestyle.

Have an awesome year everyone!! Ryan

We went to the Wailing Wall and then walked the path that Jesus carried his cross up to be crucified, visiting a crazy huge church that had a mini building inside it that housed Christ after his death. The church is said to be built on the land that Jesus was crucified on and there is crypts and prayer chambers all over.

The Art in the Church is fabulous and to be able to touch pillars that are 2000 years old is nothing short of amazing.

A full day resulted in some sweet local cuisine. We all did some interviews for the show and called it for the night. I am continuing to prep and modify my presentation. Man I can’t believe the telephone and communication here. Debate is everything and ‘over exploring’ conversation is the mainstay. Man it drives me crazy, however I am just a rider and I am just following my lead. Chaim our guide (pronounced HYME) has some very dry humour but is awesome and though Cory is frustrated with him I am learning SO much from him and am fascinated by his style of communication. This trip would not be as safe and well rounded without him.

Read about the rest of Hootie's adventure in Israel on: nsmb.com

After having ended a solid 07 season, I got the chance (early November) to kick it with the ‘Ride Guide’ for a super packed schedule in Israel. I have been trying to get to the holy land for bike park business for 3 years and now this opportunity opened up so I jumped at it like a frog on crack. This trip included Mislav (Rider), Darcy (Host/Rider), Cory (Filmer) and myself (Rider) hooking up with a Tourism Israel guide who would get us around safe and sound while in the holy land.

Jamie from Norco and Jay from John Henry pushed hard to get my 08 six ready and thursday morning I flew early out of Vancouver and met up with Cory and Darcy 5 hours later in Tdot (Toronto), only to jump a long haul flight (12 hours) to Tel Aviv that was so crammed my carry on had to be under the seat in front of me.

I have put a lot of thought into how I would write/edit this article and after some serious considerations I have decided to leave it loose edit, blog style in hopes of keeping context on how amazing this trip ended up. So without further ado the un spell checked daily blog of my Dreaded trip of a life time to Israel.

Read the rest of the article on: NSMB.com

Mtbr.com was created to get the real feedback of real cyclists on products and equipment that they use. Good, bad, bottom line, is it worth it? Those are the top questions we pose to each of our users. Every year, we try to find the best products from the site that consistently win the praises of the consumer. Hence, the Best Of Awards!

Winners were selected by the highest rated products that met a minumum number of reviews for each category.

Some manufacturers we all know very well, while others are under the radar and new to the public eye. That's what makes this award unique. If the product works and performs well, then the consumers will reward it no matter how big or small a manufacturer.

See what people had to say about the Team DH at: MTBR.com

6 Months Ago…The Question!

Back in December, my buddy Gary asked me if I wanted to do the BC Bike Race. (bcbikerace.com) My first thought was “No way, I’m a downhiller”, but I’d been looking for a new and different challenge and this would definitely fit the bill, plus it still included riding, so I said “What the hell lets do it.”

After a week or two of research we decided it was a go and from that day forward we were both fully committed. Luckily, our significant others were also fully committed. I really don’t think they knew what they were in for, but they agreed to it anyway… amazing women! (Huge thanks go out to Chenoa and Lydia!)

Considering we look like brothers (I’m the good looking one on the left) and are both a little mischievous, Gary decided we should call our team, Twin Sin; I loved it! Now we just needed to figure out how to handle a 7-day stage race, I mean, how tough could it possibly be?

We talked to Andreas Hestler, former Olympian and stage-racing dynamo (also a drinking buddy) and he gave us some great training tips to get started. We officially kicked off training in the first week of January and never looked back. It was a hard six months with an average of 15 + training hours a week. Plus, the whole time it seemed to never stop raining. However, we were both a little scared of what we had signed up for and apparently fear is a great motivator; we stuck to our plans the entire time.

On a side note: This was a little easier for me, as I was able to take the summer off and my girlfriend lives 5 hours away, while Gary still had to work full time, is married and was expected to be home a little more than I am. I guess I’m just a better planner than him. HAHA

Shortly after we started our training, I talked to Pete Stace-Smith (The Man at Norco) and he hooked us up with some Norco Faze 1 XC frames. Craig at Race Face, Joel at Hayes/Sun Ringle, Naz at Marzocchi Canada and Steve at Promologic all came through huge with components, brakes, wheels, forks, and tires to get us rolling. With the quality of frame and parts they provided, in the four months prior to the race and the 7 days of the event, I did nothing but ride this bike hard and oil the chain. It was so versatile that no matter what we hit, from gravel road to the most technical DH, the bike just ate it up.

June 30th: Day 0 My VW bus was loaded down with week’s worth of support gear. We ferried over to Victoria to sign in, meet some other racers, try to eat a big meal, and hold our nerves down as much as possible.

I kept telling myself that since our only goal was to finish then it would be easy, just another 7 training rides like the last 6 months and it would all be over. But what was really going through my head was the reality of it all. Just because I was fit enough doesn’t mean I would finish. Training and racing are very different. I have just given up 6 months of my life to train for this challenge and finishing was important. I knew I wouldn’t be doing this again next year so I considered this my one chance to achieve this goal. Anything can go wrong in this sort of race, from a broken bike to an injury from a crash. Even a small blister can shut you down in a 7 day event, or you could just collapse half way through from exhaustion.

We were well prepared, but we hadn’t even started yet. Basically I was nervous, a little scared of failing and really just wanted to get started and see how it felt. Surprisingly enough I didn’t barf and did get some good sleep that night.

Stage 1: Sooke to Lake Cowichan 108km

Stage 1: Sooke to Lake Cowichan 108km

It’s Canada Day so let’s celebrate with 108 km of pain! This stage was like a road race on gravel with a little bit of single track in the middle; only about 1000 meters of climbing on the day. It was our first century on mountain bikes…ever.

We planed to ride with another team that we trained with a lot and the main goal was to take it easy and feel it out. It was a controlled start for a few km and we rode in the pack. The sound of 200 knobby tires on pavement is so cool. You don’t even have to watch, you can just hear the pack speeding up or slowing down by the pitch of the humming. By the way, I don’t recommend not watching as you can’t hear the corners!

As soon as the lead car pulled off, the pace ramped up significantly and we got in with the second pack. The pace kept increasing. On the first downhill (gravel road descent) Gary stood up, pedaled hard and started weaving through the pack. I was on him like glue and we ripped at about50k / hr, to the front of the pack. Unfortunately, everybody passed us again on the next climb. Damn! This happened all week, we would pass teams on the descents and they would pass us on the climbs. At least we made lots of new friends.

The single track was fun but short and we ended the day on a 35km arrow straight rail grade. We ended up working in a pack of 12 riders and to put it lightly, it sucked! No talking, no scenery, no nothing but pedaling and pain…lots of pain at this point.

A picture says a 1000 words, I’m thrashed!

We got in at 5:31, stretched, drank, snacked and debriefed. I thought we debrief about 10 minutes after each stage, but I was told later by my girlfriend that is was a minimum of an hour each day and that Gary and I were scattered. I guess it was more than our legs that were smoked.

Gary and I realised that the first day was faster and longer than anything we’ve done in training and that we had completely blew our plan of ‘feeling it out’. I was tired, more scared than I had been at the start, and seriously concerned that I would not recover and would blow up we continued at that pace.

Cowichan was a wicked place to stay. The food was good, my little orange bus had a great view of the lake and the sleep was fantastic.

Stage 2: Cowichan to Port Alberni 122km The 2nd day we began with another controlled start, which I love as it saved warming up before the race. This stage promised about 400 m of climbing over the first 75km and then 750m in the next 5 km. For those of you with no calculator, that is 14% grade; it was a 5km wall of agony.

On the other side of the climb we were greeted by a long double track DH with water bars that could swallow a truck. I let a bit of tire pressure out and we started pinning it and having way too much fun. We passed a few teams, but down near the bottom I flatted in a water bar and lost the time we’d made up. Damn!

After the repair and the rest of the DH we grunted through the flat and climbs into Port Alberni. The last few km were sweet single track, but I was so wasted I couldn’t enjoy it.

The pace was the same as stage 1 and we rolled in just under 5:50…our second ever century on mountain bikes. Once again we went way too hard and I was even more beat up than the previous day. Gary seemed less concerned, but I know he was hurting too.

Port Alberni also had a great set up, the food was amazing and we were starting to make some great friends with a lot of other racers. Gary and I both got massages that night and felt a little less toasted because of it (Thanks Sylvie).

Stage 3: Port Alberni to Cumberland 86km

Stage 3: Port Alberni to Cumberland 86km

Gary and I were both excited for this stage. Cumberland has some of the best trails in the world and the gravel road sections are quickly gave way to tight, technical single track. This is where we could have some real fun.

It rained hard until about 5 minutes before our controlled start. The rain was gone, but the mud remained. We headed down some long double track into the Alberni Valley which gave us some great views and a few big creek crossings to cool off the legs and wash our drive trains. This was followed by a fast, fun gravel road descent, and then, ouch! Another 15% grade wall.

This one was mostly hike-a-bike, and I was feeling really good until just over halfway up. At that point I really started to feel it, but I knew the great single trackon the other side, so just concentrated on that and pushed on.. At one point Gary had to stop to do some yoga-stretches because his back hurt so bad from hiking.

We finally reached the top and started into a steep, twisty 15km gravel road descent that led right into the technical “Bucket of Blood” trail. Gary really seemed to be in pain by this point so I stepped up to do more of the work and coaching to help him through.

As much as Gary was hurting and called me some names, he still had a blast on that single track and was smiling by the finish. Team work for this kind of event is paramount, and there were more than a few occasions when we had to help and coach each other through tough spots.

We came in at 5:01 to a crowd of supporters and headed for food and showers right away. (Once again, the girls say this took an hour of debriefing, but let’s not split hairs.)

My Nephews showed up to cheer me in.

Stage 4: Earls Cove to Sechelt 59km

The morning of day 4 started for most the riders with two 4:30am ferry rides before anyone hits the saddle. Since Gary and I were supported and had my VW, we headed over the night before and enjoyed the hospitality of Mal and Kathy (Girlfriend’s parents) in Powell River and managed to sleep until 7:30 before we met up with the other racers at the 11am start.

This is what the rest of the racers were doing while Gary and I slept.

The course for this stage was an undulating mixture of double track, gravel road, and flowy single track with a really cool finish through the town of Sechelt.

This is where Gary kicked in and started pushing me. “James you have one more percent, just make it happen.” I pretty much wanted to kill him at this point but knew he was right. At this point in the race I realized that I could really punish my body and still recover in a day so figured, ‘what the hell lets push it and see what we can do’.

Some of the great single track on the Sunshine Coast

We raced through town towards the finish in a head-to-head battle with another team. It really made it seem much more like a race then a ‘let’s just finish’ type event. Day 4 took us 3:56 and we were now in 13th place overall. Can anyone else smell a top ten?…Oh Oh! At this point, I think our goal changed a bit!

Since Gary’s in-laws, Michael and Sally, live in Sechelt on the ocean, we decided to enjoy some luxury a second night in a row. We were treated to a barbeque and a couple beers. Chenoa and Lydia were now with us for the rest of the race. It was a nice break in the middle of the week and I think it relaxed us a bit…the hot tub didn’t hurt either.

Stage 5: Sechelt to Langdale 58km

Stage 5: Sechelt to Langdale 58km

An early launch with a long controlled start gives us a great warm up. This stage we knew what to expect, as we had both ridden all these trails in the past. We gathered a group for the 10km of flat gravel road before the real fun began and managed to hold a hard pace with our mini-peleton.

Side Note: Our group included Trevor Linden from the Vancouver Canucks, he was a guest rider for day 5!

Then the single track started and it was still fast and furious. The trails on this stage were twisty, rolly, and too much fun! There was plenty of climbing but for some reason Gary and I were not losing as much time on the climbs anymore.

Day 5 ended with a 10km downhill trail called Highway 102. Once we started in, we hammered all the way to the finish. The day ended in big smiles and no feeling of fear due to the pain level. Apparently for Team Twin Sin, DH is a fountain of youth, or maybe a fountain of recovery.

We managed to cross the finish line in 4:14 and had now moved up into 10th place. Holy crap! How did that happen?! In this stage we even went the wrong way once and lost 5 minutes, so it must have been the last bit of DH.

We headed back to the mainland on the ferry and since we had an early finish, we both ripped home to North Van and took an hour to relax before heading to Squamish to meet up with base camp. (One of the advantages of racing in your own backyard)

Another massage from Sylvie and a huge meal of pasta and meat and we went straight to bed. Day 6 was going to be a monster and as good as I felt, I was not underestimating the difficulty of this stage.

Stage 6: Squamish to Whistler 72km

One last controlled start and then we started into 50 km of climbing. This section offered lots of great scenery, and some really cool single track before dropping us into Whistler where it got a lot harder. The last 22 km were either straight up or straight down. If you’ve been paying attention, you know that we love the straight down, but that straight up stuff sucked ass!

We managed to get in with a fast group at the start and by the time we hit the harder climbing sections we were still with them. The climbing was so technical that the strongest climbers hardly made up any time on us. Then we dropped into the DH. It was nasty, steep, rooty, rocky, twisty and included a drop or two along the way. We were exhausted, but had soooo much fun in this section.

This staged wrapped up with a 5 minute sprint to the end. Gary and I took turns pulling and finished Stage 6 in just under 5:16. As I was lying on the grass unable to get up, thinking that sprint at the end had almost killed me, I looked over and Gary was puking. For some strange reason it made me feel better that my team mate was hurting too and I wasn’t weighing him down. We were definitely hurting, but still in 10th place. We also managed to build a bigger gap between us and the 11th place team.

15 minutes after the day 6 finish, still looking a bit haggard, but can’t seem to let go of our bikes???

We had dinner at the Brew pub with the base camp crew and enjoyed a nice sleep in a condo.

Stage7: Whistler Loop 25km

Stage7: Whistler Loop 25km

Day 7 was designed as a shorter but very technical stage. We were being careful not to underestimate how difficult it would be because of the distance. Our goal was to focus on keeping our pace and holding on to the 10th place spot.

Just to put this in perspective, the leading mixed team had the race wrapped up with a huge lead going into stage 7, but one rider in that team crashed so hard they took him out on a spine board and they DNF’d. It ain’t over ‘til it’s over!

We started out the stage with a Sky Line ride which gets you going about 100k/hr with a dead stop at the end. The whiplash only lasted a few minutes and I was ready to race! It was a time trial day so no mass start. Gary and I got lost in the Sky Line queue and missed our start and ended up leaving 30th.

Luckily it was no big deal, and there was no penalty, just a bit more traffic. We passed ten teams on ‘Kill Me, Thrill Me’ and just as we were coming out of that trail we saw the 11th place team and ripped right passed them at the aid station. We climbed into ‘Comfortably Numb’ and pushed hard for the next hour and into the short DH finish. The trails were so nice that we talked about going back to finish Comfortably Numb later that afternoon. (Don’t worry we both realized how stupid that sounded even as we were saying it)

We rode through the finish line of all finish lines at 1:58:39 with an overall time of 29:49:05…WE FINISHED! And, not only did we finish, we held onto our 10th place spot.

The finish was amazing, or maybe I should say, finishing was amazing; I don’t think I can truly describe it. I’m sure that over time I will forget many of the painful details and some of the amazing sections of trail, and hopefully most of Gary’s jokes, but the feeling of finishing this race and accomplishing a goal that took 6 months of my life, and to share it with such a great friend…that will stick with me forever!

Thanks to all of you for making it happen - James Durand -

PS: This race never would have happened if it weren’t for three things:
1. Gary suggesting it
2. The Girls support
3. My Dad looking after us for the first three days and keeping my bus running

feedthehabit.com gives the new Fluid LT the big THUMBS UP!

So, after riding the Norco Fluid 1 for the 2007 season, I thought I had found the perfect mix of light weight, smooth travel, efficiency and all-around performance. Shortly after posting the review of that bike, I get a call from Norco talking up the release of the 2008 line at Crankworx 2007 in Whistler. Unable to attend the event, I had to wait until the press kit arrived in the mail, but once it did, the all-new Fluid LT 1 caught my eye. This bike looks SICK!

Read the full article at: feedthehabit.com

For specs and geometry: FLUID LT 1

When I cracked the champagne bottle last year I had high expectations for 2007...but my wildest dreams couldn't have prepared me for the adventures of this year.

It first started with a training trip to Spain to ride with my good friend Ruben who put me through the paces and worked my butt into the ground! Instead of learning the nasty tricks that I was hoping to learn, I was brought back to the basics - square one - bike handling for dummies, and was told to do the most repetitive, simple things on my bike over and over until I could do them blindfolded, backwards, and with my hands tied behind my back.

Training in Spain with Ruben

It was the best thing to happen to my riding. After Spain I was ready to take on any size double with a massively improved bunny hop!

Then I happened to check an old email account that hadn't been cleaned out for months, and who do I get an email from? Kevin Pennock, producer of Ride Guide asking me if I would apply for the position of the show's new host. I sent in my reel, got the job a week or so later, and was stoked.

What got me even more fired up is when Norco called and asked if I would like to be part of the Factory Team in addition to sponsoring the show.

Posing with Norco Factory teammate, Mislav Mironovic

Ummmm. . .to convey the full extent of my excitement I think I've got to go back a few years to tell you exactly how exciting of a deal this was for me. When I started downhill racing I was graciously picked up as a grassroots rider for Norco. I was 19 and would hang out with the Factory Team crew at races and thought that they were the luckiest people on the planet! They had all the support that I could ever dream of and were the objects of my idolization as long as I rode a Norco. I knew that someday I wanted to be in their shoes, but when that day came it just seemed surreal.

For the long version of my year in blog form, check out the Ride Guide website (they have my stories from each country we traveled to with the show), but in short I got to ride and visit Austria, Switzerland, France, Norway, Utah, and Israel with the show this summer while documenting the whole thing on video.

Camera-Master Cory

Suddenly doing massive ziplines through the alps, urban train shuttles in Oslo, doing a dirt jump demo at the Dead Sea, and street riding in Jerusalem were the norm for me this summer!!

Riding in Isreal

In addition to filming the show I had some GREAT times doing photo shoots and media tour stuff with my awesome friends at Oakley in LA, Montreal, and Toronto, and then doing more riding photo shoots in Hawaii, Whistler, Vancouver Island...and Spain for a second time.

Shooting in Hawaii with Oakley

The debauchery that went on during Crankworx, VPS-Fest and Interbike will be hard to top for 2008...but I'm sure I can step up to the plate.

Norco's '08 product launch at Crankworx

After all, the folks at Norco have been giving me lessons in "How to Party and Ride Extremely Hard the Next Day 101".

After my whirlwind year that still seems like a dream, my past month at home has felt really good. I've been soaking in just how incredible this ride has been, making plans for the next one, and making good friends with my kitchen because believe it or not, eating out all the time isn't as great as it seems!

If 2008 is anything like 2007 I am going to be one lucky and happy girl. Either way, the beauty of traveling (beyond the amazing experiences and stories) is that you appreciate home a lot more...so even if I stay in the country for more than 80 days next year I will be extremely happy because I can focus on my riding and checking off my trick list.

Thanks so much to everyone who has been responsible for making this year seem more fiction than real especially my sponsors: the Norco Factory Team, Oakley, Gravity, Dakine, and Etnies, and a huge thanks to all the filmers (especially Cory), managers, and photographers I worked with especially Harookz for working SOOOOOOO hard with me and teaching me how to put a shovel to the ground in a really productive way :)

Productive shovelling in Hawaii

Oh, and thanks to my family for putting up with me and collecting the magazine clippings along the way.

I wish all the best for everyone in the New Year - smooth jumps, tacky trails, no pinch flats, and empty skateparks. Can it get any better than that?

HAPPY 2008!!!

- Darcy Turenne -

First off let me start with a not so well known fact…there is no such place as the Teva Mountains. I know this may sound dumb as the Teva mountain games are held in Vail Colorado which is clearly in the Rocky Mountains, however the name eludes that it is held in The Teva Mountains and if you try to find a plane ticket to the Teva Mountains you may end up in India… now on to the story.

It was a sunny Wednesday morning and my big sister (who is actually smaller than me) dropped me off at the Bellingham airport. It was off to great start when the pilot announced that we were too heavy to take off. I thought it was a joke at first but finally after a couple people took the free tickets to anywhere Alaska airlines flies, we were off and running err…flying.

We got to Seattle and I had the roughest landing in my life, the plane hit the ground hard and you could see fear in the elderly folks faces. The flight to Denver, Colorado went smoothly and it felt like I was there in no time as I slept most of it. After arriving in Denver I hopped a shuttle to Vail and was on my way. The road to Vail is quite mountainous and at one point it goes over a pass that summits at 10,000 ft. It was even snowing! Yes, it was snowing on my way to mountain bike event.

Once in Vail I hooked up with Jeff Lenosky, Kyle Ebbett, and Ross McMasters. It was already evening, so we headed to a local pub for WTW aka White Trash Wednesdays. It is very clear that in Vail they do not know what true white trash is because the girls were still all dressed in hot clothing and they were playing Top 40.That’s right, no White Snake and I didn’t even see one mid-80’s Camaro in the parking lot. I guess white trash in Vail wear Versace and drive BMW’s. It was still a fun night though.

I had offered to help Jeff finish up the course, so the next day was basically filled with building, painting, and transferring obstacles. Most of Friday I helped Ebbett with the slopestyle course, which ended up being a super sick mini-slopestyle . It went right hip, left hip, hitching post, step-up, step-down, and a big ender dirt jump. The course looked super sick and was even more fun to ride.

So it was Saturday race day. I was a little tired from all the building but feeling rather good. On the speed trials course Kyle Strait was killing it. He was going so fast it hurt to watch. After a few practice runs it was qualifying, I managed to pull off 8th. From there I was matched up against T-Mac (or Tyler McCaul). We were mid-pack and our times were the closest of any two riders. First round we were off and going neck and neck. I knew I had him because at the end of the courses there was a skinny across a pond however there where two routes a slow one and a fast one, the fast one being skinner. I though I had Tyler but as I came into the bunny hop for the skinny I froze, cased the skinny and Tyler took the lead. I now had to make a 1.5 seconds on a fast course which was hard. So next round Cobra V.S. T-Mac I took it to the bank but not enough to make up my time differential of 1.5 seconds. T-Mac went to the finals but got bumped out by Strait. I was still cheering for him though. In the end the speed trials came down to Legend Jeff Lenosky and Rockstar Kyle Strait. It looked that despite the age difference of about 40 years or so - hei hei just joking Jeff - they were quite equally matched. In the end Strait crashed on the skinny allowing Jeff to take the title for one more year.

In the evening it was all about the slopestyle. It was held as the sun was going down over the Rocky Mountains…very picturesque…but also completely blinding for the riders. But who need to see their landing or lip anyhow?! So we waited for the sun to duck behind the horizon and then it went off. 3whips, backflips, 3’s, INSANE style and every other trick in the bag.

Right here I would like to insert a note that Alex Reveles, who came all the way from Aptos, was not allowed to ride because he did not have his guardian’s signature on the piece of paper. However, he was absolutely killing it and should have been in the comp. Joe Perrizo was doing insane crooked flips complete with fork topout…it scared everyone but him. In the end Andrew Taylor took the first place spot, with Jamie Goldman in second, and Captain Kyle Ebbett in third. I managed to squeak my way into the to top ten out of over 20 sick riders so I was quite happy when the announced, “in 10th place Dylan Korba!”

Last but not least, I have to shout out to the freerider babes of CO. Emily you redefined the trick to a Superwoman! The Event was sick and Mad Props to Ebbett for all his hard work.

The next part of the trip was kinda blurry but I know it involved peer pressure and a full shot of Tabasco sauce. Kids seriously listen to me…do NOT EVER shoot Tabasco sauce unless your toilet has a seat belt…. nothing can prepare you for how bad you think it will be. There was also some pizza and just a general good time with a bunch of friends. Hacksaw thanks for pouring that Tabasco.

Jumped on that plane and headed home only to be delayed 6 hours in Seattle which is 3 hours from my house but at least I met back up with Ross in Seattle for a few more good laughs and then I was home.

So as usual I am now going to get my butt out of this chair and grab a Tall, No whip, No Drizzle extra-runny Carmel frappe!! Cobra out.