What were your major considerations when designing this year’s course?
Well, there are lots of things to consider when designing a course such as how technical, how big, how well do you want the lines to flow together, way too many things to think about, glad that part’s over.
Sterling and I were chatting about how the course was not only rider-friendly, but really great from a photographer’s perspective, in terms of easy access to multiple sick shots. Did this factor into your course design for this year or was it just an added benefit to a course designed for the best rider experience?
This was one of the biggest factors because I love building great looking stunts that shoot well for my personal segments, so why not build a contest that shoots well too? Continue reading ‘Claw Talks about the Bearclaw Invitational’
Jamie Goldman was stoked to offer some thoughts about this year’s comp on Vancouver Island:
What were the best things about this years’ course?
I really like how the course is all gravity fed and that there is not much braking or pedaling. The course starts out small and tech and moves gradually into the bigger faster lines. I love how it has everything.
How did you like it better — or worse — than last year’s Bearclaw Invitational course?
Last year was a similar course but it had 2 lines. I liked it equally but this year had a bit of mud. Continue reading ‘Bearclaw Invitational Winner: Jamie Goldman’
After a slow, sticky start on Friday morning, the course for the third Bearclaw Invitational became a bit more pedalable and the decision was made to bump up the event start to that evening, to beat an incoming storm that was rushing to the island about a day earlier than anyone expected.
When Brandon Semenuk tailwhipped the Boner in the center of the course, there were rumblings about the Trek rider being the inevitable winner. But no one had seen some of the tricks that Jamie Goldman, Bearclaw and others would pull out of their bags. Many riders showcased a new trick on every stunt, from 3s to supermans and tables. Several hours of practice and two judged runs later, riders still didn’t know who the winner was, since the comp would continue on Saturday if the weather cooperated.
Continue reading ‘Goldman Grabs ClawWorx Comp’
Spaniard Andreu Lacondeguy and Brit Lance McDermott snapped up the top two podium places at CrankWorx Slopestyle 2008 with some of the tricks that captured wins for them in European comps.
Whister local Brandon Semenuk rounded out the podium.
Lacondeguy captured the attention of judges with a double back flip followed by a slew of other stunts on a course that virtually everyone, from riders to media pros, agreed was flowier and perfected for tricks.
Whistler arrival time: Sometime after 3 AM Saturday morning. Mental state: Delirium. Actual time that we started sleeping: Around 5 AM. Wakeup time: Probably way too early.
Since that time, I’ve:
Chatted with Doug from Corsair Bikes (and anxiously awaited the prospect of demoing their Konig).
Scored some insider information from Lance McDermott about his plans for the comp as we chatted inside the fabulous Monster industry lounge located mid-course, which will be perfect for periodic escapes from the heat.
Learned from one of the Monster guys that the actual forecast temperature is 37 Celsius (that’s about 104 Fahrenheit for you Yanks), as opposed to the 35 Celsius forecast I heard. Argh. Looks like I’ll be scoping out shade in the Monster lounge and elsewhere on the course between now and 9ish tonight.
Spoke for seconds with Cam McCaul, who seemed hell-bent on getting up the hill to initiate course domination.
Last week, I opened an email to learn that the Washington State DNR (Department of Natural Resources) would be having a public hearing that evening to educate trail users about new rules in the WAC . Rumor had it that access to virtually all DNR lands would be prohibited and unsanctioned trail work would be considered criminal. The reality was not as daunting — yet there were many doubts from speakers about whether vague wording in the new rules would protect their rights to use public land — or eliminate those rights.
Among the mountain bikers who showed up were Matt Patterson and Graham Barry and several others from Dirt Corps; Justin Vander Pol from BBTC; my husband; and myself. Continue reading ‘Save Our Trails — A Conversation with the DNR’
Fortunately Ignacio Soltero from Brooklyn Bike Riders sent stellar shots of this year’s US Open of Mountain Biking that happened almost in his backyard, at Diablo, because I had the misfortune of missing that comp.
Many of the usual suspects dominated, with Steve Smith, Sam Hill and Bryn Atkinson taking spots one through three on the men’s pro DH podium, and Fionn Griffiths, Kathy Pruitt and Joanna Petterson taking those same spots on the women’s pro DH podium.
Seattle’s Pro Parks Levy was just the first income source that helped the Colonnade concept become a reality. The levy, approved by Seattle voters in November 2000, freed up $198.2 million for more than a hundred projects and programs, including $1.8 million for the project officially named I-5 Colonnade.
Other funding came from REI, Starbucks, Vulcan, Bikes Belong, King County (for a Youth Sports Facilities Grant) and the City of Seattle, as well as private donors.
Continue reading ‘Colonnade — The Money’
First off - I have to apologize for not getting April’s results out in a timely manner.
No excuses…
April’s Picture Of The Day Winner:
We gave the April POD to Carl Warren for his piece “Blind Ambition.” |
|
 |
This is a shot of Mike Estes on his new Brodie out at Syncline, WA. The great thing about this photo is how the contrast of the shot brings out the gradation of drab colors, as if it was a painting. These colors also help to bring the viewer into the rider’s mind space. It seems forbidding, yet some how alright. Check out Carl’s galleries on this site: Main Gallery FR Cup#1 Fr Cup#2
|
May’s Picture Of The Day Winner:
There were a lot of similarly good photos for the month of May. |
|
 |
We can’t overlook this picture that Karen Johanson took of Darren Berrecloth at the BearClaw Invitational. More than any other dirt jump or freeride related photo that I’ve seen, this photo shows us that moment when it all comes together. The perfect exposure and focus are the reason we can view the photo ins this way. We see shots like this a lot in trail riding, were the photographer is right in the cockpit with the rider. The photos of the rider nearer to the ground are easier to get. But, in all these kind of shots we can see that “Moment” at it’s finest.Check out Karen Johanson’s portfolio site. |
The 2008 Qashqai Challenge has seen the world’s top freeriders hucking on courses in the core of major European cities — Milan, Madrid, Munich, Paris and London.
UPDATE: Northwest rider Phil Sundbaum ended up in the fourth spot in London and sixth overall in the Challenge after several weeks of solid runs — including two 360 tailwhips in London — landed him ahead of some of the usual suspects typically found on slopestyle podiums.
Here are the overall results for 2008:
- Lance McDermott
- Benny Korthaus
- Trond Hansen
- Paul Basagoitia
- Sam Pilgrim
- Phil Sundbaum
- Jamie Goldman
- Martin Soederstrom
- Brandon Semenuk
- Kurtis Sorge
- Adam Hauck
- Andreu Lacondeguy
And here are a few thoughts from Sundbaum about the Qashqai Challenge, Europe and the rest of 2008: Continue reading ‘Phil Sundbaum: News from Qashqai’
Member's Comments