Sea Otter Adds Gran Fondo and Collegiate Racing

PRESS RELEASE: It’s no wonder the Sea Otter Classic Powered by SRAM continues to be one of the most successful cycling events on the calendar. With a consistent focus on finding new and exciting opportunities to get athletes involved, Sea Otter has added two new elements for 2010: a Gran Fondo and collegiate cycling categories. Returning this year will be the Road Race, Circuit Race, and Criterium for the road cyclists. And, of course, the full gamut of mountain bike events including Downhill, Super D, Dual Slalom, Cross Country and Short Track.

Specialized Gran Fondo Presented by Bicycling Magazine

Gran Fondo, or “Big Ride” as it’s known in Italy, falls somewhere in between a century tour and a race. Open to all categories of riders, the Gran Fondo challenges you not to compete with your fellow cyclists, but to push yourself against the clock and the elements, all while taking in scenic views and enjoying great food.

“We couldn’t think of a better way to ring in 20 years of Sea Otter than the addition of a Gran Fondo to the event. It promises to be a great opportunity for recreational cyclists to get out and ride with friends, see all that the Monterey Peninsula has to offer, and enjoy the terrific festival experience of Sea Otter.” said Frank Yohannan, President, Sea Otter Classic.

The Gran Fondo will offer three fully supported ride distances: a 28-mile coastal route, a 45-mile coastal route and, for the more experienced riders, a 100-mile inland route. The short and middle distances wind along the coastal communities of Marina, Seaside, Monterey, and Pacific Grove. The cyclists will ride along the stunning coastal recreation trail, past historic Fisherman’s Wharf, and through the popular Cannery Row of John Steinbeck fame. The long route runs through the green agricultural fields of Salinas Valley and into the beautiful wine country of Carmel Valley. All rides start and finish at the Laguna Seca Recreation Area. The Gran Fondo will be held on Saturday, April 17, 2010.

Collegiate Cycling Categories

To ensure that there is no shortage of team rivalry at Sea Otter, open collegiate categories have been added to the 19-mile mountain bike Cross Country race scheduled for Sunday, April 18, 2010. Circuit racing will also play host to the young athletes, as a men’s open collegiate category will be held on the famed Laguna Seca Raceway on Saturday, April 17, 2010.

“The addition of collegiate categories to the event in 2010 is sure to add a lot of drama and excitement.” said Jeff Frost, Director of Athlete Services, Sea Otter Classic. “We can’t wait to see the teams come out and represent their respective colleges. It will be a great addition to the festival of cycling that the Sea Otter Classic Powered by SRAM has become!”

Genuine Innovations Suing Todson, Zefal

TUSCON, AZ (BRAIN)—Genuine Innovations has sued Todson and Zefal claiming that a Zefal CO2 inflator infringes on one of Genuine Innovations’ patents.

Genuine Innovations filed suit in U.S. District Court in Arizona on Friday.

Zefal CO2 inflators are sold worldwide under the name “EZ Plus.” Todson manufacturers the EZ Plus in Taiwan and imports and distributes EZ Plus in the United States, according to court documents.

The 388 patent issued January 18, 2005 was the invention of Genuine Innovations co-founder Tony Hollars. The patent covers a compressed gas cartridge dispensing system that is capable of handling both threaded and unthreaded CO2 cartridges of various capacities.

“We have offered our manufacturing services to Todson in the past and were in negotiation with Zefal in 2007 to license our inflator technology, so one can imagine our surprise and disappointment to find this item for sale in Wal-Mart,” said Marty Mares, chief executive officer of Genuine Innovations. “This is especially unbelievable considering that during October 2007 Zefal corresponded with Tony Hollars of Genuine Innovations via email that they had knowledge of patent 6843388 and were developing a product that was in violation. As part of the email exchange that occurred over the course of several days, Tony proposed that Zefal pay a royalty. Zefal responded that they did not want to pay the royalty, so we assumed the project would be dropped. Instead it appears that Zefal moved it forward.”

Todson president Neal Todrys couldn’t comment on the lawsuit at press time.

Genuine Innovations is seeking unspecified damages from Todson and Zefal and has demanded that they stop manufacturing and selling the product.

International Mountain Bike Magazine Issue #2

IMBIKEMAG Launches Issue 2!

http://www.imbikemag.com/issue2/

Halloween Bike Ride

Halloween Bike Ride

at Monagas Trail Network

October 31, 2009
Meeting @ Ben & Jerry's, Tren Urbano Station, Torrimar 8:00 pm

Ruta por el rio hasta llegar a Monagas y correr ruta establecida.

No te lo puedes perder!

Rules/Info:
1. Helmet and lights are required
2. Ride will last aprox. 2.5 hours
3. This is a free and voluntary ride. Every rider is responsible for their own safety.
4. Costumes are recommended but not compulsory.

Bike Mag Producing 'Bible' Next Year

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA (BRAIN)—Bike magazine will publish a new, comprehensive issue next year that will be devoted to the season’s best gear, all tested at one of the continent’s top mountain bike destinations.

In addition to authoritative gear reviews and trail features, the issue will include all the award-winning photography and writing that Bike is known for.

Produced, photographed and written on location, The Bible will offer the most comprehensive tests and reviews available, and cover everything from XC, all-mountain, freeride and DH bikes to the year’s most promising forks, brakes, wheels, tires and cranks.

To create the definitive gear guide, Bike enlisted the help of industry professionals to help devise accurate tests and ensure the integrity of the reviews. Despite the focus on gear, the issue still incorporates the distinctive Bike attitude and includes many lifestyle-oriented stories on the destination and the riders who live there.

“Bike has always been known as a lifestyle-oriented magazine with its irreverent editorial and unparalleled photography. Adding a ninth issue with a product focus that maintains the same artistic standard Bike is known for really brings the magazine full circle,” said publisher Derek Dejonge. “Making this issue a reality has been a comprehensive effort not only on the part of our staff, but has also relied heavily on the cooperation of the industry. We appreciate all of the support and can’t wait to showcase this new concept.”

The Bible is scheduled to hit newsstands January 23, 2010. It will have an extended shelf life and remain on sale until May.

Council Bill Requires Buildings to Let Bikes In

By J. David Goodman

Cubicles around the city may be getting a little rounder now that the City Council has approved a bill requiring commercial building owners and managers to provide access for bicycles.

The law passed on Wednesday with a vote of 46 to 1, with Councilman Erik Martin Dilan of Brooklyn voting no. It takes effect in 120 days and requires buildings with freight elevators to allow employees to bring their bikes upstairs. “It shall be assumed that if a freight elevator is available for carrying freight, it is available for carrying bicycles,” the law reads.

Originally introduced by Councilman David Yassky in 2004, the access law has long been a goal of the cycling community and some on the Council. Lack of parking is the most common reason cited by New Yorkers for not biking to work, surveys by the city’s Planning Department have found.

“I believe that we have to be very aggressive in promoting alternative transportation in the city,” said Mr. Yassky, a Brooklyn Democrat who is running for comptroller. “Nothing is going to take the place of the subway, but if we’re going to continue to be the world’s capital, we’ve got to give people as many travel opportunities as we can.”

The law is a leap forward for advocates of cycling. In the past, riders have largely negotiated access to elevators and ad hoc storage areas on a piecemeal basis. The result was that few bikes made it into the workplace.

The new law contains exceptions for buildings without freight elevators, buildings in which transporting bikes in elevators would create a safety hazard and in buildings close to adequate “covered off-street or secure indoor no-cost bicycle parking” nearby. Such parking amenities — which do not include the dozens of new covered racks built by the city this year — are not available in most places in the city.

The law does not require buildings to add bike storage capacity. (Adding bike parking to new and renovated commercial and residential buildings of a certain size was included in zoning changes adopted by the Council in April.)

However, the law does not include any provision to encourage employers to allow bikes onto their floors, so the issue of where to put bikes in a crowded office will become a concern, and will likely need to be negotiated on an employer-by-employer basis. Any storage situation will need to comply with fire and building codes.

“It’s up to employers to make decisions about how they use their own office space, as long as they do so within the law,” said Wiley Norvell of Transportation Alternatives, an advocacy group for cyclists and pedestrians, which supported the bill. “For most workplaces, this means hanging up bikes in an out-of-the-way storage closet or on a wall. And for workplaces unwilling or unable to spare the square footage, then that’s that.”

Another concern of some bike commuters is that the freight elevators will not be made available during commuting hours. Many such elevators must be staffed, and keeping someone around to run the elevators later in the evening, may not possible in many buildings.

“It’s a start,” Mr. Yassky said. “Rarely do you solve a problem completely on the first try. I believe that my original bill, which was not limited to freight elevators, is the best policy, but the legislative process involves compromises and we had to make compromises to get it passed. But I’m very happy with the bill we’ve got now. It solves the bulk of the problems preventing people from biking to work.”

Estudio muestra que pacientes que padecen males cardiacos y que montan bicicleta regularmente están libres de problemas

Por MARIA CHENG /Prensa Asociada

Barcelona - Hacer ejercicio hasta sudar puede ser incluso mejor que una angioplastia para algunos pacientes que padecen del corazón, según los expertos.

Estudios han mostrado que las personas con problemas cardiacos se benefician de ejercicio y en algunos casos la actividad física ha dado mejores resultados que la angioplastia.

Durante una reunión de la Sociedad Europea de Cardiología, varios expertos dijeron que los médicos deberían concentrarse más en persuadir en sus pacientes a que se ejerciten en lugar de realizar angioplastias simplemente.

La angioplastia es el tratamiento principal para personas que sufrieron un ataque cardiaco o que son hospitalizadas por un empeoramiento de sus síntomas. Consiste en usar un diminuto globo para reducir un bloqueo de una arteria y mantenerla abierta con un tubo de malla metálica.

La mayoría de las angioplastias son realizadas en procedimientos que no son de emergencia, para aliviar el dolor causado en el pecho por arterias bloqueadas.

“Es difícil convencer a la gente a que haga ejercicios en lugar de someterse a una angioplastia, pero da resultados”, dijo Rainer Hambrecht, de la clínica Links der Weser, en Bremen, Alemania.Hambrecht publicó un estudio en 2004 que mostró que los pacientes que padecen males cardiacos y que montaron bicicleta regularmente estuvieron libres de problemas un año después de que comenzasen su régimen de ejercicios. Entre los pacientes que se sometieron a angioplastia solamente 70% estaban sin problemas después de un año.

Hambrecht está realizando ahora una prueba similar, que él espera confirme sus conclusiones iniciales: que para algunos pacientes cardiacos, el ejercicio es más efectivo que la cirugía.

Otros expertos concordaron en que así es.

PUSH BoXXer DIY

9/15/2009

After many months of development, PUSH Industries is pleased to finally announce the release of our Factory Fork System for 2006-2009 model year Rock Shox BoXXer forks. Uniquely available as both a complete kit for at home Do-It-Yourself installation or as a complete service installed by PUSH Technicians.

The Kit Includes:
-PUSH “Vault” damper seal housing which offers maximum sealability while maintaining smooth func-tion under extreme loading. CNC machined from 6061-T6 Aluminum featuring a urethane rod seal and upper and lower T-40 lined rod bushings.
-Compression Mid-Valve which increases support to reduce the “porpoise” effect during multiple deep stroke impacts as well as increasing the damper’s response during high frequency events.
-High Flow Rebound Piston offering large port volume and tuneability of the fork’s High Speed Rebound characteristic. CNC Machined to exacting standards.
-Proprietary PTX piston glyde ring designed for maximum load bearing while offering friction free run-ning even at high temperature levels.
-32mm Rock Shox Seal and Wiper Kit
-10cc Red Rum assembly lube packet
-PUSH Factory Fork System Decals
For more information visit www.pushindustries.com

Las 40 misiones del mountainbiker local

1. Correr TODOS los "trails" de Monagas

2. Correr el "trail network" de Cabo Rojo con los Piratas de Boqueron

3. Formar parte de una corrida de mas de un dia y dormir bajo las estrellas.

4. Correr en un evento avalado por la Comision de Mountain Bike de PR

5. Correr Cerro Gordo

6. Participar de un "night ride"

7. Correr un evento de 24hrs. con tres amigos

8. Llevar a alguien a su primera experiencia de mountain bike

9. Trabajar como voluntario en el mantenimiento de un "trail"

10. Cambiar una goma en menos de 5 minutos

11. Aprender como ajustar la transmision trasera de tu bike

12. Cambiar un tubo a la bike de otra persona

13. Aprender como cambiar los "pads" de frenos

14. Arreglar una bike vieja y darsela a alguien que la necesite

15. Ser socio de IMBA

16. Romper algo importante de tu bike en una corrida y como quiera arreglartelas para poder terminar

17. Ser parte de una corrida por una causa

18. Hablarle a los niños de seguridad al correr una bike

19. Subir una cuesta que nunca antes habias podido subir

20. Grabar un mix de musica en tu iPod para tu proxima corrida

21. Realmente, aprender como usar los frenos

22. Enseñarle a un novato a dar paso al subir una cuesta

23. Llevar a un corredor a un "trail" que no conocia

24. Llevar a un niño a "mountainbiking"

25. Cambiar a "tubeless"

26. Sacarle provecho a las ofertas de fin de temporada de las tiendas

27. Planear tus vacaciones incluyendo el correr en un "trail" famoso

28. "Refrescale" los grips y las gomas a tu bike con frecuencia

29. Corre con pedales "clipless"

30. Encuentra un zapato que te quede perfecto

31. Usa el plastico protector entre los pads de frenos cuando le remuevas la goma a tu bike.

32. Usa CO2 para llenar una goma reparada en el trail

33. Haz un viaje de varios dias en tu bike.

34. Lleva una camara en tu proxima corrida y usala

35. Aprecia mas a tu mecanico por cuidar de tu bike

36. Participa en un "Happy Hour" con los "panas" de tu tienda favorita

37. Ve a correr tan temprano que te de tiempo a prepararte para ir a trabajar despues

38. Ve a trabajar en bike, por lo menos una vez en la semana del ciclista del 11 al 15 de mayo

39. Probar una bike con cuadro de carbon

40. No dejar basura en el "trail"