A cool new addition to this year’s Sea Otter expo was the demo area, which had dirt jumps, pump tracks, and workshops by the Bike Skills guys. It was a little hard to get to so a lot of people may have missed it. Hopefully, next year it will be placed more prominently. In any case, it was cool to have a place where people could demo bikes, play on some jumps, and generally polish their mountain bike skills. And the pump track pulled in some dirt jump and gravity pros, including Intense pro rider JD Swanguen (see photo directly below), who beat Brian Lopes at the Ray’s indoor pump track competition this past winter.

(more…)

Peter, who used to distribute Planet-X bikes in the US, got my attention and dragged me over to see this pretty bike. Last year at Sea Otter he had only road stuff and it looked like he was getting out of the mountain bike business. But apparently, he can’t stay away. Because he’s now distributing Orange bikes in the US. Including this CroMo Orange P7 hardtail , set up with a carbon belt drive, and internally geared rear hub.

(more…)

Most of you probably know about the accident Tara Llanes had in Colorado last season. If you don’t, check out Tara Llanes MySpace blog. She was out at Sea Otter this past weekend and looked really good. They were having a raffle to help raise money for her recovery with $5 tickets and prizes from Manitou, Santa Cruz, Thule, Smith, Giant, and Michelin, to name a few. The main prize was a trip to Costa Rica.

(more…)

The Canfield brothers, Chris and Lance, were showing their 2008 bikes next to the Sea Otter demo area. At Interbike they introduced their new "Perfect Suspension" concept, which is supposed to pedal the same regardless of the chainring, standing or seated. It's one basic bike design in four configurations, the Sauce, One, Can-Can, and the Can-Diggle. The Canfield Brothers One linkage (below) is shared among all four "Perfect Suspension" bikes. The complete One bike is pictured at the top of the page. An extra mini Canfield Brothers Can Can bike (below). The Can Can features the "Perfect Suspension" design in a dirt jump and park-friendly frame. Note the super short seat tube post and low top tube. The Canfield Brothers Can Diggle (below) is a sturdier, 7 to 8-inch version of the One. Being intended for more serious terrain, it has a 1.5-inch headtube and Maxle rear axle. The Jedi (below) is the Canfield Brothers latest, updated version of their classic Formula 1 frame. It has a rearward travel linkage system, short chain stays, and it's made for the most punishment. For more information on Canfield Brothers bikes, visit their Web site: http://www.canfieldbrothers.com/

While walking back up to the media center on Friday, I spotted this old horn. If you’re a Northern California cyclocross racing fan, you know what it sounds like. Because it’s at all the races. I asked the guy who was carrying it if I could take a picture because it looked so cool. Then I noticed the sweet, lugged Rock Lobster bike he had and it turns out he is Mr. Rock Lobster - Paul Sadoff.

(more…)

Well, it didn't rain. But it was colder than most people expected during the 2008 Sea Otter Classic. On Friday, early attendees were in shorts and T-shirts. But Saturday was overcast in the morning with some serious wind. The average temperature for this time of year in Monterey is mid-fifties (Farenheit). But temperatures in the low fifties and winds gusting up to 30 MPH, made it a lot colder than most people were prepared for. in other words - it was freezing. Especially for dual slalom finals spectators who weren't moving around much and hadn't dressed for the wind. By the end of the dual slalom finals, only hardiest fans remained. Lesson: be prepared for any weather if you go to Sea Otter. For 2009, I'm hoping for snow. Photos were shot with the Canon EOS Rebel XSi / 450D and the Canon EOS 40D. This article was brought to you by PhotographyREVIEW.com. Learn more about digital cameras and photography on Mtbr's sister site, PhotographyREVIEW.com!

A lot of big names were missing from the 2008 pro men cross-country race, due to the World Cup in Houffalize, Belgium. The race started under sunny skies with Kona’s Ryan Trebon taking an early lead. Late in the first lap, a pack of seven racers, including number one plate Sam Schultz, Ryan Trebon, Chris Sheppard, Carl Decker, Ken Onodera, and Miguel Martinez, swapped spots on the long rolling fire road climb back to the Laguna Seca race track. At the beginning of the second lap, Miguel Martinez broke away and stretched out a huge lead, eventually winning the race by almost three and a half minutes. Sam Schultz ended up taking second, followed fourteen seconds later by Sid Taberlay. Fourth place finisher, Mitchel Peterson, crossed the line a minute and a half later and Federico Ramirez Mendez took fifth a little over 6 minutes after Miguel Martinez crossed the finish line.

(more…)

Sunday was beautiful in Monterey, with clear sunny skies. It looked like a great day for cross-country racing. However, some of Saturday’s wind stuck around and left pro racers fighting strong winds and spectators suffering from some serious wind chill. Most people were just happy it wasn’t raining, though. Rain is sort of a Sea Otter tradition – regardless of the weather forecast.

(more…)

Unlike Saturday, which was cold with strong gusty winds, Sunday dawned sunny and cool - perfect conditions for the 2008 Sea Otter pro XC race. Here are a few photos from the semi-pros in the morning.

(more…)

After qualifying first in men's pro dual slalom, Brian Lopes went down hard at the top in the round of eight, paving the way for a final showdown between Steve Peat and Gregg Minnaar. Minnaar took the win leaving Peaty in second place, Andrew Neethling in third, and Kirt Vories in fourth. Santa Cruz has to be psyched having three of their pro men in the dual slalom finals. Former World Cup champ Jurgen Beneke also made an appearance, qualifying twenty-first. Sabrina Jonnier beat Melissa Buhl to win the pro women’s dual slalom finals. And in the women’s consolation race, Norco’s Fionn Griffiths beat Rachel Atherton to take third. Marla Streb also qualified in the pro women’s dual slalom and made it to the round of sixteen. Photos were shot with the Canon EOS Rebel XSi / 450D and the Canon EOS 40D. This article was brought to you by PhotographyREVIEW.com. Learn more about digital cameras and photography on Mtbr's sister site, PhotographyREVIEW.com!