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Decline and The Racing Clan

October 21, 2009

I was in the reading room flipping through the new special addition Decline Magazine – A friend brought it for me hot off the Interbike show Floor. As I flip through the killer images and outstanding stories one – story hit close to home.

I saw my bike – just my bike – being cleaned up and shined up by the Mudd Bunnies at The North Shore Bike Fest. The Bunnies did an outstanding job by the way .

I would take my hats off to Cycling BC while I am here but they just announced a logo contest which is against my religion so we will just leave that where it lays for now.

OK OK not really that cool – there is of course more - But first my glass has risen once again for Decline as they continue to show the world a little bit more of my backyard – The North Shore – you know what I’m talking about.

This is what really caught my eye. North Shore Bike fest – Again – or is it still – afterall it’s a SPECIAL edition.

What was cool was that there was more pics of my Favorite Racing clan -and more specifically the man behind the Clan – Jeff Bryson

( Really Buckwheat is the Man behind the Clan but he didn’t make it in the magazine – he was probably fixing Clan bikes so the crew could try to keep up with Big Jeff – Next time Buckwheat.)

He is a close up using a super zoom lens – don’t try that at home Sterling or Dan -

Actually Dan Barham did take the pics and Dan Gronross set up the course so I should raise my glass(es) to them also – and after all that glass raising I thinks its time to go back into the reading room.

Cheers

Posted in Friends, Just for Funnzies | 1 Comment »

The Spirit of the Clan

June 2, 2009

Every group out there be it a band or a bike team generally can point a finger to an individual within the group that embodies the spirit of that group. Robert Plant the spirit of Led Zeppelin, Ozzy embodied the dark soul of Black Sabbath, Anthony Kiedis is that man for the Red Hot Chill Peppers, and on and on – you get the idea right.

Well the Clan is no exception.

Little Biker - Owen

Jeff Bryson is that guy, the spirit of the Clan – It was many months ago now and he was talking about the Clan – although I believe it was nameless at the time . Jeff talked about a team that represented the fun of mountain biking - no snobs - a tent at the bottom of the race course where anyone was welcome. A team mechanic that would work on your bike simply because you needed a hand. The Clan has some great sponsors yet if you are sporting a fork from some other brand – the Clan first and foremost wants to be able to get you out on the course to ride – after all it’s about riding isn’t it. Of course expect to hear a bit about their sponsors and be sure to pass on that “spirit of the Bike” - synonymous with the Clan.

The Act of the Clan Spirit.

Last week the Clan was represented well on both sides of the country. Earlier in the day a Clan member at large, often going by the name Freeride Phil was racing in his category on Neds as part of the North Shore Bike Fest and placed really well – riding a Demo no doubt. Soon after Freeride Phil finished his run – 2 spots off the podium I should add. Phil was off to the hospital to be with his son Owen – Owen was going in for surgery to remove a sliver – and we are talking chop stick size sliver from his foot – and Owen doesn’t have a very big foot to house a chop stick.

Jeff must have been thinking about his little buddy Owen on his final run down Neds – Jeff ripped it up, made a quick appearance at the awards – to collect prizes and loot – and immediatly – PJ’s and all – went to see Owen. To cheer up our little biking friend Owen – Jeff handed over some of the cash – insisting I am sure that he spend it on bike stuff. Jeff also presented Owen the award “metal ” – A North Shore Bike Fest Second Place in the Pro category chunk of wood – careful Owen of the slivers. I mean if that doesn’t say good doodoo about Jeff and heaps about what he wants out of the Clan as far a attitude then you are just going to have to stop by and say hi at the next race – Check out the plaid wearing Clan for yourself – they are nice guys who ride bikes – simple.

Get Well Owen

Posted in Friends, Just for Funnzies, The Team, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

The Sam Phill Rat Race Report

May 12, 2009

Since we couldn’t get into the Rat Race we all decided to head to Kamloops for the Mount Harper race. Freeride Phil registered early so he was able to race, we asked him to let us know how it all went.

A beautiful spring morning in Horseshoe Bay

this years rat race was definitely the recession rat race…no weekend in the ocean front house full of the boys ridding all weekend..it was get over early sunday morning on a solo tour. Will Dixon couldn’t make this year because he’s been escorted out of the country, Dave O’Neal has quit riding and taken up racing remote control cars and Bryson is still laying low after running through the timer last year during somebody’s race run.
The track looking as primed as ever

This years course was the same as last years and was dialed after getting some rain earlier in the week and then sunshine over the weekend. The course itself is just a ball of fun and really pushes you to lay of the brakes and just give it from top to bottom.

Didn’t have much time to get reacquainted with the course, so after doing the mandatory 2 pre-runs, I did a quick walk of the bottom half to see if I could figure anything out, one last pre-run to try the new lines out, lunch, nap, then up to the top for the race run.

The top part of the course is in a clear cut section of the forest and really gives you the opportunity to rip it. Unfortunately for me, I never got it dialed and I lost it on one of the corners and slid off the track. I tried to make it up but was a little tentative through the rest of this section, so that cost me time.

The bottom section was a different story and I felt pretty good through the section I walked and was able to hit all the lines I had planned. In the end, I was happy that I bested my time from last year.

Always leave race day with a smile, because it always means i just had a full day of riding…and these days those are hard to come by.

Rat Race is a great race and is very well organized. Race day was great, shuttle and race times were on and from what I could tell, all the riders were having a good time.

Sam Phill

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A little rain can make the day so much smoother

May 4, 2009

Nick came down to North Vancouver this weekend to burn in his new brakes and see how his new bike would handle on the steeps. He drove down from Calgary with his buddy Cameron, stopped in Kamloops and Chilliwack before he hit the shore. We rode a couple laps on Cypress and a whole bunch of Neds runs on Sunday.

sunday2
Nick and I wanted to get our heads around Ned’s with the North Shore bike fest just around the corner. After trying multiple lines we realized that they are all just as rough so we stuck to the straight ones. The rain the night before made the trails sick.

sunday1
On our last run we noticed someone taking some pictures at the Ned’s Gap. It wasn’t until we got to superstore where we met Conor Coen. Conor is an up and coming photographer that’s into bikes. He introduced himself and showed us the pictures he took. Look for him racing and taking pictures at the North Shore Bike fest.

bryson

Posted in Just for Funnzies, Training Stuff | Leave a Comment »

Engineering the Best

April 24, 2009

mid-kyber-again2
I recently read an article in Dirt Magazine last week on the new Specialized downhill team. The article talks about Sam Hill and Brendan Fairclough coming aboard to race and help with product development. The magazine interviewed a bunch of the staff at Specialized including one of the engineers. The engineer they interviewed in my experience wasn’t the man behind the high end bikes at Specialized.

Jason Chamberlain comes to the North Shore and Whistler to ride about once a year. When he comes here he sees what he has to engineer into his bikes to make them last. If he wasn’t coming out this way to ride and see what the new age of bikes need to handle we would all be riding bikes with bushings, pinner steel hard wear and the smallest stroke shocks with the heaviest weight springs. Jason is the Head Engineer at specialized in charge of all the high end bikes. He works closely with Brandon Sloan (product manager) and the designers to produce the bikes you see and ride today.
jerry-jamie-jason-and-jeff2
Jerry, Jamie, Jason and Jeff – The 4 J’s at the peak of whistler about to ride Kyber’s

Since he was away on vacation when Dirt Magazine came by and didn’t get any props, I wanted to give him some props on the Clan’s site. I know the amount of people that will see this isn’t compared to the amount that read dirt but it’s something.

I asked him a couple of random questions so we could get to know him better.

-Why does the hardware in a specialized look so close to a giant?
They must really like our design.
-Who/what determines shock length and are there benefits /negatives to either
Myself, Buck and Brandon arm wrestle with Fox.
-What is Kinex good for?
According to Google, either computer networks or cancer.
——–
Did you mean K’nex? They are worthless. So are Mega Blocks. Only Legos rule.
-Did you use to be a scout?
Yes, Eagle scout too. I continue to be a volunteer leader today.
-What is a gondola ride like with all the makers of seasons?
Mellow, and a little hungry.
-When you do testing with the electrode backpack what are you testing for?
We measure force and stress, which helps us understand the latest riding styles and how that affects the bike.
-Where is your favorite riding place?
Whistler and North Shore. Sorry, that is so cliché, but it is still true.
-Have you ridden the new Demo 8 geometry?
I’m not good enough to ride it.
-32 or 36 spokes?
32
-Grease a press fit or no grease on a press fit?
Grease or lock-tite. Never dry.
-Favorite flavor Jelly Belly jelly bean?
Grass & Dirt, together.
-Your best MacGyver incident?
The time I built a phone out of coconuts.
-What is your favorite thing to test in the test lab?
Demo’s because sometimes they break the machines instead of the other way around.
-Have you ever raced before?
Yes, but it was a slow race. I used to be the Colorado State Campion in Observed Trials.
-Coolest/weirdest thing you have ever witnessed?
The time at Whistler on Goats Gully when Jeff Bryson took an unmarked left hand turn and dropped off a wooden bridge onto a super gnarly rocky ditch that wasn’t even a trail and Berrecloth, who was right on his tail wouldn’t follow him.
Also, the time Jerry Willows and Jeff Bryson rolled the wicked steep rope climb drop on Khyber. I couldn’t believe my eyes, and my heart almost stopped.
-Do you think the Clan is going to rock it!
Depends on your definition of Rock It! But that is likely.

Thanks a lot for your time Jason

exo-scelleton-testing1
Jason testing the high strengh to weight ratio of an exoskeleton for some upcoming frame designs

bryson

Posted in Just for Funnzies, Product Knowledge | 2 Comments »

Bridal Path Tap Out

April 23, 2009

I’ve been trying to hit the Bridal Path Tap Out Challenge for years. Willie at John Henry Bikes has been advertising this for a couple of years now (at least with me). Last time I rode this with Willie he was a 22 dabs half way through the trail. Everyone I talk to says it’s the easiest thing to do but nobody ever seems to be able to step up.

Bridal Path is about a 20 minute ride from the Seymour side to the Twin Bridges side if you don’t stop. There are a bunch of tough sections but none like the Cardiac incline. The Cardiac incline has some of the toughest steps and roots that you could ever imagine. If you were to clean the incline your guard would drop at the easier sections of the trail and you would dab. That is when you would tap out by dabbing a foot or two.

If you can clean it from the golf course to the Baden Powell, come to JH and look Willie straight in the eye and tell him you cleaned it. Without hesitation he will walk over to the Gull Liquor store and buy you 24 beers. Willie is true to his word as long as you are.

Tap out, you lose.

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