Brian Lopes Signs With Magura

Multi Talented athlete Brian Lopes has partnered with Magura to meet his braking needs for 2012 and beyond. After hearing about the new MT Series brakes from Magura, Lopes contacted Magura last summer because he was looking for a disc brake that would meet his strong expectations and high standards and also hold up to the abuse that he dishes out on a daily basis. "Magura brakes have been on my radar for a while and after finally riding them I was definitely stoked at the weight and performance benefits they offered. Besides the fact that I have had no fade issues at all and they're stealthy quiet, they also have the best modulation I’ve ever experienced," says Lopes.

Lopes is riding the recently launched super light MT8, the first disc brake in the industry with a full carbon master cylinder, and the freeride optimized MT6 on which he has already ridden his Magura equipped Ibis to to some major wins including the Crankworx Whistler Enduro DH , Crankworx Colorado Rainmaker DH,  Crankworx Colorado Dual Slalom and the Llinars Spain DH where he set the new course record.

According to Jeff Enlow, General Manager of Magura USA,  “Everyone at Magura is super excited to be working with Brian for the upcoming season. Having an athlete like Brian Lopes racing on Magura really validates the design of the new MT Series brakes and gives us valuable testing and feedback from the field."

Lopes, who competed as a pro in the BMX circuit for seven years before channeling all his efforts into mountain biking in 1993, has had an unprecedented twenty year career as a professional cyclist. His impressive accomplishments over this time include over 19 titles, among them, nine National Championship titles, six UCI World Cup Championships, and four World Championships making him the winningest UCI World Cup athlete of all time. Lopes earned his “Flyin Brian” nickname early in his career as a BMX’er that evoked a super smooth style and aggressive air over the jumps which set him apart from the competition. Lopes is not only a legend in the BMX and MTB Gravity worlds, but has also evolved as an incredibly diversified athlete of other cycling disciplines shown by his recent victory at the California State Cyclocross Championships for the 2nd consecutive year!

His accomplishments off the track are just as prestigious, as he was nominated in 2001 for an ESPY "Action sport Athlete of the Year", won two NEA (World Extreme Sports Award) for "Mountain Biker of the Year" in 2000 & 2001, published the best selling Mountain Bike how-to book of all time and is even featured in SONY PlayStation’s "Downhill Domination"! To put the icing on the cake, in 2008 he was inducted into the Mountain Bike and BMX Hall of Fame.

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MTB GP Pro Permanent Number Selection

In case you haven’t heard, the US Grand Prix of Mountain Biking will be issuing permanent numbers to any interested PRO DOWNHILL rider!!  The top riders from last year’s Pro GRT have selected their number, now it’s your turn to choose!  Sorry, this will be PRO DH riders only!

You may choose any available number to keep permanently (see rules & regulations) in which you may brand yourselves.  The number comes at a $50 fee per person, per year (which all funds go toward the overall pro purse &/or privateer award). 

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at your convenience!

2012 RockyRoads UCI MTB Logo

RockyRoads Network, the new title sponsor of the UCI Mountain bike World Cup, along with the organizers of all 10 rounds of the 2012 edition, official timers Swiss Timing, technical delegates and UCI staff met in Geneva, Switzerland, this week to prepare the upcoming World Cup season.

Simultaneously, a new logo for the 2012 UCI MTB World Cup was presented. The red and blue banner is gone; the logo is now entirely in black, only the title sponsor RockyRoads and the sub sponsor Shimano keep their signature colors.

The idea behind the organisation of the seminar was to present the changes to the series for 2012. “We want to ensure that the World Cup is a united series rather than 10 separate events,” explains UCI Mountain Bike Organisation Coordinator Mélanie Leveau.

The owner of RockyRoads Network, Sietse Schelpe, was pleasantly surprised with the enthusiasm and positive attitude of the organizers after the first meeting. “We are pleased with the feedback from the organizers. They were a bit skeptical about the changes a new sponsor always brings. But they understand our perspective. We want to support and develop the sport more than anything else. Everyone is now energized to work toward creating a beautiful future for the mountain bike sport.”

Schelpe is also pleased with the integration of Sprint Eliminator (XCE) into the World series, even though in 2012 there will be only three sprint eliminator races ridden in Houffalize (BEL), Nove Mesto na Morave (CZE) and La Bresse (FRA). “The sprint has great potential and we hope that together with the UCI we can develop this great discipline even further,” said Schelpe.

Troy Brosnan Kicks Off The 2012 ANS With A Win

Summer is well and truly arrived South of the equator, and the Australian National series has begun. Monster Energy-Specialized athletes Troy Brosnan and Sam Hill were keen to do some racing in the World Cup off-season and made their way to Thredbo, N.S.W for the first round of the 2011 series. With the weather report looking sub-par, the boys were keen to make use of the Friday practice session as it has been a couple of years since both Troy or Sam had ridden on this track.

The only substantial rain fell Sunday morning but was enough to make things challenging without limiting the speed of the track. Both riders felt good after seeding, where Brosnan placed second behind Jared Graves, while Hill sat in fourth. Both Monster Energy Specialized riders were confident and knew they had time left in them for their race runs. 

Hill raced to a 5:33.87 in the finals, knocking last year's National Series Champ, Rhys Atkinson out of the hot seat. Most Aussie racers know what a brutal track Thredbo can be, but Brosnan had looked unbelievably fast all weekend. All eyes were on the Junior World Champion as he dropped in and stopped the clock with a 5.31.54, taking the lead from Sam by over 2 seconds. Graves was just under a second Behind Hill, putting Monster Energy Specialized 1-2 for the weekend.

Both riders were stoked with the beginning of the race season. Sam was really impressed with Troy’s run, and keen to be on the other side of him for the next round in Buller. 

“ I really feel my fitness is where it has to be in this part of the year on a long track like this. I just don’t feel like I got stuck into it from the start for a race run but I guess that’s going to come from doing more races. Aside from that I felt pretty happy with my run, I was smooth everywhere and hit everything like I wanted to. Troy was just on top of his game this weekend.”

Troy was ecstatic with his win. With it being his first year stepping up into the senior ranks he made a statement on a big track with the big boys. “ There had been a bit of rain early in the morning and before racing, so was a little unsure how the track would hold up. For my race run the track was pretty dry, and a lot faster than I thought. I just threw down a really good run and no mistakes really, pedalled out of each corner as hard as I could, and it just seemed to all work out. On to the next round in Mount Buller” 

Team manager Sean Heimdal was happy to have both riders healthy and back on the podium locally.

“Its great to see both Sam and Troy getting amongst the Australian Nationals...it shows they’re both focused on 2012 and looking to sharpen their skills for the upcoming World Cup Season. I’m sure these guys will all keep pushing themselves harder than ever to keep pace with each other.” Specialized Bicycles are more than happy with the start of both Troy and Sam’s season down under and couldn’t be more proud.

Both Sam and Troy look forward to tackling the next Australian round in Buller.

We’d like to thank the following companies for their continued support: Monster Energy, Specialized Bicycles, Mad Catz, SRAM, Truvativ, Rock Shox, Avid, DT Swiss, SDG, Renthal, Troy Lee Designs, Maxima, Spy Optics, Cane Creek, e-thirteen, Contour, Five Ten, Alligator, Obtainium, Freestyle, Kicker, KMC.

Jill Kitner And Bryn Atkinson Part Ways With Transition Bikes

The last two years have been a whirlwind of success for Transition Factory Racing. Following their first year as prvateers in 2009, team Bryll (as they are affectionately called) were brought into the family of Transition Bikes. The two riders had an existing friendship with TR Team Manager Lars Sternberg, who saw a great opportunity to work with the duo and simultaneously launch Transitions involvement into the DH world. Many victores were secured by the squad over the following two seasons. This year saw highs and lows for the team, and they endured it all together. The three were finally reunited on the trail once again in the beautiful forest of northern Oregons foothills of Mt Hood this August.

In two seasons the team secured 3 out of 4 of the Elite Mens and Womens PRO GRT Series overall titles and 3 National Championship titles, Jill Kintner's beloved Transition Double went the entireity of the 2011 season without a lost race run, and both Bryn and Lars overcame injuries to head into the 2012 season healthy and strong.

This particular story ends here, but both parties are opening new chapters and have exciting things in store for the future. It was a great run, and we wouldn't change it for the world!

Transition Factory Racing would also like to thank all of our sponsors who have supported us through thick and thin. We wouldn't have been able to do it without you!

Stay tuned for news about Bryn and Jill's 2012 plans, and keep an eye on the Transition Bikes page for news about the 2012 program.

Transition Racing is supported by FOX Racing Shox, Crankbrothers, KORE, Maxxis, JETT, Shimano, TLD, ODI, 5.10, e.13, Jetlites, Jagwire, Cane Creek, Kinetic, Feedback Sports, Contour HD, and Stans no tubes.

ABOUT TRANSITION BIKES

Transition Bikes is a bicycle company located in Ferndale Washington and is focused on creating trail and gravity oriented mountain bikes. Our philosophy is simple, Rider Owned for Life since 2001. It is not a slick marketing slogan but something that defines who we are as a company. Connecting with our dealers and customers from a rider standpoint is our number one concern. Through outstanding and responsive customer service, and unique niche product design, we create and build relationships with our customers that are important to everyday riders and forgotten by larger companies. When you buy a Transition product you can be assured it has been tested in real world conditions by the same people that design them. We don't believe in using Catalog designs; everything is designed in house by us. Our goal is not to become a huge corporate brand but rather a company the average rider can believe in. Our customers are our family and we get immense joy from seeing them progress their riding to new levels right beside us.