2012 Santa Cruz Mountainbike Festival

FOX 3rd ANNUAL SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAIN BIKE FESTIVAL BRINGS MOUNTAIN BIKE ATHLETES, FANS, AND THE CYCLING  INDUSTRY TO APTOS, CALIFORNIA

Join us for an exciting two day event that includes the first legally sanctioned race at Soquel Demonstration State Forest (Demo), plus professional and amateur competitions such as dirt jump and pump track contests, and cross country short track races. Bike  skills clinics and a kids’ practice area will also be offered, in addition to industry expo, bike demos, shuttles, food court, beer  garden, and raffles.

APTOS, CA – February 3, 2012 Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz (MBoSC) today announced the event schedule and sponsors for the Fox 3rd Annual Santa Cruz  Mountain Bike Festival (SCMBF) at the Barry Swenson Builder property in Aptos Village, California, on April 14th and 15th, 2012.  This is the weekend before the Sea Otter Classic in nearby Monterey. The SCMBF is Santa Cruz County’s premier mountain biking  event, bringing together a mix of competitive racing, contests, and skills clinics as well as industry manufacturers and retailers  with booths and demo products. Proceeds from the 2012 event will benefit projects and organizations that support mountain biking in Santa Cruz county.

For two jam-packed days, the SCMBF will be home to exciting events for riders at every level. Whether attendees want to  participate, spectate, improve their skills or check out the latest gear, there’s something for everyone. In the first legally  sanctioned race at Soquel Demonstration State Forest, racers will complete three climbing and three downhill stages. Other events allow professional and amateur riders to compete in dirt jump and pump track contests, and cross country short track races.  Amateurs will race for bragging rights and bike product; pros will race for cash. This year’s SCMBF will debut the  All Mountain Challenge which recognizes the best combined results of endurance, short track and pump track races.  Beginners and intermediate riders alike can hone their dirt skills with clinics focusing on mountain bike handling and pump track  skills, and shuttle rides to Soquel Demonstration State Forest will be available. A family-friendly event, SCMBF will also offer a  kids’ practice area. Industry vendors will be on hand to share their latest innovations and equipment. Tasty drafts will be offered  in the beer garden, and this year’s festival will feature an all-new food court.

SCMBF title sponsor Fox of Scotts Valley, California is joined by event sponsors Bell, Specialized/Scotts Valley Cycle Sport,  and WTB. Platinum sponsors include Adventure Sports Journal, Barry Swenson Builder, Bike Monkey, Dirt Rag, Gamut, Saris;  gold sponsors to date are American Medical Response (AMR), Bicycle Trip, and Clif Bar. Contributions from these organizations  have helped underwrite the SCMBF. All our sponsors are committed to mountain biking and Santa Cruz County as a world class  destination for the sport. Sponsorship opportunities are still available; refer to our 2012 Sponsorship Kit for details.

On the schedule are popular events from last year such as:

1. 831 Jump Contest: Calling All Creative and Tricky Styles. Stand-out moves rewarded, be you Beginner, Expert or Pro.  Doesn’t matter how you rate now, we want to recognize you. Announcer will call, music will bump, judges will decide.  Those who push their own limits will be recognized at the 831 Jump Contest. Test yourself, the rewards will come.

1. Pump Track Pandemonium: It’s you against the clock! See who has the skill to shred the hardest and pump the fastest through  perfectly apexed berms. Your score is your fastest timed lap.

2. Specialized/Scotts Valley Cycle Sport Short Track: It’s intense! It’s fast! It’s fun! Come weave and wind your way through the  heart of the Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival on our elaborate 1/2 mile Specialized/Scotts Valley Cycle Sport Short Track race  course. Speed by the vendor booths, rally through off-camber corners and pump your way through berms and rollers. You’ll go as  hard as you can for a few minutes and then it’s one more lap and a mad dash to finish.

1. Bike Skills Clinics: Learn from the best! Pro rider, and Santa Cruz native Tammy Donahugh will team up with Kat Sweet to host  two bike skills clinics – a Mountain Bike Skills Clinic, and a Pump Track Skills Clinic.

Plus, these exciting brand new events:

1. Bell Super Enduro at Demo: One Bike. Three Climbs. Three Descents. Be the first to race Euro style at the Bell Super Enduro at  Demo – Soquel Demonstration Forest’s first legally sanctioned race! Climb fast. Descend faster on a closed course. Then do it all  over again. Do you have what it takes? 1. WTB All Mountain Challenge: Pump, Shred, and Endure. Beat all your friends up the climbs, around the corners and down the  mountain? Ever wonder where you really stand? The super enduro, short track, and pump track events won’t leave you hanging.  Different bikes for each event welcome, best rider determined by cumulative points. Fearless and fit riders, find out who really  rules the mountain.

1. Specialized/Scotts Valley Cycle Sport Kids’ Rodeo: Because You Want Them to Love This Sport. Introduce your kids to mountain  biking or encourage them to improve their skills. Sign a waiver, put a helmet on them, and watch them try their skills and tackle  obstacles in a challenging and supportive environment. They will gain confidence and have fun. You will love that they want to ride.

The mission of the SCMBF is to celebrate mountain biking in Santa Cruz County by bringing people together to participate and  spectate in competitive and recreational mountain bike events, and a festival to bring the community together to advocate an  active outdoor lifestyle and promote the world class mountain biking facilities and riders in Santa Cruz County.

Santa Cruz MTB Festival

Santa Cruz Syndicate San Romolo Testing

SYNDICATE TEST SESSION WELCOMING
FOX AND SHIMANO!!

Early season testing started for the Santa Cruz Syndicate with mechanics, engineers and riders arriving in the town of Imperia, Italy, for three days of extensive testing aboard the latest Santa Cruz full carbon V-10s. The bikes were decked out with the Syndicate’s newest sponsor products from Fox and Shimano. The Syndicate’s choice to join forces with Shimano and Fox proved to be a great decision as the test session was incredibly successful.
“Testing was amazing, the most productive test session I have ever been to. Besides good riding and eating killer Italian food, our Syndicate family expanded with Fox and Shimano. I feel this was a great start to the year and I’m looking forward to more positive things to come in 2012,” said Greg Minnaar.
The testing took place on the long downhill racetrack in San Romolo with shuttle assistance from Roberto Vernassa from Argentina Bike. The five-man Fox crew was ready to gather information from suspension testing using their state of the art data acquisition equipment. Spirits were high as everyone got started off on the dark chilly mornings while the mechanics built a bonfire at the bottom of the track to stave off a bit of chill. Riders were warm and tingly inside with big grins after the first run.
“We were getting everyone up to speed on the new full carbon frame, Fox suspension, and Shimano components. With the frame being much lighter than the previous version we had to dial the suspension in because of less un-sprung weight. I’ve also been riding the new XTR brakes for some time now and can’t get over how impressive they are, particularly with modulation. Feedback from all the racers was what I was expecting, a new milestone in performance.” Says Rob Roskopp.
Greg Minnaar exclaims, “I was blown away on the first ride down the rugged San Romolo track. The first thought was, this is a winning combo! Fitzy and his crew worked flat out to get us up to speed. Their passion, enthusiasm and suspension knowledge is going to be very positive to the Syndicate. It’s been awhile since I was last on Shimano, 2003... and that was a good year for me. I hope this is the good luck I’ll be needing to win another World Championship.”
Santa Cruz engineer Joe Graney says, “We look forward to a close relationship with the suspension experts at Fox.  They arrived in Italy with a team of engineers and technicians—blowing everyone away with how they were able to accurately translate each rider’s input into measured improvements in speed and control. Shimano continues to push the envelope with technologies like Ice Technology brakes and the Shadow Plus derailleur, as well as the variety of options that can be configured for different conditions fits perfectly with Santa Cruz Bicycles’ core values of customer choice, usable performance, durability and long term support. ”
Our newest addition to the Syndicate, mechanic Jason Marsh says, “I’m super happy that we are using Fox Racing Shox and Shimano for the 2012 season.  The new Fox 40 forks suit the carbon V-10 frame perfectly and the RC4 rear shock really compliments the VPP suspension design. The riders were all impressed on how good the bikes felt, even after the first run. I have worked with the Saint group-set for the last three seasons and I really like how they work. Saint cranks are super strong, brakes are simple to set up and the rear derailleur and shifter are super smooth and a nice set up. Finish and attention to detail can’t be matched. The support offered by the Fox team over the last few days has been superb and their race support is second to none. 2012 will be a great season.”
Steve Peat was surprisingly pleased, “We have had three awesome days testing and training in Italy. It was great to catch up with all my crew after a few down months throughout the winter and I was happy to get out on the Santa Cruz V-10 and trash it in the test situation. Fox is a company that I have watched over the years. They obviously have great product because the fast guys are using it and winning races now and again on it. And Shimano needs no introduction. It’s a no brainer that they have great products and I am looking forward to working with them at the races! We came up with some great set ups and I am now looking forward to the season. Now it’s our turn to give it a thrash on our V-10’s, 2012 should be fun!”
“The test session was a big learning curve for me. Having ridden Boxxer’s since I was about 14, I’m very used to the look and feel of the fork so it was a huge change. I really enjoyed the process of getting my new bike set up and it was interesting getting to know the characteristics of all the new products. The suspension seems almost limitless with it its adjustability and I think our bikes have entered a whole new realm of adaptability. Despite getting my ass kicked in the final race I had a really fun and productive four days,” said Josh Bryceland.
“Tradition is that the last day of testing we always have a race to see who is quickest. Once again, for the second time in a row Peaty took the win, but unlike the first time when Greg wore the dress to dinner, it was Josh’s turn to wear a skirt. Since there were no women’s clothes handy, Josh had to improvise and craft a fashionable number out of a pair of pants. “His outfit was complete with his ‘special’ tiger underwear”, chimes in Roskopp.
Joe Lawwill, Shimano’s MTB marketing manager says, “Shimano is very proud and excited to be working with Santa Cruz bicycles and the iconic Syndicate race team.  We are looking forward to a successful and exciting 2012 season.”
Fox’s Mark Fitzsimmons says, “We are very excited to work with a team at this level. The professionalism of the team has shown in their years of great results and we look forward to bringing our suspension expertise to the program. We here at FOX thrive on the pure honesty racing brings to our development process and look forward to learning from Steve, Greg and Josh to continue to improve our products and aid them in their mission for podiums. Our goal is to provide our athletes with a suspension performance advantage and look forward to continuing this into the 2012 season.”
Syndicate head mechanic Dougie “Fresh” Hatfield says, “The Fox and Shimano Saint equipped bikes ran silky smooth during our test camp in San Romolo. The riders really liked the responsiveness and quality of the product. We are ready to go racing!!”

Santa Cruz Syndicate Thanks SRAM For 8 Years Of Support

The Santa Cruz Syndicate and SRAM/RockShox brands have been synonymous with one another for 8 years, from the inception of the Syndicate in 2004 through 2011. It is with sadness and great respect that we are parting ways in 2012.

This has been an incredible journey, and the partnership has helped our racers achieve an impressive set of goals and dreams—2 UCI World Cup Downhill overall titles, 10 UCI World Cups wins by Greg Minnaar, 3 World Cup wins and a historic World Championship title by Steve Peat, and a Junior World Championship title by Josh Bryceland. These results were made possible using SRAM, Rockshox, Truvativ and Avid products, along with the world-class technical support of the SRAM team.

Working closely with John Dawson and Jon Cancellier on prototype Black Box projects and receiving their on-site support was a pleasure, and our heartfelt thanks go out to them for their years of dedication to the Syndicate. Thank you also to Dave Zimberoff for making the partnership possible.

Steve Peat says, "Leaving SRAM is a tough one for me. I have been with RockShox for 16 years so you could say the brand is engraved in me. But like most things in life nothing lasts forever and it has been a great time over the last 16 years. I want to thank each and every person at RockShox and SRAM who have helped me achieve my goals in my career. I have made lots of friends and had some fun times. Thanks guys!"

Greg Minnaar says, "Since joining the Syndicate in 2008 your support has been incredible.

Thanks to all the crew that work hard behind the scenes making sure our Black Box equipment was keeping us ahead of the rest."

Josh Bryceland says, "I've ridden SRAM since I started mountain biking and I've come far using their products. Times change and so do sponsors, thanks for 4 years on the Syndicate without a mechanical in a race run."

Rob Roskopp says, "Our partnership with SRAM over the years saw many milestones achieved, Steve Peat's 2009 World Championship in Canberra, Greg Minnaar's win at Maribor in 2010 aboard the first carbon bike to take a World Cup win, and countless podiums over the last 8 years. I would like to thank the whole crew at SRAM for the great memories and support."