Giant Factory Off-Road Team Announces 2015 Squad

With the dust barely settled following a successful 2014 season, the Giant Factory Off-Road Team is already preparing for next year. For 2015, the team will continue to develop top young talent in the downhill and enduro racing disciplines.

Featuring an international lineup of riders from five different nations, the squad aims to build on the momentum that carried it to national championships, podiums and stage victories at major events this year including World Cups and Enduro World Series races.

Fresh off winning his fifth Colombian downhill national championship two weeks ago, Marcelo Gutierrez returns to lead the team’s World Cup downhill unit. The 24-year-old had a strong 2014 season, finishing the year ranked 14th in the world with some big wins including earning the “King of Crankworx” title at Crankworx Whistler.

“I’m looking forward to continuing my progression with the team next year and stoked to be wearing the colors of my Colombian national jersey again,” said Gutierrez who regained his title earlier this month after he missed out the previous year following a crash.

Joining Gutierrez on the downhill team is teenager Alex Marin, one of the top young talents in the sport. The 17-year-old Spaniard has a handful of podiums and wins at the World Cup and national level in the junior ranks and looks to continue his upward trajectory in 2015. A third up-and-coming rider will be announced in early 2015 to round out the downhill squad.

Departing the team in 2015 are former world champion Danny Hart and veteran South African champion Andrew Neethling.

“Danny Hart and Andrew Neethling have been vital in our progression as a team, whether it’s on the racecourse or in product development,” said Giant global marketing director An Le. “Needles brought experience, speed, style and a positive vibe. And Danny evolved from a teenager with raw talent into a world champion through our program. We’ve had a great run together and are super grateful for Danny and Andrew’s contributions the past few years. Our 2015 direction aligns with our team mission of building future champions through our system and cutting-edge products, and we’re looking forward to taking this young DH squad to the next level in 2015.”

The team’s enduro lineup will be led by Frenchman Yoann Barelli. This year, his first with the team, Barelli had two top-five finishes in the Enduro World Series, with his best performance coming at the last round in Finale Ligure, Italy, earlier this month. The 29-year-old won two stages at the finals and finished fifth for the weekend, securing a top-10 overall season ranking.

“I was 2.5 seconds from the podium in Italy, and just 14 seconds away from the win,” Barelli said. “That’s my motivation to train all winter long.”

Joining Barelli on the enduro squad will be Australian Josh Carlson and American Adam Craig. Both had some strong individual race and stage performances this year, and will look to move up the rankings in 2015.

Beyond the global riders, next year’s team also includes American XC and enduro racer Carl Decker. The veteran from Bend, Oregon, won his fifth Downieville All-Mountain world championship this year and will continue to focus on a variety of enduro, XC and cyclocross events in 2015. And Seamus Powell, a 24-year-old two-time U.S. Super D national champion, joins the team as a U.S. development rider.

While Decker and Powell will race some XC events, Giant has ended its sponsorship of the XC World Cup-focused Giant Pro XC Team for 2015 to focus its support on the Giant Factory Off-Road Team.

All of the Giant Factory Off-Road Team riders will have a full quiver of Giant bikes to choose from including Glory 27.5 downhill bikes, Reign Advanced 27.5 enduro machines, Trance Advanced 27.5 trail bikes, and Anthem Advanced 27.5 and XtC Advanced SL 27.5 XC bikes.

Full details on the 2015 Giant Factory Off-Road Team, including the final rider lineup as well as partners and sponsors, will be announced in January. To follow the team throughout the year, go to facebook.com/giantfactoryteam.

Review Of The Enduro Mediterraneo Series 2014 & Pelion Race

The first race series of the Enduro Mediterraneo has ended. With three races for 2014, the ground has been prepared to welcome this new race format to the greek mountainbike scene.<image.gif> Despite the harsh conditions through which these races have been organized, the main organizators and all the local coordinators ( www.eviatours.com / Mountain Active / www.montisordo.gr ) managed to unite their power, setting a beautiful combination of destinations all around Greece, which either were known to the public before, or now became basic locations for Enduro mountainbiking in Greece and the Balkans.

The Pelion race
The maiden voyage of the trails of Pelion left the best impressions to all the riders, with the only setback of the alteration of the race track on Sunday due to intense weather conditions on Saturday night. The scenery was unique, with the start next to the sea, providing the riders with the opportunity to enjoy views of the Pagasitic gulf from above. The trails were really demanding at some points, and even the Prologue Stage and the Liason Stages were as enjoyable as the Special Stages. The ones that were not lucky were the riders who started first, as many leafs had fallen on the tracks from Saturday's storm making the trail very slippery.

The Winners
Nontas Lamprakopoulos from Velocity Bikes was the Series winner. He showed special commitment to his goal with 1st, 2nd & 5th places on Rnd#1, Rnd#2 & Rnd#3. With 470 points in total, he managed to gain first place against other big athletes. Velokas Apostolis finished 20th in Xanthi race, 4th in Steni & 3rd in Pelion, gathered 326 points conquering 2nd place. Vagelis Kavvadas, who is well know to the downhill community, who was really steady in general, had to stay with 9th place  and 315 points in Pelion while he came 4th & 5th at the previous races, settling at 3rd place. Konstantinos Andriotis had to settle with 4th place with 300 points participating in only two races of the series.

At the final race, and in the Junior category, Marios Zabelis from Corfu prevailed against Kalliris Panagiotis and Nikolaos Kabaklis, while also gaining top position against Nikolaos Tsarouhis and Faidon Bouloubasis in the whole series. Erini Mavraki claimed more points than any other woman race the Mediterraneo series, setting her self at the top of both downhill and enduro racing in Greece for 2014. Hardtail category showed particular interest with 20 competitors taking score. The Pelion race revealed Miltos Sarakinos, with John Korfiatis and Theodore Mavropoulos following. Leading the series is John Korfiatis with just 3 points ahead Theodore Mavropoulos. Miltos Sarakinos having competed only in two races for 2014 remains in 3rd place.

Some Race Statistics
With three races all over Greece, the Enduro Mediterraneo Series managed to gather 220 unique enduro riders. Many claim to be pure enduro riders, but many also come from XC, or DH, or even from other motorsports. Racing participants were 110 at Rnd # 1, 81 at Rnd # 2, and 121 at Rnd # 3, which shows us this more and more growing trend, and the passion riders have developed for this series. The destinations are scattered all over Greece, with one race in Xanthi, one in Steni, and one in Pelion. This geographic distribution made it easier for foreign athletes specially from Bulgaria (25 athletes), to participate in our races. Our 5 categories did actually have full participation. For 2015 we will also include one more category for Veterans 40+ as we can see more than 20 veterans competing against the younger riders. So it is about time to give same competitive race action to the more experienced category.

The race season of 2014 ends in a great way with the best of impression and a promise from the organising team for new locations for 2015. From three races for 2014, Enduro Mediterraneo is expanding to four enduro races all over Greece for 2015 and one Mini Enduro. Dates will be announced mid-November.
 We would like to thank our SUPPORTERS without whom this race series could not have been completed.

The Niner Ambassador Program Is Announced!

Niner  is  proud  to  announce  the  creation  of  a  new global program  in  support  of  our  most  passionate riders.  The  new Niner Ambassador  Program  is  for  people  who  want  to  get  involved  with  Niner  at  a higher  level,  who  want  to  share their  love  for  the  trail  with  riders  in  their  local  area  and  participate in  key  events  and  product  launches  throughout  the year.  

As an official ninerd

• You  will  belong  to  an  exclusive  group  of  less  than  100  riders,  worldwide.

• You  will  be  invited  to  participate  in key  Niner  product  development  conversations  and  product launches,  with  the  ability  to  ask  questions  and  gain  insight  from  our  engineers  and  product  managers.

• You  will  have  the  the  ability  to  purchase  a  complete  Niner  bike  at  special  Ambassador  price

• You  will  receive  an  exclusive  Niner  Ambassador  Kit  of  tee/baggies  or  jersey/bibs,  as  well  as  socks and  tee  shirts  at  the  start  of  the  program

• You  will  receive  quarterly  swag  packages  to  both  keep  for  yourself  and  distribute  to  riders  you know.

• You  will  be  eligible  for  partner  program  discounts,  as  will  your  friends  and  riding  crew.

• You  will  be  eligible  to  win  additional  Niner  trips  and  product  available  exclusively  to  Niner Ambassadors  via  points  earned  at  trail  work  days  with  IMBA  and  at  other  selected  events  and  on social  media.

What  do  we  ask  of  you?

• Be  a  great  representative of  Niner  on  the  trail  and  in  your  daily  life!  Ninerds  are  friendly,  ethical, and  fun  to  ride  with.

• Join  our  demo  crew  at  local  events help  us  get  to  know  the  trails,  introduce  us  to  your  crew  and  maybe  help  the  tired  demo  guy  load  the  van  at  the  end of  the  day  and  find  a  good  local  burger and  a  beer.

• If  you  are  the  social  media  type,  tag  us  in  your  Niner  related  posts  #ninerbikesambassador, #ninerbikes.  There  will  be  rewards  for  our  best  online  Niner  ambassadors,  too.

• Be  a  passionate  rider this isn't  a  racing  program!

How  do  you  apply  for  an  ambassador  position?

• Fill  out  the  application  at  www.ninerbikes.com/ambassador

• You  must  be  able  to  complete  the  application  online missing  information  will  eliminate  you from  consideration.  We  cannot  accept  physical/mailed  applications. We  will  make  our  final selection  in November,  with  the  first  swag  shipment  and  bike  purchase  opportunity  happening  
  in  January.  The  application  date  closes  on  11/15/2014.  Ambassadors  will  hold  their  position for 1 year.

FIND OUT MORE AT NINER BIKES

Transition GiddyUp Bikes Press Release

Before we get into the nuts and bolts of our new bikes we have to define what these
bikes are for. Everyone loves to attach a label to their bikes and put them into categories. Trail, all mountain, enduro, freeride, cross country, down country...  So why fight it? In our new lineup, every model is unique but they are all in the same category. These are mountain bikes designed for going...

The 2015 Transition lineup features four new models with different wheel sizes and distinctly different characteristics to suit a variety of riders, regions and trails.

• PATROL (27.5" Wheelsize, 155mm Rear Travel/160mm Front Travel)
• SUPPRESSOR (26" Wheelsize, 155mm Rear Travel/160mm Front Travel)
• SCOUT (27.5" Wheelsize, 125mm Rear Travel/140mm Front Travel)
• SMUGGLER (29" Wheelsize, 115mm Rear Travel/130mm Front Travel)

ABOUT GIDDYUP SUSPENSION

When we set out to design the new family of bikes, we wanted to improve our suspension pedaling and braking performance, but we didn't want to lose the neutral and comfortable feel that Transition Bikes are known for. No one at Transition wanted a suspension system that felt like it was locking out, or provided any "kick back" in the pedals. We also wanted to maintain the lively feel that makes a Transition fun and easy to ride. Our Giddy Up link is carefully tuned with just the right amount of chainstay growth at all points in the travel. The chainstay growth is highest near sag to keep you moving forward when you get on the gas. but it decreases deeper in the travel so you never feel the drivetrain fighting the suspension. Hop on a Giddy Up bike and you will feel at home immediately. Lively when you pedal, smooth in the rough stuff, and ready to boost off any kicker in the trail.
 
Our new models are designed to be active while climbing; increased compression damping or lockout settings are strictly optional with the Giddy Up link. With the shock open, the suspension remains free to smooth out the trail, improve traction and control without sacrificing efficiency. There is no need to think about flipping switches; you can start your ride with the shock open and leave it there. With Giddy Up you can focus on the trail, not your remotes, levers or knobs. Just grab your bike, Giddy Up and go. 

DESIGN AND FEATURES

Our design philosophy has always had a focus on clean and simple designs built to hold up to the most aggressive riders. With our new Giddy Up bikes we blended smooth frame lines with highly refined tube, dropout, and linkage shapes. The new models blend a long list of features into a refined package that meets our high standards for strength, performance, reliability and good looks.

FEATURES:

• Progressive Geometry - Long, Low and Slack
• Giddy Up Link Suspension
• Integrated Rubber Chainstay Protection
• Collet Style Main Pivot Hardware
• ISCG05 Chainguide Mounting On All Models
• Low Direct Mount Front Derailleur Support (Excluding Smuggler)
• Syntace X12 Rear 142mm Axle
• Post Mount Rear Brake Mount
• 31.6mm Seatpost Supports 150mm Reverb
• New Universal Transition Derailleur Hanger and Pivot Kit
• Full Size Water Bottle Fits Inside Front Triangle
• User Friendly 73mm Threaded Bottom Bracket
• Internal Cable Routing, Including Stealth Seatpost

The GiddyUp link is the newest suspension platform from Transition Bikes, and is now featured on 4 entirely new models in 3 wheel sizes. Each frame has a very distinctive riding characteristic to suit your style and give you the ultimate freedom whether going up or down mountains. The GiddyUp platform is extremely easy to dial in, once set there is no need to mess with platform adjustments, you can just focus on the ride and wherever it leads you. GiddyUp!

Smiles all around at the 2014 Biketember-Festival

Saalfelden Leogang, Salzburger Land, Austria, September 23^rd, 2014 – The debut of the Biketember Festival was a complete success with over 600 bikers attending this epic 2014 seasons end-off. Three great events were combined to create an exciting season finale for visitors and passionate mountain bikers in Saalfelden Leogang. Cheering spectators lined the tape down the “speedster” track for the final of the iXS European Downhill Cup and younger enthusiasts rocked the Scott Junior Trophy. The hometown crowd had many reasons to be proud as Austrians David Trummer (AUT – RRP Ghost) took the overall win in the SRAM Specialized Enduro Series with Manuel Gruber (AUT – Radon) in second.

 The Biketember-Festival kicked off on Friday evening with the all time favorite whip off contest. Soon after, on Saturday morning the downhill bikers took to the track for their seeding runs in the hope of scoring a place in the last European race of the year. 300 riders from 25 nations had made ​​their way to the finals of the iXS European Downhill Cup in Saalfelden Leogang. The finals were no walk in the park. Racers had to conquer the demanding „Speedster“ world cup course, which is 2,3km / 1.4 miles long with an altitude difference of 480m / 1575ft.

In the finals on Sunday, Zarja Cernilogar (CZE – GT Blackthorn) sealed the deal with a solid win in the elite women class. Her win in Bikepark Leogang resulted in her consecutive iXS European Downhill Cup overall victory. Alba Wunderlin (CH – Stüzrädli) and Alia Marcellini (IT – LeeCougan Dirty Factory) stood next to her on the podium in second and third.

In the elite men class one Austrian in particular showed great skill. At just 18 years of age, Andreas Kolb (Sports Nut DH Team) took 8^th place. This was his first top 10 result in the elite category. Despite the close competition, Johannes Fischbach (GER – RPR Ghost) remained unbeatable. Following swiftly behind in second and third place was Robin Wallner (SWE – Team W-Racing) and Philip Atwill (GBR – RPR Ghost).

The first time, the iXS European Downhill Cup race in Saalfelden Leogang was covered live and if you missed the action, you can still watch the webcast replay on www.ixsdownhillcup.com/en. The high success of coverage is good news. In 2015 the entire iXS European Downhill Cup will be broadcasted live.

Over 220 riders turned out for the second SRAM Enduro Series edition in Saalfelden Leogang. This final race of the series was the ultimate stomping ground. The 55km track featured everything from roots, rocks and technical steps to flowy freeride sections. Pro class winner Tobias Reiser (GER – Focus Trail Team) finished the course in 33:48.15 minutes. Daniel Schemmel (AUT – Do-Biker Bruck) ended up second followed by Markus Reiser (GER – Focus Trail Team) ranked third. Despite an 8^th place finish, the overall victory went to Fabian Scholz (GER – Focus Trail Team) here in Leogang.

The female pro class was dominated by Anneke Beerten from the Netherlands (NL – Specialized Racing), with 40:38.54 minutes, who took the overall win as well. In second and third were Birgit Baumann (AUT – Trek Gravity Girls) and Antje Kramer (GER – Giant Germany).

All information about the Specialized-SRAM Enduro Series can be found on www.enduroseries.net/en .

The third highlight, the Scott Junior Trophy was an event for children. Kids between 3 and 16 years of age could compete in different classes and were able to experience the thrills of racing first hand. They had to master distances between 250m / 820 ft. and 6km /3,7 miles around the Ritzensee. Aimed at promoting a friendly and fun competitive atmosphere, everyone was rewarded for their efforts and no one left empty handed.

Further information about the Scott Junior Trophy can be found on bike.saalfelden-leogang.com/en/events/2014/scott-junior-trophy.

At the end of an exciting weekend with amazing races and great side events, the Biketember festival put smiles on everyone’s faces. The event will return in 2015 on 18 – 20^th September. However, the season is not yet over. Bikepark Leogang will hold a special Fan Weekend on 3^rd-5^th October to bring the season to an end. More information can be found on: bike.saalfelden-leogang.com/de/events/2014/fan-weekend.

For more information please visit: www.biketember.com

Further information about the Bikepark Leogang is available on:

bike.saalfelden-leogang.com/de/bikeparkleogang/ or on facebook:

www.facebook.com/Leogang.Bikepark?fref=ts

Further information about the region Saalfelden Leogang is available on: www.saalfelden-leogang.com/en/