A Carbon Opportunity Not to Refuse

There are a lot of good bikes available these days, but there are some that have taken the game to the next level. I cannot imagine a bike that could take it to a higher level in the downhill market than Santa Cruz' soon to be available,(sometime before the year turns over) carbon V10. This past Thursday I had the privilege and pleasure of riding one in Whistler's famed bike park. I was very fortunately to have the opportunities that came that day.



Besides the World Cup racing Santa Cruz Sindicate, and I assume some individual test pilots, I must have been one of a handful of "normal people" to ride one of these unique bikes. After a busy and early morning, my friend Reuben and I arrived at Casa Santa Cruz to a garage full of carbon artwork, and various engineers and bike industry representatives. These people represented companies such as Cane Creek, The Hive (Chub hubs, ethirteen, Fifteen G), Edge composites, and of course Santa Cruz bicycles.



The test bikes were not just decked with the nicest and lightest parts money could buy, but also parts the you couldn't even buy yet. Edge provided prototype carbon DH rims, and carbon 30+ inch wide handlebar. No other brand produces a carbon bar that wide.



The Chub front hub, Edge rim combo made for an insanely stiff, and light wheel that tracked straight through even roughest loosest terrain, and inspired great confidence. The rear wheel sported a DT swiss 240s rear hub (now in 12x150mm) and an Edge DH rim. I could not imagine an other rim taking the pounding the I served up on these wheels! No flats either.



ethirteen was just purchased by The Hive, and out popped a brand new DH crank resembling The Hive's Fifteen.G xc cranks. The ethirteen cranks sport The Hive's proprietary modified polygon interface on a 30mm axle. This interface has been used in heavy machinery and tank transmit ions before being introduced to the bicycles. More info on this is available on The Hive website. Some smart cookies. Essentially it makes for light and stiff-ass cranks.



There were some "regular" parts on the bikes too like Thomson Masterpiece seat posts to keep the weight down.



My test bike was equipped with a Rock Shox Vivid air shock. It looks like a can of Guinness with knobs on it, its fat! If I were never to look down, I would have told you it was a coil shock. The shock was an other contributor to the mega-low weight of the 33.5 lb. carbon V10.



Being an air shock the Rock SHox Vivid air contributes to the adjustability of the carbon V10. When switching between 8.5" and 10" travel modes it only take a 15-20psi change in pressure to achieve the same sag. Combined with the 2011 Rock Shox Boxxer World Cup fork, and Cane Creek Adjuster-set, (a headset that allows for .5, 1, and 1.5 degree headangle adjustments) this bike can be set-up for any downhill riding conditions.



The Chub hub is spec'd on a lot of Santa Cruz bikes now, with either 15 or 20mm axle forks. I hope to see them on more bikes as they bring a fresh idea, and good concept to wheels. The Chub hub uses a carbon "torsion-tube" center to keep the hub light and stiff. Tall aluminum flanges make for shorter spokes, and more even spoke load distribution. Sound fancy?



The day wasn't only filled with oggling new and light parts, we were fortunate enough to get a shuttle up to the Garbonzo lift, which didn't open for two more days, so that we could get the photos we needed, in the right light... and of course put the V10 to the test on the rowdy Garbo terrain!



We found some sections that showed off the carbon V10's abilities, and beautiful frame and shot photos in a few of those sections from morning until early afternoon. Then we punched it the rest of the way down the hill, and ate lunch a Pasta Lupino to refuel for an afternoon of riding.



I had my cake (pudding in this situation), and ate it too. I got the ride the Carbon V10 in 10" mode in the morning, it was time to switch it up and see what the 8.5" setting had to offer.
I am quite familiar with the 10" setting as I've owned a V10 and know what to expected. The bike with take care of you when things get rough like the secret service. But, what about 8.5"? my current bike runs 8" of travel and seems very capable...
A quick little flip of the bolts while chatting to George from The Hive, and a nip of psi put the V10 in 8.5" mode ready to charge!



The bike still displayed the V10's uncanny ability to eat bumps like cookie monster demolishes chocolate chip cookies, but the 8.5" inch mode ramps up more in the travel and becomes more responsive when moving the bike off the ground. The bike also seemed to pedal like it was kicked with a sharper spur, I was very much enjoying this setting... niiiiice.



Unsure if carbon is strong enough for a downhill bike? Santa Cruz has got you covered. They have done they research, then researched that, applied experience and engineering knowledge, and wrapped it up in a sexy little package. Not to mention, look at how thick the carbon is!



These cross sectional photos show you where they beefed up the frame, and how clean the lay-up is. I trust Santa Cruz quality. They are a no BS, thinking it through compnay that is sure to do it right before offering it to the public. I have the utmost confidence in the carbon V10's strength and stiffness.



Its nice to see these cross sections, as the lay-up of a carbon frame, and how clean and tight it looks on the inside is like looking at the tube forming, and welding of an aluminum bike. Most carbon bikes look pretty on the outside, but that isn't that difficult with some a marvelous material, however they don't all look this good on the inside. Take it like some hot chick you see walking downtown. She may not be such a nice person even if you think you can put it past you for the way she looks. The Santa Cruz carbon bikes are looking for the lasting relationship...
It not easy to know how all bikes look on the inside, but Santa Cruz is at least willing to show you, they have nothing to hide.



Details. Santa Cruz always happen to put together a beautiful bike, but its the detail that add up to make it what it is. On the carbon V10 all alloy threads, and bits are molded into the frame in the lay-up process ensuring great strength and durabilitiy. This new version V10 4.0 is upgraded with a VPP2 opperating system, grease port pivots, angular contact bearings, collect system axles, maxle-lite rear axle, adjustable travel and angles, all adding up to a bike that puts a huge grin on your face every time you ride it. Santa Cruz has done their homework, and the bonus questions.




At the end of the day I found that I have a good conscience and was able to return the bike back to the garage amoungst its other prototype friends.
Some maybe choose to take a day at the spa, get covered in mud, and have coloured toe-nails in the end? My idea of pampering is getting covered in mud, rolling big rock faces, skipping accross slimy roots, and railing berms, on the most advanced DH not yet on the market, with some of the raddest parts to put it all together; taking wicked shots with one of the best Photographer's around, for free, riding with buddies, making new friends, sharing a laugh, then washing it all down with beer, Sake margheritas, and Sushi Village dining!

Check out the nsmb.com article for more details, and photos. I had a great time, thanks Santa Cruz!

-Scott

TransPortugal 2010 - Post Race Analysis - On your bucket list?

So here we are several weeks after the race and I am still trying to comprehend this event. I must say that in retrospect, this race was a really good time, and will result in some memories that will last a lifetime.



The race is very hard! The hours that you spend on the bike are probably unmatched in any of the amateur multi day races out there. After the first two days, I must admit that I was not sure that I would make it to the finish. I think that the Cape Epic that I attended was harder. The total time was about the same, but the riding was downright boring and the temperature was ridiculously hot. At least in this race, each day brought several different types of riding that made the hours go by faster.

The support by the organizing committee is fantastic. They treat you like family, and care for you likewise. Accommodations and food are unparalleled. Our accommodations were 3, 4 and 5 star hotels and the food in most of the locations was of similar quality.

The after races “snacks” prepared for us were instrumental in allowing us to recover for the next days ride.

Similarly, the fact that you can sleep in a real bed with a solid roof over your head, although not essential, allows for the recover needed to complete as race of this magnitude. In comparison to other races out there the value for money is exceptional. Expect that once you land in Portugal, that almost all your basic needs are covered by the organizers fee.

The scenery is in one word “spectacular”. There is no way that a regular tourist would ever see Portugal the way the participants in this race have seen it. The flowers, the history, the culture; it is really impossible to describe. Please take the time and scan Carlos Dias’s pictures to really see how impossibly beautiful Portugal is at this time of year.

Would I do it again? Not sure yet. 9 days is an awful long time to race a bike, and 174 km in one day on a mountain bike is really a bit ridiculous. That being said, if you have to do the above two, I cannot think of a better location to do it. The same organization Ciclonatur puts on a similar adventure in early June. The major difference between the two is that instead of traversing the distance in 9 days they do it in 14 days. This clearly cuts the daily bike time down although potentially the total time could be the same or longer. It is advertised as a tour, not a race, and in fact this is the original TransPortugal. The version (i.e. race) we participated in was created to fill a need for those participants who wanted to traverse the country faster.

Whatever your choice, I would certainly put down the traversing of Portugal in the spring as a must do. For those of you with bike “bucket” lists, out this one on it.

TransPortugal 2010 - Days 9 - Its all over!

Day 9, Monchique to Sagres – 99 km, 2028m elevation gain - Profile here

Last day!!! It literally poured rain last night. I was so tired, that after dinner I just went straight to bed and never heard a thing. The morning revealed that the hotel resides deep in a very wet valley and it will require some steep slick climbing to escape.

Mark, Josh, Paul and I all started together this morning and had a fun ride until it started to pour rain again. They stopped to put on jackets, and I decided to keep pedaling. I was cruising along talking to one of the other riders when out of the blue I hear “Rip Ram, get on this train!” A quick look over my shoulder and my conversation with Greg ended mid word as I accelerated onto a pace line including all of the boys. Turns out Mark et al decided to hide under a tree when the downpour came through, and as they started out again, Graham and Trevor came blasting through. They hopped on the train, and the next group up was Greg and I. The rest of this day was about as good a ride as you can have.

Graham, Trevor and I with the assistance of a few other riders eventually cracked most of the other riders on the train. The pace remained very high and I suppose predictably, Graham with the assistance the remaining riders then cracked Trevor and I, leaving the two of us on our own. We eventually reached the Atlantic coast and once again the scenery was spectacular.

As you are not allowed to ride your bike on the beach in Portugal, we had to walk our bikes, and this gave Trevor and I a chance to refuel for the last blast into Sagres. The headwinds off the Atlantic were pretty strong, but with the two of us alternating leads we made excellent time. The sun came out for good and both of us started feeling better and better.

Our pace steadily increased for the last 30 km; initially at about 70% effort and finally for the last 15 km or so riding totally flat out. We came upon a few unfortunate souls that were soloing against the head winds but on this day we were taking no prisoners. We would ride onto their wheels, rest shortly in their draft, then pick our spot and blast through leaving them gasping in our wake. Not very sociable, but we were on a mission to finish this race on the right note.

The last few km weaved through several towns along the coast and we certainly had to pay attention to out GPS’s not to make a wrong turn. Eventually we could see the finish on the beach ahead and sprinted through.

The organizers had a few tubs of cold beers on ice waiting, and Graham had two in his hand waiting for our parched lips. Beer has never tasted so good. Calindy was also waiting, having elected not to ride today after her skin issues of yesterday. The rest of the racers made their way in over the ensuing several hours.

The finish was right on the beach and more that a few cooled off in the Atlantic as a reward for a hard day’s effort.

Many pictures were taken; hugs and handshakes given and received. 9 days of intense riding were finished, but no one seemed to want to leave the finish area.

Eventually we had to depart the beach as our bikes needed to be packed for transport back to Lisbon in the am, and there was still a party to be attended later in the evening. Our finish hotel was amazing, located on a cliff above the local town protected harbor. What a view!

Awards were presented after dinner, and in this race everyone receives recognition. Our group of 7 did reasonably well with 3 finishes in the top 25 overall despite our various problems over the week. After awards, a large group of us retired to the bar to continue our reminiscing and to discuss our various plans for the next few days. For Calindy and I, we intend to relax on the Algarve coast for a few days and then to make a jump to Italy to watch the Giro d’Italia.

Once again thank you to Carlos Dias for some of the amazing pictures.

Final Results can be found here.

An amazing experience: TransPortugal 2010

TransPortugal 2010 - Days 7 and 8 - Heading for the beach!

Day 7, Evora to Albernoa – 107 km, 1269m elevation gain - Profile here

Once I finished last night, I went into survival mode trying to find some way to continue my race. Thankfully, the organizers were right with me. Turns out that earlier in the week, one of the other riders had toasted his front wheel. The organizers had purchased a wheel set to get him back in the race, and now the rear wheel was available. Even better, they were happy to rent it to me for the rest of the week.


Today we decided to rein it in a bit because after yesterdays long hours. We hear that tomorrow’s course is also very difficult with some significant elevation gain. The weather is also supposed to change for the worst with rain in the forecast.

Mark and I headed off, and after about 15 minutes, I asked about his family. For the next 3 hours we bantered back and forth about our respective families and their plans for the future. The day cruised by.

Our only mishap of the day was a pretty scary crash at about the midpoint of the day. I was out front punching into the wind with Mark on my wheel. I felt a bit of resistance to my forward momentum and actually had the time to think I had potentially ridden into some loose sand. I pushed even harder on my pedals, and that was when the piece of wire fencing that I had picked up on my pedal came up tight. Instantaneously, I was on the deck and with Mark right on my wheel, he didn’t stand a chance. His bike went right into mine, and his momentum carried him right over my head. He was immediately screaming and I was sure that he had broken something or dislocated a shoulder. I kept asking if he was OK, and in between the screams he would say yes. So, if you are OK, stop screaming. After a little bit of rearrangement we checked the bikes and they were OK too. Unbelievable luck with a crash like that.

Josh rode with the leaders today and paced them pretty well all the way to the finish. Great riding.

Calindy came in but was starting to have issues with her asthma. All those flowers equal large amounts of pollen. High pollen counts do not bode well for environmental asthma. Grahams butt end was slowly starting to heal but he said that it seemed like he spent most of the day standing up.

Our residence for the evening was a hotel associated with a winery. The accommodation and food associated with this event is in general fantastic. This particular hotel was literally in the middle of the fields and had a great pool and surrounding fountains. One almost thought they might be in Vegas.

Our 1900 evening retreat to the bar continues to be a big hit. Everyone gets caught up on the days happenings and really gets to know the other competitors. I think that one of my best memories of this trip will be of the stories told during this time.

Wine is always served with dinner, although perhaps not surprisingly very little is actually consumed. If you haven't already tried Portuguese wine, I can recommend it highly.

Day 8, Albernoa to Monchique – 137 km, 3162m elevation gain - Profile here

Today was another killer day. Our start took us through the vineyards of the winery that we stayed at last night. From there on, the day deterioriated.

The weather changed for the worst and by the time I finished I was pretty hypothermic. The last hour or so was spent at elevation in pouring rain riding against a fairly stiff headwind. It finished with a substantial fast paved downhill. Most of us were under dressed further compounding heat loss. It didn’t help that circumstance kept me out on the course as one of the last finishers, despite the fact that for the majority of the day I was near the front of the field.

The initial part of the day was spent riding with Mark. After our “rest” day yesterday we decided to ride hard. It took about 3 hours before the leaders made up their half hour deficit on us. Josh was right with the leaders and as he rode through, there was no conversation. It was obvious he had his race face on and we expected we would not see him again.

Unfortunately, shortly thereafter the rain started falling. While we were coming down a rough jeep road descent we came upon the worst crash of the race. Our female leader Lindsay Haak was on the ground after what was clearly a very nasty fall at speed. Surrounding her were the rest of the field that had passed us including Josh, about 10 in all. Lindsay was having a great race to that point. Although she only started 10 to 15 minutes ahead of me each day, I had not yet caught her on any of the 6 preceding days. Pretty inspiring riding!

When I arrived on scene, I did a quick assessment of her and the situation. Through the translation of her boyfriend (also racing), it was clear that she had had at least some loss of consciousness with the crash, and was amnestic about her fall. She was moving all of her limbs, and from a quick survey did not seem to have any major fractures or dislocations. She had significant facial abrasions from the fall but had no other major cuts. She was a little disoriented but knew her boyfriend was there. There is not a lot you can do in this type of situation. About the only thing to do is keep the patient warm and leave any mobilization to the professionals.

Although the crash location was potentially at the worst place possible from the point of view of access for vehicles, one of the Portuguese racers had managed to establish cell contact with the organizers and help was on the way. I always carry a reflective space blanket with me and we covered her as best as we could with everyone’s extra clothes and the blanket. There wasn’t much point in everyone milling around so I suggested that if you were not intimately involved with the situation that the rest of the group move on. We headed on, although we all agreed that since the race leader (our Portuguese translator) remained on the scene we would not race.

The rain had started to fall with some force and our group slowly became smaller as individuals stopped for food, or to put on extra clothes. Eventually Mark, Josh and I as well as two other riders ended up on the pointy end of the field. I lost Mark and Josh on a particularly steep uphill, and this produced enough of a gap to save the two of them a significant amount of nasty riding. The two remaining riders and I went through CP 3 heading for most of the elevation gain on the day. In the time it took for Mark and Josh to reach CP 3, the organizers had decided to neutralize the day and get all the riders to the finish as fast as possible. They were stretched pretty thin trying to extricate Lindsay from her crash site. With the temperature plummeting and rain falling they felt that it was better to pack it in now, then end up with potentially 20 more rescues.

At CP 3 the organizers started directing all the riders onto a paved route to the finish town of Monchique. Mark and Josh were the first to head for home. I on the other hand was still on the original course with two other racers heading up a major climb. Bad luck does come in three’s, and shortly after CP 3 I had the third crash in three days. This time I was riding along, crossing and re-crossing a creek bed. The surface was that hard loamy dirt that when wet becomes super slick and as I attempted to ride the hump between two large potholes filled with water, my front wheel slipped into the left one, as my body crashed into the right. Covered in mud and water, when I got up I found that I had bent my chain, bent the drop out and snapped the right shift lever right off the shift pod. Shivering, I fixed the chain, but it was clear that I would have only three gears for the rest of the day; three chain rings and the middle cog. The other two riders passed me during these repairs and shortly after I resumed riding I reached a paved road. The organization was there and told me that the race had been neutralized and directed me down the road toward Monchique.

I was by myself, and really had no idea where I was going. My GPS was of limited use as I was now off course. I plugged along in the pouring rain with my limited gearing; slowly making my way up a paved climb toward what I hoped was the finish town. The organizer who had directed me down the road said it was about 20 km to the finish. Those next 20 km were some of the nastiest km I have ever ridden. When I reached the top of the climb the road followed along the ridge line directly into a blistering head wind. I just couldn’t find a gear that seemed right, and I am sure I was becoming increasingly hypothermic. I was literally counting down the km to 20.

When I finally did reach the 20 km mark, the organizers were there and told me I had a further 12 km more to the finish. I must admit, I had a meltdown! How I found my way to the finish hotel is beyond me. I couldn’t think straight and I am sure that I freaked out a few drivers in Monchique as I made my way through the town. Thankfully as I neared the finish hotel, a few other riders appeared and it became clearer where I was going. As it turned out, because I was the farthest person out on the course, and therefore I had the farthest to ride back to town. The rest of the boys were showered, warmed up, and dressed by the time I made it in.

The bike was a mess, and it again spent the night being repaired. I spent about 45 minutes in a steaming shower before I could again feel my toes. I then retired to the local grotto bar, and had a few beers to massage my beat up ego and hear all the other stories of the day.

Lindsay was transported to a local hospital and then to Lisbon where a CT revealed no major injuries other than a severe concussion. Calindy pulled out at CP 1 after finding that she was breaking out in a rash whenever a plant touched her exposed skin. She took a few pictures and she was literally covered in a raised rash on her exposed skin.

Mark and Josh cruised in to the finish and were one of the earliest to hit the showers. The rest of the boys were not to far behind. Quite an eventful day all in all.

Once again thank you to Carlos Dias for some of the great pictures!