Foel Boxing Day Jam

It's Christmas time... And that means eating, drinkin, being merry and OF COURSE a spot of club racing at Foel Gasnach. We were all up yesterday for the 3rd ever Boxing Day race, with timed runs down Track3 and spot of BBQ to finish off.



Josh took the fastest time of the day, winning the 'Best' cat and a selection box and some Labrini for his troubles(no cheap Champers in Co-op)... Not sure the guys name who won the 'Rest' cat!



Was a great day out as ever with loads of new faces and loads of new young uns getting involved which was great. Was also good to finaly get to ride some of the new trail features... Including a new drop - rock garden - drop combo on track 3 that had me off a few times!

Massive thanks to everyone at the FoelDHRiders for making it happen, especially Justin and Lucy for the 'timing' and Lisa for the munch. Cheers folks!



Llandegla tomorrow to finish off the Festive North Wales riding before i'm back down to the South West.

Happy Christmas everyone!

Merry Christmas!

Your probably far too drunk or wrapped up in watching your Chrimbo DVD's but MERRY CHRISTMAS from all at Wideopenmag!

Here's hoping Santa brought you all the goodies you were after!

Leamington 4x Open Series Dates...

Just in case you missed it... The Leamington 4x Open Series will run:

20th January
10th February
24th February

All at the top notch track at Campion Hill, Leamington Spa.

Get your entry forms at http://www.leamington4x.co.uk

Stephen Murray Benefit Gig!

There's going to be a Stephen Murray benefit gig at the Marrs Bar, Worcester on the 29th December.

There will be a 2 band line up consisting of Chris Aliano & Dry Ice.

Chris was until recently a solo artist who has had a really good year playing at festivals around the country and also over in spain at the Benicassim festival. This will be the one of the first shows from Chris with his band. It promisis to be a must see for fans of his music giving it new found depth and a more electric vibe. www.myspace.com/chrisaliano

The Second band are The Voices, The Voices are a rock n roll band from the Midlands. They write all sorts of tunes, from in-your-face ‘pop gems’ to ‘haunting’ slow movers. Last year they played the summer in Brum, from the Sunflower lounge to the Barfly. They were there from the beginning of Mob Monday at the Roadhouse and received electric shocks for their troubles. www.myspace.com/thevoicesuk

All proceeds from the event will be going to the Stephen Murray Family fund. Stephen was a professional BMX rider and sustained career ending injuries and the foundation has be set up to help provide for him and his family.

From information on Stephens condition please go to www.myspace.com/murraystrong

£5.00 on the door - don't forget your ID!

Wideopen #5 is GO GO GO!

Download on the left and keep Hanz happy!

Issue 5 update

For all those web-watchers out there you'll be pleased to here Issue 5 is still on track for it's release next Monday!

Bumper issue with tons of interviews, race series wrap ups, roadtrips and some new sections we hope you'll like.

Issue 6 takes us to March 2008 so if you've any winter trips, articles, photos or ideas then drop us a line (email addresses in the mag - or via the contact bit on the site).

Happy Christmas!

Vote NOW for UK Cycling - 0870 24 24 602

Do you want to help cycling in the UK??


Call: 0870 24 24 602 and vote to make it happen.

If they win £50 million will go to making new walking and cycling routes all over the UK. It's a great cause so please take 30 seconds to get on board!

Uh Oh... Almost Christmas again.....

Not long to go now and the distributors are starting on the Festive promotions... Here's some ideas from Silver-Fish that just landed in my inbox... Apparently there's loads more stuff on the site to check out.

Not sure why but beer seems to taste MUCH better out of a pint glass with your favourite mtb company on the side!

Rocky Mountain Genuine Zippo Lighter £35.95
E.thirteen pint glass - £13.95
Evil Bikes pint glass - £13.95
RaceFace Travel mug - £19.95
RM Bar end plugs - £3.95 per pair
RM Tribal mug - £7.95
RM Maple Beanie hat - £19.95
RM Crank Bros Multi Tool - £19.95
SockGuy Socks - from £8.95
RaceFace Waterbottle - £7.95

Cam Zink On Felt In '08

We're all flat out here getting the mag together so the website hasn't been getting much attention lately... Here's some news that's just landed in my inbox from 23degrees-sports.com.

Felt Bicycles is pleased to announce pro mountain bike rider Cameron Zink (USA) is the newest member of the 2008 Felt team.

A highly accomplished gravity rider and competitor, Cam is perhaps best known for slopestyle and freeriding ability. His past accomplishments include a US National Championship, a member of the US National Team and a 1st place finish at the 2006 Crankworx Slopestyle event in Whistler, BC, Canada.

"I am super-excited to be heading to Felt. Their products and reputation are absolutely first-rate", says Cam. "After speaking with their design and engineering group, it is very clear to me they really know what they are doing and are into continually developing their bikes and ideas with direct rider input. Look at what they have done in other areas of the sport. The whole thing is a bit of a dream come true."

Felt USA Marketing Director, Doug Martin says, "Cam is an excellent fit for us and I am sure will be a tremendous ambassador and source of ongoing feedback. He is young, talented and understands what it takes to be a pro – a winning recipe. Between him, our award-winning Equilink™ suspension bikes, and what will be more upcoming athlete announcements, we feel like our fat tire program is right on track."

All media from http://www.camzink.com/

Issue 5 anyone...?

Evening all - just a quick update with some news on Wideopen Issue 5....

We're working pretty hard here to get our stuff finished and ready for Producer James to layout. If we keep it up and get our fingers out our arses it should hit the virtual news stands ready for Christmas.It's always a bit manic in the run up to a new issue. It usually ends up with James shouting at us to get content over to him yesterday and me an Scott going mad to get everything checked/edit and ready to go! Consumate proffesionals for sure...

Scott just buzzed me over a big name interview that he's bagged and also a pretty rad 'Flashgun' photographer interview... Both should look pretty good indeed when you see the finished articles. You'll have to wait and see who they are though! I've been firing stuff out like a mad man to trying get my various articles finished...


Last night was spent down at Motion getting some snaps for Colum Walshe's interview. He's rides BMX for Two&8, Nke 6.0 and Profile and has been promising us some stuff since issue 1! Luckily, it looks set to go and Ollie Ward was on the case with the images.

Back to work anyway....

£50million for UK cycling? VOTE NOW!

Would you like to help improve conditions for cyclists in the UK?

How about £50 MILLION for new routes all over the UK?



Sustrans' Connect2 project is competing to make it happen and need YOUR vote.

Visit the website, register and then vote Sustrans Connect2 to make it happen.

It takes 5 minutes and it's a bloody good cause so please get involved!
Click here to get it on.

Wideopenmag - What do YOU want on the website?

What do you want to see on Wideopenmag.co.uk??

Producer James is working on a new version of the site and wants to hear your ideas...

Do you want to see more videos?
Less press releases?
More mini-articles?
Less pictures of Scott's bike/more pictures of Scott riding?!

Let us know on the facebook group HERE

Gregs on the Syndicate!

Hot off the press from Martin at 23Degrees... Greg Minaar has just signed on to the pro as you like Santa Cruz Syndicate... Not a bad gig following the Honda deal!

Here's the press release from Martin:

"In arguably the most anticipated signing for the 2008 Mountain Bike race season, 26 year old former World Champion and 2 time World Cup Champion Greg Minnaar (RSA) has today announced he has signed with the Santa Cruz Syndicate for the next 2 years.

After four years of racing for Team G Cross Honda, Minnaar has decided to race the Santa Cruz V10 next year, alongside fellow World Cup race legends Steve Peat and Nathan Rennie. Honda announced the end of its G Cross program last month.

Much speculation has been brewing over the past 5 weeks as to where Greg would race next, but for the South African, the decision was logical: -

"The most important factor for me in choosing a team I race for is the level of support, and the ability to race at my best. It's clear that the Syndicate is driven by people who love to race. To have a race winning bike beneath me as well as team mates that will continue to push me, makes me very excited about the upcoming season. We are going to be a pretty tough team to beat!"

Many of Greg's co-sponsors have been awaiting the announcement of his next team ride and will be confirmed in the coming weeks. However, Greg wanted to pay special tribute to his former major sponsor, Honda: -


"Racing for Team G Cross Honda for the past 4 years was an amazing experience. I had more wins and World Cup podiums on that bike than any other, and the support and friendliness of the whole team made for a very sad day when the announcement came down that it was ending. In this game though, you hope that there is always a new and exciting chapter around the corner, and I'm sure that the Syndicate is going to be an awesome experience for me."

Greg Chats with Peaty at the Lisbon Downtown

Owner of Santa Cruz Bicycles and founder of the Syndicate, Rob Roskopp says about Greg: -

"The Syndicate, and our approach to it, engenders massive passion for racing and we have built the Syndicate chemistry with a cultivation of athletes that embody a similar appreciation of the family we have built. We believe that Greg will fit into the "family" wonderfully, even though he will be leaving an equally wonderful family behind.

Clearly...Greg has immense passion for his craft, which is evident in his demeanour and race results throughout the many years he has been racing. We strive to support each athlete as an individual under the umbrella of the Syndicate, in order that they may express their individuality in a manner that they feel most happy and have their personal integrity expressed through their sport. We are delighted to have Greg on the Syndicate."

Martin Whiteley of 23 Degrees Sports Management welcomes the news: -

"Our primary focus with our clients is to find them a home that really suits their character and allows them further growth in their racing. Greg has expressed to us several times that he would like to eventually race for the Syndicate so when this opportunity arose, it seemed logical. This team will become an amazing force on the circuit, with Greg, Peaty, Nathan and Josh. It's all very reminiscent of the Sunn Team days where they had several riders who could climb aboard the top box any given weekend. We wish Greg well in his new team."

Greg's first event appearance for the Syndicate will be the Sea Otter Classic, next April."

Earthed 5 Premiere - THIS THURSDAY!

Word in from Jon Vincent at Dirt/Moto - Earthed 5 premiere this Thursday again in Birmingham!! As always THE mountainbike video premiere of the year. Check for writeup here soon.

New Peaty Grips from Lizard Skin

Check out these jazzy new Peaty signature grips from Lizard skin...



The blurb says: "The Peaty grip has a small diameter for a more direct feel. It features a soft compound chocolate block pattern for increased grip and it has “Peaty” inscribed on it, for increased cool.

The Peaty grip comes in two colours to match your bike.

Graphite grey with red anodized Lock-On collars or, for the full patriotic effect, bright white with contrasting red and blue collars.

Colours: Graphite w/ 4 Red Lock-On CollarsWhite w/ 2 Red and 2 Blue Lock-On Collars

• Suggested Retail Price - £14.99 (Incl. VAT) "

You'll be able to get hold of them through your local bike shop, distributed by http://www.2pure.co.uk/

BIG mountain riding in the UK

Just got these shots from Aidan and Tim showing off how good the riding is oop north in the Lakes. Proof enough that you can find BIG downhill in the UK if your willing to do a bit of pushing.

I'll be harassing Aidan for the full story for issue#5...

2008 Alpine Bikes Winter Downhill Series - Innerleithen

Photo of Rhubarb Cunningham at Innerleithen Please credit photo to: Jon-e Beckett of Descent-World

Bryan Shedden on SPS Events: "The Alpine Bikes Winter Series will be managed by Steve Parr and Si Paton of SPS Events, the team that have turned around the NPS Series in 2007. Working with the SPS Events Team guarantees a successful race series that will be enjoyed by the riders and spectators alike."

Si says: "This is fantastic news for all the racers out there as having Alpine Bikes onboard as the main sponsor means we can run a race series for the riders and spectators in Scotland!Alpine Bikes are Scotland’s largest independent cycle retailer and offer exceptional quality and value from the best bicycle brands including IronHorse, Trek, Gary Fisher, Lemond, Santa Cruz, Cannondale and Ridgeback. "

Confirmed 2008 dates:
January 26th & 27th
February 23rd & 24th
March 22nd & 23rd

Proposed schedule
Saturday - Practise all day
Sunday a.m - Practise
Sunday p.m - One Race Run

Entry forms will be available from any of the eight Alpine Bike Stores throughout Scotland from December 1st 2007.

Full details of the events will be posted on www.NPSDH.com.

Alpine Bikes is now in its 18th year with the following eight stores..
Aberdeen 1989
Glasgow (Gt Western Rd) 1995
Edinburgh 1997
Glasgow - Outdoor Experience 2000
Stirling 2002
Inverness - Outdoor Experience 2007
Aberdeen - Transition Extreme 2007
Innerleithen - 2007

Please checkout: Alpinebikes.com

Edinburgh Fat Face Night Race Vid online

From Chris at NPS4x.com...

The film from the Fat Face Night Ride in Edinburgh is now on line.

To everyone that raced and everyone else that came out to watch during the day and night, we would like to thank you all for making the event a major success.

Until next time... Cheers Chris.

Brought to you by all these wonderful companies:
Fat Face The Bike Chain MBUK MTB Direct Sealskinz Tyres Madison Knightride rKona Chainreactions Cycles SixSixSixOne FUNN

I've got new stuff too :)

Here ya go folks, it seems Jamie and myself have been spending pre crimbo cash on ourselves!..my new Cove Sanchez set up is all done.
New 2008 DJ1s, 2008 Avid Juicy 5s, new FSA dh pig pro headset, new Deity stem and a new headset spacer from halfords (!) cos the stack height is different with the Deity...LOL!

Looks mint, added some FO/WO badging, and had a play round the street. The forks are supa stiffffff, and i'll set 'em up proper tomorrow at GT FR park, on the jumps and all, piiiiiiiiiiiiiing. Brakes feel much better, need to bed 'em in, but def a nice upgrade in parts for her. Might be getting a custom FO/WO paint job for crimbo....we'll see!
Piece of pi$$ to fit it all, so I'm off to ride it tomorrow, woohoo :)

New Toys!

My new BMX arrived this morning so i've been like a 10 year old at Christmas all day!

It's a Haro Forum Pro Lite and looks pretty dialled with loads of Odyssey parts, pivotal seat and post, internal headset, mid BB, Alienation wheel set and BIG bars. Best of all it's nice and lite which is gonna be great for riding street. Looking forward to giving it a good pasting around the Bristol this weekend!

Just wanted to share it with you all!

Issue 4 Competition Winner!

This months competition winner is Rob Templeton. He'll soon be the proud owner of a long sleeve Pump Urban Wear shirt. Well done mate!

We're pretty pleased that we've managed to run a competition every issue so far... We're gonna stick at it at keep hooking you folks up wherever we can. I guess it's our way of saying thanks for downloading the mag!

Stayed tuned to the mag and the Facebook group for more chances to win FREE STUFF!

Big thanks once again to Rick at Pump Urban Wear for providing the prizes.

Minnaar News...

Some good news from Martin at 23 Degrees about Greg...


Pic from http://www.gregminnaar.com

After a season plagued by constant shoulder dislocations and complicated further by a broken scapula at the World Championships in Scotland, Greg Minnaar went under the knife today to rectify his problematic left shoulder.

Dr Mark Ferguson from the South African Sports Clinic declared after the operation that he is very confident with the results. What was supposed to be a routine 1h 30min operation to repair cartilage damage and carry out the re-attachment of tendons in the front of the shoulder, turned out to be an operation of more than two and half hours. The damage caused by Minnaar's crash at Fort William had rendered the rear cartilage of the shoulder so badly damaged that it too had to be repaired and a tendon was re-attached using four screws.

Following the operation a rather subdued Greg commented: "Although right now there is a lot of pain and discomfort, my main focus is to get home and start a full and speedy recovery."
The recovery period is estimated to be between 8 to 10 weeks.

The day before his surgery Greg took part in a televised celebrity car race, and blew away the opposition.

The WesBank Celebrity Blacklist Car race series, launched this year, allows national celebrities the chance to feel what it's like to get strapped into a full spec 2.0 litre VW Polo race car and push their driving abilities to the limit and race against the clock. 30 celebrities were all put through the same format and only the top four were chosen for the final show down that was televised yesterday in cool windy conditions near Johannesburg.

On the 12th of August this year, at his qualifying session, Greg almost broke the lap record that had been unbeatable and set by Radio DJ and South Africa's Formula 1 expert commentator, Sasha Martinengo. Sasha set a scorcher of a lap at 1.29.34 and Minnaar set a time of 1.29.40, leaving both almost two seconds clear of any of their rivals.

Greg commented: "Losing by six 100th's of a second in the car, is no different to losing in a downhill race where the times are just as close and the slightest error can cost you a win."

Yesterday saw the final showdown at Wesbank Raceway of the four top celebrities and Greg was crowned the first ever champion with a scorcher of a lap, nearly 3 seconds quicker than 2nd place. Greg said: "It was an awesome experience to drive a race car like that, and with a single lap to count, it made it just as nerve wracking as racing a downhill event".

Visit Greg's website here

TF Tuned update

Just a quick update from TF Towers...

The latest parts from PUSH Industries have landed in the UK - we can now PUSH-tune Marzocchi Roco shocks, as well as Fox Forx and Shox.

Two Roco tunes are available:

The basic Factory tune includes our TF Tuned service, plus PUSH internals to suit your weight, riding style and frame, and costs £115.
The full-on Race tune includes the TF Tuned service and the PUSH Factory tune, plus a custom-tuned valve for improved high-speed compression performance... it's the ultimate tweak for your Roco, and costs £140.

For more information on the Roco tune, there's

some info on our website, or feel free to give us a ring.

We're also indulging in a small Autumn clear-out. We've reduced the price on PUSH rocker kits for Turner 5-Spots to £85 - so if you were thinking of upgrading your travel, now's the time. We're also about to start our first-ever eBay sale, selling off some spare parts (older fork lowers, Maverick bits and the like), so if you've got a project on the go then keep an eye out for us - the user name is TFTunedShox and we hope to have the first batch of stuff up by the end of this week. No auctions will be ended early.

We're also hard at work on a new-look website which we hope will be live by December.
That's all for now...

All the best,

CarolineTF Tuned Shox

http://www.tftuned.com/

tel: 01373 826800

Perv comp at PumpUrbanWear.co.uk

Rick at Pump just got in touch to say they've got a BMX up for grabs...

Log on to pumpurbanwear.co.uk and answer the question for a chance to win.

THE news from Elbry...

More hot news from wideopen regular Elbry:
"Hi guys, Elbry here dropping you some pics of some cool new products from
one of my sponsors; THE.

First off THE have added some cool new gloves to its range which are pro style, thin and durable and in must have white!

Now this is what you call a hood! backcountry freeriders will love...One lid was a big hit last year, now it comes in composite as well as the top end carbon and some of the best styling in the helmet world! Eric Carter gets his own sig lid! for the racer guys..




The much talked about all mtn/freeride open face the f-14 will also hit the UK
shores in 2008.

Lastly, the saddle range has grown with the mtn-x and mtn-x junior being the standout product for dh,4x or freeride.


Until next time..!
Elbry

RiderRunCompany meets Rip.tv

Watch out. Hot of the press news from wideopen regular Elbry:
"Rip Media Group www.rip.tv have teamed up with www.riderruncompany.co.uk, UK importers/distributers of MDE bikes and Sikspak, Rogue and Vandal clothing. RRC will have RIP.TV as a sponsor of its team in 2008, with the team again headed up by Elbry Sandland himself. Look for RRC to help promo Rip.tv here in the UK and Rip to feature more UK riders in the future."

Great news I say. I often watch Rip, but often feel its a bit too American, so to see more UK riding hitting my comp screen is no bad thing. Watch this space...

WIN A T-SHIRT!

We've got one very last Pump tshirt to give away to a lucky reader...

Log on to the Facebook group and message us in the competition thread to enter.

OR for non-facebookers email Jamie AT wideopenmag DOT co DOT uk.

Issue 4

Folks, if you subscribe you'll have the e-mail, so I wont post it all on here.

But get to the lastest issue page and get downloading. Get reading, it'll take a while...Enjoy.

Downtown race in Penarth, near Cardiff!

This weekend is the Downtown race in Penarth, near Cardiff... product of evil genius Dave 'Chopper' Harris.

The great news is it's gonna be streaming live online for anyone who can make it over.... Take a look at the following from 10am on Sunday:

http://streamingportal.multistream.co.uk/downtownrace/webstream.html

It is also being filmed for BBC' Wales for a show in 2 weeks....

The UK race scene f*ckin rules.

Bicycle Film Festival London 17-21 October

The Bicycle Film Festival kicked off today in London after stops in NY, LA, Paris, Chicago, Toronto, Portland, Minneapolis, San Francisco and Vienna. It's on till the 21st and screening some great films including 'Klunkerz' and Santa Cruz bikes 'I Just Work Here'.

Festvial Director Brendt Barbur says...:

"The Bicycle Film Festival celebrates the bicycle. We are into all styles of bikes and biking. If you can name it-Tall Bike Jousting, Track Bikes, BMX, Alleycats, Critical Mass, Bike Polo, Cycling to Recumbents- we've probably either ridden or screened it. What better way to celebrate these lifestyles than through art, film, music and performance? We bring together all aspects of bicycling together to advocate its ability to transport us in many ways. Ultimately the Fest is about having a good time.

We have been fortunate enough to include works of established artists such as Jorgen Leth, Mike Mills, Jonas Mekas, Blonde Redhead, Swoon and Michel Gondry among others as part of our programming. Many of the artists who have participated in the Bike Film Fest such as Nick Golebiewski, the Neistat Brothers and Lucas Brunelle are gaining more and more re-cognition for their work. Sign up for the email list or just come out and enjoy our 7th Annual Bicycle Film Festival."

Check out their website here

Cycle 2007- Earls Court LDN

Just settling back into normality after 3 days at 'Cycle' in London - a massive orgy of bikes and clobber. I spent Friday mooching round with camera and press-pass then Saturday and Sunday touting on a stand to the masses.

Was a bloody good but bloody tiring weekend and i'm now thoroughly overdosed on bike parts. Not looking forward to trying to make sense of a mountain of photos and business cards for a proper write-up!

Sadly there wasn't too much new or exciting stuff but after a bit of a dig around a few gems popped out. I'll go in to 'em in more detail in WO5 and pop some photos up on Facebook but a few highlights were.... Hope's CNC'd and Carbon 24" kids bike, pink calipers and flowery disks. SE's 24 year old race bike (NEVER ridden!). The Intense M6 and SS. Charge's top notch stand, seeing Hans 'NO WAY' Ray... Loads of stuff actually.

Two companies that really stood out were Diamondback and Riding High UK, both of which seemed genuinely interested to chat about their bikes and really happy to be at the show. Diamondback team rider Lex was zipping about all weekend with his new signature street bike and product manager Mike was keeping a VERY close eye on the Sabbath gear-box bike.

Over at Riding High the guys were showing off loads of tarty Spank product, Bergamont (including another Gear-box ride) and some rare as white dog shit Canfields. Again, they were really keen and had a couple of their team riders on hand to talk about actually riding bikes rather than just selling them.

All good stuff anyway. I'll post again when my gig of images are online. If you fancy a look at something a bit more in-depth check out Jim's repo at http://www.ftmb.net/