Big Mountain Riding

Ride and race local! Here are three fun June events in Virginia. All three events have a festival-feel and boast endurance categories for the big mountain riders. Take your pick, or ride all three!

THE SHOOTOUT ON ANGLER’S RIDGE – DANVILLE, VA

The 3rd Annual Shootout on Anglers Ridge is a USA Cycling-sanctioned mountain bike race that brings two state series together on the same day. On Sunday June 13th, the Southern Classic Series of North Carolina and the Virginia Off-Road Series will race at Anglers Ridge.

Checkered Pig BBQ and Ribs will be providing post-race grub to all racers and volunteers.

With over $8,000.00 in cash and prizes, this year’s event will be a great one.

Cash payout goes 5-deep to all PRO, Expert and XCAT categories … Men and Women.

Prizes go 5-deep to ALL Sport and Beginner Category/Class combos too.

Click here for race info.

FAT TIRE FRENZY – BEDFORD, VA

The 7th annual Fat Tire  Frenzy and Bike Festival is the weekend of June 18th & 19th at Falling Creek Park in Bedford, Va.  The 2010 race is now part of the Virginia Off Road Series.  By teaming with VORS the Fat Tire Frenzy will be able to offer a more competitive race by drawing racers not only from the area but from throughout Virginia and even beyond.   Please visit the VORS site for additional information about the series.

The 2010 event promises to be the best yet with FREE on site semi-primitive camping  available (and encouraged), a kids (10 & under) mountain bike race, a “bunny hop” competition,  a track stand-off and a mountain bike swap meet!  There is a movie planned for Friday night(Race Across The Sky-private showing for Festival attendees and campers only) along with a ride of the race course, and West Wind will be playing down home southern rock and country music for your entertainment Saturday evening.  Of course, the main attraction will be the cross-country race and NEW for 2010 Mountain Junkies FAT 5 ENDURO race held on Saturday.

Click here for race details RACE COURSE

MASSANUTTEN HOO-HA- HARRISONBURG, VA

The 22nd Hoo-ha! on June 19th & 20th will host the inaugural US Cup Triple Crown pro finals, awarding a #1 plate to the top US pro men and women. This is now the coolest pro race mountain bike series ever–Super D, Short Track, and XC at all 3 to determine the best mountain biker, period. And Massanutten’s the finale!

Click here for race details.

©2010 Big Mountain Riding

Review and Photos: Randy King

The Remedy eggs you to take the rough route home

Cruising Moab’s main drag for the first time, my brother and I dug all the signs of this vibrant culture we had joined: the Moab Cyclery safari truck with mounts for 20 bikes, the Gonzo Inn, the Poison Spider Bikes mural. One of our favorites was a campground that boasted: Fun Pigs stay at Slickrock. The Trek Remedy 8 is made for those self-same fun pigs. It is a bike that eggs on its rider and will feed your porcine speed-needs until you find yourself hours later, still pushing personal limits and stuttering gibberish like that laughable Looney Tunes porker.

It takes craft to make something that rides like such cheap fun, and this is a well-made all-mountain rig. Trek redesigned the Remedy with matched 150MM (6″) of quality Fox travel front and back, and it rips along the trail. Although it seemed a bit portly on the climbs, I rode a Large frame (not the XL that Trek recommends for my height), and the Remedy is spec’d with a wide, low-rise bar. I think a bit more of a rise on the bars and the correct size frame would make the bike climb better for me. As it was, I felt too low for really efficient climbing – especially in my knees and hands.  The suspension and geometry did not seem to be the culprits in this climbing conundrum.

Yet who are we kidding here, with all this talk about climbing? A bike like this pays its way at high speeds and on the descents. Know that aboard the Remedy you will not have to walk up too many hills, and when you get to the top, you can expect a stable, velvety ride during the gravity-fed madness that awaits.

The Fox Float RP-2 with DRCV shines on the Remedy

Riding the Remedy at Bedford Co’s Falling Creek Park, I instinctively veered toward the rough lines, and flowed over natural obstacles instead of following the path more traveled that swung around them. Indeed, the bike and I both wanted more challenges, although I did not test the Remedy on any drops higher than a couple of feet.

In Big Mountain Riding Review #6, I highlighted Trek’s proprietary Fox Float’s with DRCV. The extra-volume shock shines on the Remedy 8 too, making the back-end feel bottomless during aggressive trail riding over roots, rocks and features. Although I did not drop it off anything of size, the bike’s suspension, solidness and geometry feel like it would handle easily drops of 3-5 feet (0.9 -1.5 M). That’s more than enough for me – as drops above 3-feet make me grow increasingly attached to my front teeth (and to keeping them intact).

Other spec highlights that shone on the $3,700 Remedy 8:
Fox 32 Talas RL fork

Avid Elixir R Carbon disc brakes with 203 MM rotors

The Remedy 8 wears its brawn well, tipping the scales at under 30 pounds (13.6 KG) and rumor has it that a few upgrades can trim off a couple more pounds without removing muscle. Today’s efficient suspension and light weight materials enable all-mountain riding, and when pulled together in bikes like this, they inspire fun pigs everywhere to point their front wheel toward the big mountains and ride a little farther. Go for it; nobody would understand your gibberish back in civilization anyway, Porky.

© Big Mountain Riding

Fun Pigs will find much to like in the Remedy's smooth travel and light weight