One week from now bikers will start dropping in to Xi Wu Qi Inner Mongolia for the 3 days MTB race that offers so much more than just a race. You will be able to ride Mongolian horses, watch wrestling shows, eat traditional Mongolian dishes… and enjoy spending time with other bikers, runners, and friends.
The marathon will take place on Monday, July 7th, the day after the last bike stage… signed up yet?
Visit www.nordicways.com for more info
Date: Saturday June 28, 2008
Route: This is a clockwise route. Start in Shidu town, just west of
the low bridge over the river. After 0.5km, take the junction to the
north, after 7.5km along the paved road, it is the entrance of our
1st gorge. The local paved the 7km at the entrance and then ahead up
the valley onto gravel. Follow the 14km gravel track over the
ridgeline, climbing from 200 to 850 m before dropping to 600m. At one
point the track suddenly narrows to a seductive small track that goes
straight ahead and peters out: the real route hairpins back on your
left across a river bad. Later on there are some huge switchbacks,
ENJOY!!! At some mountain village follow your nose out through the
village, the road after here is decrepit, and the path reduced to a
single track on top of the old abandoned road.
The guys over in Hangzhou have been out and about again. This time at Yu Yang Hill, Suzhou. It seems they’ve found what we have always wanted a DH track in their backyard! With any luck we’ll be able to visit Hangzhou sometime and see what the riding is really like.
We at CMTB have been up to some building over the past few rides. Last week we managed to build a nice jump at the top of the trail, and yesterday work started on a landing ramp and berm. It tool a lot of sweat and time (and its still not finished) but even with the top of the trail in its half completed state we have noticed an big speed increase through the first section. We’re going to carry on the building work and keep you posted on how we did things and what everything looks like.
If you can’t wait however you can check this great article out by Mr. Pollard from the UK. It has lots of great advice and links to photos. So get out and build something! (more…)
The Macmahone sword has always impressed us as a fine looking, lightweight and well handling hardtail. The geometry is set between race cross country and all mountain so great for getting your head down and riding up and not so scary when the going gets vertical! Just recently I was asked to find a frame for a single speed build that was light and had horizontal dropouts. I was so tempted to introduce the Sword, but didn’t as the dropouts were vertical.
More info as it comes.
Thanks to Jesse over at Marechal for sending me these pictures of the new Macmahone Pluriel downhill and freeride frames. The frames are still undergoing testing and finalizing of the new suspension design, which as always not only is amzingly well thought out but looks damn beautiful too!
Looking at the photos (below) the MacMahone Puriel will be available with an air or coil over shock. It seems the downhill version will use a lower standover height straight top tube where as the freeride model gets a bent top tube.
The Sun Riders are an ex-pat/Chinese bike club based in Hangzhou. Not much is known about them at the moment, but we’re hoping to get details and updates for when and where they ride soon. In the meantime you can sit back and watch this video of the Sun Riders in action!
Lidingoloppet China, 21st June
Only one week to go until the big Cross Country Running Festival Lidingolloppet China. The preparations are going well in the “small” city up north, Changchun with ‘only’ 7 million people. The tracks are being marked, the beer-tens are setting up, and the May-pole is under production. The event coincides with the Swedish summer tradition Midsummer, and we will therefore combine the event with the traditional Swedish Midsummer Festivities.
Genghis Khan MTB Adventure &Grassland Marathon, July 4-7th
The great MTB Adventure n the traces of Genghis Khan is also around the corner, less than one month to go! This is the second edition of this Inner Mongolia Adventure, however, this year also with a Marathon for all runners out there! The adventure involves 3 stages of MTB and one stage of running. It will go on for 4 days, but it is up to you to decide how many stages do you think you can manage! Amateurs or Elite … everyone is welcome!
After the race you will experience true Mongolian Culture with wrestling shows ans Mongolian horses, you may even stay one night in Mongolian Tents.
Vattenrundan China, August 29-31st
Coming up after the Olympics is another of the Swedish classics that will do its second appearance in China. The setting for the road bike race Vattenrundan China is Changbai Mountain, a dormant volcano famous for its volcanic lakes, thermal springs, and pine forests. As usual in our events; amateurs, elite, bike-fans and tourists are all welcome!
To see more details and to sign up visit www.nordicways.com
The past few weeks have seen some excellent ride conditions here in Qingdao. The weather has been warm and moist, but not humid. This has made for some eerie mist and nice grippy smooth hardpacked trails. Best of all due to the lack of rain and the sticky consistency of the trail dirt, we’ve had fun building up some small jumps to liven up our tried and trusted ride.
This week we’ll continue the work by building up a double we stared last week, and Ash christened in spectacular style, and also try to add a few berms and drops to the first downhill.
If your up for an early start and getting muddy in the eerie foggy forest drop us an email. andi@chinamtb.com.
