Brent clears the yard gap with style and grace.
I remember when all it took to have a sick session was a 6′ piece of 3/4″ plywood and 3 car tires, 2 stacked on top of each other and one about 3′ back to act as a spring. You can get some serious pop but the flat landings always sucked.
I found this pic on PinkBike.com, these guys at least built a landing ramp…

Two-Day Mountain Bike Festival in Santa Cruz Brings Professional Female Mountain Bike Riders Including Lisa Myklak, Emily Johnston, Tammy Donahugh and Kathy Pruitt

MBOSC presents the first Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival from February 27-28, 2010Featuring the California premier of Awesome Land: Women of Dirt.

Pending good weather, events held in conjunction with the premier include an open group ride through the Soquel Demonstration State Forest (SDSF) and a Jump Jam at Depot Park in Santa Cruz with the pro women on Feb 28th.

There will a $1/ticket event raffle after the film with a lot of great prizes including an Intense 5.5 EVP frame, a Fox 36 Talas RC2 fork and a BlkMrkt Mob frame (Chrome). There are many other prizes offered by local businesses including cycling clothing, CamelBaks, Light and Motion bike lights and gift certificates. You must be present to win at the raffle

There will also be a $5/ticket raffle for a new 2010 Titus El Guapo All Mountain Bike. Raffle tickets will go on sale at the Bike Festival until the Sea Otter Classic in April. We will do the drawing for the bike at the Sea Otter at the MBOSC booth.

Proceeds from the festivities will go toward efforts to rebuild and reopen the SDSF parking lot – which has been closed due to environmental issues.

The Titus Group Ride at Soquel Demo State Forest – Feb 27th 9:30 am

There will be a group ride at Soquel Demonstration State Forest starting at 9:30 am with many of the women featured in the film.

Titus Bikes will be on hand to allow riders to demo the El Guapo – a 6″ travel all mountain bike – perfect for the trails at SDSF.

The BlkMrk Bikes Jump Jam at Depot Park – Feb 28th 10-3pm

The pro women from the event will be participating in a Jump Jam held at Depot Park in Santa Cruz from 10-3pm. BlkMrkt Bikes will have several of their bikes on hand to demonstrate.

California Premier of Awesome Land: Women of Dirt – Feb 28th 7 pm

Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz has teamed up with Bones Over Metal to host the California Premier of Awesome Land: Women of Dirt. The event is scheduled to take place on Feb 28, 2010, at the Rio Theater in Santa Cruz at 7 pm. This unique film spotlights some of the most talented women on knobby tires and the lifestyles that allow them to ride. Tickets can be purchased at the door or most local bike shops in Santa Cruz.

The film Awesome Land: Women Of Dirt looks through the eyes of the wondrous women that have helped grow the sports of gravity mountain biking, downhill racing, dirt jumping and free riding. Featured riders Lisa Myklak, Emily Johnston, Tammy Donahugh and Kathy Pruitt will be present at the premier, along with the filmmaker Mark Brent. There will be a Q&A session with the guests moderated Karen Kefauver, a freelance sports and travel journalist who authors the cycling column, Spin City for the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

“Our goal is to support local riding groups like MBoSC and cycling non-profits to host regional shows and share the ‘awesomeness’ the mountain bike has to offer. We want to give back to the community, and we want to do this in a way that the local organizations and promoters get to keep all the funds raised,” said film producer Mark Brent.

Tickets for the film are $10 and can be purchased before hand at the following local bike shops:

  • Trailhead Cyclery, San Jose
  • Passion Trail Bikes, Belmont
  • Another Bike Shop (ABS), Westside Santa Cruz
  • Epicenter Cycling, Aptos
  • Aptos Bike Station, Aptos
  • The Spokesman, Downtown Santa Cruz
  • The Bicycle Trip, Seabright neighborhood Santa Cruz
  • Family Cycling Center, Eastside Santa Cruz
  • Scotts Valley Cycle Sport, Scotts Valley


We will be selling tickets to the film and the raffles at the SDSF ride and the Jump Jam.

BlkMrkt Bikes Promo


BLACK MARKET KILLSWITCH PROMO from Nick Brandreth on Vimeo.

BLACK MARKET BIKES PRESS RELEASE:

The 2010 Black Market Killswitch Promo Video Online Today

And Production Sample In Hand.

There’s almost nothing better than when you’re expecting something new and exciting to show-up. Today just happened to be one of those days and the waiting is over!!!! We just received the first production sample of our most ambitious project to date…

So, without further adieu… I give you the Black Market Killswitch exactly as you will see it in approximately 40 days… that’s right, 40 days!!!

The Killswitch.

Thought out touches like cable routing, replaceable threaded inserts or nuts at every bolt location and a replaceable BB shell combine to make this, one bad mutha…

The Hammer-Link is the epicenter of our suspension technology providing 100mm of extremely versatile travel. After months of successful testing it has undergone some additional machining to reduce weight in non-structural areas.

Note: This is your first look at the 2010 X Fusion 02 RCX which has been tuned to match our frames demands and has preformed extremely well during testing!!!

Replaceable drop outs in horizontal, vertical or Maxle versions. Drop outs are “Lego Fit” into the drop out lug and held firm with 2 x 8mm bolts… no chain ring bolts here.


Killswitch Features:
Handmade from a custom 6061 T6 tubeset with precision CNC’d linkages & yokes.
Black Market’s own proprietary Hammer-Link design with 100mm travel.

Replaceable Nylock nuts and threaded inserts milled into the frame at all bolt locations and shock mount points protect against over zealous mechanics and owners a like.

Custom Killswitch tuned X-Fusion 02 RCX shock.

All hardware and bearings are easily accessible for ease of maintenance and repairs.

Blk Mrkt Cartidge Zero Stack headset (included) design to allow for the lowest front end possible.

Replaceable BB shell also acts as massive 30mm pivot axle.

Replaceable drop outs in horizontal (included), vertical or maxle versions(sold separately).

Sizes: S (21″), M (22″) & L (23″)
Colors: Flat Black, Flat Grey, Flat Purple

Weight: 7lbs. 10 oz. with shock and hardware.

For more info or dealer inquiries please e mail



Jim shreds everything in sight…
Last week Lisa Myklak and Jim Tharp drove down to Woodward West from Aptos so they could get out of the week long rain delay.
Since they were gonna be there for a while to ride and it was raining here I headed up there to hang and ride with them… here’s a short edit and a couple of pics from the afternoon.
Happy Valentine’s Day!!!

Short Woodward Edit from carter holland on Vimeo.



Don Hampton has a lot of experience making MTB films but here he takes his life in his own hands… giving Adam a shotgun with live rounds. I’ve seen him with an airsoft gun… no fun.
Don has been keeping the riding shots close to his vest during his preparation for the release of his 25th film… “HERE WE GO AGAIN” which will premiere at the Sea Otter in Monterey, Ca.
Be there…

Here we go again… this time with fervor!!!

1st PLACE… ROCCO QUINTILIANI & BRIAN KACHINSKY

1st Place Ray’s Odd Couple 2010 – Rocco Quintiliani & Brian Kachinsky from RaysMTB on Vimeo.

2ND PLACE ADAM HAUCK & KRIS MARCUM & JEFF KOCSIS

2nd Place Ray’s Odd Couple 2010 – Adam Hauck, Kris Marcum, & Jeff Kocsis from RaysMTB on Vimeo.

3RD PLACE JEFF LENOSKY & CHRIS ACETO

3rd Place Ray’s Odd Couple 2010 – Jeff Lenosky & Chris Aceto from RaysMTB on Vimeo.


Karl Benseman sent in some photos from where it’s hot and sunny… (not) New Zealand… Australia!

So, while you may be under a foot or more of snow or still baling the water out of your local skatepark because it was built at the bottom of a 200′ hill that WAS covered by 2″ of wood chips like so…
Laguna Hills wakeboard park is now open daily…

Still not NZ…

Ummm, you may need more than a broom.
Here’s how they’re gettin’ on down there…

Ryan “Squid” Chesney throws a mean tuck no hander when he’s not bangin’ bars in 4X… In Australia.

Karl divin’ in…
In Australia.

One mo’ time… Karl dumps a 3… by Tim Kerr
In Australia.

Sometimes things just don’t go as planned in Hazard County as you’d like’em too.

I found these photos by Brian Raphael on PinkBike… Brian, Sergio and Trevor are always up to something and they usually are making it look fun. Here’s a small example of their antics… you can find more at BrianRaphaelPhotography.blogspot.com.

Sergio drift…

How’s that feel???

Trevor top side no can.

Scenic SF railhop. Trevor

Brian knows how to impress the ladies.

Brian steps out from behind the camera for a big railhop…

Adam just checked in from Cleveland to let me know who made the podium at the 2nd Annual Ray’s Odd Couple contest.
Ray’s Odd Couple Podium

1st Rocco Quintiliani/ Brian Kachinski

2nd Adam Hauck/ Kris Markum

3rd Jeff Lenosky/ Chris Aceto
I’ll post the videos as soon as they’re available…