Attached is a document from the Off Road Commission that gives some details of the upcoming race season.  It also gives details of the new online registration system.  We will also be bringing you full details of all the races across the season as and when they are released but in the mean time here is the preview.

2010_offroad_preview

Cyclo-cross tyres have many benefits.  Less chance of puncturing, more comfort and better grip are all major bonuses on Irish roads and allow you to ride off-road too should you so decide.

Cyclocross is not just for Winter either. [Read more →]

Back in December we reviewed the new Giant XTC 29er 1 bike.  Very quickly we realised that this bike is a bit special and now we can tell you that for the month of February Spoke readers can get €150 off this bike in The Cycle Inn by mentioning us, bringing the price down to €1699.

[Read more →]

Cycling Ireland have just announced that they are accepting applications from riders interested in joining the High Performance race programme from all disciplines.  The aim is to attract riders who have the ambition to represent Ireland at Elite level at a major championships and seeing as Ireland has some coming up on home soil in the near future now is the time to apply.  They are not only looking for current elites, the emphasis is strongly on development so potential is the watch word.

Simply fill out the attached form and email it to Bev Chamlerlain (bev@cyclingireland.ie).  The deadline is quite tight though so be quick!

mtb-xc-dh-development-application-form1

A quality carbon riser bar from a quality manufacturer.

For those who haven’t tried them, riser bars offer far more control than a traditional flat handlebar, [Read more →]

Report to follow…
Irish Winter League 2010 Round 2 @ Cloon Woods
Ranking after 2 run [Read more →]

On Sunday the 21st of February the first round of a developmental series will take place at Ballinastoe woods in Wicklow.

The aim of the series is to introduce novice XC racers to competitive racing. [Read more →]

On Friday the 5th of February the 2010 Wee Adventure Film Festival (WAFF) takes place in The Sugar Club on Leeson Street in Dublin.  Footage comes from a range of sports including BASE Jumping, MTB, Kitesurfing, Kayaking and Mountaineering with 17 short films on the programme.  Check out one of last years entries below.

Colin Ross rides Cave hill (short version) from Andy Yoong on Vimeo.

[Read more →]

In 2009 SRAM announced their breakout XX groupset in 2×10 speed.  One of the major features of the group is a 10 speed cassette milled from a block of billet steel which is incredibly light as well as having great mud shedding capabilities.  Yesterday SRAM announced that this cassette is now available in a 9 speed XO version.

[Read more →]

Below is a course preview of the Downhill race on the 30/31st of January in Cloon.  Online registration is still open here.

Irish dh winter league round 2 track preview from Gavin O Connell on Vimeo.

The first Pro-Tour event of the year ended in Adelaide on Sunday with a 1-2 win for te new Team Sky.  However it was the man in fifth place on the stage who claimed the overall, Andre Greipel of HTC-Columbia.

The previous day, stage 5, had seen fireworks as some top riders made a break to shake up the overall that almost succeeded. [Read more →]

SuperLogic is a collection of Ritchey´s highest level components (situated above WCS World Championship Series Carbon Level). Made using a new carbon technology - “LCT” -(Logic Composite Technology)this is Ritchey´s proprietary process for maximizing UD carbon fiber´s high tensile strength by coupling it with a low weight resin, and the most advanced production technologies, resulting in the strongest and lightest carbon fiber products.

SuperLogic Carbon Flat Mountain bar

[Read more →]

Top end shoe manufacturer Sidi have just released details of a special edition Ergo 2 carbon road shoe to celebrate 50 years of making great shoes. The founder of Sidi Dino Signori still leads the company today with the same spirit and enthusiasm as he did when he started the company half a centuy ago.

To celebrate this anniversary, the company from Treviso has produced a limited edition Ergo 2 Carbon shoe, which confirms itself as the top of the line model in the Sidi Sport collection. [Read more →]

The Dublin Mountains Partnership (DMP) is currently recruiting Volunteer Rangers to patrol the Dublin ranges.

The Dublin Mountains Partnership (DMP) has been established to improve the recreation potential of the public lands in the Dublin Mountains, while balancing recreation with the other key objectives of the various land owning organisations (commercial forestry, conservation, water collection). [Read more →]

EXCLUSIVE - European Masters Ladies champion Maeve Baxter has signed to James O’Carrolls OC Tuning.  2009 was a superb season for the Rostrevor rider who built up on a silver medal at the same event in 2008 to take the top honours last year.  She also was one of the featured riders in the ‘Break the cycle’ film.

Baxter will ride a Solid Mission 9 downhill bike equipped with Fox shocks front and rear. [Read more →]

Day three of the first major Tour of the year saw a new Pro-Tour rider take his first victory in his first race.  Manuel Cardoso of the Footon-Servetto-Fuji team pulled clear at the finish line with, surprisingly,  Alejandro Valverde claiming second and Cadel Evans in third.

It was a blisteringly hot day with 42 degree temperatures and many riders in the peloton were suffering. [Read more →]

The Irish National Cyclocross Championships 2009 will take part in the scenic St Anne’s park in Raheny. The Park, the second largest municipal park in Dublin, is part of a former 500 acre estate assembled by members of the Guinness family, beginning with Benjamin Lee Guinness in 1835. But on the 7th of February will see fast racing to decide who will become the National Champion of Ireland. [Read more →]

The first race of the 2010 Pro-Tour road season kicked off today in Australia as André Greipel (Columbia-HTC) sprinted to victory.  It has been a long time coming to Greipel who had a horror crash at last years TDU when he ran into the back of a parked police motorcycle and required extensive surgery. [Read more →]

A race which was considered the poorer brother to the Trans-Alp, the Trans Germany has sold out in record time for this year.  Organisers were overwhelmed with applications showing the popularity that these multi-day stage races have to offer.  1,200 riders are now registered with a waiting list system now in place.  The organisers also anounced that Syncros will come on board as a major sponsor ensuring the long-term viability of the race too.  Ireland will get its first multi-stage mountain bike race this year when the Celtic Xtreme race kicks off on the 6th of June.

These races are not just about an elite field pounding out the miles, they are an endurance challenge event with the vast mjority of competitors out to have a good time and enjoy the challenge.  The emphasis is on having fun riding your bike. [Read more →]

We have just received a box of goodies from Piranha, a new Irish company which manufactures bike cleaning products.

Developed specifically for Irish weather conditions these [Read more →]

The online registration for the first round of the DH Winter league is now open till Thursday 14th January.  This will greatly speed up things with regard to rider sign on and registration on the day and give you more time to practise so is highly recommended.  See the full press release below.

Howdy All

Online Registration for the DH Winter League Rnd.1 (Sunday Jan 17th in Bree, Co. Wexford) is now open!

Here is the link: http://fs17.formsite.com/offroadeventsreg/DHevent/index.html
Please note that it is very important that as many riders as possible utilise this new system. [Read more →]

Just arrived in the Spoke offices is this hydration pack from Fox clothing. 

First impressions are really good with a separate compartment for [Read more →]

UK mega distributor Madison is to distribute DT Swiss suspension forks and rear shocks in the UK and Ireland it was announced today.  Madison distribute Shimano, Giro, Bell, Commencal, Park tools and Pearl Izumi to name but a few.  They already distribute DT Swiss wheels.  DT Swiss and Madison will launch their 2010 products to the UK market at their annual trade show next month and we will be their to bring you all the latest news.

The image is a sneak pic of the 2010 World Champion special edition of the DT Swiss XRC100 with full carbon steerer and crown.

[Read more →]

On Friday a Los Angeles judge sentenced a former ER doctor to five years for intentionally causing two cyclists to crash into his car.

On July 4th 2008 Dr. Christopher Thompson was descending Mandeville Canyon road, near Los Angeles in his car when he came upon two cyclists riding side by side.  He rolled down his window and a heated exchange occurred after which he overtook the cyclists and slammed on the brakes causing them to hit the back of his car at speed. [Read more →]

These should be in every cyclist’s closet.  In years gone by riders rode with a variety of water proofing solutions including plastic bags on their feet but no more.  Made from miracle Merino wool, these waterproof socks keep you snug and dry in even the most Baltic of weather conditions. On top of that they are virtually indestructible and have weathered months of tough rides.

With the current “cold snap” set to last till late February, according to weather reports today, recent testing becomes particularly relevant. [Read more →]

This weekends running of the Irish National Cyclocross Championships has been postponed till the end of the month in light of the current severe weather conditions.  While the race itself would not have been affected the condition of the roads nationwide made it dangerous for competitors especially with more snow forecast on the east coast on Sunday.  Full statement from the organisers below.  We will bring you more updates as we have them.

[Read more →]

Okay lets face it its bloody cold outside.  Italian luxury shoe manufacturer Sidi have just launched their new Gore-tex shoe the Diablo Gore.

Aimed at being capable of taking on any terrain in all types of weather, the Diablo is a tough shoe for tough conditions. [Read more →]

Lance Armstrong is currently in Hawaii training.  With him is a new member of the Radioshack squad, Allen Lim, formerly of Garmin-Transitions, who is bringing to bear many new training methods and ideas.  One of them concerns body temperature and he is testing Armstrong’s core temperatures using an unusual thermometer…

There are a few more videos in the series but bear with them they are all short.

[Read more →]

And we are back…  Hope you had a great holiday.  Normal service resumes tomorrow!  Meanwhile the concluding parts of the Fat Cyclist & Team Radioshack story.

[Read more →]

A very Happy Christmas to all our readers. We hope Santa brought you something bike related!

We are taking a break for the festive period but will be back shortly.  Its not a total break though as we are taking the opportunity for some intensive testing of some new test gear which we will be bringing you shortly.  Enjoy the holidays and get out and ride your bike!