Southridge Downhill Race #2 Report - as told by Denis Kremenetskiy

It had been a long week of rains, but luckily for us the rain took a break for a weekend of downhill racing. Usually when racing in Fontana, the dirt is extremely dry and riders always struggle to get traction. This time the weather was in our favor; the massive rainstorms that were causing disasters around town made the dirt at Fontana what we call “hero dirt”.

Denis & Luke  pushing up for practice

Practice - Saturday 1/23/10

Saturday was the first day of practice. The shuttle would begin running at 11:30, so all riders had to be there an hour before for registration. The race van arrived early to Fontana to get an early start, but that did not happen due to the big lines at the registration tables. Surprisingly, the turn out for the Fontana race was big this time. It was a nice surprise to see pros Gee and Rachel Atherton standing in line with everybody! This was the first sign that this race was going to be a competitive one. Riders stood in more long lines to board the shuttle. I was a bit disappointed with the long line there too, but we can’t complain because not everyone gets to race bikes in January.

Denis & Tony G

I was blown away by how much fun the top part of the track was. It had a little bit of everything. It started off with a few little rock gardens and drops. Those were effortless to carry your speed through, than you had to try to not lose too much speed in a short uphill section. Once over the hump, you were free to let the brakes go, and just give ‘er. A few pedal strokes and you enter the twisty berm section of the course, which was just too much fun! Everyone enjoyed the turns so much, that we couldn’t wait for a shuttle to the top of the hill, so many hiked to the top.

Denis & Tani

Denis in the G-out

Tani heading for the lower rock garden

Tony G & Denis at”the wall”

Halfway through the day we decided to take a break and watch some 4x racing. After watching some racing and getting few beers in, we decided to go make a final run. A great way to end the practice day for all the racers from The Path Bike Shop.

Jake doing jumps at the 4x track

Luke at the 4x track

Race Day - Sunday 1/24/10

On race day, we all arrived even earlier in time for practice that would begin at 8:00. The first pro rider would start his run at 10:30. Most of The Path racing crew was there on time to get few practice runs in. When I reached the starting line, I had a nice surprise waiting for me. Former World Champion, Gee Atherton was the next rider to race after me. Boy, was I excited!

Denis at the finish with Gee Atherton behind - original photo from the Vital MTB gallery

After my poor race run, with Gee Atherton riding my tail, I rushed back to the course to cheer for the rest of The Path team. Jake Payne was looking very confident through the last technical section. Although he didn’t have the best pedaling bike out there, it didn’t stop him from taking third place in one of the most competitive classes, Junior X. As I was walking back up the track, I realized just how many people were racing for The Path Bike Shop; many riders were out there sporting The Path jersey.

Nancy Harris

Roger Gutierrez

Tani Walling

Eric Mellencamp

This race was even more successful then the previous one. Almost everyone from The Path got to take their place on the podium. Leader of the team, Tani Walling, almost took the win in his class, but unfortunately because of a mis-communication, he was bumped down to second place.

Tani (2nd) and Tony G (3rd) - Expert Men Class

Jake (3rd) - Junior Expert Class

Nancy Harris (2nd), Expert Women Class

Roger Gutierrez (3rd), Expert Men Class

Denis Kremenetzkiy (34th) - Pro Men Class

Not pictured:

• Luke Wronski (9th) - Expert Men Class
• Eric Mellencamp (6th) - Sport Men

It was long weekend of racing for everybody. The mountains covered in snow in the background, tacky dirt, and a friendly atmosphere made the weekend fly by. Everyone here at The Path Bike Shop will be looking forward to the next race.

We’ve got some 2009 Ellsworth Moment frames on clearance. Only 3 left…so don’t delay!

• large smoke anodized Moment with a Fox DHX 5.0 coil
• medium smoke anodized Moment with a Fox DHX 5.0 coil
• medium smoke Moment with a Fox DHX 5.0 air

MSRP retail price: $2599

Our BLOWOUT price: was $2097 - reduced further to $1750!!!

Come join us on the weekly Sunday Path Bike Shop ride!

NEW RIDE FORMAT! This ride will now change location every week, so check in here on the blog for the location of the week. We’ll meet at The Path Bike Shop parking lot as usual, then ride or drive to a trailhead.

• When: Every Sunday. Meet at 8AM, ready to roll by 8:15AM SHARP!
• Where: Meet at The Path Bike Shop parking lot - 215 W. 1st Street in Tustin, CA

THIS WEEK 2/7/2010 UPDATE: Due to rain we’ll be riding San Juan trail.

• Ride Leader: Rabie
• Ride sweep: Maxwell

This ride is open to all ages and all riding levels.

The Path is hosting a demo day with Pivot Cycles & BH Bikes

• When: Sunday January 17 from 8am-3pm
• Where: City of Orange

meeting place will be at the front parking lot of Albertsons at the intersection of E. Chapman & Jamboree by the Taco Bell - near the entry to Santiago Oaks trail

Bikes available for demo rides:

• Pivot Mach 4 (sizes xxs - xl)
• Pivot Mach 5 (sizes xs - xl)
• Pivot Mach 429 (sizes s - l)
• Pivot Firebird (sizes s - l)
• BH Speedrom (sizes 53 - 57cm)
• BH Connect (sizes 52 - 59.5cm)
• BH Cristal (sizes 51 - 55cm)
• BH G5 (sizes 54 - 57cm)

The Path is hosting a demo day with Ellsworth Bicycles

When: Saturday January 9th from 8am to 3pm
Where: Cook’s Corner

19122 El Toro Road - corner of Santiago Canyon & Live Oak Canyon Road

Mountain bike models available for free demo, in a variety of sizes:

*Epiphany
*Moment
*Evolve
*Truth
*Rogue

Keep checking back for a complete list of demo bikes to come.

*as a general rule, it’s never a bad idea to bring your own pedals to any demo event!

Thanks to everyone who came out to join our first annual Christmas Light Ride! We all gathered at The Path Bike Shop parking lot, then took a leisurely tour around the streets of Tustin to see all the houses with Christmas light displays. There were about 40 riders total, with riders of all ages. It was a great opportunity for families to come and ride with their kids. It was a surprisingly warm evening, so it was perfect cruising weather.

Here are a few of the riders getting ready to roll out:

We’re off through the neighborhoods of Tustin - I’m sure we had lots of people out there wondering where all the bikes came from!

There was one neighborhood in particular that had some pretty elaborate displays; house after house, the entire area was lit brightly. Consequently, there was a lot of traffic; everyone in their cars driving through to see the houses. So being on the bikes allowed us to bypass all that traffic and stop to get a good look…definitely the best way to go was by bike!

Then it was off to the Tustin Brewing Company to close the evening.

What a great way to get into the holiday spirit. Hope you can join us next year!

The Path Bike Shop Holiday Hours

• Thursday December 24th:     10am to 5pm
• Friday December 25th:          CLOSED
• Thursday December 31st:     10an to 5pm
• Friday January 1st:                 CLOSED

Come to The Path’s Holiday

Christmas Light Bike Ride!

Sunday December 20^th

We’ll meet at The Path parking lot at 5:15pm and then head out around Tustin (route TBA) on a leisurely ride to see some festive light displays. The ride will end at The Tustin Brewing Company for food, drinks, and holiday merriment. Riders of all ages and skill levels are welcome.

Happy Holidays from The Path Bike Shop!

Click here to print coupon page

Get what you really want for the holidays…

…at The Path Bike Shop Thanksgiving Weekend Sale!

Savings up to 50% on items storewide!

• Where:   The Path Bike Shop - 215 W. 1st Street in Tustin, CA
  
• Days:    November 27th thru 29th
  
• Hours:  Friday 10-7pm, Saturday 11-5pm, Sunday 11-5pm

NEW! Urban Rides with The Path Bike Shop!

The 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month, The Path is going to be doing Urban rides. Each ride is going to be a different ride, with different locations. The whole purpose of these rides is to do some street riding, it is NOT going to be a road ride at night. We all are going to be meeting at the shop, than either driving, or riding to a different location to find some ledges, jumps, wallrides, etc. So pretty much any BMX, or any Agressive Hardtail owners are welcome to come on a ride.

You don’t have to be very good to come on this rides, just need to have a desire to have fun. There will be many levels of riders, from rookies to very experienced riders. There will be a possibility of an occasional pro athlete guest appearance, like Carter Holland from Black Market.

We already had our first ride this past Tuesday, had fun crusing around Tustin with Carter. We were able to find some ledges to practice manuals, 180s, rails, and stairs. 
 
Where: meet at The Path Bike Shop parking lot
When: 2nd and 4th Tuesday of every month (upcoming: Nov 10th & 24th)
Time: 7:30 PM

Next ride is going to be on November 10th, the plan is to go over to Santa Ana Civic Center, which is packed with wallrides.

More coupons! Print them out, pass them along to a friend.

These coupons are good through this Sunday November 8th, so stop on by!

Click here to print coupons

coupon-page-11_8_09-2

Save some bucks with these coupons good for use here at The Path Bike Shop. Save on red tag bikes, lights, tires, and bike service. Print them out, pass them along to a friend.

Click here for Coupon PDF page for print.

But HURRY! These coupons are only good in-store through this Sunday, November 1st.

coupon-page-11_1_09

Dirty Dozen frames are BACK! OK, so there’s technically 14 frames on the list…we just had too many awesome frames here at the shop to limit ourselves to just 12. They’re marked at blowout prices, better than clearance. Stop by and check ‘em out; these frames won’t be here for long at these prices…

1. 2009 Foes FXR w/Curnutt air shock, size small, color: black - $1750
2. 2009 Intense M6, size medium, color: works finish - $2360
3. 2008 Kona Hei-Hei 29er, 18″, color: chrome/white - $750
4. 2009 Kona Stab Deluxe, size medium (16″), color: red/white - $750
5. 2009 Kona Stab Deluxe, size large (17″), color: red/white - $750
6. 2008 Specialized Demo 7 II, size medium, color: ti silver - $1250
7. 2008 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR 29er, size large, color: green/brown - $900
8. 2009 Specialized Epic FSR Marathon, size medium, color: charcoal - $1430
9. 2009 Specialized FSR XC Comp, size large, color: red - $600
10. 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Expert 29er, size 19″, color: silver - $300
11. 2009 Specialized Safire FSR Comp, size large, color: black/white - $950
12. 2009 Specialized Safire FSR Elite, size small, color: green/white - $950
13. 2009 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Elite, size medium, color: black/green - $950
14. 2009 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Elite, size large, color: black/green - $950

• Graham Agassiz
• Gee Atherton
• Paul Basagoitia
• Darren Berrecloth
• Robbie Bourdon
• Aaron Chase
• John Cowan
• Wayne Goss
• Adam Hauck
• Andreu Lacondeguy
• Lluis Lacondeguy
• Cam McCaul
• Brandon Semenuk
• Kurt Sorge
• Kirt Voreis
• Greg Watts
• Cam Zink

Featured Locations:

• Highland MTB Park, New Hampshire
• Finale Ligure, Italy
• Black Rock, Oregon
• PB’s Playground, Nevada
• Kamloops, Invermere & Retallack, BC
• Santa Cruz & San Francisco Bay, California