Having failed to get out for proper group ride 2010, we put things right on the first day 2011 with the New Years Day ride. Irwin, Jeff and Matt A meet up with Jack R and his mate Joe Mallinson (who set the second fastest time at a recent Dual Race) in Aston and following an obligatory puncture repair, we sent off up the bridleway out of Aston. After many years of unblocking the tiny hole in the wall where the stream crosses the track, we were amazed to find a proper channel had been dug under the wall! Perhaps the track will not be a river for the rest of the winter this year!?

Jeff recently got a new stills camera, a Sony Alpha 55 (a DSLR with a twist), so was keen to take lots of pictures and try out the HD video performance.

Route on OS Map Length: 16km / 10 miles

11-01-01 HopeBrinks+HopeX+HaggTor+Gores JI+JK+MA+JR+JM, 38 Pictures by Jeff

So who’s up for some riding? Irwin wants some EPIC distance.

Boxing Day (Sunday 26th) and New Years Day (Saturday 1st) have been suggested so far. These could change or be added to, depending on when people are available and the weather.

If you’re interested leave a comment with when is good for you.

New Years Day (Saturday 1st)
Irwin
Jeff
Jack R
Matt “Ahsmore”
Ed

Route

Meeting in Aston at 10am.

The 3rd round of the informal mates race series took place last Tuesday evening in Swinny’s field. In practice it was easy going, but the lines soon got muddy and it was all about holding the slide and staying upright. Of the 16 riders (out of 27) who qualified to race head to head in the dual slalom eliminator, Shane got 5th place and Irwin was 11th. Not only did Shane set the fastest time of the night, but he did it on Jeff’s bike!!! – The long stem and low bottom bracket must have really come into its own.

For a full write up, pictures and results check out ThisiSheffield.co.uk.

About this time last month Irwin and I (Jeff) met up with Joe Bowman and Rob Stokes (of ThisiSheffield fame) for some late afternoon riding of a new track at Wharncliffe:- ‘Alexander Super Trout’ (you can ask Rob where the name came from). It’s a good track, quite steep in places and, unusually for Wharncliffe, doesn’t have that many rocks in it.

Appropriately, considering his plan to become a ‘mountain bike personality’ rather than actually having to ride a bike, Rob soon crashed and sustained a finger injury preventing from further riding. This left Joe and Irwin to do most of the riding for the video and since the light was going we only got the top half of the track, but apart from that not a bad little video IMO.

10-09-26 Wharncliffe JI+JK+JB+RS, 7 Pictures by Jeff.

Date: Wednesday 17th November 2010
Location: Showroom, Sheffield – Full details…
Screening Start time: 8pm
Screening End time: 9.35pm (approximately)
Phone number for tickets: 0114 275 7727
The Showroom is one of the largest independent cinemas in Europe with four luxury auditoria and a bar, it is located in the centre of Sheffield, a stones throw from the train station. The screening will be on largest screen with capacity for 282 people. It has hosted previous MTB films and events, including Follow Me, Seasons and ShAFF.
www.showroomworkstation.org.uk

Dates have been announced for the UK cinema tour of “Lifecycles”, probably the most anticipated mountain bike film ever. The creative work of ace mountain bike photographer, Derek Frankowski, whose work regularly graces the pages of “Bike” magazine and celebrated film maker, Ryan Gibb, “Lifecycles” has been over three years in the making. Shot entirely in HD and envisaged from the very start of the project as being made to be shown on the big screen in high definition and 5.1 surround sound, “Lifecycles” follows the life of the bicycle from its creation through to its ultimate demise. The film features the cream of the crop of riding talent and couples it with some truly breathtaking locations. At a sneak industry preview of a rough cut of the film in Whistler in August, the film received a standing ovation and glowing praise with one industry insider likening it to National Geographic meets The Collective. To see what all the fuss is about, log onto www.lifecyclesfilm.com to see the extended trailer.

The UK tour coincides with the release of the film on DVD. Copies of the film can be pre-ordered from www.lifecyclesfilm.com and will be distributed in Europe by www.x-tremevideo.com who have generously lent their support to the tour.

For everyone who catches the tour in the cinema, they will enjoy not just “Lifecycles” but also the latest feature from Ionate Films called “VAST”. Shot entirely on location in Europe spanning locations such as the Swiss Alps, the stunning Ligurian coastline, the broad spaces of Provence and the streets of Berlin, VAST presents a uniquely European take on the freeride mountain bike film genre. While the riders may not necessarily be household names, their riding speaks for itself. A perfect companion piece for Lifecycles guaranteed to make you want to get out and ride. See the trailer at www.ionatefilms.com