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DAILY XC NEWS & VIEWS

Henrique Avancini is going for it in Glasgow.

August 2, 2023|News|

I must say, hats off to the Brazillian. He is going to race all three XC formats. On the 6th he'll take on the Marathon, then the 10th the XCC and finally give the XCO a whirl on the 12th. That's pretty cool I think. I would love to see more of that if I'm honest. Many of the riders at the World Champs, let's be honest, probably aren't thinking they are going to win a medal. That's not always the goal I suppose. Don't get me wrong, [...]

Who are we sending to Glasgow?

August 1, 2023|News|

We're a week away, and just in case you were wondering, here's the official list of Team USA that will be visiting the World Championships in Glasgow, Scotland for 2023: Elite Men Christopher Blevins (Durango, Colo.; Specialized Factory Racing) Elite Women Savilia Blunk (Inverness, Calif.; Rockrider FORD Racing Team) Kate Courtney (Kentfield, Calif.; SCOTT-SRAM Factory Racing) Gwendalyn Gibson (Ramona, Calif.; Trek Factory Racing) U23 Men Riley Amos (Durango, Colo.; Trek Factory Racing) Carson Beard (Middlesex, Vt.; Team Segment 28) Brayden Johnson (Littleton, Colo.; Bear National Team) Bjorn Riley [...]

It begins with a Podcast

July 31, 2023|News|

Well, after 2 years of going back and forth on formats, it's been decided a weekly podcast, yes, another dreaded podcast, will be the first release from Short Travel Mag. Some things are best shown in a video, so we will also be releasing a weekly video, but the goal to start is to do multiple podcasts each week, 2-3 times if needed. This time of year is often busy in the Cross Country world, world cup races, new 2024 products being shown, all kinds of great things [...]

’23 World Champs are upon us!

July 31, 2023|News|

Glasgow, here we are! This years World Champs extravaganza sure seemed to creep up this year. When first announced that the UCI was going to combine all disciplines into one location at one time, it seemed so far away. But in a few days, the fun begins. For me, the XCO and XCC races, along with the Marathon, will be the focus. When Marathon was announced earlier in the year as a dedicated broadcast on the new Discovery channels, I naively thought we'd see some crossover XC racers [...]

SRAM AXS…second guessing trying it out.

July 28, 2023|Late To The Party|

Well, I have in my box of "stuff I bought, didn't need, and can't bring myself to install" a complete XX1 AXS Eagle groupset. The works, crankset, DUB bottom bracket, everything. The one thing I don't have, only because no one on the planet seems to stock, is the Rocker Paddle Upgrade Kit. I ordered it and immediately was told at least 1 month wait. So maybe I'll get the thing someday soon. Anyway, I was able to order it from a certain retail store in Colorado where [...]

Tan wall tires? Really?

April 22, 2023|Late To The Party|

Back in the day, only BMX bikes had tanwall tires. The infamous Comp III tires ruled the day. I had them on several bikes. I don't think they were tan for looks, but for a manufacturing reason? I'm guessing using a fabric sidewall on a rubber tire simply meant leaving the black rubber off the sidewalls, showing the threads and natural color. My cousin sent me a photo today of one of his Comp III and you can see the threads pulling out slightly. They were easy to [...]

Togs? Useful or Useless?

September 1, 2022|Reviews|

Togs? Useful or Useless? Everyone who knows me knows how much I still believe in bar ends on my bikes. I have them on every bike I own. I have a drawer full of them that aren't being used. Yet, I'm so clearly in the minority that it has finally started making me wonder if I really need them? Enter Togs - Thumb Over Grip System. Made here in the USA, and now gaining popularity among some elite mtb racers. Will Nino ever be using them? Probably not, [...]

2022 UCI World Cup Schedule is out now

September 13, 2021|News|

Well, there's one date that's undecided for location, but there are a couple of exciting things to note for next year, that's for sure. First and foremost, there are now 9 XCO races! That's quite a jump from 6 the last few years. And once again, the USA gets a chance to see the action in person. While I am seriously bummed to have to cancel my trip t the 2021 race for various reasons, I do look forward to next year. They did the smart thing and [...]

MVDP will not race MTB the rest of the year? Bummer…

August 23, 2021|News|

Maybe his insane schedule has finally caught up with him. But man, I'm bummed that he won't be on the start line on thursday or Saturday for the 2021 World Champs. Ever since he showed up and finally showed that the mighty Nino was beatable, I've loved watching Mathieu Van Der Poel. His ability to hit the gas, usually on a slight uphill grind, and literally leave everyone else in the dust was a thing of beauty. He could hang with the best most of the time, and [...]

Post Olympic Year Weirdness

August 17, 2021|News|

I've personally never really enjoyed Olympic year mountain biking. Although this last round was of course especially odd. The racers spend the entire off season and early part of the regular season trying to magically prepare for one single day. That's it. Honestly, I think they all over do it. Over think it, over train, over analyze, everything. By the time they get to the actual race, they are spent. All the pre-Olympic World Cups were all analyzed based on the mythical run at a medal months down [...]

The fun starts tomorrow!

May 6, 2021|News|

Man oh man. Real, genuine world cup racing. While I really loved last years few weeks of fun, it just felt weird. It didn't feel like the real deal, primarily because nothing was really on the line for the racers. Of course they all wanted to win, some had contracts coming up, and they obviously gave it their all. But, as a viewer, it had a whole different vibe. So, now that tomorrow, May 7, 2021, starts the first Short Track race of the season, and it counts [...]

Can Nino win one more?

May 3, 2021|News|

Read a quote today that has Nino Shurter saying he wants to win at least one more World Cup to equal Absalon's record. I haven't heard him come outright and say that in the few interviews I've seen of him recently, but this would be expected for someone who is SO close to beating Absalon's record, he can taste it. Now, anyone who's followed Nino and World Cup racing knows that a few short years ago in 2017, he was literally untoucheable. He won every race, Olympic Gold, [...]

Missing the days of customization on the pro’s bikes.

April 30, 2021|News|

I'm following with interest the development of the new Santa Cruz/FSA team featuring the ever-consistent Maxime Marotte. Having been booted from Cannondale, he's leading the charge for this seemingly new team. The brand Santa Cruz certainly hasn't made a splash on the top levels of XCO racing in years past. While they've had a XC race bike in their stable, there were none to be seen at World Cups...at least I don't recall seeing any. So when looking at the many photos and videos of Maxime from the [...]

1450 gram carbon wheels for $1200?

April 26, 2021|News|

Anyone who has ever thought about buying a carbon wheelset for their XC bike has come to at least one conclusion - they don't come cheap. The main reason carbon wheels came on the scene, at least for me, is weight savings. Although, it wasn't as much as I thought it was, this huge weight savings I expected. For example, my Trek Top Fuel came with DT Swiss X1700 alloy wheels. They weigh around 1680 grams. Give or take a few. Turns out, that's not too bad for [...]

Retro Rant – Custom paint jobs ruled!

April 21, 2021|Retro Rant|

Okay, there's no hiding the fact that after 30 years of XC racing, and buying bikes and gear, that eventually you'll miss the way things used to be. I was reminded of that in two ways recently. First, I was digging around in my crawl space when I saw my vintage 1991 custom steel hardtail frame and fork, safely wrapped in bubble wrap and in a fully heated crawl space, sitting nearby. This 1991 frameset was brazed together than Doug Curtiss, of Curtlo Cycles. I'll save the history [...]