Dutch Fourcross Series 2008

On Sunday, June 15th, the Bikepark Groningen foundation will organize the kick-off of the Dutch Fourcross Series 2008. On the bikepark in the city of Groningen, the Dutch Fourcross mountain bikes season will start spectacularly.

The Fourcross track has undergone several changes, which results in a more exciting experience for the riders and the spectators. Together with the Sparerib Express mountain bikes, the Bikepark Groningen Foundation offers free barbecue for all the participating riders and volunteers after the race.

This year, the Dutch Fourcross Series will consist of two races. On September 20th. the second race will be held. We will inform you about this mountain bikes event in due time.

Further information:

Date: June, 15 2008
Place: Bikepark Groningen, Recreational area Kardinge, city of Groningen, The Netherlands

9.00 - 12.00: registration time for the riders
10.00 - 12.00: Training
from 13.00: qualification
from 14.30: heats
from 17.30: final heats
from 18.00: prize ceremony and barbeque for riders and volunteers.

Costs:
€ 15,- per race
€ 25,- when you register for both races at June 15th .

When registered, the mountain bikes riders receive a numberplate, which must be mounted on the handelbars. This plate can not be changed between the 2 races. When lost, riders can buy a new one for € 2,50 from the Bikepark Groningen Foundation.

Registration is only possible at the bikepark during both race days.

www.bikeparkgroningen.nl

source: Stichting Bikepark Groningen

Other Mountain Bikes Accessories

Continuing last post about mountain bikes accessories and you won’t come up short on the trail.

Mountain Bikes Shorts – Ride Longer and Stay Comfortable
The first few mountain bikes rides you take can be a bit uncomfortable on the rear end. Your body does adjust to this after a few rides, but bike shorts are a great accessory that can help keep it to a minimum. Fortunately, the days of the tight fitting Lycra mountain bikes shorts are over. You can still buy them and some racers still use them but the more comfortable padded mountain bikes shorts of today look and feel much more casual.


Mountain Bikes Shoes – Pedal More Efficiently and Keep Comfortable
You need to pick the type of shoes you wear depending on the type of pedals you have and the type of riding you want to do. If you have clipless type pedals, as I recommend for most types of riding, you will need to get some mountain bikes specific shoes to accept the special cleat for your pedals. A good mountain bikes shoe will be durable, comfortable and should have a stiff sole for better pedaling efficiency. You should also pick the right shoe for the terrain you will be riding in.

Eye Protection – Protect Your Vision from Wind, Bugs, and Dirt
Something in your eye can run you right off the trail and into trouble. Eye protection such as sunglasses or clear-lensed glasses help keep your eyes free from debris as well as protect them from the wind that can cause your eyes to tear and blur your vision. Make sure you use non-breakable lenses for safety at you running mountain bikes.

Hydration System – Keep Yourself Hydrated for Better Energy and Health
Bring either a water bottle with you or as I recommend take a hydration backpack such as a Camelbak or similar product. It is easy to let yourself get dehydrated so bring water with you and drink it on the trail to keep your body running properly as you ride. Get healthy with mountain bikes

Necessary Mountain Bikes Accessories

The beginner mountain biker can get a little overwhelmed when they first walk into a bike store to buy their first mountain bikes and all of the mountain bikes accessories they will need to start riding.

There is no shortage of mountain bikes accessories and related product that you can buy. The sales staff will certainly sell you anything they can but the real question for beginners and bikers on a budget is not what mountain bikes accessories are cool, but what you need to have to make your rides safe and enjoyable. Start with these accessories and you won’t come up short on the trail.

The Bike Helmet – The Most Important Mountain Bikes Accessory
This is a shameless plea, but please wear a bike helmet. Nobody should be on a bike without a helmet. There have been too many people with serious head injuries that could have been prevented if they were wearing a helmet. Modern mountain bikes helmets are both comfortable and stylish and everyone on the trail wears one.

Mountain Bikes Gloves – A Mountain Bikes Accessory for Comfort and Safety
When you ride, your hands can take a beating. Beginners who tend to keep a death grip on the handlebars can be especially brutal on their hands. Your hands are also one of the first things to come down to the ground when you crash and everyone crashes at some point. Mountain bikes gloves are a great mountain bikes accessory because they take the beating for you. I recommend full-fingered gloves over the cutoff finger type. Don’t get caught red handed.

Trail Repair Kit – Make It Home When it Counts
Its not to hard to get stuck in the woods if you don’t bring the most basic mountain bikes accessories for the most common repairs on the trail. To be prepared bring a multi-tool designed to repair bikes, tire levers and a patch kit for fixing flats, an extra tube in case your tube us un-repairable, and a mini-pump.

Mountain Bikes Suspension

In the past mountain bikes had a rigid frame and fork. In the early 1990s, the first mountain bikes with suspension forks were introduced. This made riding on rough terrain easier and less physically stressful. The first suspension forks had about 1½ to 2 inches (38 to 50 mm) of suspension travel. Forks are now available with 6 inches (150mm) of travel or more (see above under "Design.") Mountain bikes with front suspension and rigid, non-suspended rear wheels, or hardtails became popular nearly overnight. While the hardtail design has the benefits of lower cost, less maintenance, and better pedaling efficiency, it is slowly losing popularity due to the increases in full suspension designs.

Many new mountain bikes have a "full suspension" design, meaning that both front suspension forks and some form of rear suspension are used, as opposed to front suspension only ("hard tail"). The advantages of dual suspension are increased comfort on rough terrain, and improved handling over obstacles. Disadvantages of rear suspension are increased weight, increased price, and with some designs, decreased pedaling efficiency. At first, early rear suspension designs were overly heavy, and susceptible either to pedaling-induced bobbing or lockout at certain points of the suspension arc or travel. One of the most popular rear suspension designs to solve these issues has been the 'Horst Link' which first appeared with the AMP series of bikes, and was later adopted by Specialized and many other mountain bikes manufacturers.

Mountain Bikes Disc Brakes

Completing wheel, most modern downhill mountain bikes now feature disc brakes. These offer improved stopping power over rim brakes under adverse conditions, because they are located at the center of the wheel (on the wheel hub) and therefore remain drier and cleaner than wheel rims, which are more readily soiled or damaged. While the traditional mountain bikes cantilever and V-brake style braking system provided ample braking for fully rigid bikes and the earlier, less sophisticated suspension fork-equipped bicycles, as suspension has evolved bicycle speeds have increased. Disc brakes offer the capacity for sustained heavy braking with fewer problems of brake fade than are encountered with rim brakes, allowing greater safety margins with less rider fatigue, greater modulation and therefore control of mountain bikes.

The disadvantage of disc brakes is their increased cost and often greater weight. Hydraulic disc brakes, which work by moving brake fluid through a hose or line to squeeze the pads together, require much more technical maintenance but enjoy much longer service intervals than their mountain bikes mechanical counterparts. Mechanical disc brakes, which are simpler and somewhat less expensive, work in a similar fashion to rim brakes by pulling one pad towards the disc with a cable as old mountain bikes.

The braking power of a disc brake also depends on the size of the rotor. For example, an 8-inch rotor has more stopping power than an 6 inch rotor of the same brake mountain bikes design (about 33% more). This is because the brake caliper can apply more torque with the same amount of force because the larger disc provides a longer moment arm.