Mammoth Mountain: The Air Up There

Mammoth Mountain: The Air Up There
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

Here is Mathew one of our bro's on a fairly new Specialized Demo-9 goofing off in Mammoth last summer. What a great bike it is. He is an excellent technical rider as well as a cross country animal. Needless to say it didn't take him much time to adapt to the longer travel bike. I hope this year those of us that missed out on his Mammoth trips can make it to the mountain. I hope you can too.

2005 FIM World Superbike Laguan Seca, Umbrella Girls

2005 Moto GP Laguan Seca, Umbrella Girls
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

Any fans of motorcycle racing out there? I am addicted to dirt: motocross, supercross, arena, cross, FIM & street: AMA, FIM, well I guess pretty much every 2 wheel racing event. This picture is from 2005 the Moto GP races at Laguna Seca. We make an annual pilgrimage to the races, and it absolutely amazing every year. Featured in the picture is our friend Greg C. with the 2 umbrella beauties and there are 3 more of us who make the trek as well. This will be the last year that Moto GP runs 1000cc engines, so don't miss it. Next year will be the new reduction too 800cc. The power, noise and crowd are incredible, and the event draws people from all around the world. Perfect for families as well. Camping is pretty limited, at least close to the track now that Moto GP is back, but there are other sites where they shuttle you in. Personally I am a big Rossi fan, but I also like Hayden too, so it was nice to see him win last year. Also it is awesome meeting the legends of the sport as well, like Kevin Schwantz, Wayne Rainey, etc. I hope you can make it to the track this year...

Ry Dog on Tunnel Trail

Ry Dog on Tunnel Trail
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

This was on the day of our Specialized Demo Ride. Ryan R. had just bought a new Kona bike so he opted to get use to it as opposed to riding on any of the Specialized machines that were available. However, he certainitly appreciated the shuttle service they provided. He wrecked himself pretty good, not being too use to the bike / out of the saddle for a while. Tunnel is pretty tuff at any rate, but worth it. Now that he has a new baby, etc. we don't see him much, but he is missed. Generally once a year we rally all the boys/girls and go to Big Bear or Mammoth, so hopefully he will be there for that ride...

Cold Springs Run

Cold Springs Run
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

It sure is fun to hit some high speed, smooth single track once in a while after a massive rock garden session, just to let the old body take a breather, and of course going super fast is a bonus. If your familiar with this Santa Barbara trail, "Cold Springs" you probably recognize this opening that is by a big electric tower. We usually get back on the single track which is just up a few hundred feet on my right. This trail gets a 10 in my book.

The Sign Post Up Ahead....Your Next Stop, THE CAMUSA CONNECTOR

The Sign Post Up Ahead....Your Next Stop, THE CAMUSA CONNECTOR
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

The Camusa Connector is a great trail in Santa Barbara. There are many different trails up there. The cool thing is you can ride offroad vehicles, so watch out for those guys. The run that we did is an XC climb up hill to start, so we packed light and minimal pads. The downhill is single track, switchbacks, etc. and lot's of fun, although it is fairly short and only lasts for about 30-45 minutes. Still this was a great warm up for us, before we hit some more agressive rides, beautiful country as well. Oh yeah, that is Dave G at the sign, with his Santa Cruz Heckler, and 5" Zokes on the front. I remembered the only bummer was it had rained shortly before we arrived, and the stream was a little high after the singletrack to get back to the car. We made it accross finally, like a couple school girls. As if we put our feet in the water we were going to get carried away down a giant waterfall, like the one in the Land of the Lost. It was probably only 1-2 feet deep at worst.

Got a little Captain in Ya

Got a little Captain in Ya
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

This is another picture from one of our weekend trips to Santa Barbara on the Jesusita trai. Greg and I stopped to pose for a photo opp, and later after we got back from the ride to look at the pictures, Dave who took these shots said "It looks like you got a little bit of the Captain in Ya". (Click the picture to enlarge it and check me out in the back.)The crazy thing is I hadn't had any Captain Morgans in sometime, so that pose must have been caused by some residual rum still lining my liver:) Good ole Captain...

Bombing Tunnel Trail

Bombing Tunnel Trail
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

Bombing tunnel trail, need I say more. Ok I guess I will. This is a legendary trail in Santa Barbara, and truley separates the men from the boys, especially when you aren't running a full DH rig. However this was an incredible weekend as we were fortunate enough to participate in a Specialized Demo Ride where they gave us free Demo bikes to run the trails with shuttling service included. A dream come true. Featured here is Dave G, a true hero. While everybody was running full DH bikes on this run, he cleaned everyones clocks on his Kona Coiler, for at least part of the ride ride. I ran my Azonic Saber, and bit it pretty good several times as I had new shocks that were set up all wrong. Later I mounted a Demo-8 with a fox RC-40, boy was that fun. We ran Sat. (2 Tunnel / 2 Cold Spring Runs) and Sunday (was all Cold Springs). All the people were way cool, and YEAH to Specialized for being so cool to offer that Demo day.

Preparing to Enter Cold Springs in Santa Barbara

Preparing to Enter Cold Springs in Santa Barbara
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

The calm before the storm. We have just parked the car a couple miles up the road for a shuttle down Cold Springs. A little road riding and some big dirt burms to feel the bike out and make sure everything is good for the trail, and here is a picture of me as I am about to enter the trail. It is pretty crazy how much gear we wear these days. Not sure if that means we are smarter, or just older, but nevertheless it sure is nice to crash and just get up unscathed. I have my bike set up a little more XC here with smaller/lighter pedals and some 2.25 tires, so keeping up with my friends rigs that are running full DH tires is a little more difficult. I think my next run I am going to revert my bike to DH. The weight saving is not worth the control loss. At any rate this trail is amazing, and has high speed and technical parts, with some jumps. All and all one of the best out there. So if you ever get the chance look it up in SB. But as always use a bell and be kind to the Hikers, as they are the ones with all the money who are trying to shut the trails down to MTBing.

Mountain Biking in Santa Barbara, CA - Jesusita Trail

Mountain Biking in Santa Barbara, CA - Jesusita Trail
Originally uploaded by launch_racing.

This ride is always a crowd pleaser, and if any of you are local and ridden Jesusita Trail in SB, then you can relate. You never really hit terminal speed anywhere, but you can still pick up some collateral damage. I would describe the trail as an agressive XC / light free ride trail, with the largest jump probably 2-3 feet. Nevertheless this trail is excellent for its switchbacks, technical sections and legendary views. Bring a bell, the trail is really crowded on the weekends, and be considerate of the hikers. I live in LA and usually ride up North with my friend Greg. We will meet up with our other friend Dave who is a local in SB, and may recruit our friend Ryan, another local. Decisions, decisions, do we ride, Jes, Tunnel, Cold Springs, Romero or? Lately we have been shuttling a little more and catching multiple rides. How about you, what do you like to ride and where?