From this cool site

On Deck

The long weekend holds some interesting races for those of the gravity set. The fluidride series is heading out to Whistler for what should be a brilliant race from what I've heard of the runs they are sending folks down.

The above race is a super D in Post Canyon. I'm a little conflicted by this race for a few reasons. Firstly, super D is probably my favorite form of racing, it's intense, requires a great deal of fitness and bike set up is critical as is handling skills. Also, I really like the Post Canyon area and I want to support this style of racing. The negative is that this race is fairly expensive AND there are no practice runs / shuttles. The result being that you get one run and the course isn't dialed in so the obvious preference goes to the locals. Mark my words on that. The final race of the series in Sandy won't be as bad as you can ride to the top in about a half hour but Post Canyon would be an all day hill repeat to get in probably 3 runs at the most. Boo.

A bike park at Timberline?

The rumors were confirmed yesterday, when the page on the Timberline website went live. We’ve all been hearing about the possibilities of a world class bike park coming to Oregon, and the odds of having such a facility (just an hour away) is becoming that much closer to being a reality. Even better, Timberline has contracted the construction to Gravity Logic, the team responsible for some of the best DH trails in the world. That is right, the team that created legendary trails like A-Line and Dirt Merchant will be working with Timberline to create a piece of freeride heaven on our local mountain. The project is still in a design phase, but construction could begin as soon as this fall, and possibly opening as soon as next summer.

Head straight over to the Timberline website to read more. Timberline is asking for riders to provide feedback on what they would like to see in such a park. Comment periods like this are important in the planning process, and document the amount of community support for a project. The Forest Service documents this stuff closely, so click HERE right now, and tell them how stoked you are, and what kinds of stuff you want to see!

Straight from the source:

Working with the US Forest Service as Partners In Recreation – our goal is to fill a growing public need that is currently under-serviced in our region. Mountain bike trails within the Timberline permit area will be continually monitored and managed in a professional capacity – with a focus on safety, minimizing environmental impacts, and creating fun trails that mountain bikers want to ride. Trails for all ability levels are planned, as well as a skills park and complete rental facility for all needed gear to prepare you for a fun day on the mountain.

World Class Facility
We have contracted with Gravity Logic, a consulting firm out of Whistler, British Columbia to design and develop our mountain bike trail plans. Gravity Logic is the creator of the world-famous Whistler Mountain Bike Park that has earned the position of being the gold-standard by which other mountain bike areas are measured.

It should be obvious that a bike park of this statue would be a huge boon to the FR/DH scene. It would even provide jobs for local trail builders:

With homegrown mountain bike trails popping up all over the forest, a major difference with our project will be the ongoing, active management of the area. A full-time trail maintenance crew will be employed to ensure the initial design is maintained. This will create a more consistent environment for mountain bike riders and will also maintain the areas integrity with the surrounding environment.

Finally coming clean

Nearly four years after he began waging a costly, draining, and ultimately losing battle to discredit his positive test for synthetic testosterone at the 2006 Tour de France, Floyd Landis told ESPN.com on Wednesday that he used performance-enhancing drugs for most of his career as a professional road cyclist, including the race whose title he briefly held.


In a lengthy telephone interview from California, Landis detailed extensive, consistent use of the red blood cell booster erythropoietin (commonly known as EPO), testosterone, human growth hormone and frequent blood transfusions, along with female hormones and a one-time experiment with insulin, during the years he rode for the U.S. Postal Service and Switzerland-based Phonak teams.


Landis confirmed he sent e-mails to cycling and anti-doping officials over the past few weeks, implicating dozens of other athletes, including seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong; team management and owners; and officials of the sport's national and international governing bodies. ESPN.com is in the process of seeking comment from those individuals. Armstrong has long been dogged by accusations that he used performance-enhancing drugs, but no anti-doping authority has ever confirmed that he tested positive.

Armstrong, who is currently competing in the Tour of California, told reporters Thursday: "I have nothing to hide," and "history speaks for itself here."

"It's his word versus ours ... we like our word, we like our credibility," Armstrong said.

Landis also accused American riders Levi Leipheimer and Dave Zabriskie and Armstrong's longtime coach, Johan Bruyneel, of involvement in doping.


The World Anti-Doping Agency said in a statement Thursday that they would open an investigation into Landis' allegations.

"WADA is aware of the serious allegations made by Mr Landis. We are very interested in learning more about this matter and we will liaise with the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and any other authorities with appropriate jurisdiction to get to the heart of the issues raised. WADA looks forward to these further investigations and enquiries by those responsible."

International Cycling Union (UCI) president Pat McQuaid said Landis' allegations were "scandalous and mischievous."


“I don't feel guilty at all about having doped. I did what I did because that's what we [cyclists] did and it was a choice I had to make after 10 years or 12 years of hard work to get there, and that was a decision I had to make to make the next step. My choices were, do it and see if I can win, or don't do it and I tell people I just don't want to do that, and I decided to do it. ”
-- Floyd Landis

"These guys coming out now with things like this from the past is only damaging the sport," McQuaid told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Thursday. "If they've any love for the sport they wouldn't do it."

The governing body said it regretted that Landis accused former teammates without allowing U.S. cycling and anti-doping authorities time to investigate.

"An impartial investigation is a fundamental right as Mr. Landis will understand having contested, for two years, the evidence of his breach of the anti-doping rules in 2006," UCI said in a statement.

McQuaid said it was up to U.S.A Cycling and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency to look into the allegations.

In a statement released Thursday, USADA said it does "not comment on the substance of any doping investigation."

In an e-mail to USA Cycling president Steve Johnson dated April 30, Landis related a number of anecdotes he said were representative of his time in the European peloton.

However, as Landis told ESPN.com, no one ever coerced him into doping.

"I take responsibility for all the stuff I did," Landis said in the interview. "No one gave me something and said, 'Don't ask what this is, just take it.' I would never have done that. The things I took, I knew what they were, and I spent the time researching what the risks were, and the decisions I made were mine. The whole entire process of doping in the entire sport and the evolution of it all wasn't my fault, but when it came down to it, me being there, I made the decision to do it. It wasn't anyone else telling me to do it. I'm not blaming anyone for that. It was my decision. Every time."

In the e-mail to Johnson, Landis said that Bruyneel, the longtime sports director of the U.S. Postal Service, Discovery Channel, Astana and RadioShack teams who guided Armstrong and Spain's Alberto Contador to a combined nine Tour de France victories, "instructed" Landis on how to use testosterone patches when he was riding for Postal in 2002. Landis added that he first used EPO on Bruyneel's advice the following summer while training for the Tour of Spain, that he obtained the drug directly from Armstrong, and that he started using HGH that he bought from a team trainer in Valencia during that same training period.


Floyd Landis says he used performance-enhancing drugs for most of his career as a professional road cyclist.

In the same e-mail, Landis said he worked with Armstrong's personal trainer, Dr. Michele Ferrari of Italy, who consulted with several riders on the Postal team at the height of Armstrong's career. Ferrari helped Landis with the extraction and re-tranfusion of his own blood during one session in St. Moritz, Switzerland in 2002, according to Landis.

"I paid [Ferrari] $10,000 [that season]," Landis told ESPN.com. "He only accepted cash. His normal fee is 10 percent of your salary."

"I mean, he's one of the best references," Landis said of Ferrari, who worked with numerous top cyclists. In 2004, Ferrari was convicted of sporting fraud and abusing his medical license by an Italian court, but later succeeded in having that judgment reversed on appeal. "I didn't wish to take the risks on my own and especially since it was fairly clear that his advice was endorsed by Lance himself," Landis said in the ESPN.com interview. "And therefore Johan and the other guys that knew of it and were involved -- working with him, they'd understand the risks that I was taking as well and therefore trust me."

Landis also said he and Armstrong discussed the efficacy of the then-newly developed test for EPO in 2002.

In the e-mail to Johnson, Landis said he had blood extracted in 2003 inside the apartment Armstrong owned in the historic center of Girona, Spain, and that it was stored in a refrigerator there along with blood extracted from Armstrong and teammate George Hincapie. Landis said Armstrong asked him to stay in the apartment on one occasion while Armstrong was away in order to make sure the refrigerator did not malfunction.

He also said in the e-mail that a team doctor gave him and Hincapie, who he said was his roommate during the 2003 Tour de France, syringes filled with olive oil in which andriol, a form of testosterone that can be taken orally, had been dissolved.

Hincapie said he was disappointed to hear Landis' accusations.

"I have been a professional on the circuit for 17 years -- which is one of the longest careers in the peloton. During that time, I have earned the respect of my peers and a reputation for working hard, honestly and honorably," he said in a statement.

Landis further described personally seeing other riders receive transfused blood, including once on the team bus after a stage of the 2004 Tour de France, The bus driver stopped on a "remote mountain road" for an hour, pretending the bus had engine trouble while the entire team received transfusions, Landis said in the e-mail.

Landis, seeking his own chance to become a team leader, signed with the Phonak team before the 2005 season. In the e-mail to Johnson, the rider claimed that he negotiated with team owner Andy Rihs for extra money to cover the expenses of a doping program. Phonak was stung by several high-profile doping cases from 2004-06, including that of Landis' fellow American Tyler Hamilton, who was convicted of using banned transfusions.

Rihs issued a statement saying Landis' claims were "lies" and a "last, tragic attempt" to get publicity.

"Floyd Landis personally signed that he would uphold our code and use no illegal practices when he joined our former racing group," Rihs said.

The whole team was convinced that he was upholding this until his doping was revealed at the 2006 Tour.

"Neither I, nor the leadership of the team, knew that Floyd Landis doped," Rihs said.

The Wall Street Journal also reported details of Landis' e-mails Thursday morning.

Landis' doping conviction cost him his Tour title, his career, his life savings and his marriage. He said he knows his credibility is in tatters and that many people will choose not to believe him now. He added that he has no documentation for many of the claims he is making about other riders or officials, and that it will be his word against theirs.


However, Landis said he finally decided to come forward because he was suffering psychologically and emotionally from years of deceit, and because he has become a cycling pariah with little to no chance of ever riding for an elite team again. Prior to speaking with ESPN.com, he said he made his most difficult phone call -- to his mother in Pennsylvania to tell her the truth for the first time.

"I want to clear my conscience," Landis said. "I don't want to be part of the problem any more.


"With the benefit of hindsight and a somewhat different perspective, I made some misjudgments. And of course, I can sit here and say all day long, 'If I could do it again I'd do something different,' but I just don't have that choice."


Landis said he takes full responsibility for having doped on every occasion that he did it, and added he was never forced or threatened.


"I don't feel guilty at all about having doped," Landis told ESPN.com. "I did what I did because that's what we [cyclists] did and it was a choice I had to make after 10 years or 12 years of hard work to get there, and that was a decision I had to make to make the next step. My choices were, do it and see if I can win, or don't do it and I tell people I just don't want to do that, and I decided to do it."



According to Landis, his first use of performance-enhancing drugs was in June 2002, when he was a member of the U.S. Postal Service team. The World Anti-Doping Agency's statute of limitations for doping offenses is eight years, and Landis said that, too, is part of his motivation for divulging his inflammatory information.


"Now we've come to the point where the statute of limitations on the things I know is going to run out or start to run out next month," Landis said. "If I don't say something now, then it's pointless to ever say it."


Landis, who began his career as a top mountain biker, had kept detailed training journals since he was a teenager. He said he continued the same methodical record-keeping once he started using banned drugs and techniques. Landis said he spent as much as $90,000 a year on performance-enhancing drugs and on consultants to help him build a training regime. Landis said he has kept all of his journals and diaries and has offered to share them with U.S. anti-doping authorities in recent meetings. He added that he has given officials detailed information on how athletes are beating drug testing.


As for his own positive test, Landis still maintains that result was inaccurate and that he had not used synthetic testosterone during the 2006 season -- although he now admits he used human growth hormone during that time. At this point, he said he does not want to dwell on any of the issues he and his lawyers hammered at during his case.


"There must be some other explanation, whether it was done wrong or I don't know what," he said. "You can try to write it however you want -- the problem I have with even bothering to argue it is [that] I have used testosterone in the past and I have used it in other Tours, and it's going to sound kind of foolish to say I didn't."


Landis exhausted most of his own savings in fighting his case, which cost an estimated $2 million, and also raised funds for his defense in a well-publicized effort. He said he would pay those donors back if he could, but does not have the money to do so. He said he did not level with the people close to him, but declined to say whether he informed his lawyers of his past drug use.

Duh......

Real fitness comes from years of puritanical self-denial, the kind of stark existence that molds body and mind into a steely machine capable of stunning physical feats. Oh, and it also takes a few pints of good beer. It turns out that beer and fitness really do go hand-in-hand, despite the beverage’s bad reputation (beer bellies, dehydration, public drunkenness, bar brawls, frat boys, etc.) The delicious brew is chock-full of natural antioxidants and vitamins that can prevent heart disease and even help rebuild muscle, and we're going to let you in on precisely why beer and fitness belong together.

So go ahead and knock back a cold one. It’s good for you.

Good Beer vs. OK Beer

When it comes to health, some beers are better than others. Generally, dark beers pack more of an antioxidant punch than light beers (antioxidants help reverse the cellular damage caused by oxidizing compounds that naturally occur in your body).

Researchers at the University of Washington, bless their souls, found that dark beers —specifically Guinness — had greater health benefits than light lagers. Ironically, the old Guinness slogan was “A Guinness a day,” a thinly veiled promise of the beer’s health benefits. However, the company was forced to abandon the phrase decades ago.

Microbrews also tend to harbor more of the good stuff than mass-produced brews. For example, Men’s Health found that Avery Maharaja Imperial India Pale Ale contains 80 times the hops of big-brand lagers. Hops contain polyphenols, compounds that help lower cholesterol, fight cancer and kill viruses. So if you want maximum health benefits, spend a little more on the brew you imbibe.

Energy

Ounce-for-ounce, beer has one of the highest energy contents of any food or drink. Only pure fat can top it. So keep that in mind when you guzzle three or four at the local pub. Your average beer has about 120 calories, and four have as many calories as a Big Mac. That many calories can have dire consequences if you’re trying to lose weight. One beer after work probably won’t tip the scales in either direction, though. Drink beer in moderation and you won’t hold on to all those extra calories.

If you’re looking for an energy boost, beer is definitely not the answer. Alcohol is pure caloric fuel, but it does funny (and fun) things to your physiology — it makes you tired and sluggish. Beer and fitness do complement one another — as long as you're not trying to enjoy both at once.

Recovery

Work your muscles and they’ll start to fall apart. Your body rebuilds them, makes them stronger and gets them ready to face the next workout. Protein, carbs, vitamins, and specifically antioxidants help put things back together. The latest research has found that beer has almost as many antioxidants as red wine, which is saying something. So how do beer and fitness go together at the recovery stage? A dark beer a few hours after a workout can deliver a good dose of antioxidants. Still, you’ll probably want to reach for water and a healthy snack — like fruit and yogurt — immediately following your routine at the gym.

Hydration

Think that the alcohol in beer will dry you out? Think again. Researchers at the Granada University in Spain have found that beer can provide better hydration than water in some instances, like after a workout. Professor Manuel Garzon, the head of this study on beer and fitness, asked students to sweat it out in 104 degree weather. Then he gave half of the students water and the other half beer. He found that the students who had a pint were slightly more hydrated. So does this mean that you should slam a cold one after a run? Probably not. While beer is 93 percent water and appears to hydrate you better than H2O alone, it’s not the best thing after exercise. Drink water and have a piece of fruit instead. However, don’t pass up a pint the night before a big workout for fear of dehydration — seems that some beer won’t dry you out as much as you thought.

LAGER LESSONS

Benjamin Franklin once said, “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” Whether you’re religious or not, you can probably agree that beer is proof of some sort of positive force in the universe. It makes you feel great and helps heal a broken body (and, sometimes, a broken soul). Drink beer in moderation — too much of a good thing, even beer, can be very bad. Alcoholism can lead to liver problems, kidney disease, heart disease, and a shattered social life. However, it turns out that beer is good, even if you’re a fitness nut.

Schleck Yeah!

Galbraith Mountain to remain a haven for mountain bikers

BELLINGHAM - Galbraith Mountain will continue to be a playground for mountain bikers under a new agreement between the WHIMPs Mountain Bike Coalition and Polygon Financial of Bow, the new owner of 3,215 forested acres on the mountain.

It is essentially the same agreement WHIMPs had with the previous owner, Bellingham-based Trillium Corp.

The volunteer organization and Polygon entered the recreational use agreement Wednesday, May 5, allowing WHIMPs to continue maintaining and building mountain bike trails and features under approval from Polygon. Trails must be built to safety standards set by the International Mountain Biking Association.


The "revocable license" can be terminated by WHIMPs or Polygon at any time, with at least 10 days of written notice.

"WHIMPs stewardship of the mountain is recognized in this agreement. They are good partners on the mountain," said Blair Murray, owner of Tin Rock Management, which is managing the property for Polygon.

"There's no trash, it's clean, the trails are well-marked. There's information available at the kiosk. That's all their work," Murray said. "This agreement recognizes their role on the mountain."

Polygon will continue to allow the public to play on the mountain for free under the provisions of the state Recreational Use Immunity Act, which limits the liability of landowners who open their property to the public for recreation.

"The public is welcome to use the mountain for non-motorized recreational uses as long as they respect the mountain and know their limitations when it comes to riding or recreating on the mountain," Murray said. "It's important that they respect that it is in private ownership."

Mark Peterson, president of the mountain biking group, said the agreement allowed "Polygon to have confidence that there was a legitimate organization that was professional in how we help manage the trail system on their land."

"It allows us to effectively continue to manage the trail system on Galbraith Mountain," he added.

The WHIMPs had served as the official steward in the area for more than seven years under the previous agreement with Trillium, and its volunteers have built a network of trails totaling 42 miles on Galbraith. Located just east of Bellingham city limits, Galbraith is the common name for Lookout Mountain.

Peterson also praised Polygon for an agreement that "continues this incredible recreational opportunity."

Mountain bikers had used Galbraith as a playground for years before Trillium assumed ownership in 2001. Trillium's agreement with WHIMPs marked the first time bicycle use was officially recognized on the mountain since the sport came to Bellingham in the 1980s.

Over the years, the area also has become increasingly popular with runners and hikers.

Polygon became the owner of the Galbraith tract after Trillium ceded the property to Polygon "in lieu of foreclosure" on Oct. 22, according to property records on file with the Whatcom County auditor.

Trillium had an option that lasted until Oct. 16, 2010, to buy back the property from Polygon. Trillium surrendered the option Jan. 29.

Trillium acquired the property from Bloedel Timberlands and used it to help secure a $17 million loan from Idaho-based Old Standard Life Insurance Co. in 2002. Old Standard was an affiliate of Metropolitan Mortgage Co. of Spokane, which collapsed in 2004 and left thousands of investors in the lurch.

In 2005, when Old Standard was under the oversight of Idaho insurance regulators, the company sold its interest in the Galbraith property to Polygon with regulators' approval. That made Polygon the holder of the mortgage on the Trillium property.

Trillium has tried to start the process of getting the forestry-zoned land on Galbraith reclassified for eventual residential development. The Whatcom County Council voted against that request in 2006 and 2007.

Murray is in the midst of a 90-day assessment - "an internal review" of the property that he said will not be followed by a public announcement.

The baseline review will look at past and current use on the mountain, including timber and recreation.



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MORE ON GALBRAITH

• Read the new recreational use agreement signed by Polygon Financial of Bow, the new owner of the 3,215-acre Galbraith Mountain, and the WHIMPs Mountain Bike Coalition by going online to whimpsmtb.com/mountains.html.

• No fires are allowed on Galbraith Mountain, said Blair Murray, owner of Tin Rock Management, which is managing the property for Polygon.

He issued the warning Wednesday, May 12, after finding two fire pits on the forested tract earlier this week.

Murray said the fires - one in the middle of a road on the mountain and one on a promontory near some old timber slash - probably were lit over the weekend.

Follow Me at North Bend this weekend

Two top mountain-bike racers face impersonation charges

Two top Colorado mountain-bike racers face felony criminal-impersonation charges after allegedly cheating in last year's Leadville Trail 100.

Veteran endurance athlete Wendy Lyall, 36, used Katie Brazelton's entry number in the 2009 race, finishing second in the women's age 40-49 class.

"It probably would have gone unnoticed except the woman who did race came in second in her age group, and in front of a thousand people, one of them went up and stood on the podium and accepted the award and accepted the trophy and the prizes that went with it," race founder and organizer Ken Chlouber said.

Lyall has been charged with criminal impersonation, a Class 6 felony. Brazelton, 40, will face the same charge, District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said. Class 6 is the lowest felony charge.

"After talking with people in the race, this is something very serious," Hurlbert said.

The investigation began after Chlouber received an anonymous tip that Brazelton may not actually have pedaled in the 100-mile race.

When contacted by Chlouber and, later, by Lake County Sheriff Ed Holte, the women confessed to the deception. They returned the coveted belt buckle, pendant and necklace that came with second place and sent Chlouber a letter admitting their wrongdoing and offering "to do anything to rectify the situation."

"But the situation cannot be rectified," Chlouber said. "You can't go back in time and give those ladies who should have podiumed their time in the sun. That's gone."

Brazelton and Lyall could not be reached for comment.

The Leadville Trail 100 is Colorado's most-storied mountain-bike race, with more than 14,000 vertical feet of high-altitude climbing that clobbers even the most-hardened racers.

The crowning of last year's winner, cycling superstar Lance Armstrong, has elevated the formerly Colorado-centric race to a national contest, drawing the most-renowned racers in the country.

The soaring popularity has converted the race's entry lottery into a gone-in-minutes clamor for bib numbers. Entries are not refundable or transferrable, which is reiterated at every pre-race briefing, Chlouber said.

Just before last August's race, Chlouber said he received a call from a local bike-shop owner pleading for an entry number for Brazelton, who did not win a slot in the lottery. Chlouber granted the request.

"This truly is really sad for us," he said. "We try to do the right thing, and then people cheat."

It's unclear how Lyall bypassed the photo-ID check at registration, Chlouber said. It's also unclear whether Lyall or Brazelton, both from Vail, took the podium to accept the second- place trophy for finishing the race in 9 hours, 53 minutes and 27 seconds.

With Brazelton's name now removed from the Leadville Trail 100's list of 2009 finishers, Rachel Farrett of Parker climbs to second and Jacqui Wood of Carbondale moves to third.

Chlouber said Farrett and Wood will receive their trophies in a special ceremony before this year's race, which takes place Aug. 14.

Farrett said the trophy doesn't matter that much to her.

"I just race my best on that given day," she said.

Farrett remembers the woman who passed her on the race course had blond hair. The woman who accepted the trophy did not.

"I did not recognize her at all," said Farrett, who will race her third Leadville Trail 100 this year.

Wood, too, said the reward is more about personal accomplishment than any prize.

"But I think the whole deception thing is wrong. Not very cool at all," said Wood, who did not land an entry in this year's lottery.

Chlouber, who has banned Lyall and Brazelton from ever racing the Leadville Trail 100 again, said Wood will get the spot Lyall won in the January lottery for this year's race.

Charging the women criminally is going too far, said Vail athlete Sheryl Miller, a friend of Lyall's and Brazelton's and a longtime Leadville Trail 100 racer.

Miller said Brazelton could not race because of an injury and didn't want to waste the $250 fee.

"Wendy and Katie are passionate about this sport, and it was never about doing anyone harm or doing anything wrong. It was about getting an opportunity to race a great race," said Miller, who will race her 10th Leadville Trail 100 this summer and finished sixth in the 40-to-49 group last year. "I don't think it helps the organizers to make this such a big deal. They should just deal with it with Wendy and Katie directly."

Do you ride on the Burke-Gilman and Sammamish River Trails? To commute, for exercise, or out with your family?

Every five years we count the number of bicyclists and pedestrians who use these cherished trails. We use the information we collect to advocate for new and better bike facilities all around our region. When we ask for projects, it makes a big difference to know that thousands of people use our trails every day.

Do you have three hours to spare on Saturday, May 22 or Tuesday, May 25? If so, take our quick survey to let us know when, and where you're available. We'll have seven count locations, from Ballard to Redmond! You can see them on this handy map.

This year, we'll even study the Missing Link to bolster our efforts to build a safe trail.

Please sign up and we'll be in touch with you - you can finish a volunteer shift and take off for a ride down the trail!


Happy Bike Month, and I hope you can join us!

Tessa Greegor
Principal Planner
Cascade Bicycle Club

Be There or be Square

Whistler Opening Weekend
Area riders are tuning their bikes and getting out their gear as the Whistler Mountain Bike Park opens for daily operations Saturday, May 15 with 16 trails and two skills centers to feed their adrenaline lust.

Signature trails to open include: A-Line, Crank It Up, B-Line, Karate Monkey, Ninja Cougar, Heart of Darkness and many more. The current early-season conditions are for intermediate and above skill level. More trails, including more beginner terrain, will open up as snowpack allows. An updated list of open trails is available on whistlerbike.com.

Riders can also get some indoor practice in the Air Dome starting May 15. The Air Dome, an 8,400 square foot indoor bike training facility with foam pit and wooden ramps, is open Friday to Sunday until June 13; then daily until September 6.

“At Whistler Blackcomb we enjoy one of the longest ski seasons in North America, but once May rolls around the anticipation builds for mountain biking. Keen riders watch the snow melt at the crucial elevation of 1,000 meters knowing that the trail crew will be doing their best to clear the remaining snow patches for opening day,” said Brian Finestone, Whistler Mountain Bike Park manager. “The trails we have ready are in terrific shape for such an early start with more being added to the list every day. I can’t remember an opening weekend when trails were in better shape to kick off the season.”

The Bike Park is open daily from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. until June 18 and then from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. starting June 19 through to Labor Day. Access is available via the Fitzsimmons Express chairlift with the Whistler Village Gondola opening in late May.

Early season adult day tickets are $45. Bike Park season passes are available at 1-800-766-0449, online at whistlerbike.com or in person at the Village Guest Relations in the Whistler Gondola building. Riders can purchase their Bike Park passes at an Early Bird rate of $459 before June 19 ($499 after). Winter Edge Card and Season Pass holders are eligible to purchase a Bike Park pass for $449 all season long.

The Triple Play Card returns offering three days of riding in the Whistler Mountain Bike for the adult Early Bird price of $119, if purchased before June 19 ($129 after). Riders save on any additional days and enjoy the convenience of going directly to the lift by connecting their Triple Play Card to their credit card.

For those looking for opening day après, the GLC will be hosting a triple play of entertainment with two live musical acts and a second showing of Anthill’s new movie “Follow Me”. The fun begins in the afternoon with a live acoustic patio session with the Artist KO, followed up by the movie and closing off the night with Metallica cover band “Damage Inc.” The GLC is open daily throughout the summer at the base of the Bike Park and is the perfect spot to enjoy a sunny post-park patio session or an evening of live music, DJs and good times.

Goldfish Funeral - Click here for the funniest movie of the week

Mother's Day

Odd video done by Heath Ledger

Free Pizza

Check out the April 30 entry for details: http://www.viatribunali.blogspot.com/

Via Tribunali will give you a free pizza at one of their shops for the next 5 Wednesdays if you ride your bike there. In addition all proceeds from Peroni beer sales will be donated to a local bicycle related group.

Ahem.......

And a nice little story story about Jeff Lyon here, I've ridden 'em and I love 'em.