In response to increased cycling among its population, Australia has introduced tough new measures for cyclists that kill or seriously injure pedestrians.

Australian road minister Tim Pallas said “Cycling is becoming a legitimate form of transport. But with (that) comes increased responsibility.  This Government will come down hard on bad behavior because there is a real consequence.

Hard is right.  A cyclist that has demonstrated dangerous, careless or reckless behavior (that has presumably caused physical harm) may now get up to 5 years in jail or a $68,000 fine.  Ouch!  Full story here here video, or hit ‘more’ to see the full list of penalties…

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The UCI World Cup #5 was held in Maribor, Slovenia June 20th and 21st. Riders spent several days in the blistering heat practicing on the bone dry courses. During the last hour of practice before the races began, a relentless thunderstorm poured for several hours forcing a postponement of the down hill races.

The sloppy technical conditions made for very interesting and intense rounds of racing. Several riders took hard crashes including Sam Hill who is now in 3rd overall. The Mens 4x (below) was won by 9th seed, Joost Whichman who had been taking impressive and daring turns all day.

 

Check out FreecasterTV and BikeMag for more result information…

We interviewed Rebecca Rusch, pro mountain biker and former National and World Solo 24 Hour Champion, at the 2009 Cowbell Challenge about her adventure racing background, where and what she’s up to next and a quick run down of her 2010 Specialized Era full suspension mountain bike.  Check it out…and more pro bike videos from the Cowbell coming as soon as we get them edited and uploaded.

PRESS RELEASE: Hincapie Sportswear will release “35 Years, 677,000 Kilometers, 81 Minutes: A Ride with George Hincapie,” a documentary film on the life of one of America’s greatest cyclists. The official movie trailer for this feature-length documentary can be viewed at www.aridewithgeorge.com.

“We are super excited about this new film,” said George Hincapie, Tour de France Stage Winner and co-owner of Hincapie Sportswear. “I think it will give people a really unique look at what my life is like racing and training all over the world. Chusy’s really talented and this is not like any documentary you’ve seen before.”

Directed by Anthony “Chusy” Haney-Jardine, whose last film “Anywhere, USA” won a Special Jury Prize at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, “35 Years, 677,000 Kilometers, 81 Minutes: A Ride With George Hincapie” features a unique look into the private life of professional cyclist George Hincapie. The film captures the emotion behind the athlete and explores what motivates one of the world’s greatest cyclists. Lance Armstrong, Christian Vande Velde, David Zabriskie, Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwin and many other top level professionals and cycling personalities share candid stories and insights about Hincapie and his incredible journey to the highest level of the sport.

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Cowbell Challenge: Marathon, Saturday, June 20, 2009
With the heat index hovering in the 115 range, racers in the Cowbell Challenge Marathon took off from downtown Davidson, NC, at 10 am. Six and one-quarter miles of hard surface to get to the dirt and Fisher Farm, and 6 laps of climbs, rock gardens and great single track. Harlan Price (Independent Fabrication) took the top spot on the Men’s Pro Open podium, and also posted the fastest lap on the 8-milecourse at 37:52.389. Just one minute and 22 seconds behind him, Jaifer Beizer (Jittery Joe’s U25 p/b Kudzu.com) finished in second. Aaron Oakes (Bulldog/Cycle Craft) finished in third. Nine men finished on the lead lap.

On the Women’s Pro Open side, Carey Lowery (Outdoor Store/Specialized) determined that “third time’s the charm,” took top honors from Rebecca Rusch (Specialized/Red Bull), who finished strong but behind Carey by sis minutes and 15 seconds. Carey also scored the fastest lap for the field with a time of 44:26.151. Rebecca Tomaszewski (Niner Bikes/Ergon) took third. Eight women in the 12-racer field completed the full six laps in the punishing heat.

Kenda Cup East Cross Country, Sunday, June 21, 2009
In Sunday’s Cross country events, Thomas Turner (Out Spoken/Specialized) and Sam Koerber (Gary Fisher 29er Crew) battled in a sprint to the finish, with Tom taking the win by just 2 seconds, and both averaging lap times of just under 34 minutes for the 8 mile course. Robert Marion (Kenda/KMC/Hayes) finished third, just under 11 seconds behind Sam. Travis Livermon took fourth, with Ryan Woodall coming in fifth.

Jamie Dinkins(Motor Mile Racing) stood at the top of the podium for the Women’s Pro, finishing 16 seconds ahead of Anina Aaron (Heart’s Racing Club) came in second, followed by Johanna Kraus in third, Kylie Krass (Independent Fabrications) in fourth and Philicia Marion (Kenda/KMC/Hayes)in fifth place.

Marathon Results: http://www.mylaps.com/results/showrun.jsp?id=1187382&perclass=1
Cross Country Results: http://www.mylaps.com/results/showevent.jsp?id=436231

It’s not the most exciting mountain bike video in the world, and technically I think he was a bit ahead of the train (even the 2nd time), but it sure beats doing work at work.

On June 27, Portland will be “buzzing” with excitement about The eBike Store opening at 201 N. Alberta Ave.  It’s the city’s first all Electric Bike store, and they’ll carry (among other things) the Currie Trailz, a $600 seven-speed mountain bike that which travels between eight and 13 miles on one charge. The $3,000 Schwinn Tailwind also charges fully in less than 30 minutes with a removable charger.

Via the Portland BizJournal, sales of electric bikes in the United States climbed 60 percent in 2008, according to owner Wakefield Gregg. Bicycle traffic on Portland’s four bike-friendly bridge rose 15 percent from 2007 to 2008.

• Optimized Geometry to ride “in” the bike not “on” it.
• Special, Giant-designed Rim  with a square profile to offer a stiffer wheel, which they claim will offer a better ride.
• Frame tube manipulation to optimize stiffness.
• Tapered steering tube.

The first two models making their way to stores are the 29er “2″, which should hit next week, and the “1″ should follow about a week later.  This info comes from leaked internal sales rep documents

Hit ‘more’ for specs and more pics…

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Running the throughout the Volunteer State from September 13 – 19, the 2009 Bicycle Ride Across Tennessee (BRAT) begins in West Tennessee at Paris Landing State Park. Check-in begins after 1:00 p.m. on the 12th. The terrain on this year’s route will vary greatly each day. There will be hills, river valleys and even some flat terrain. This year’s BRAT will be less Mountainous than the past years.  Expect beautiful rural Tennessee scenery and back roads, a promise the BRAT keeps every year!

Official event site is here, and more info is here.  Proceeds benefit The Cumberland Trail Conference (CTC), a non-profit dedicated to the creation and preservation of the Cumberland Trail State Park

Adding fuel to the rumor that Rockstar may be developing a mountain bike (or some sort of cycling) video game, they sponsored the Harlem Skyscraper Cycling Classic this past weekend.

Interestingly, as BikeBiz notes, the logo used is the pink Rockstar games logo for their London development office:

Well, little did we know when we posted our call to action earlier today that Texas Governor Rick Perry had already veto’d the bills in question.  Perry, a cyclist himself, has pretty much left the cycling crowd in the Lone Star State speechless with this remark:

“While I am in favor of measures that make our roads safer for everyone, this bill contradicts much of the current statute and places the liability and responsibility on the operator of a motor vehicle when encountering one of these vulnerable road users.”

Great…maybe that’s his SUV in the background.  And maybe we cyclists should take responsibility to avoid cars on the road…because, you know, that makes sooo much sense.

Lance, I don’t know if the rumors and speculation are true, but if you ever felt like running for office down there, here’s a great topic to launch from.  More here,  and if you want to call his office and tell ‘em what you think, here’s the number: 512-463-2000.

Kranked REVOLVE, the latest freeride / fantasy mountain bike video drops later this month with the North American premiere happening at Press Camp in Idaho.  We’d be there, but our invitation *ahem* was lost in the mail…

Hit ‘more’ to see three “reject” trailers featuring the likes of Sam Hill and James Doerfling…

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