You may recognize the name BasqueMTB as we’ve featured a few of their pictures on our Pic Of The Day feature!

PRESS RELEASE: New for 2010, BasqueMTB and UKBikeSkills training camps in the Basque Country.

Tony “Jedi” Doyle and his team at UK Bike Skills are probably the most versatile bike coaches in the UK at the moment. Working with Doug at basqueMTB to take you on the varied technical trails of the Basque Country they guarantee to return you to the UK a better rider. The varied terrain makes the area ideal for developing a wide base of skills which will translate well to your home trails.

With five days of training, some uplift, video analysis along with plenty of riding this will be an intensive week but plenty of time will be allowed to discuss the days learning over local food and drinks in the evenings. Group sizes will be kept small so limited places are available. Camps will be scheduled based on demand from April through October, so dates are flexible.

Further details are available at www.basquemtb.com and www.ukbikeskills.co.uk.

PRESS RELEASE: PORTLAND, Ore. – The two headline events of the 2009 Oregon Manifest – the Constructor’s Design Challenge and Rapha-produced multi-terrain race – were both dazzling successes recently in Portland: The Design Challenge attracted 29 creative bike designs from the nation’s most-accomplished custom frame builders – each a stunning, innovative solution to creating the ultimate transportation bike. And the Rapha-sponsored and organized 77-mile race from the Coast Range foothills to downtown Portland proved a worthy test of both rider mettle and bike metal.

When the judging and racing were complete, Tony Pereira of Pereira Cycles of Portland, Ore., earned first prize in the Constructor’s Design Challenge, with his exquisite steel-framed machine. Mike Rath of Portland’s Sprout Cycles came home first in the Rapha-produced race, covering the variable, grueling terrain in a time of 4 hours, 56 minutes.

Click ‘more’ for a list of Constructor’s Design Challenge and race results and a picture of the winner’s bike.

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“Bicycling Skeletons” by D G H.

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Ritchey has a Fit Logic poster available to retail shops by mail and to anyone via downloadable PDF. It explains their philosophy behind the range of sizes, angles, widths and drops on their road components (stems, handlebars and seatposts). It’s a bit of a bummer that it doesn’t get into how to choose the right sizes, particularly with regards to handlebar width and drop, it’s still something to look at besides those TPS reports you’re toiling away on.

Download the PDF here.

The International Cycling Union (UCI) has posted a response on their website to a report from the French Anti  Doping Agency (AFLD) relating to anti-doping activities at the 2009 Tour de France. It’s a long and detailed response to accusations Mr. Bordry of the AFLD made earlier this month that during the Tour the UCI was being preferential to Team Astana (when will they leave Lance alone?) and other (how do you say ‘nit-picky’ in french?) allegations. The UCI stated that they had a partnership agreement with AFLD to test riders during Le Tour and that AFLD undermined that partnership by not communicating directly with them over it’s concerns before making accusations through the press. Read the full 12 page rebuttal here.

With my limited knowledge of french, I have only two things to say: C’est la vie (such is life, or, what will be will be with the AFLD)…, and Déjà vu (seems like the same thing all over again…).

INTERBIKE 2009 – Breezer showed off their two new hardtail mountain bikes, the steel Lightning Team (above) and alloy Thunder Comp. Both are built with triple butted, hydroformed tubes with signature Joe Breeze frame details, dropouts and disc brake mounts.

The heavily shaped tubes give the bikes an elegant but fast appearance, and they’re spec’d well. The Lightning gets full Shimano XT drivetrain and hubs with Mavic rims, Fox fork, Schwalbe Rocket Ron tires and a Ritchey WCS cockpit. For $3,749, you’ll roll up the start line ready to rock.

Ka-Chow! Hit ‘more’ for detail photos and as Lightning McQueen would say, what “always comes after Lightning…”

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“Simon Garstin” submitted by Derek Waterman, who writes: “Canada’s Simon Garstin about to dive into the rock garden at Mount Stromlo in Canberra, Australia during the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships.”

To see more Pics Of The Day, click here.

If you’d like to submit a picture for our Pic Of The Day, click here.

(Editor: Full feature writeup on OgilvyBikes coming soon!)

NEW YORK /PRNewswire/ — Supporting efforts to reduce its carbon footprint and LEED application for its new green headquarters at the Chocolate Factory on 11th Avenue, Ogilvy & Mather New York has launched the City’s first corporate bike sharing program.

The program includes the creation of 150 covered bicycle spaces in the agency’s new garage to house the 50 Breezer bicycles the agency purchased, and to accommodate the growing number of agency employees who bicycle to work every day. Some 200-plus agency employees have already taken a bicycle safety course offered by NY Bikes, and the agency is offering free helmets for those who join the program and want to use the loaner bicycles. Shower facilities are available to those who participate in the OgilvyBikes program.

“When we moved to our new building we purposefully incorporated as many green elements as possible, underscoring sustainability as an important business objective for Ogilvy,” explained Gunther Schumacher, Chief Operating Officer of Ogilvy & Mather North America and lead driver of the OgilvyBikes program. “The OgilvyBikes program comes at a time when the City is opening up streets for bicycles and a greater number of our staff is looking to be part of a movement driving environmental change close to home, while getting fit and having fun at the same time.”

Click ‘more’ for the rest of the press release.

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The Outlier Merino Hoodie is now available for the low low price of $225. Made of superfine New Zealand wool which is naturally anti-microbial and is great at wicking away moisture. This hoodie could become your year-round go-to garment of choice. And, hey, if you wear it year round you could maybe justify that price!

FROM OUTLIER’S PRESS RELEASE:

No fiber reacts to changing situations the way Merino does. Cools you as you heat up, warms you as you cool down. It wicks sweat away from your body yet retains it’s insulation abilities when wet, and all the while it never stinks of BO the way cotton and polyester do. It’s the perfect go-to garment, from early fall till late spring, the Outlier Merino Hoodie.

Available in Charcoal Blue, Black and Mid-Gray. $225 at www.outlier.cc

Click ‘more’ for more pics of the hoodie in action on Alleycat Champion Austin Horse at Brooklyn’s Machine Works Workshop and a closeup of the hoodie’s styling…

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Finisterre is releasing their new Storm Track jacket on Nov. 5.  It’s made of recycled Polyester in a Rip Stop pattern and, while not technically a cycling jacket, it has a lot of cycling-friendly features.

For example, the hood fits over helmets…cycling, helmet or otherwise…and it packs away when not needed.  The front visor section has an internal wire edge reinforced peak to adjust, and the front of the hood can cinch up to cover your mouth and nose, or just snug up to the base of your chin.  The back has an extended “drip skirt” that folds inward to a drawstring, meaning it hangs down over the rear to keep rain (or wheelspray) from hitting the seat of your pants.  It also has Riri Aqua waterproof zippers, Velcro adjust cuffs and zippered side vents.

The lining is Finisterre’s Nappa warp knitted polyester to aid breathability, and the shell is 100% water- and wind-proof.  Weight is 600g, and MSRP is £280. It’s made in Great Britain and comes with a Lifetime Guarantee.  Hit ‘more’ for a side view of the green color…

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Sotheby’s is getting ready to auction off Lance Armstrong’s custom Trek bicycles on Sunday, November 1, 2009 at 7pm in New York. Proceeds will benefit Livestrong, and all seven custom bikes are there to bid on: Yoshitomo Nara, Kaws (above), Shepard Fairey, Damien Hirst, Kenny Scharf, Mark Newson and even the Project One time trial bike that was stolen from the Tour of California! Here’s Lance’s letter about the auction, more pics of the bikes after the break:

It’s not about the bike. Never has been. But if 2009 taught us anything, it’s that change is truly the only constant in life.

When I returned to professional cycling this year to address the global cancer burden, I needed every bit of ammunition I could find. To help engage the creative community in this mission, I invited six very different artists to customize my Trek racing bikes to raise awareness for the STAGES art show benefiting LIVESTRONG that debuted in Paris during the Tour de France.

Presented in conjunction with Nike and featuring more than 20 of the most important established and upcoming artists in the world, STAGES brought an incredibly diverse range of painters, sculptors and photographers together in a visual dialogue about cancer – a disease that touches everyone and is expected to be the leading cause of death worldwide by 2010. The results were nothing short of incredible, and these bikes you see now proved to be the perfect rolling billboards for this unprecedented collection.

I’m not a gearhead, and my garage is anything but a cycling museum, but I can honestly say that letting go of my bikes has never been harder. From Damien Hirst’s masterpiece Tour de France “finale” Trek Madone covered in real butterflies, to the KAWS “Chompers” cycle that I broke my collarbone on in the Vuelta Castilla y León, every ride is a treasured piece of personal history that I’m proud to offer up to benefit LIVESTRONG.

Each of these artists gave their time freely to this cause, and, because of their generosity, all proceeds from the sale of these bikes will go directly to help LIVESTRONG continue to inspire and empower people affected by cancer. Through the dollars that we raise, we’ll increase awareness, fund research, and work to end the stigma about cancer that many survivors face. For the first time in my life, I can now say, “it’s about the bike” and mean it.

Please bid generously and LIVESTRONG,

Lance Armstrong

Hit ‘more’ to see the rest of the bikes…

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“First Cold Ride” submitted by Rob Fowler.

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