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Giant has announced their (possibly the) first-ever women’s specific 29er mountain bike.  The Rainier pulls from their XTC 29er hardtail (which we reviewed here) by using shaped, lightweight ALUXX aluminum tubing, but the women’s version is decidedly low spec in comparison…but also much lower in price at $700.

Spec’d with an SR / Giant suspension fork with steel steerer, SRAM X4 8-speed shifting and Hayes MX-4 mechanical disc brakes, it’s aimed at women just getting into the sport, which seems an odd choice for a company that’s only recently jumped into the 29er market.

Michael Delano, Giant’s NC/VA/DC account exec, says “The idea is to price it in such a manner that helps get more women on a mountain bike and give newbies a bit of a performance advantage when riding with friends, boyfriends and hubbies that may be more advanced.  My (bike shop) customers love the affordability of this bike, and we think this will help get more people on 29ers and mountain bikes in general.”

In contrast to the spec, Giant gave the Rainier performance oriented geometry (70.5º head angle / 73.5º (average) seat angle) and a decent frame (ALUXX is straight tube aluminum versus the butted, lighter ALUXX SL), making the bike not just a great entry level performer, but perfectly upgradable as you get better.  And, fortunately, they put a 100mm travel fork, so the geometry is set for any number of lighter, better 29er forks, too.

It’ll start hitting stores first of April.

ABOVE: Video from the inaugural race in 2009.

The Southern California High School Mountain Bike Racing Series follows up on a highly successful inaugural series with a five-race season that is attracting considerable attention from high school students across southern California. The season gets underway at the beautiful Vail Lake Resort near Temecula on March 14.

Matt Gunnell, the executive director of the League, can’t wait. “Last year our opener had 76 racers. This year we’re expecting over 130! We have a huge incoming class of freshman riders which bodes well for the growth of the League. We believe our program will not only be one of the keys to finding the next Lance Armstrong but, more importantly, will help provide a path to a healthy life and the love of a lifelong sport. In addition to providing a much needed competitive outlet, our program helps to instill an appreciation for and sense of stewardship of the outdoor spaces around us.”

Independent Racer Tiana Row said, “I am super excited for the start of the season and can’t wait to see how many more girls there are this year. I’m happy to be racing again for the SoCal League as the returning Varsity leader and just can’t wait for the first race!”

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URGENT! Proposed budget cuts in both Florida and New York are threatening to close not just trails, but entire State Parks and the offices and departments that run them.

From Gone Riding, a Southeast race promoter based in Ocala, FL, comes word that Senator Charlie Dean is proposing to close the OGT (Office of Greenways and Trails).  This is the group that OMBA and others have worked with so successfully to open and maintain many, many miles of cycling paths and trails throughout Central Florida.  This isn’t the first time this area has come under threat, but it’s the latest potential victim of the overall crappy economy and ever-shrinking income from things like property and sales tax as consumers make and spend less. (for more, read after the break and this…do this TODAY, FL Senate may vote on this TODAY!)

In New York, two members of the Finger Lakes Mountain Bike Club recently met with state senators in Albany to discuss the recent $70 million cut to the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF), which already had had $500 million siphoned from it’s coffers and diverted to other, unrelated programs over the past few years.  This cut eliminates money for land acquisition, trail maintenance and trail and park projects.  There’s even a proposal to just close state parks (but then where’s the money going to come from to fight the inevitable increase in obesity?)

What You Can Do:

Write your Senators.  Links and email addresses for the people involved for these states are after the break.  These are just two examples…likely there are similar issues in your state, or there will be soon.  Let the people in office know that state parks, trails and outdoor recreational facilities are vitally important to our nation’s health, character and enjoyment.  Most parks and recs departments are already cash strapped and running on fumes…tell them to pull funds from other departments or train employees to handle a broader spectrum of work.  For example, our local deeds office employees had extra time on their hands with the drop in home sales, so they were trained to handle other duties and now assist with other city and/or county offices.  This keeps people employed and makes the most of their time.  That, and unpaid two-day furloughs now and then.

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NAHBS 2010 - Looking for a mix-n-match wheel size full suspension mountain bike?  Kent Eriksen’s got you covered.  Shown here is his A.S.K. full suspension bike with Cannondale’s Lefty suspension fork and a Yeti carbon rear triangle that’s running a 650b wheel on the front and standard 26″ rear wheel.

While the Yeti rear end will only work with a 26″, they can also use a long travel Ventana set up and put anything from 26″ to 650b to 29er wheels on there.

The front triangle is titanium and fully custom built to fit you.  As shown, it weighs about 21.3lbs and has 3.75″ of travel.  The complete bike here costs $9,857.00, and the frame and shock with custom tubesets and build would set you back $3,675.

They also had a sweet mountain bike frame with EBB set up for a Rohloff internally geared hub and rack mounts, plus new colors and seatposts.  Check ‘em after the break…

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Snafu, largely a BMX brand, is introducing two new Dirt Jump / Freeride mountain bikes called the Crenshaw (above) and Hawthorne.  Here’s the deal from Jeremie at Sidewall Distribution, who’s kickin’ it in Taiwan for the Taipei bike show and sneakin’ some peeks (NOTE: the products referenced are items carried by Sidewall):

Since arriving in Taiwan last week, I’ve been teasing out photos of SNAFU’s new complete bikes…until now, however, none of the photos have shown either machine in full livery or spec.

Truth be told, these photos don’t show the final graphics, either—the seat mast and chainstay stickers are still at the printer.

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NAHBS 2010 - Kelly Bedford was showing off his all-new TiComp titanium 29er mountain bike, using one made for U23 World Champion Aleksandra Dawidowicz Polish World Cup Pro Aleksandra Rokita Mooradian as a fine example. Built as shown with SRAM XX and the Rockshox Reba XX 29er fork, it weighed in at 20.5lbs with pedals.

Bedford, who built for Serotta for 20+ years had plenty of other bikes on display, too, yours to see after the break…

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Soul Cycles has announced that their new Vegas all-mountain full suspension bike is in production, and it’ll be available in both 26″ and 29er versions.

Featuring a full 5.5″ of travel, it’ll also be the deal of the century if they nail their target price point of under $1,000…and that would include a Fox RP23 shock (which has a street price of about $395 by itself).  The feature set is impressive: Hammerschmidt mounts and front derailleur routing, 10- and 12mm rear axle options, iGlide based scissor linkage for rear lateral stiffness and a low-leverage travel ratio.

The frame will be built of Easton FS RAD tubing.  Keep tabs on them on their blog if you’re interested.

Above, a batch of tack welded rear triangles for the redesigned Niner Jet 9 are getting ready to take a solution bath to ensure that they’re “clean, clean, clean” before being fully welded.  Niner co-owner Steve Domahidy is in Taiwan overseeing the first production run, and he’s updating the Niner Facebook page with quasi-real time posts about how it’s going, pictures and general information about a bicycle production run.  Check it out…we know you’re Facebooking anyway and your Farmville pigs can tend to themselves for a few moments.

“2010_tcc_dallas(4 of 18)” by Bicycle Geography (Subaru Trail Care Crew). Check with your local bike shop or group for the next trail day in your area and give some love to the trials that love you back every time you ride!

To see more Pics of the Day, click here, and to submit your own photo to be shown to the world, go here.

Here’s how they describe it: “We’ve got a guy, a girl, the biggest Sprinter van money can buy, a trailer, and about 30 of our best bikes all equipped with the finest offerings from the folk listed below. They are going to be traveling the highways of this great land, from dealer to dealer, stopping at trailheads along the way, spreading the gospel of better living through better suspension.”

Check the full Santa Cruz Bicycles demo schedule after the break to see if they’re coming to a trail near you (hint, if you’re on the East Coast, you’re SOL)…

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Moots has teamed up with Dirt, Sweat & Gears as the title sponsor to assist with IMBA/SORBA’s continuing efforts to provide trail accessibility for the Southeast mountain biking community. In addition to event support, Moots will donate one of its signature handcrafted titanium mountain bike frames for the Dirt, Sweat & Gears grand prize drawing. 2010 marks the second year of Moots’ two-year sponsorship commitment to Dirt, Sweat & Gears and IMBA/SORBA.

Each $10 donation to IMBA/SORBA is an opportunity to take home a handcrafted Moots titanium mountain bike frame. Tickets can be purchased on the Moots and Dirt, Sweat & Gears websites, and through online race registration at BikeReg.com. One lucky recipient will be announced at the Dirt, Sweat & Gears awards ceremony on Saturday, May 15.

“Moots is psyched to team up with Dirt Sweat & Gears to promote trail advocacy”, said Rob Mitchell, president of Moots Cycles. “As one of the Southeast’s most friendly and festive mountain bike events, DSG brings hundreds of bike enthusiasts together. It’s an ideal opportunity to further awareness about the importance of trail preservation and development.”

The fourth annual Dirt, Sweat, & Gears (DSG) endurance mountain bike race festival is scheduled for May 14 and 15, 2010 in Fayetteville, TN. The 12-hour DSG race event on Saturday May 15, is one of five on USA Cycling’s Mountain Bike National Ultra-Endurance Calendar.

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PRESS RELEASE: Felt Bicycles is proud to announce it is continuing its sponsorship of the Mafia Racing off-road team in 2010. The Colorado-based Mafia Racing program started in 2007 and has grown each year to extend its reach to the national level while still remaining true to its grassroots community-based focus.

Joining the Mafia team this year are former Under-23 National Champion Sam Jurekovic of Colorado and three-time Utah State Cross-country champion Kathy Sherwin. Also new to the team this year is Tristan Schouten, a versatile road and cross-country rider and also a standout cyclocross racer, winning the 2010 Wisconsin state cyclo-cross champion and placing top-10 at the US Grand Prix of Cyclocross’ Planet Bike Cup.

Returning to Mafia Racing in 2010 is Becca Blay, who had a strong 2009 season, finishing fourth in the Mountain States Cup and finishing in the top-20 at the USA Cycling Mountain Bike Nationals in Granby, Colorado, last summer. Also back with the team is Jake Wells, whose strong 2009 cyclo-cross season culminated with a 12th place finish at the U.S. National Championships in Bend, Oregon. And finally, Seth Wealing will continue representing Mafia at XTERRA competitions. Wealing is a perennial favorite and former national champion in the off-road multisport competition series.

“We’re excited to be continuing our support of the Mafia Racing program in 2010,” said Jim Felt, the company namesake of Felt Bicycles. “It’s a unique program that accomplishes a lot with both its racing results and its community outreach efforts. Felt shares those same values, and this continues to be a great partnership.”

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