I wasn’t expecting to have a blast on a road/race bike this weekend, but I did. In truth, this was my first time at the Kenda Bikefest and I wasn’t sure what to expect. As it turns out, the weekend was filled with extremes. Mild weather, and incredible blue skies interspersed with intimidating thunderstorms in the night hours. The Dirt Rag crew had arrived on site Wednesday during a downpour that would have Noah looking for building material. Camping that night was under deep darkness, lit up by electrical fire, and the air rumbled with thunder bouncing around on the mountaintops. I didn’t expect that. It was awesome and humbling at once. Luckily, clear weather broke the next day and the site dried out fast. The cooler air the storm brought in set the stage for sweet riding conditions on Friday and Saturday with a nice breeze and the bluest of blue skies.

Wet roots made for some slick cornering on the trails I rode on Friday and Saturday, but the flow was nice and switchbacks made the climb up less strenuous. There were a few fords to cross on the way to and from the trail. It made for a nice cool down after the ride and a fun place to hang out and snap pictures.

By Sunday, the skies were clear but threatening and the festival winding down. With a bit of time to kill, my partner Dan and I wandered around the vendor area checking out the demo bikes. I ended up on the road bike out of sheer curiosity. Everyone about camp had been ogling the German engineered Storck Road Bikes available for demo and I guess I wanted to see what was up with the super skinny tires. They looked a bit alien and I was suspicious on how I would adapt to such a high end machine. The kind folks from Hawley USA who were demoing the bikes, set me up on the light weight (1180g/2.6lbs) Storck Scenario C 1.1 and Dan on the Scenario CD 1.0 (1080g/2.3lbs). The run down on both these bikes are impressive; both touting the proportional tubing that Stock feels is key to matching frames to rider’s size and weight plus the Storck Carbon Fiber Technology.

The two lane State Road 43 runs along the festival site and is newly paved, not too busy and exceptionally well maintained. It took only a few moments of hesitant pedaling-I am after all used to my mountain bike-to adapt to the bike balance. We started out north taking on the rolling hills with ease. To my surprise and delight, I didn’t even have to try on this bike. It just eats up the miles and after awhile you feel like maybe you’re pedaling just for something to do. It feels that nice. All in all, not what I had expected. After a bit we turned around and retraced our route to the festival and then overshot the venue to check out the climb up Brodie Mountain Road.Here is where the only bummer came into play. My seat tube had initially felt ok, but as the ride progressed, I noticed the seat was a tad too high. Unfortunately, it would only drop so far, which was a smidge not far enough. Each of my down strokes became a bit of a punishment a short ways up the climb. It was crushing having to stop because of this. I had already climbed further and gone farther than I had anticipated. But turning around and flying back down the road was a thrill and I’m not one to usually let speed slip through my hands.I did have a fleeting moment of concern thinking how hard I would hit the pavement if something did go awry, but as it turns out, the worst injury I received this weekend wasn’t from riding. It was from stumbling out of my tent in the wee hours and tripping over the rainfly line on my neighbor’s (Andy) tent, falling on the propane canister and gashing my knee. Go figure.So now I know what to expect. A little bit of rain, plenty of sun, good bourbon courtesy of Lee Hollenbeck and music to relax to thanks to Captain Dondo and and Charlie Kelley. Yeah. That was fun.

As we previously reported, the Mountain’s Edge 2008 Cactus Cup is scheduled for September 19th – 21st, 2008 in Las Vegas, NV. The latest incarnation of this venerable event sticks with the tried and true Cactus Cup formula, combining a three-day festival and a mountain bike stage race.

The latest news is that the Cactus Cup is offering a total prize purse of $25,000, and a percentage of registration fees payback pool to all male and female categories, which include Pro, Semi-Pro (men’s class only, no women’s class available), Expert, Sport and Beginner.

“The percentage of entry fees payback-awarded to registered racers creates a prize pool so that larger, more competitive classes have larger cash purses. Each class has a guaranteed prize list with a varying percentage of entry fees added to this guarantee,” explains Ravi Rajcoomar, managing director for Swagger (the company putting on the race). “While the top levels have a chance to win money, we created incentives for those new to racing, who are in the Beginner category, so they can reinvest in their own cycling.”

Registration is now open at www.cactuscuplasvegas.com. The stage race and optional omnium format (where racers compete in individual events and are assigned points for performance) for Expert through Beginner categories includes the Exploration Peak Time Trial, Super D, and the Cottonwood Cross Country. The Fat Tire Criterium is only available as a part of a full stage race registration.

Expert, Sport and Beginner categories are offered in the following age groups: 18-and-under, 19-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54 and 55+ (based on USA Cycling racing age classes). Age classes with fewer than 10 entries will be combined with the closest lower age group (55+ and 18-and-under excluded).

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! Handlebar to handlebar racing action! Thrills, chills and spills. Mud, blood and gears. Bring your camera!

One of the best parts about the KendaFest is the opportunity for attendees to be right in the thick of things, just as much as us journalists, as far as new bike products go. There were a lot of opportunities for folks to not only see, but to ride the latest offerings from a large and varied group of bike manufacturers. There were also many parts and accessories companies on hand, some also offering demos, many offering deals on their wares. (Quite a few stuffed shopping bags were spotted on Sunday.)

One of the most interesting things we saw on display was not for sale, but was actually a venue: EcoPioneer’s Alpha Tent. This was the place to watch Le Tour at the Fest. It’s basically a “green” tent installation designed for outdoor events put together by Wingnut head honcho Scott Gibson out of a combination of products. The tent’s electricity for modern conveniences is produced with a combination of wind and solar power, courtesy of a neat little wind turbine and a bank of thin, foldable, durable solar panels from Global Solar. The whole thing is delivered to a site via a military surplus 4×4 converted to run on veggie oil. Scott has been developing his system for some years now—in 2006 he put together the VIP Lounge, a true oasis in the desert, for the Interbike Dirt Demo—and has some really cool and far-reaching ideas for the future.

The folks from Moots drove some 2,500 miles out from Colorado to be at the Fest, and they made it count by showing off their lineup plus two new bikes: an updated Zirkel and a 26″/29″ combo, the Gristle. The new Zirkel edition has its travel increased from 3″ to 4″, which according to Moots rider Ruthie Matthes, makes the bike “right there.” Lucky Festers got to ride one of the first six made.

The Gristle’s name was inspired by a 96oz. steak in the movie “The Great Outdoors” (you gotta see it to get it). It’s a custom offering that will be available as a hardtail, softail or the 3″-travel version shown here. It was brought to life to fill Moots staffer Jon Cariveau’s racing needs, and should fill those of anyone who likes the stability of a 29″ front wheel combined with the acceleration of a 26″ rear wheel.

On display, but sadly off-limits to eager demo-seekers (being only one of a handful that yet exist), was Trek’s new downhill and freeride platform, the Session. It’s got the same innovative Active Braking Pivot rear suspension design as the Fuel EX, and weighs less than 40lbs. even in DH configuration. First production bikes should ship in October. Trek’s hardworking booth keeper had to hide this sick-looking bike by the end of the weekend.

Here’s a shot of one of Titus’ futuristic Exogrid bikes, a TRX cyclocross steed made out of True Temper OX Platinum steel tubes reinforced from the inside with carbon fiber. The tubeset’s pattern of diamond carbon windows is not just for looks, it turns out; it’s a way of combining the best characteristics of both metal and carbon. Cyclocross bikes in general were prominent display items throughout the expo, as New England is a hotbed of ‘cross action.

OK, now this is stupid-light, but I want one: Storck had a carbon-fiber hardtail that weighed in, fully built except for pedals, at a freakish 16lbs., the Rebellion 1.0. Storck’s representative gave the frame weight in grams: 1080g, to be exact. I imagine the booth-workers had to tie that thing down during the windier times. Storck’s bikes were among the more popular demo items, and riders could be seen lofting bikes with amazed looks on their faces.

Pivot is another company that traveled across the country to be here (and to visit the DRHQ earlier this month), and their demo bikes saw heavy action all three days. Justin just recently received a 429 and used it for our Expert Ride at Intermediate Pace to start off his testing.

Three days of awesomeness. This is the second installment of our documentation of the Kenda Fest Presented By Dirt Rag.

There was so much going on at the Kenda Fest, it was tough to keep track: group rides for everyone from kids on up to hardcores (and even some for those roadie people), skills clinics, tech seminars, mud-slogging and wheelie contests, a scavenger hunt, and a lot more. But the best thing about the Fest was the laid-back, convivial atmosphere. It was an old-fashioned mountain biking hoedown.

The Mud Bog Contest has been a staple of the Fest for quite a few years now. “Cheating” by carrying your bike was allowed. That’s announcer extraordinaire Richard Fries in the background, still dressed in cycling gear from a ride but doing a kickass job on the microphone. (Don’t worry—no trails were harmed in the making of the bog.)

Fortunately  no children were lost in the bog.

Although there were no races at this event (which helped to keep that laid-back atmosphere), plenty of pros were on hand to share their skills. Eric Carter was spotted leading out the wheelie contest, Marla Streb gave a thorough five-hour downhill clinic, and various other way-too-fit-looking people in spotless team kit could be seen riding along on the trails with us mere mortals. It’s one thing to spectate at a race and spot your favorite pro on the other side of the tape; it’s quite another to get to ride along behind him or her and try to match moves.

We held tech seminars in our Dirt Rag Salon big tent, derailleur adjustment on Friday and suspension tuning on Saturday. We also had a special guest, Frank “The Welder” Wadelton, give a talk on frame materials and geometry to a rapt audience that included a few framebuilders, both novice and experienced, who were eager to learn from a master.

Here Justin and Karen go through the steps of setting up air pressure in shocks.

The EMS folks (well, one of them) also held a downhill bike tuning seminar that our own huckster, Andrew Crumpler, was very interested in.

The EMS folks also came with a giant truck that everyone watched roll into the still-muddy field, sure it would get stuck… but it didn’t. Good thing, as the truck contained a climbing wall that provided a fun bit of cross-training.

At night the Dirt Rag Salon added an “O” and became a Saloon—our good buddy “Bourbon” Lee Hollenbeck held bourbon tastings for twenty-five lucky participants.

On Saturday night, Kenda put on a Night Ride Scavenger Hunt for which nearly a hundred riders rolled out in the dark to search for glow sticks that were cashed in for prizes. Princeton Tec graciously provided lights for scavengers that didn’t have any.

Our Friday showing of Klunkerz, Billy Savage’s documentary of the early days of Marin mountain biking, was such a hit that we showed it again on Saturday (with a few repeat audience members). After the movie, the two-wheeled tribal gathering went on late into the night at the Saloon.

Sunday came, along with some more rain, but it didn’t seem to slow down the Fest, particularly the young grommets who continued riding around even in a downpour. But soon it was time to pack up and head out. There’s no doubt that we’ll be back next year to be part of the best party on two wheels.

Next up: a report on the new and cool stuff that vendors brought to the Fest expo.

Also check out our Gallery for lots more great photos.

We are live at the KendaFest presented by Dirt Rag and we are having a great time. This 13-year-old festival has long been an East Coast summer ritual, but it has grown into a huge, all-inclusive smorgasbord of everything good about the bicycle tribe that draws members from all over.

The entire office staff, plus our two freelance web dudes and various VIP guests, is here in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts to participate in (and document) the fun—we take our “presenting” status seriously. Here’s a little sample of what we’ve done and seen so far…

Of course we’re here to work too… but with picture-perfect weather and great conversation, it doesn’t really seem like work. Here’s our Web Manager Jeff Lockwood holding down the booth.

There’s a ton of group rides that happen at the KendaFest, but this is truly a family-friendly event, with all kinds of entertaining things for kids (and adults that are still young at heart) to do. Here’s a young badass unicyclist trying his hand at the Kenda Tire Toss. I think he actually had an advantage, as he could use both hands to throw the tire.

On Saturday I had the privilege of riding with none other than Ruthie Matthes, ‘91 world XC champ, ‘00 Olympian, and current Moots ambassador, on the Women’s Ride. We explored the trail system built just for the Fest all around the campsite by the hardworking folks of NEMBA (one of our ride leaders, who had also participated in the trail building, said, “I just love manual labor.”) Their hard work paid off—the trails have held up remarkably well, considering the venue received a full twelve inches of rain in the week leading up to the Fest.

We met an interesting fellow, Henry Meudt of Boca Raton, Florida, with an interesting bike: a replica of a Pedersen, a bike made between 1897 and 1917 in Dursley, England. Mr. Meudt says that the hammock-style seat is as comfortable as it looks. The version he brought along to the Fest was made in the ’80s by Dutch fans of the original; he actually owns an original (left at home) that he bought for $100 back in the ’70s, having no idea what a rare machine it was—this is the type of antique that gets sold at Sotheby’s for tens of thousands.

We’ve held Tech Seminars on various aspects of maintenance and tuning, helping folks get the most out of their rides.

At the end of Friday and Saturday evenings, our friend “Bourbon” Lee Hollenbeck gave very detailed and knowledgeable seminars on bourbon (and rye) tasting. Remarkably the participants retained their composure enough to ask good questions and learn something while sipping. Afterward, we held screenings of Billy Savage’s excellent movie Klunkerz, with opening remarks by one of the film’s stars (and good friend of the Rag) Charlie Kelly. Everyone was blown away by the quality of this documentary on the early days of fat-tire riding in Marin County, which was Billy’s first filmmaking effort. Really, it must be seen to be believed. (Even the groms paid attention.)

Check out our Gallery for more photos of the goings-on, and tune in to this same bat time, same bat channel in the next few days for more on-the-scene reports of the great times here at KendaFest.