SSAP video evidence!

big thanks to our new pal Manny for putting this together!!!

SSAP is coming up quick!!

SSAP will be here before we know it! are you ready?

here are a few things you should be aware of.....

1- SSAP is sold out. it sold out fast! if you are registered you rock, if not.....well...

2- there is a wait list. there are many on it. if you aren't you can email we will add you to it

3- the wait list is long. probability of getting in......well have you won the lotto lately?

4- the course is near finalization. we are working with the conditions etc... it will be awesome!

5- there will be sweet sweet kegs of beer from a very special brewery. top secret for now!

6- there will be hotdogs, chips, etc for post race feasting! if you are vegan, vegetarian, have an aversion to hot dogs etc....we apologize and ask that you plan accordingly. there will be plenty of beer!

7- cash for the elites, prizes for everyone else!

8- conditions at Stewart yesterday were sweet! but its snowing now...so use good judgment if you are out riding the trails!

9- whatever gear you have on your bike and whatever tires you have are the perfect choice!
if you don't think so stop into Darkhorse and let Mike and George sell you the perfect gear and tire choice!!


that's about all i can think of for now. let us know if you have any questions.

get those singlespeeds ready!!

SSAP lends a helping hand to our furry friends!

If you signed up for SSAP not only do we thank you but lots of furry little friends say thanks too!
$5.00 from every entry plus the proceeds from the I9 hubset and the Thomson voucher went to 3 animal charities!

Mid-Hudson Animal Aid

Walden Humane Society

Hudson Valley ASPCA

so not only did you get to take part in one of the most epic singlespeed events in the history of racing bicycles with one gear, but you also helped to save a whole bunch of furry creatures who will likely be adopted and find loving homes!!

we thank you!
the doggies and cats thank you!

right about now you should feel all warm and fuzzy about yourself! the best thing to do with that feeling is go on over to bikereg and sign up for the Darkhorse 40!!

singlespeed-a-polooza 2010!

well folks SSAP 2010 is in the books!
after what seemed liked 2 straight weeks of beautiful weather mother nature decided to drop the temps and add a bit of moisture to the mix.
we spent Saturday afternoon prepping start/finish area, the beer stop, marshal locations, and putting the finishing touches on the course. it was a dust bowl!
well when we were wrapping up a little after 7 the temp started to drop and the skies looked a little ominous. i held out hope!

around 4:30 on sunday morning George turned on the basement light to let me know that it was raining and cold. we looked at weather.com just to confirm this. after a big cup of coffee it was time to get fired up! into the chilly morning rain we went.

george spent the pre-race hours shuttling racers from the upper parking area down to registration which was at the finish. logistically it seemed like a good idea but it turned out to be a bit far from the parking. sorry. lesson learned.

despite the conditions we were able to get the start off just about on time. little after 9. couple waves later and we had 250 racers in the woods! thankfully we only had one semi-serious injury for our dedicated team of emts to deal with. on weather days like this that is always a major concern!

the hotdogs went in and were being handled by our crack team of "dog boilers!!" the kegs got tapped and sampled! all was ready for when racers began to filter in. big thanks go to Koop, Joe and Richard for there work on the food!

in what seemed like the blink of an eye we had the top 2 racers come thru for their first lap! our man Monty and James Harmon were neck and neck!! it was on! not too far behind the top 2 women came thru and some awfully fast sport guys had gotten themselves into the mix.

little slower on the second lap as the condition "deteriorated". at least the rain stopped! apparently "major mike" was a "less than pleasant experience" on lap 2 for a number of riders!

1 hour fifty minutes and guess who comes across the finish line! Monty baby!! team darkhorse represent!!! awesome job. Harmon held on for second and Josh Wilcox rounded out the podium!
Nikki Theimann crushed in the open women with a time of 2:15 which would have put her solidly in the top 30 of the mens field!! awesome job!

in the sport ladies field Amanda Wisell showed that riding in the mud of Vermont can make you a fast little lady! she smoked the course despite the less the favorable conditions! Bike 29 representing on the big wheels!!

the most hotly contested battle has been the NY/NJ race for sport dominance! a little birdie told me that the NJ guys were pulling out all the stops and training like mad over the winter to keep the cup in Dirty Jersey! well they didn't disappoint! by just over a minute Ilya Cantor took the win! MTBNJ keeping the cup on Jersey soil!

also, the highly anticapated racing debut of "Thor the God of Thunder" was witnessed on sunday. some people believe his registration to be the reason that mother nature decided to provide such nasty conditions! conditions be damned thor donned cape and helmet and lined up with the elite men! apparently even the "nectar" of the gods, which was rumored to be a mixture of high grade tequila and cheap canned beer, couldn't help the "God of Thunder" in the stacked elite class! paced thru most of the race by team Darkhorse racer Sal "my sideburns beat up your honor student" Crochiola, Thor finished in a magnificent DFL in the elite open mens division. Thor could not be reached for coherent comment after the event.

all the results can be found here!!

pics can be found here

awards went off great with the pros taking home piles of cash. the custom trophies were a huge hit!! tons of schwag for the winners and non-winners alike!

SUPER SPECIAL THANK YOU SECTION!!!!!!

thanks to all our racers!!! we appreciate you guys coming out to our little race party! especially in less than stellar conditions!

THANKS TO ALL OUR VOLUNTEERS!!!!!
especially the lovely young ladies who do our scoring!!! we couldn't do it without you gals!!!!!
special thanks to the beer maven's Beth and Danelle!!!!!

THANKS TO ALL OUR SPONSERS!!!

NINER BIKES!
WTB
CANE CREEK
THOMSON
SWIFTWICK
STANS
INDUSTRY NINE
ERGON

TERREPIN BREWING!!!!!!!!!!!!

course map

check it peeps!
the course is official!
there is a gps file and it will be posted on mtbnj.com
there should be some arrows out on the course by this weekend

SS course made official

on a brisk spring morning, half past dawn, the Darkhorse Trail crew featuring Mike "the axe man" Rave, George the Mayor, and Hawaiian Mike made a final push to solidify the SS course. a few hours, couple gallons of 2 stroke chainsaw fuel, and some frozen toes and fingers later and the course has been set!!!

all i can say is that this is quality stewart riding. some old stuff, some new stuff and some redux stuff.

here is a little teaser. "major Mike" returns with a bad-ass new reroute, we created a new trail called "cedar knob" which utilizes a very unique "feature". an old trail that had fallen out of service comes back into the fray, and the course passes thru one of stewarts older and more unique "structures".

when all is said and done the course comes in at 12.75 miles. yeah its a little short of the 14 we had hoped for but we went quality over quantity. so consider it a gift or a curse or whatever. its what you get!!

we are stoked and hope you are as well.

more details to follow shortly and a gps file will be posted as well.

Closed!

registration for SS-apolooza is closed! we have reached the 250 field limit. if you missed it well you suck..........no ok you don't really. send us an email at darkhorsecycles@frontiernet.net or call the shop and get added to the waitlist.

see you all there!!

Tick-Tock-Tick-Tock

less than 50 spots left! get in now or be disappointed when all the cool kids are racing there singlespeeds!!

trails are shaping up and the course has been nearly finalized but is still top secret!!! some new trails will emerge as well as some re-conditioned old favorites!!

get signed up!!!!!!

Get your a** to SS-APOLOOZA!!!!

SIGN UP! DO IT! DO IT NOW!!!!!!!!

Happy 2010 suckas!!

happy belated new year! is it really 2010? yikes!
so both the darkhorse 40 and singlespeed-a-polooza are up on bikereg. if you haven't signed up do so now!!!
let's talk about Singlespeed-a-polooza for a minute....
apparently word is spreading like wild fire. these darn internets are a buzz with vibes on the race. a couple of singlespeed aficionados have called it out on their blogs as a must do event. looks like we will be seeing some out of state talent......
Niner bikes signed on as a sponsor. they did a little research and it seems that Chris may be making the trek east to witness it first hand!! so if you ride a niner, or plan on riding one and want to talk to THE MAN behind the brand you best sign up!!

2010 Singlespeed-a-palooza!!

now with 100% more Niner Bikes sponsorship!!!
that's right people! the good folks at Niner Bikes have decided to help us throw down the 2nd annual Singlespeed-a-polooza!

date and time info up on bikereg.

more details to follow soon!

some notes.....

capped at 250 riders
pre-reg only
$5.00 from each entry goes to benefit local humane society. help the kitty's and puppies!
14 mile lap
free refreshments (beer) and hotdogs

stay tuned.......

ss-apolooza action shots

all shots courtesy of gtluke!

monte feels the flow

jesse chases in his new team kit!

parsons fueled by insomnia and caffeine

cdubs chases the carrot

cdubs off into the sunset

norm whistles while we works his way to first

rossi lives in the pain cave

bobby feels it

walt chasing bobby

waters laying the power down

dan killing it on a borrowed bike!

in the zone baby just like bmx back in the day!!

uni!!

Cash cash baby!

no, not the man in black.

yeah thats right. cold hard cash baby! what's that? how do you get your hands on it? well gather round and listen up children.
seems george (el hefe) wants to try his hand at an economic stimulus plan. they are all the rage! somehow he has come up with a big old wad of cash. yes it is american money. i checked!! and seems he wants to give it away at the singlespeed-a-polooza! yeah man! true!
so, there will be a as yet undetermined number of hidden preems which can be redeemed at the awards ceremony for a as of yet undetermined amount of american dollars!!
so not only do you get a bottle opener, a pint glass, sweet singletrack, frosty beverages, and the good times that come with being in the woods with the darkhorse gang, you also have a chance to come out a few dollars ahead!! sweetness!!

singlespeed-a-polooza course leaked!!!

the official course for the singlespeed-a-polooza has been released!!!

10 miles, 98% singletrack, lots of fun stuff! this will be a blast!

strip off those gears and get your ride on, it's gonna be a pissah!

GOT SINGLESPEED?

got a singlespeed?
like to hang out with other people on one gear bikes?
like to drink beer?

HAVE WE GOT THE EVENT FOR YOU!!!

SINGLESPEED-A-POLOOZA 2009! MAY 31ST!!!!!
yup that's right! think of it as the singlespeed championships of the greater tri-state universe!!!

so heres the 411......
one twenty mile lap. fully self supported. we will have no aid stations. if you need 100oz of water or a 12pack of pbr bring it with you! hell strap a keg to a bob trailer if you want!!!
super cool and unique prizes for 1st second and third in their respective categories!
oh yeah categories...usa cycling has gone and made it all complicated and we are just simple minded beer drinking promoters who cant even figure out how to put more than one gear on our bikes so.....
expert men and women
sport men and women
no you don't need a license! sign up for the category that you think suits your skill level. don't sandbag, that's just dumb and if we think you are sandbagging the category we may handicap you in some way! think 10 krispy-cremes 2 minutes before the start! it would be in everybody's best interest if you raced with the guys you usually race with!
so all this and more for only 25.00!!! thats right $25.00!
and more you say? yup more!!
everybody who registers gets a pint glass, a bottle opener and.....

adult refreshments (as long as you are of age, don't make us ID you!!) at the post race festivities. hell depending on how we are feeling we may tap a keg at the start line!!!

so get on over to bike reg and sign up!

PRE-REGISTERED ONLY!!!!! NO DAY OF REG!!!!!

BIKEREG

Any questions? drop us and email or leave a comment.


see ya there!!