The biggest event of them all, the Tour de France, came to Morzine for three days – arriving in Avoriaz, then a rest day, then departing Morzine. I suspect most of you, like me, aren’t exactly ‘into’ your road riding, but the Tour really does have to be seen to be believed.

Firstly, these guys are just absolutely super human, how they can do this every day for nearly a month is incredible. The organisation of the event is also something else, they manage to control this many people (look at the crowds in the photos) and the riders, media and hangers on and yet somehow everyone seems to know where they’re going and everything happens like clockwork. Then they go to the next town the following day and it all happens again!

I’m sure it wont have escaped your attention that it was also the Champery round of the World Cup. There’s coverage everywhere on this, so I wont bore you with the details (Gee won). However, it was great to see an event like this return to our valleys and sod’s law that it would rain after nearly four weeks of almost unbroken sunshine – it certainly made walking the course and taking photos more difficult. Congratulations to Riders Retreat star guest Brendan Fairclough for storming to third place.

Away from the big events us humble mountain bikers have also been getting a lot of riding done. There’s been some good amendments to ‘The Stash’ in Linderets with a few ladder drops which have made the course really good fun to ride. They’ve also put a very questionable line towards the bottom of the course over the stream which has pretty much ruined that section and caused at least one poor soul to get a trip by helicopter to the nearest hospital – hopefully they will take it back out.

Morgins is also as good as ever. I don’t spend nearly enough time over there as it takes a while to get there and back, but it really is worth the trip over. Most of the tracks are a lot fresher than the ones locally as fewer riders visit. There are also the very steep black runs there which make me have kittens and laughs in equal measure – probably to be avoided in the wet.

At long last our Riders Retreat jersey’s have arrived! It was a bit of a wait for them, but they are absolutely mint, really good heavy material that breaths easily and a great design by staff member Tom Rogers (who reluctantly wears one rather than his t-shirt). They’ve been made for us by Six Motion who make great mountain bike clothing, although at the moment it seems unclear exactly what direction the company will take in the future. I for one, hope they pull their finger out and start getting more gear into the shops.

I have at last made the trip over to Crans Montana which is about a 2 hour drive from Morzine. This place has received so much hype in the press and the forums that once I got there I actually felt a little deflated by what was on offer. There are only two tracks there which according to the hype were as smooth and fresh as Rob Warners commentary (ahem), but they seemed as rough as Le Pleney to me. That said, the black downhill run was probably one of the best downhills I’ve ever ridden. If you’re in the mood to go up and down the same track and fancy a day away from here or as part of a road trip, then it’s definitely worth a visit.

I had the pleasure of riding one of our guests (Will Pomroy) Transition TR450 with BOS forks the other day. Although it really did hold the track well and smoothed everything out more than you can believe it did make me question the worth of this kind of bike. My steed of choice is a 6 inch Commencal Supreme, the whole bike (even in it’s pimped out Hope component form) costing me less than the cost of the BOS forks. While I suspect that in a race I’d go faster on his bike, I certainly didn’t find that they made me have anymore fun than I was already having on the Commencal.

You can also keep up with the latest news from the Riders Retreat camp on their Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/ridersretreat) or Twitter (@ridersretreat).

Additional photos by Mark Smedley – see Morzine through the eyes of a staff member on his blog – www.markinmorzine.blogspot.com

Written by Paul Thomas – www.riders-retreat.co.uk

Thanks to Borderline Events, Juice Lubes and Riders Retreat

The Xar is so fresh we’re only just allowed to announce it. It’s an evolution of the successful Xen helmet and looks great for pedally, gnarly riding.

Check it out…

Here’s the official word from UK Giro distro Madison.

“With our icebike show starting on Sunday (running though to Thurs) @ our Milton Keynes distribution centre here’s a sneak peak at Giro’s new Xar (an evolution of the legendary Xen – £114.99srp – due Feb 2011) and their new Roc Loc 5 fit system that will be rolling out on selected models in the 2011 range (incl. the Xar).”

Jess Stone and Peaty battled some of the worst conditions you’re ever likely to see, just about kept it rubber side down and were crowned the champions of British Downhill.

We’ll fire up some full results later on but for now… top 5 girls were….

Jess Stone
Katy Curd
Helen Gaskell
Harriette Latchem
Sarah Newman

top 5 fellas were…

Steve Peat
Gee Atherton
Josh Bryceland
Matt Simmonds
Fergus Lamb

Stay tuned for the Wideopen race video, pit banter and heaps more photos….

SDA Championships Dunkeld 2010 from Stuz Leel on Vimeo.

Props to Sam Davies for another Welshy video banger. Tidy!

They’ve got ST4’s, Five’s, Blood’s and loads of other goodies up for cheap… Don’t miss out if you’ve been cruising for a bargain!

This baby could be yours for £995… bargain

Or this one for £1750.

“It’s that time of year again when all our current demo bikes are on the look out for new owners, They have all been well cared for by our technicians and have a full healthcheck before they leave replacing any worn parts or paintwork as is needed. For full details give Ben or James a call at the factory on 01422 311113″

Greensands has just opened and needs you to get your ass down there and try out their new 4X, dirt jumps, dual track and pumptrack. Info is a bit sketchy at the moment but they’ve got a Facebook set up – just search for ‘Greensands bike park’.

The FB says: “This is an upcoming bike park in bedfordshire- SG19 2NQ. It’s currently got a 4X, dual, and jump track, pump track and now dirt jumps too. Open everyday for £3 entry. Unlimited weekly passes for £10. Cold drinks available. BBQ and more at weekends.”

“The site is 2 miles away from the train station in sandy and easy to find -from the station go past the rspb headquarters then take the first right hand turn into Carthagena Road- the site’s on the left after a couple of hundred yards.”

More news when we’ve got it…

Two of the busiest weeks of the season are just about tied up now. A lot of people want to come out at the start of the season, with a turn down in guests through August. The reason why has always escaped me – the weather is just as good, more tracks have been built and finished by then and as it’s quieter there’s fewer queues at the lifts too. Answers on a postcard please.

The season started off properly with the Passportes du Soleil event held on the weekend of the full Portes du Soleil lift area opening. It’s a good event and it always brings lots of people to the area. Despite being given numberboards it’s not a race in the slightest but it is a good chance for people to explore the area and there is always plenty going on and a great atmosphere.

The Chatel Mountain Style returned to the area for the fourth time. I’ve watched it every year and am always blown away by the shear scale of the modules that these guys are able to ride, let alone pull backflips, 360’s, suicides and no-handers off. Each year the course has been developed, changed and improved, this year was no exception and they are really pushing the envelope in this discipline.

The drop at the start of the course was at least 12 metres high and watching people fall through the sky off it was breathtaking. After a lot of sussing it out by various pro riders Brandon Semenuk was the first to give it a huck in his final run, he then went almost straight into a backflip off the huge step up which as it turned out was to be the winning run – well deserved!

One of the things about the summer that I love is how much else there is to do other than mountain biking and how good the social scene is. The whole place is just full of great, easy going, like minded people. I recently went to a barbeque to a favourite spot near to Lake Montriond with some friends and it reminded me just how awesome this region is. Good times.

Talking of nice people – this year two of the towns best mechanics Neil and Gareth have set up Morzine Mountainbike Mechanics (MMM…). They are running out of a van and EZ-up in Linderets each day, so if you get a mechanical, puncture or just need something sorting on the bike then pay them a visit (you can’t miss the van). Even better, you can call them up of an evening to come to your accommodation to fix your bike and if they can’t do it on the spot they’ll collect it and drop it back to you. Contact details are at www.morzinemountainbikemechanics.eu

And if you’re over Linderets way, why not check out the Chatel Bike Park. It has to be one of my favourite places to ride and has an enormous variety of riding on offer. This year there have been numerous improvements and additions to the existing tracks as well as two completely new tracks in the form of ‘Vorachatak’ and ‘Komatrautrail’. Despite causing me to stutter every time I try to pronounce them, they are really good fun to ride.

Vorachatak starts from right underneath the Fantasticable (big zip wire thing) at the very top of the Bike Park and takes you down to the mid-point, making it a good alternative to the main line down there. It’s not exactly tough, but it is good fun and super tight and flows well.

Komatrautrail goes from a little way down the tarmac road from the mid point – follow the road until you start to doubt you’re going in the right direction, then on the first hairpin turn the track starts. It has a really natural feel to it and reminds me of downhilling in the UK. It’s tough in places, but shouldn’t phase anyone reading this. There are a couple of drops and jumps you might not be sure about first run down, but as usual there are chicken runs round them.

The Tour de France is paying a visit this weekend, arriving Sunday, rest day Monday and departing Tuesday. The town now resembles a very large MX pit with the number of camper vans lining the streets. More on the Tour next time!

You can also keep up with the latest news from the Riders Retreat camp on their Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/ridersretreat)

See Morzine through the eyes of a staff member on Mark’s blog – www.markinmorzine.blogspot.com

Written by Paul Thomas – www.riders-retreat.co.uk

]]> http://wideopenmag.co.uk/news/6461/riders-retreat-diaries-chatel-and-other-goings-on/feed 1 http://wideopenmag.co.uk/news/6462/video-swansea-dj-session-from-sam-davies http://wideopenmag.co.uk/news/6462/video-swansea-dj-session-from-sam-davies#comments Tue, 13 Jul 2010 17:29:49 +0000 Jamie http://wideopenmag.co.uk/?p=6462 Swansea local Sam Davies just posted up this video banger... Chris Smith, Adam Williams, Ray Samson, a Polish dude, a Dutch dude in pink trousers, big tricks, sick trails. All set against a stunning Swansea backdrop. Tidy darts...]]> Swansea local Sam Davies just posted up this video banger…

Chris Smith, Adam Williams, Ray Samson, a Polish dude, a Dutch dude in pink trousers, big tricks, sick trails. All set against a stunning Swansea backdrop.

Tidy darts…

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