It’s been three years since the circus known as the Singlespeed World Championships touched the shores of the United States. While we here at Dirt Rag aren’t as fortunate as we were in 2005 to basically have SSWC in our back yard, we still plan on running away from home out to Napa, California to join the traveling band of one-geared freaks, animals and tents. If only for a weekend as it’s one of the stops on the Dirt Rag 2008 World Tour.

All racing spots for SSWC08 sold out in mere minutes on New Year’s Eve, so consider yourself very lucky if you got one of them. There’s a whole weekend of various official and unofficial rides and other festivities on tap in San Francisco, Marin and Napa. And then the big day is on Sunday, up at Skyline Wilderness Park in Napa.

Soulcraft and Kish are the big sponsors of SSWC8, but there are more than 50 other sponsoring companies who, along with Soulcraft and Kish, are offering up a pile of prizes big enough and deep enough that it’s likely each and every person racing…or “racing”…will walk away with some very good loot!

Dirt Rag will be on hand the whole weekend to give you on-the-scene reports and photos. But since SSWC is just as much a party as it is bicycle race, the regularity of our reporting might vary from day to day. But fear not. We’ll provide you with a full report and image gallery once the event is over, the hangover wears off, the cramps are worked out of our legs and we return to our normal lives.

On August 22nd, 2008 at 3:00 p.m. the women’s cross country mountain bike race in the XXIX Olympic Games will take place in Laoshan of the Shijingshan District in Beijing. The men’s competition is the following day, August 23rd on the same course and time. Thirty women and fifty men will compete for the three medals in each category, but only about thirteen individual athletes that are sponsored by RockShox will be riding on a RockShox SID with special decals commemorating the 2008 Olympic Games.

The SID’s white fork lowers and red decals look a lot like the Team SID, but looking a little closer you’ll notice the Chinese script and dragon intertwined on the right lower. The left lower simply reads Beijing 2008, which I was also told is what the Chinese script reads.

The 4.6-kilometer (2.85 mile) course was created for the games and includes two competition service buildings with room for 15,000 spectators. 2000 temporary seats were also installed. The course’s construction is said to have maintained and included the original landscape and vegetation of the hilly, forested countryside, without the use of concrete or steel. Woven bags with soil in them were used instead.

The course was purposefully built short and more difficult to increase the competitiveness of the riders. If a rider is lapped he/she will be pulled from the course upon completing the lap.

How can the non-Olympiad rider get their hands on a sweet commemorative RockShox SID? You can’t. I was told at a SRAM press camp that only enough were made for the thirteen sponsored riders plus a few extra for other important folks. –Shannon Mominee

Truvativ has just released details of HammerSchmidt, their planetary gear front transmission mechanism. Using just one chainring, the mechanism produces two gear ratios: a standard 1:1 and a 1:1.6 Overdrive. In the standard gear everything is locked and spinning together—turn the pedal once and the chainring goes around once. In Overdrive, turn the pedal once, and the mechanism’s planetary gearing results in the chainring turning about 1.6 times.

HammerSchmidt is equivalent to running 22/36 or 24/38 front rings, with a single ring. The single chainring results in improved ground compared to a dual-ring, and an integrated chainguide keeps the chain on track. HammerSchmidt is offered in all-mountain (Stylo cranks) and a freeride versions (Holzfeller cranks).

Shifting is accomplished by special cable-actuated HammerSchmidt triggers (X.0 and X.9 versions available). The system allow shifting either while pedaling or while coasting. Truvativ says that HammerSchmidt shifts under any amount of load.

HammerSchmidt’s BB features a new proprietary BB/crankset interface—based on the Howitzer BB and compatible with 68, 73, or 83mm bottom bracket shell widths. HammerSchmidt involves a Collar Assembly which locks and unlocks the sun gear (of the planetary gear mechanism), allowing rotation and stop-rotation of the sun relative to the bike. The Collar Assembly is designed to mount to frames with ISCG 03 or ISCG 05 chain-guide mounting tabs. HammerSchmidt’s frame compatibility checker tool is available through dealers (to verify that your frame is compatible).

Truvativ reports that the weight of the HammerSchmidt all-mountain drivetrain has a a slight (172gm) weight penalty compared to a traditional dual-ring drivetrain. The freeride HammerSchmidt model is a mere 11gm heavier than a comparable, traditional drivetrain.

SRAM has created a mini-site with videos covering how Truvativ HammerSchmidt was made, how it works, and product details and specifications.

HammerSchmidt Manufacturer Suggested Retail Prices (USD):

• Shifter HammerSchmidt X.0 2-speed front with clamp $114
• Shifter HammerSchmidt X.9 2-speed front with clamp $57
• Crankset HammerSchmidt All Mountain 170 24T ISCG 05 (22T & ICSG 03 included) $595
• Crankset HammerSchmidt All Mountain 175 24T ISCG 05 (22T & ICSG 03 included) $595
• Crankset HammerSchmidt Freeride 165 24T ISCG 05 (22T & ICSG 03 included) $650
• Crankset HammerSchmidt Freeride 170 24T ISCG 05 (22T & ICSG 03 included) $650
• Crankset HammerSchmidt Freeride 175 24T ISCG 05 (22T & ICSG 03 included) $650
• Bottom Bracket HammerSchmidt All Mountain 68/73 $55
• Bottom Bracket HammerSchmidt All Mountain 83 $55
• Bottom Bracket HammerSchmidt Freeride 68/73 $55
• Bottom Bracket HammerSchmidt Freeride 83 $55

For a limited time, you can score Dirt Rag’s cozy Merino wool socks for the special price of $9.00 per pair (regularly $12.00). Oh Yeah! The comfort of Merino Wool. This Dirt Rag wool sock is made for us by SockGuy and manufactured in the USA in a blend of 50% Merino wool and 50% polypropylene. It features our Dirt Rag stacked logo in olive with an orange flame. Available in size XS, S/M, L/XL, and XXL. Sock it to me….

When: September 13th, 2008, 10:00 a.m. until ?

Where: Waterloo Concert Field adjacent to Allamuchy and Stephens State Parks, NJ.

Why: The goal of the “fest” is to promote responsible trail stewardship and cycling advocacy and awareness in New Jersey.

Wuzzupwidat?

• Free admission.
• Guided trail rides in Allamuchy, Deer Park and Stephens State Park for all skill levels, including women only rides and a kids ride.
• A Poker Run sponsored by Cycle Craft with a $500 Gift Card as Grand Prize.
• A massive raffle, your local Bike Shops have outdone themselves! Grand Prize: Giant XTC hardtail, others prizes TBA.
• Pro demonstration by trials legend and local NJ rider Jeff Lenosky.
• A guided Mountain Bike Night Ride.
• Trail maintenance and trail building demonstrations by a certified JORBA Trail Wookie
• “Skinny” contest!
• Skills clinics for all ages by Cycle Works’ own John Nichols.
• Demo trailers from Giant, Specialized, Trek,(more TBA).
• Shop vendors with lots of great deals.
• Meet and greet State and County Park representatives.
• Kids events including bike decorating contest and kids race.

For more information and the latest updates on the NJ Bike Fest, visit bikefest.jorba.org.

The Colorado Mountain Bike Association (COMBA) has set up the first ever public meeting between the Jefferson County Open Space (JCOS) land managers and the mountain bike community—scheduled for Tuesday, August 19th, 2009 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at the Jefferson County Administration and Court Building, 100 Jefferson County Parkway, Golden, CO. The planned agenda includes hot topics such as yielding enforcement and recent trail maintenance in JCOS parks. All mountain bikers are urged to attend.

For those who wish to speak, or otherwise actively participate in the forum, pre-registration is required. For those planning to attend and observe, pre-registration is optional, but encouraged—as knowing how many people to expect will aid COMBA in planning for the event. To pre-register and/or for more information, visit www.comba.org.