2011 Cape Epic Route

Check it out, one of the most famous mountain bike stage races in the world, The Absa Cape Epic, has a sweet video up highlighting the 2011 route.

Truly an amazing race and a cool video.

BTW, keep those race dates coming in to XXC Magazine. I will continue to post them up, although, there will be no site updates until Sunday or Monday (other than the blog) due to the fact that I am out of state, away from the office and getting my Thanksgiving grub on.

Jason Mahokey
XXC Magazine

Critical Dirt

David Koßmann from fahrstil magazine in Germany checked in with me today with some pretty neat stuff. You may or may not remember David, he had a behind the scenes (but important) roll in issue #6, assisting Gunnar Fehlau with translating his article on the Grenzsteintrophy race from German to English.

Anyway, David shared a film that ertzuiº film shot on the 2010 Critical Dirt race. Critical Dirt is a unique four stage 126KM "cross" race over pavement, farm roads, trails and cobbles that took place between Dresden and Leipzig, Germany. Folks used cross bikes, mountain bikes, fixies, whatever it took to finish the race.

The film is very well done and worth checking out. I did find the amount of cigarette smoking in the the film a bit odd, but I guess we all have our vices.

CRITICAL FILM from e r t z u i ° film on Vimeo.

Thanks for sharing the film with us David! By the way check out the fahrstil magazine site. The mag looks very well done. Might see if David will hook me up with a version to look at. I would say "read" but my German consists of about 3 words.

On a side note: Any XXC Magazine T shirt orders placed between Tuesday, November 22 and Sunday, November 28 will not ship until Monday the 29th. Sorry for any inconvenience, but the office will be close for turkey day traveling to PA. Thanks and have a safe and great holiday.

Jason Mahokey
xxcmag.com

Thanks, Updates, Kits? and Goals

First let me say thanks to you all for another great season of XXC. While the mag is still far from the world dominating grip that the ad packed glossy mags have, the mag gets a little bigger with every issue. Sure I can't get a (non mag) cycling news outlet to publish a press release from me to save my life (must think XXC is too low brow for 'em), I am still sneaking the word out to the masses via word of mouth, t shirts, stickers, and a kick ass digital and print mag about the greatest sport in the world. Not to mention a nice group of racers who kicked some ass this year sporting some fine looking XXC Mag kits. They didn't have to. They just did, and that helped a lot. Thank you.

I am proud of the mag and the work I have done on it, and I hope to keep all that up in the coming months, not to sound like some sort of guest/host banter from The View, but what makes the mag the mag is YOU! I can't stress that enough. Your willingness to share your race accounts, talents, photos and experiences with XXC is what make the mag. My only regret is not yet being able to compensate my contributors as they should be. I'm getting there though, just stick with me please. To all the contributors of XXC Magazine: Season Two I say thank you from the bottom of my chamois.

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Don't forget- From now until December 13th if you purchase a digital download or send me the order #, etc., from your MagCloud order your e mail will be put in the digital fishbowl for the chance to win a sweet prize package from XXC, Squirt Lube, ByeKyle, Ergon, and Princeton Tec. Click here for more details.

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A new addition to the XXCMAG.COM site is the EVENTS page. There used to be a kick ass endurance calendar site for all things endurance, but it seems to have not been updated in a LONG time, so I am doing my best to compile and list 2011 events as they become available to me. If you have a race that needs listed please shoot me an e mail (via the contact page). Also there is some ad spots open on the page. If you would like to sponsor the EVENTS page (ad would be the banner at top of the list) for 2011, or feature your event on the page with an ad shoot me and e mail.

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Kits? Been getting some questions about the XXC Magazine team kits. So I am not officially trying to see if there is any real interest from folks in another order of XXC Mag kits. If I order them by Christmas I would hope to have them by February. It would once again be PRE ORDER ONLY. I would love to float this and order up a bunch and sell, but it's all too pricey and the mag is not exactly making my credit score look too peachy! LOL! I may add in caps this time too. There would be no pre order required for the caps. In case you forgot what the kits look like see below....

Jerseys...

Bibs...
Caps...

Options? You would NOT have to order complete kits. Just a jersey? Just shorts? No problem! Jerseys would be racer cut only, men's or ladies cut. Shorts would be bibs or regular. Caps are the caps- one size fits all, yada, yada, yada... The shorts design may be altered a bit, meaning I might ditch the fun hurts tag on the ass and replace it with something more offensive. Kidding- I mean less of course. But I will let you know before this gets official.

2011 prices are yet TBD, and all of this is of course based on whether I get enough interest and enough pre orders to do it. If you would happen to pre order a jersey and in the end XXC can not place the order due to lack of order your money will be refunded ASAP. I would have liked to have done this earlier in the year but in the midst the stress of moving and wondering if XXC would even be around in 2011, I didn't think it wise. Now I do. ;) So if you think you might be interested, post a comment here on the XXC Facebook page. Also if you own a shop and think you might want to order some to sell in your store, shoot me and e mail and we'll discuss pricing. Thanks.

I addition to the kits there might be some word soon on the return of popular t shirt design. Not sure yet, but if the planets align...

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Goals? We all have them, and I have quite a few for the coming year. Personally I plan to get back to racing more. While I was NEVER a podium finisher (other than a few 3rd places, and a few "dick spots" to my credit), I was happy enough competing right in the middle of the mid pack. After a year of stress, a second DVT in my leg, and moving, I hope to get back to more racing across my new state of Michigan as well as some of my fave NUE races and endurance events. And as far as goals for the magazine I have a few there too...

1. Increase advertising. Yes ads. If I can get a few more advertisers to commit then I can focus on goal two.

2. Maybe ditch MagCloud in attempt to get the print mag less expensive to purchase. I doubt that I can get it under $5 even with more ads, but I can probably get it under $10. Having said that, I don't want to compromise the look. Meaning no thin ass paper, b&w photos, etc., If my vision of XXC is compromised and it looks like shit, I fail. Not good. But if I can, maybe I can get copies into the bike shops without going to debtors prison. 2b. Look for a publisher that digs the XXC vibe and will work me me to unleash it cheaper?

3. Revise the web site. This has already started behind the scenes, hope to have something in the works by the time spring rolls around.

4. Make it to InterBike next year to get the face of the folks who won't return my e mails! LOL!

5. This is sort of a hard goal for me, but I need to have more fun with the mag and realize that I have the greatest job in the world. Sure the pay sucks, but hey I get to ride at a time of day when most folks are having their 3rd cup of coffee or giving the boss the first of many 'birds' behind his/her back. I also get talk about bikes and bike racin' all day (or all night, if I indeed did take that brunch time ride), and work with great photos and cool stories from all over the world. The wife has got my back, and my boy thinks what I do is "cool." I need to not care if my neighbors are wondering why I never leave the house for work, or why most folks see me in either a bike kit or flip flops and shorts most of the year. I do what I do and I love it. Not to mention as graphic artist/designer I have seen my stuff go from "OK" to stuff I really love in the past 2 years. Yet another reason my old employer can suck it. LOL! I look forward to learning more and doing more with XXC in the months to come.

OK, this might be the LONGEST XXC Blog post EVER. Sorry. But let me know about the events, kits, etc., And don't forget to contribute your story to XXC. XXC #10 is due out in late January and I have some pages to fill!

Thanks!

Jason Mahokey
XXC Magazine

TranRockies Announces TR4

TranRockies Announces TR4 as part of 10th Anniversary
New event will create the opportunity for riders to complete the entire route solo

2011 will be a momentous year for the TransRockies as it celebrates 10 years as North America’s original epic mountain bike stage race. The 10th edition of the race just got a even litte more special with the addition of a new TR4 solo event that will take riders along an incredible route through the best trails in Kananaskis Country to the finish line in Canmore.

TransRockies’ first solo event, the TR3, debuted in 2009 and has grown quickly over the two years it has been held. With demand for solo riding opportunities continuing to grow, TR4 gives riders a chance to take on this epic route through front ranges of the Alberta Rockies.

The TR4 will be North America’s first four-day mountain bike stage race and will be closely modelled on 4-day TransGermany, a partner event of the TransRockies that drew over 1200 riders last year to ride through the Alps. TR4 riders will ride concurrently with the field for the TR7 team event and will take on the same revamped route for stages 4 and 5 that has been extensively scouted during the unseasonably warm and dry Alberta fall that has greatly extended the riding season. With help from local riding clubs and trail experts, the TransRockies team has spent extensive time on the trails this fall developing a new routing along higher terrain and away from the lowlands which turned muddy after the unseasonably wet weather in 2010.

Starting east of the village of Millarville in Kananaskis Country, the TR4 will finish with the TR7 the main event in Canmore, Alberta. Racers will camp two nights at the Little Elbow Campground, used for the first time in 2010, allowing stage 5 to be a loop on some of the favourite mountain bike trails of the area. The third night of camping for TR4 will be at Rafter Six Ranch, near Seebe, Alberta.
Rafter Six, the traditional last night of the TransRockies Alberta route will welcome the riders with authentic western hospitality.

The TR4 adds a number of new opportunities for mountain bikers as they can link the TR3 and TR4 solo events to ride the entire route solo for the first time. This route also gives riders the opportunity to have a little more civilized sleeping option as they can easily spend nights in town with vehicle support from family or friends since all starts and finishes are within approximately an hour of Calgary city limits.

Just like the other TransRockies events, the TR4 will have complete a la carte pricing starting with an early bird base price of $700 (until December 31st) for the four days of backcountry racing. Riders can choose their own add-ons like meals and camping and create their own custom package. After January 1st, the cost rises to $850 but the pricing for additional services remains the same.

TR3 will remain the UCI S2 stage race at TransRockies and we expect to have a great field of elite riders at the start line in Fernie fighting for UCI points in the run up to the 2011 World Championships and the 2012 Olympics.

TR4 registration will open on Thursday, November 18th at 10:00 AM MST. Only 100 registration spots are available during the early bird registration period, and these are expected to go very quickly, so be ready to register on the 18th!

For complete TR4 pricing and registration details, visit www.transrockies.com. Sign up for TransRockies newsletters and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Paul Done,
Epic Media.ca

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By the way if you want to read Paul's daily recaps from the 2010 TransRockies check out XXC Magazine #9!

XXC #9 CONTEST!

FIRST, before I get into the contest. Big thanks to the folks who have purchased XXC #9 in digital and/or print. Much appreciated. A not for the digital customers. PLEASE do not attempt to open with your iPhone or similar device. First, there is a real good chance it will crash your phone, and 2nd, XXC needs to be viewed on a bigger screen. A phone screen just cannot do it justice. Thanks! Now on to the contest....

As I mentioned last week, XXC is having a new contest to celebrate the launch of XXC #9. Anyone who has purchased, or plans to purchase XXC #9 by noon December 13th, will have their e mail addy will be put into a digital fish bowl and you will have the chance to win some sweet prizes (see below).

Grand Prize: 1 pair of Ergon GX2 Grips, a sweet little Princeton Tec EOS Bike light, a bottle of Squirt Dry Lube, 2 ByeKyle Simple Straps (color: Goth Black and Hunting Vest Orange), some XXC Mag stickers, and an XXC T Shirt (size availability may vary).

2nd and 3rd place will receive an XXC Mag sticker pack, a ByeKyle Simple Strap (color: Molly Ringwald era Pretty In Pink), and a bottle of Squirt Dry Lube.

The winners will be drawn on December 13th, 2010. If you purchased the print mag via MagCloud and want in on the contest (as you should) shoot me an e mail at xxcmag (at) gmail.com, with your MagCloud order, and I put your name in the contest and get you a digi copy of XXC #9. I guess it goes without saying that purchase is necessary. Few will enter, fewer will win. The last part is a joke. Good luck and thanks for the support.

One last thing- If you are a Cross racing junkie and dig Cyclocross Magazine, you can save $2.00 on subscription by using the coupon code: XXCfriend.

Jason Mahokey,
XXC Magazine