Whistler Aug 20 Sched Posted

from the August newsletter.

[b]Whistler Bike Park Riding Tips[/b]

The bike park is so much fun, but you are going to be riding much faster than usual which is also very demanding on your bikes.  We thought we'd put together a few tips on bike preparation to ensure you get the most out of the bike park and also ensure you are ready for another day's ride.  Most of these tips apply for all group rides, not only at the Whistler Bike Park.

[b]Bike Tips:[/b]

[list]
[li]Check to make sure your brakes are working and your brake pads have sufficient life in them.  You are going to be doing multiple laps and you don't want your brakes to fail.[/li]
[li]Tighten all the bolts and quick releases.  Loose wheels can be dangerous.[/li]
[li][color=red]Carry a couple of tubes, tire levers and a pump.[/color]  Whistler Bike Park is well known for getting a flat tire, sometimes both at the same time![/li]
[/list]

[b]Safety Tips:[/b]

[list]
[li]When we are stopping to re-group, please [color=red]get off the trail right away and make sure you and your bike are not in anyone's way.[/color][/li]
[li]When riding in a group, let the faster riders in your group go before you.  Keep the flow going.[/li]
[li]Listen to your ride leaders - sometimes the leaders must make judgment calls for the group.  If the leader asks you not to attempt a line or stunt, please listen.  It could be for safety reasons or to keep the flow and enjoyment of the ride going for everyone.[/li]
[li]If you stop for any reason (mechanical, crash, etc), make sure that the leader sweeping in the your group knows.  There are many riders in the bike park, especially on the weekend.  Sometimes, it is difficult for the leader to identify you.[/li]
[li]Do not leave your riding group without letting your leader know.  The leaders keep track of how many riders are in the group so we don't leave anyone on the hill.  It sounds very obvious, but we have had it happen.[/li]
[/list]

Lastly have fun!

FYI - Traffic on Saturday morning.

You may find traffic on the Sea-to-Sky Hwy busy on Saturday morning and may want to leave a little earlier.  There are two races happening that day that I am aware of:

Just Another Bike Race (JABR) - start/finish @ the Quest University, Squamish, 11:00 am start

5 Peaks Trail Running Series - 11:00 am, Blackcomb Mountain; however racers and spectators will be uploading on the Whistler gondola , then taking the Peak2Peak to Blackcomb between 9:00 am - 9:45 am.

Have a safe drive.

There will also be thousands of additional people flooding into Squamish this weekend for the Music Festival so leave EARLY! See you at Whistler!

[url=http://www.liveatsquamish.com/]http://www.liveatsquamish.com/[/url]

It will be a warm one in Whistler so those riding the Valley trails, especially Comfortably Numb, bring enough food and drink for the ride. I hope the advance ride on CN can come under 5 hours but plan for a bit more.

I know there may be some intermediate riders wanting to do CN but there is only an advanced ride doing this. In other words the pace will be higher than an intermediate level and I'd like only those that have ridden in previous advanced rides to come along.

Brian