PRODUCT TESTED: SkirtSports Skort and SkirtSports Jersey

ABOUT ME: 5’5, 128lbs, 30 year old female. I love all kinds of riding but Mountain Biking is by far my favorite!

TESTING GROUNDS: Fullerton Loop, Mt Sac, Aliso Viejo, and other Orange County and LA Trails

Likes
I ran into SkirtSports back at Interbike and they sent me home with a set to test out on my rides and racing. This set gets three BIG LOVE IT’S from me!!! Love, Love, Love it! Just look at the set. What is there not to like? I immediately fell in love with the idea of mountain biking in a skirt!!!!

The skirt features a mesh short with a pink padded chamois, and it turned out to be the perfect length for my height. But like everything else, the true test is on the trails. To be completely honest I wasn’t sure if this little duo could hold up under trail conditions. Well I am happy to report that after over 6mos of wear, this skirt is holding up strong and it is still in excellent condition. What I loved about wearing a skirt out on the trails is the feeling of wearing spandex shorts but without that spandex look. Not all of us should be wearing spandex out on the trails and I enjoyed that I had the benefits of wearing spandex but with so much more modesty. They did a great job with the fit of this skirt also. I NEVER worried about the skirt lifting in the wind. It always stays in place while riding.

I have to add that this skirt is incredibly comfortable. In fact I have added it to my bike commuting wardrobe lately because the fit and the material feel so good. It’s also cute and modest enough to wear in my casual office environment. The mesh short is also very breathable but more on that later. No tears, fading or shrinkage. It held up to all the washing.

Dislikes
Well the con of the skirt can also be a plus, just depends on how you look at it. The mesh short of the skirt, is just that - mesh. It leaves you a little exposed under the skirt. Nothing to really fret over as the chamois conceals all your unmentionables, but you can see the color of your skin under the skirt. Again, the skirt stays in place though. So you don’t have to worry about it whippin’ up in the air while riding so I really didn’t care. It just made for a more “breathable” ride. lol.

The other item to keep in mind is the chamois. While it did offer some relief from the hard saddles, I wouldn’t recommend this skirt for an epic ride. The chamoisis is a little on the thinner side. Perfect for my trail riding under 20miles.

Sleevesless Bike Jersey

2nd Place win at the Fat Tire Classic 07′.

Product Overview

Often referred to as your “favorite jersey of all time?”, the TRIKS sleeveless jersey is as close to perfection as you will find. So what did we do to keep things exciting? We added more options! You asked for more colors, you got em! Black, Black/Smooch, Pink Crush and White. This jersey is out of sight! Timeless, classic, Skirt-fect (Skirt Perfect!!!). The Sleeveless BikeJersey has a slim-fit and is complete with a flat mandarin collar with a locking center Skirt zipper. It hits at the hip but is longer in the back, complete with 3 lower back pockets for gels and tubes. The COOLair fabric provides long lasting breathability and supreme moisture management.

Fabric: COOLair (50% Coolmax, 50% Polyester)

Special features: reflective locking center Skirt zipper

Suggested uses: cycling, triathlons

Like/Dislikes

First off I have to say overall I really dig this jersey. Skirtsports offers a great collection of cute, and functional attire for cyclists. This jersey is beautiful. It still looks brand new after many, many bike rides and washes. The material proved to be very breathable. I appreciated the small details in this jersey such as the reflective front zipper and the back pockets. I also loved the feminine colors. If pink isn’t your cup of tea, that’s a-ok. They also offer black, white, and a few printed jerseys. The jersey also fitted well. Their sizing seems to be right on target. I don’t really have anything negative to say about the jersey. My only issue may be with the elastic in the bottom of the jersey. It wasn’t uncomfortable or anything. It would just be nice sometimes not to have to think about pulling down the jersey, but that’s just a personal preference. Most jerseys do have a bottom elastic.

Overall, this skirt and jersey combo has become one of my favorites. I don’t want to look like the other boys when I am out on the trails! This functional skirt allows me to ride my best and to do it in style. Every girl should have one of these babies in their closet. Check out there website. I believe this particular skirt is no longer available but they do have another style cycling skirt available as well as cycling shorts. They have skirts for all kinds of sports - running, triathlons, cycling - something for everybody!

Popularity: 4% [?]

Felt’s 2009 website is showing off a complete 29er HT lineup including 3 new carbon hardtails. They are a must see, especially enlarged. These bikes don’t “say” fast, rather they SCREAM fast. The top of the line bike is the Felt Nine Team with black carbon underneath Red graphics. Remember “red” means fast.

Felt Nine Team. Carbon frame, SRAM “components” including a matching 2009 Rock Shox Reba fork, 21.4 lbs

The new carbon 29ers are a great addition to the 29er world as they expand the carbon hardtail market from just 2 bikes, the Gary Fisher Superfly & Orbea Alma (which sadly comes in only one size!), to five manufactured carbon 29ers. Building carbon 29ers show that manufacturers understand that 29ers can be good bikes for racing and fast XC riding. Coming in at a mere 1300 grams claimed weight (2.86 lbs), these frames are definitely very competitive to the Superfly with a real world weight of 2.9 lbs and the Alma at 1305 grams.

What definitely surprised me the most was Felt’s commitment by adding not one but 3 carbon 29ers. With the different specs on each bike, Felt is believes that carbon 29ers should be available to not only the serious/deep pocketed racer but also to those who just want a sweet lightweight bike. Felt continues to sell their aluminum 29ers which are well spec’d and competitive in the 29er market.

For more info, click here.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Pictures like this were synonymous to riding as a newbie. I remember way back when Moe and I first started to ride. We had about a group of 5 guys that would join us on the trails. We were all newbies and that meant none of us really had much bike handling skills.

What was funny about those days was the fact that almost every trip out there, one of us would crash or fall. It got to the point where we would name hills or parts of the trail after the person that fell. That way when we would refer to part of a trail, we’d simply say, “Remember RL’s Hill…” then the other person would immediately know which section they were talking about.

Luckily after a few years of riding, we all started to gain some confidence and crashed or fell much less than we did when we first started.

So I’m curious to know if this is a common thing for newbies?

Popularity: 6% [?]

As Co-Big Cheese of MtnBikeRiders.com, I am now assigning new names to the Men of MtnBikeRiders.com. From now on, you will no longer see our regular names on the signature of our articles, NO! You will now start to see names that I’ve assigned to each Staffer. By the way, they don’t know this yet, so that means when they read this article, it would be the first time they’ll hear about it.

First person to get a new name is the person that was Formerly Known as “The Moe.” His new name, “EL Fuego!” Yes exclamation mark included. El Fuego is a perfect for The Moe since he’s soooooooooooooo HOT!

Joe Solancho will no longer be known as “Joe S.” But from this day forward he will be known as, “Mamma Jamma” because he’s a bad Mamma Jamma!

No longer will we call Jeremy…”Jeremy,” his new name will be “GUNS.” Why? Well isn’t it obvious? Just look at those GUNS! By the way, did you get your tickets? You know your tickets to the GUN SHOW!

Khoa (pronounced-Kwa) will now be called-”S.” The S could stand for the following: single, speedy, sexy and simple. Khoa, I mean, “S” really is single, he’s speedy on his single speed, really sexy and he’s simple. He likes his bikes to look clean and non-complicated, besides, “S” sounds really cool!

Finally, yours truly will now be named “Walksie” for the obvious reason below. Yes I do admit that I’m am not a climber, but a hiker when it comes to getting to the top of some hills. Single speed riding can be VERY difficult to climb hills with, so I walk…thus the name “Walksie”

Popularity: 10% [?]

Black and White on my bike that is…I simply love the color combination. Recently we mentioned Pricepoint.com has some white lock on grips for about $10. Jeremy and I ordered a set for our bikes and I finally was able to install it on my Sette Reken Single Speed.

Like my Cow Horn? I figured it would match the theme of the bike.

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I also upgraded from V-brakes to Disc.

These are the reliable Avid BB5’s with Roundagon rotors. I’m using a set of WTB Speeddisc wheels.

Popularity: 10% [?]

This past weekend my family and I headed up to the Bay area for a mini vacation.  Since we planned the trip last minute, we were unable to find a good rate for a hotel within the City.  We ended up finding one in Redwood City on the outskirts of San Francisco.  Knowing that there is a huge mountain biking community up north I looked for trails near our hotel.  I planned on riding early Sunday and Monday morning while everyone was still sleeping.

I consulted with my riding buddies from the Bay area and also posted on a few forums.  All recommended Water Dog trail in Belmont, which is the next city to my location.  One response from the forum was to check with the Passion Trail Bikes, a local bike shop.  After doing my research, turns out the trail and the LBS were only a few miles from my hotel – perfect!

We arrived at our hotel early Saturday morning.  After we settled in, we headed to SF City.  On the way we stopped by Passion Trail Bikes.  I wanted to get a trail map as well as route recommendations first hand from the locals.  I have to say this was a top notch store on the customer service side.  (I wasn’t really looking at the products for sale or the type of bikes they carried.)  Unfortunately I cannot recall the names of the guys that were assisting me.  However they gave me clear directions, turn-by-turn, for the trail…  I also regret that I didn’t take a picture of the store front.  It had one of the most friendliest atmosphere I have ever experienced.  There were many riders hanging out – coming from or going to a ride.   Seeing this made me anxious about my ride the following day.

The Trail:  Water Dog contains approx 8 miles of trails, the majority being singletrack.  There are several sets of switchbacks which can be ridden either way – up/down.  There are quite a few ladder bridges built over gaps, turns and other rutted out areas.  There were also jumps but I did not see these.

The Ride:  Following the directions given to me and with my trusty GPS, I started on a gradual singletrack climb.  This skirted the southeast corner of the park heading clockwise.  While on this trail there were many cutoffs to the right (not on the map) which led to the bottom.  From the looks of them, one could have a real blast heading to the lower part of the trail.  Not before long I was already at a higher elevation. 

Along the way, I met John – a local rider.  We stopped and talked for a bit.  He gave me pointers on other segments of Water Dog.  He was also kind enough to let me tag along for portions of his ride.  We climbed parts of the park and one set of the switchbacks together.  These switchbacks were reminiscent of San Juan trail in So Cal.  Once at the top, he led me to a split where there were several choices for a technical descent.  From here we parted ways.  I wished that I had more time as it would have been a better ride following someone that was familiar with the trail rather than reading a map.  (Although I’m not opposed to it as I’d like to be adventurous, however time was not on my side.)  Shortly after John left, I ran into another local hiker.  I didn’t catch his name but he recommended other routes that were slightly different from John’s.  Never the less, both recommendations sounded like it had plenty to offer.

     View of the trailhead from the top.

I followed some of their suggested routes without diverting too much from the map.  The trails were fairly easy to find as they were well marked.  After about an hour of riding it was time to head back to the car.  I made my way back to a segment that led to a long singletrack descent to the bottom of the trail.  It was a super fun as it crossed several ladder bridges (one utilized the top of a wrecked car; not sure how they got it up there), skirted a hillside, and through a creek bed.  I wish I had my helmet cam to record the trip to the bottom.  I was not able to ride some of the recommended trails but my experience here at Water Dog was a good one.  The trail itself was in excellent shape, the weather was awesome, the people were friendly and most of all the singletrack was well worth hauling my bike to the Bay area.

     Look closely, it’s a cockpit of a car.

On Monday, we left for home earlier than scheduled therefore I didn’t not have a chance to ride again.  I do look forward to another trip to NorCal.  For those visiting the Bay area, definitely look into rides.  There are tons of trails up there and many LBS offer bike rentals. Below is a short video of my ride.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Just last week, the MtnBikeRiders crew received our registration packets to attend Interbike. This will be Joe Solancho’s first time to the show, so to say the least, he’s VERY excited.

I am too. I love Interbike. Sure the new stuff is cool to see, but what I truly enjoy about the show is the After Show, the BUFFETS! Last year, we went out as a crew to eat some grub…crab legs, sushi, steaks…you name it…we ate it.

This year we’re doing something different. We’ll be incorporating the use an HD camera to conduct interviews, product features and all that fancy stuff.

So make sure you check out the site during the show on Sept 24-26th, 2008.

Popularity: 11% [?]

Team Manager for KHS Bicycles sent me some info about Caroline Buchanan winning the World Cup Austrailia 4X Championships.

You can watch the action below.

Popularity: 11% [?]

I don’t know what it is, but there’s a certain level of cool that 2 wheels bring to a man or woman that rides them. Think Fonzie, he had a motorcycle, those have 2 wheels, Evel Knievel had 2 wheels and a cape! Anyhow, if you’re a guy or gal that is lacking in the cool factor in your social life, then start riding mountain bikes.

Why? Well it simple really, the 2 wheels help, but when someone asks you at work, “what are you doing this weekend?” You simply say, “I’m going mountain biking.” Those 4 words already have moved you up in the cool status of people around you. But when you say that to your coworker, make sure you look around first, and then say it really loud…“I’M GOING MOUNTAIN BIKING!!!” That way the ladies and the gents can hear you.

Another great option to start looking cool with your mountain bike, is to bring your bike to work on your roof rack. Chicks dig roof racks, heck that’s why Priscilla married me! She liked my 48″ load bars…Anyhow, bring your bike, park your car so that everyone in the office sees it in plain sight. Now you’ll be the topic of conversation through out the day. You’ll start to hear people say, “Did you see Bill in Accounting’s bike? I heard he mountain bikes!” Eh…sounds legit doesn’t it?!

Bringing your soft gear in helps too. Take your hydration pack, set it on your desk and leave it there all day. But towards 4:30pm, go to the kitchen and fill it up. But only fill it up when the kitchen has people in it. Someone will say, “Oh cool, you’re going riding?” But you have to be nonchalant about it and say, “yeah, just going for a little ride, taking a few jumps, doing some downhill.” You have to emphasize that you’re taking jumps and throw in the downhill thing. If they ask you what downhill is, just explain it, but super exaggerate. Describe to them what you’d see in Redbull Rampage.


Now this note is just for the ladies, so all you guys, you might just want to turn away for bit.

OK ladies, just owning a mountain bike automatically makes you cool! Riding a mountain bike gets you cooler status. Being able to pass up guys on the trails makes you marriage material!

If you’re single, this is the best sport to get into. Why? It’s because women are sadly the minority in this world of riding. You have 15 guys on the trail for every woman out there. So that means you can choose who you want to ride with and or date.

But if you’re married, you’ll still be the envy of about 90% of the men out there. Many men would give up a left nut to have their girlfriend or spouse riding with them. This also brings me another topic. Men, if you’re like me and have a wife that rides, make sure you work out and get buff. There will be tons of guys saying HI! to your lady and if they see you roll up right behind her looking all swoll, then they back down. What helps too is putting your arms around her and being attentive to her when you guys are stopped for a break.

Back to the office. One final step in making yourself cool, decorate your work area with mountain bike stuff. Get your computer’s wall paper plastered with some DH dude flying 50 feet in the air, hang posters of your favorite mountain biker-if you don’t know any, just Google “Mountain Bike Downhill.” Watch Youtube videos of mountain biking footage(that’s my favorite channel on Youtube! Leave parts like derailleurs and chains on your desk, use a mug that has some sort of biking label on it. Oh and leave nuggets of dirt clods around your cube that way people will know that you just came back from a ride.

Well I hope that helps you. I’ve written another article that people seem to love called “How to meet chicks while riding.” That article has helped so many of our single riders out there. Check it out, who knows, you may be meeting your future wife!

Popularity: 20% [?]

I was able to get in a solo ride this morning before work. Normally, I’m riding with friends, but 6:20am weekday rides are not the preferred time for most people. I can’t understand why. Anyway, since this ride was a last minute decision, I went out by my lonesome. No problem, but a question for you: when riding solo do you like to listen to music?

I find that when riding with friends, especially if the group is small, it is better and maybe even polite to not listen to music. Recreational mountain biking is a social experience. Talking, making jokes, encouraging one another to do slightly stupid, or maybe even really stupid stuff is part of the experience. Listening to music and drowning out all other noise/conversation is not part of the social experience of recreational mountain biking. Unless you’re sharing music via speaker, earphones I find are better left at home.

This morning, on my solo ride, I chose to go with music. I pulled out my Oakley Thumps, an original pair with a whopping 128mb of space! But something feels different when you’re riding with music. You don’t have the opportunity to listen to those voices in your head as much. It’s an unusual feeling. Without music I am mentally talking to myself during my ride, deciding on how hard to push myself to climb the hill, mentally challenging myself to push through the burn, maybe even kicking myself if I don’t make it. But with music on, the drummer in me wants to time my cadence with the music. Thankfully the music wasn’t too up-tempo or I’d have been cooked halfway through the ride.

I also notice that with music, I tend to lose touch with the world around me. With music, I don’t hear the dance being performed by the tire and the trail. I don’t hear the subtle rustles of the birds or rabbits in the bushes (I hope it’s just birds and rabbits). With music, I don’t hear the response from other trail users when I greet them. Like most everything in life, listening to music while riding is a tradeoff… a tradeoff I’m willing to make every once in a while. What about you? To music or not to music?

Popularity: 21% [?]