As mountain bikers, we often pride ourselves as being ‘green’ outdoors-folks; individuals who would rather spend a day outside sweating and grunting up a mountain, than sitting inside and watching the PGA Tour. We tend to be more of the trash-recycling, organic Whole-Foods eating, micro-brew drinking, free-trade coffee sipping and earth-loving crowd.

Ellsworth Handcrafted Bicycles, designer and manufacturer of high quality, state of the art bicycles, is honored to support the Shimano Alfine Breast Cancer Fundraiser by donating a “rose petal” pink commuter bike, the RIDE.

Bill Freeman forwarded an email to me from Hans Rey. Hans is out in Italy getting some riding in, and rather than try to bore you will my thoughts on the pictures in this email…I will let them do the talking for me. Here is the email from Hans and his attached pictures…enjoy!

Over the past couple of years, we have seen drastic changes in the industries and economies that have a substantial impact on the bike industry as a whole. With increasing raw material costs, the high price of fuel and uncertain economies, pleasure industries are seeing unpredictable times.

Pivot Cycles, one of the first to use the world renowned DW-Link suspension design, is really stepping up to the plate for 2009. Check out their Interbike booth for a first hand look at these new rides. Pivot is ready for a full out fight in 2009.

Lucky you. After years of agonizing bachelordom you finally found a great girl. She understands your need to control the universe of the remote. She doesn’t nag you about the toilet seat. She’s a gourmet cook. Maybe she even enjoys SportsCenter. She’s athletic and beautiful and sexy and she loves you.

Over the last six months, I’ve grown bored and annoyed at my modern full suspension mountain bike. The incessant chain slap. The complicated and vulnerable rear derailleur. The bobbing suspension. The lazy lines I was being allowed to pick. It no longer brought me joy.

I have been mountain biking for almost 13 years and seriously for the last 5 years. I began leading a beginners mountain bike group from work, and knowing that I was them a few years back which really put things in perspective for me. I wouldn’t even attempt a creek crossing, and if I did, my heart would be in my throat just waiting on my front wheel to buckle.

Yesterday was the perfect day! I got to marry the woman of my dreams and everything went along without a hitch. It really couldn’t have been any better. Today we are getting on a plane and heading to Maui for the honeymoon, but before we left…I thought I would post a picture of the grooms cake.