All aboard the Ghost train...

Last week saw the Hotlines sales and marketing team head out to Waldsassen, Bavaria, to visit the HQ and German assembly plant of the German brand 'Ghost'. Ghost will be exclusively distributed in the UK by Hotlines. We're really impressed by the Ghost product and are especially excited by the new AMR fs trail bike.

The guys at Ghost showed us around their highly efficient looking assembly plant, which assembles around 500 bikes per day by hand - this includes the wheels from spokes up! The picture above shows the RT Lector frames all racked up waiting to be assembled - check out that cool tapered headtube - this is on a 100mm XC bike too!

November 2009 - Hotlines "Hotshot" Staffer of the month - Karen

Karen has joined Hotlines with 19 years experience of Credit Control gained throughout various types of Companies, ranging from Government Agencies to Mobile Phone Companies. She is a bit camera shy, although you won’t believe that once you’ve spoken to her! Outside of work, sadly she has not been bitten by the cycling bug (yet!). Karen enjoys spending time with her family and practicing Reflexology and Swedish Massage.

October 2009 - Hotlines "Hotshot" staffer of the month - Cristian Tomlinson

Cristian Has been working in the industry for almost 18 years, & riding mountain bikes since he first laid eyes on one sometime around 1988. A bit of a chamelon when it comes to cycling, having raced & ridden XC & DH since ye early days, but also dabbled in BMX, ridden the road a lot, & even raced a few track events. Often found taking something apart, hunting for retrobikes, playing with his 80's (not-so) supercar, enjoying 60's rock, downloading history, or trying to stand up on a plank of wood in the ocean!

New Stuff Coming Soon - Nuke Proof Grips - 'Half Waffle' 'End Logo' & "Skinny Logo' due October/November 2009

September 2009 - Hotlines "hotshot" Staffer of the Month

Pete J. (Justice) Scullion was apparently found next to a slug under a cabbage leaf in 1987. Pete brings a wholly inappropriate level of enthusiasm for all things quad transfer, skid and drift-based. When not talking, Pete rides a Lapierre Froggy 718 for DH duties and a 90-mile-per-week Lapierre R-Lite 200 shod with a Shimano 105 groupset and PZ Racing wheels. He’s happiest digging DH tracks on rainy days, listening to speed metal or finding a different line into a corner. Currently looking after four brands at Hotlines and finding time to sleep and ride his bike. If any info is needed on Straitline, Michelin, Fireeye and Rockgardn, Pete has a product knowledge memory bank to die for!

Nukeproof Lights rescue Batman after robbin'

Nukeproof Reactor lights rescue Batman after robbin'

Nukeproof's Reactor lights hit the streets last week, and Yorkshire based cycling journalist Dave Anderson was glad he received a set to test!

Dave's part-time job/hobby is what he terms "adventure science" - specifically, lurking about in caves and tunnels, looking for BATS.

Dave received reports of a new colony of Brown Long Eared bats and headed off to his trusty Batmobile (It's a VW T4 van really) to check them out. Unluckily for Dave, his van had been broken into and his high powered bat-lights had been stolen.

Nukeproof Reactor lights came to the rescue, and after collecting his test set from Singletrack magazine, Dave fixed them to his Bat-helmet, before dissapearing down a hole in the ground to examine their bat-lair. Bat-tastic. He was even able to get the survey done, and back home for his dinner dinner dinner dinner... (sorry).

Nukeproof lights are available from all good shops - and distributed in the UK by Hotlines -http://www.hotlines-uk.com/News.aspx?NewsID=335

If anyone is interested in Bats in the East Lancashire Area - you'll be well served to contact the East Lancs Bat Group - http://www.eastlancsbats.org/

A bat, yesterday.

Nuke Proof Reactor Lightset

August 2009 - Hotlines "hotshot" Staffer of the Month

Rick Minshull

Rick is our Northern Eastern Sales Representative. He’s worked in the cycle industry for over twelve years. A mountain biker since way back when, Rick rides and races Downhill and has also been known to dabble in the odd endurance event, such as the Megavalanche and the Strathpuffer 24hr, which he rode solo! He also spends time each winter crashing (literally) around the Alps on his snowboard and has an unhealthy obsession with old campervans. Just back from surgery on his dodgy shoulder and he is straight back in the saddle winning races...

July 2009 - Hotlines "hotshot" Staffer of the Month

Andy is an Edinburger local and has been riding downhill since the late 90s. When not riding he spends his time on the drums doing odd session work for bands. You will find him at Hotlines HQ, any dh trail, Descent-World and in the pub with a Jack and Coke listening to some old rock music.

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small cows

 

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amanda - left celine - centre & nico v - right

 

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lapierre zesty 714 - 2010

lapierre loveliness in morzine....

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Lapierre 2010 Press Camp-Morzine

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June 2009 - Hotlines 'hotshot" Staffer of the Month

 

Steve is the new kid on the office block here at Hotlines HQ. Although he is new to the industry he is no stranger to the world of MTB with over twelve years of riding experience. Steve can normally be found at Hotlines HQ, on his DH bike or down the skate park trying to kick it with the BMX kids. He is happiest when under the influence of Mutzig, on a bike in the Alps and in bed sleeping but not all at the same time, although we wouldn’t be surprised. 

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"Dirt" magazine Straitline Bar Caps.

Custom made Limited Edition "Dirt" magazine Straitline Bar Caps.
 
 
http://www.hotlines-uk.com/News.aspx?NewsID=313

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Martin Soderstrom wins Dirt Masters Winterberg

Martin Söderström wins Dirt Masters Winterberg    

NS Bikes rider Martin Soderstrom takes first place again, this time at the the slopestyle final, with a very fluid and creative run topped off with a huge double tailwhip from the drop. The rider lineup included some big names, so the competition was fierce. The top five results were as follows:

1 Söderström Martin
2 Hoppensack Marius
3 Kabbani Amir
4 Rosendahl Felix
5 Pokoj Darren

 

Congratulations Martin!! You are on fire!!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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Pete's new bike

Pete's new Lapierre Froggy.Tasty like bacpn and eggs!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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Lapierre Newsletter - June 2009

	V 2.0 LAPIERRE DOES ITSELF UP ON THE INTERNET After several months of hard work (Thank you Bertrand, Céline, Eric, Norbert and so on…) the new Lapierre website has just gone live. Everything is better, nicer, bigger, with more interactions, more animations, more explanations… to put it briefly, more Lapierre! Well, we won’t tell you more. You must pay a visit asap.  www.lapierrebikes.com   Outstanding X-Lite II (ROAD BIKE) AND ZESTY (MTB) ARE THE STARS OF THE 2009 SEASON.   The X-Lite II is off to a good start! After seducing the journalists and the Française des Jeux racers, we have also received positive feeback from the consumers. After 2 years of development and tests, we are quite proud of this latest model, which uses the best of current technologies (monocoque HM carbon fiber frame, carbon cable stops, dropouts and headset cup, internal cable routing and a new headset...) Those who tried it are unanimous : this is a killer!   The 2009 Zesty, with its new carbon seat and chain stays and improved Fox hydraulics, sheds some weight but gains fans. The Zesty 914 only weighs 11.4kg, which is just incredible for an AllMountain bikes in this category. Riders and journalists all agree on its exceptional versatility and outstanding efficiency. + INFO Coach toujours NEW MANAGEMENT FOR THE CROSS COUNTRY LAPIERRE TEAM After Yvon Miquel, who managed the Team for the past 5 years with tremendous results, the Team Lapierre International will now be managed by Laurent Delorme and Cyril Lagneau of Pure Agency, the company who has managed the Lapierre powered by Saab Salomon team since its beginning last year. Yvon Miquel didn’t completely retire though, since he is still managing the “espoir” section of Veloroc Cavaillon, which is equipped with Lapierre bikes as well. It didn't take much time for the riders of the Team to show their potential for this season with Alexis Vuillermoz finishing 1st, Cédric Ravanel 2nd and Pierre-Geoffroy Plantet 4th at the Cassis Offroad race, in the South of France.  + INFO   Sexy in the city CITY BIKES : LET'S GO!* Lapierre, who already benefits from its experience with the Accell Group as far as urban bikes are concerned (Vélov’ and Vélib’ were produced by them), launches its new range of City bikes with the Sitandgo! and Startandgo! (e-bike) models. These bikes are fun, lightweight, and beautiful, and will outsmart any urban obstacle without stress, fatigue or CO2! This is an indispensable product to combine mobility and pleasure…and to show you are different. Sitandgo! and Startandgo! : this is all the Lapierre spirit in a clever bike designed for the city.    * These models might not be available for all countries, please refer to your local dealer to check availability.  www.mysitandgo.com You choose! WEB SERIES CONFIGURATOR : ROAD BIKES A LA CARTE* We all know that aficionados of top performance products are particularly demanding when it comes to choosing their bike. With the Web Series program, it is now possible to choose your components and customize your bike. Thanks to the Web Series configurator on lapierrebikes.com, riders can build the bike of their dreams starting with our new high-end carbon frame, X-Lite II, available in a chic black design, the Française des Jeux replica, or with an integrated seat post. With 5 pairs of wheels and 6 groups plus components like the saddle and handlebars to choose from, the possibilities are endless! * These models might not be available for all countries, please refer to your local dealer to check availability.    + INFO   Lapierre at the top THAT'S WHAT THEY SAY Among of the articles published about Lapierre these past few months, we particularly liked the presentation of the new FDJ bike in Le Cycle, the Zesty 314 test in What Mountain Bike, and the various articles published in the European media - which goes to show that the French Touch is also appreciated abroad! Read the articles Brains LAPIERRE DOES THINGS ON A GRAND SCALE The renovation of the Lapierre R&D department that started a few months ago is now completed. Lapierre’s 5 engineers have taken possession of the new 200m² office, entirely dedicated to Research and Development. With such an environment, no doubt that Lapierre’s little geniuses will create some innovative products in the years to come!

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Glentress Demo Day: Pictures from Andrew McIntosh

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Posterous | Re: Ragley on his hols

Hello
 
I am currently our of the office and will return on the 1st June. In the meantime email me as per normal and I will get back to you on my return. In the event of an urgent request please call Hotlines HQ on +44 131 3191 444
 
Regards
 
Illy

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Ragley on his hols

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Tomac Primer 220 Features

Features

• 220mm rear travel, designed for a 203mm travel fork
• 11.5 pound (5215g) frame weight for medium size
• 7050 aluminum front triangle and rear end with CNC aluminum links and dropouts
• Single pivot linkage design with oversized 83mm bottom bracket shell
• Custom hex axle (included with frame)
• Low leverage 9.5 x 3 inch stroke rear shock
• Oversized bearings
• Low stand over height
• Available in small, medium and large

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Tomac Primer - Technical

Even though the Primer 220 is a brand-new model, it is the result of many years of thought and experience. The brainchild of Doug Bradbury, brought to life by engineer Mark Landsaat, the Primer is the next evolution of the original downhill bike Johnny raced in 1999 and 2000 seasons.
 
Like the original Tomac DH bike, the Primer is a single pivot bike with a linkage driven shock. But there are a bevy of improvements to the overall suspension design, linkage set up and swingarm. Let’s start with the leverage ratio and suspension rate. When we originally designed the bike, we felt an optimized design would allow us to use a standard 350 pound spring on a medium size bike and a leverage ratio that was under 3 to 1. With this set up and with a stock range of springs, it would be simple for any weight rider to set the bike up for any type of track, be it smooth, rough or anywhere in between. We wanted a fairly standard wheel path that would provide a consistent feel throughout the travel.
 
We settled on a leverage ratio of 2.9 to 1, with a suspension rate that is progressive up to 140mm travel and then becomes virtually linear. We did this because as you go into the travel, the rear shock itself becomes more progressive. If the bike’s ending suspension rate is progressive, and the shock is progressive, deeper in the travel the suspension will both become overly firm and the bike will not achieve full travel. The current set up allows the bike to feel consistent and smooth through the travel.
 
The suspension linkage is all CNC machined out of billet aluminum with oversize pivots bolts and full compliment bearings. You will notice that the linkage, like the rest of the bike, is low slung, a key in maintaining a low center of gravity. Motorcycle riders have long known that keeping the CG as low as possible is what gives the bike a light feel and allows a bike to corner well without sacrificing stability.
 
Speaking of stability, one of the main focuses of the Primer was nailing the geometry. We wanted it to be relaxed enough so that the bike would feel stable on fast straights, but not so slack that you would not be able to corner aggressively. We designed the bike around a 66 degree head angle and a 62 degree seat angle, with a bottom bracket height of 14.84 inches (unsagged). The geometry, combined with the low CG of the bike overall, makes the bike very easy to ride. I will quote World Cup rider Claudio Caluori directly, who did a bulk of the testing on the Primer. “Robin (Hagen) and I were really stoked on the primers,” says Caluori. “We were testing the two bikes on a really rough, rooty and rocky trail in Germany. The bike felt really stable on rough stuff. You could take it wherever you wanted.”
 
But all of the stability in the world wouldn’t amount to much if it didn’t have equal stiffness and strength, which is why we put an equal amount of thought (and FEA) into the shaping of the tubes. As an example, you can see a high degree of top tube and down tube shaping. You will also notice the top tube has a flat section near the head tube. The head tube impact test showed that this added strength and weld area, which in turn allowed us to eliminate gusseting between the head tube and down tube. Besides the fact that the elimination of the gusseting improves the looks a bit (please note the comparable lack of welding in this area), it was also a bit of a technical accomplishment and lessened overall frame weight. In addition, the top and down tube shapes really enhance the front end stiffness of the bike.
 
The Primer is designed to be used with a 200mm suspension fork. This might seem odd to have 200mm in the front and 220mm in back, but the goal is to provide an overall balanced ride once sag has been set. We recommend 35 to 45% of sag in the rear, where DH forks typically require only 20 to 25% of sag. When you are done setting front and rear suspension sag, you would have the same positive travel, and thus achieve a balanced ride.
 
Another goal of the new Primer was to standardize all the component interfaces. Gone is the oversize bottom bracket shell and custom wheel spacing in favor of the common 83mm/150mm combination respectively. In addition, there has been a major refocus on enhancing rear end stiffness. There’s a single-sided hex axle (provided) and the swingarm has been fully triangulated.
 
The finished Primer is the result of over 2 years of work and 7 different prototypes. It will be ridden by the Tomac Factory Downhill Team on the World Cup.

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PRIMER 220 Geometry

http://www.tomac.com/primer.php

Tomac Primer 220 Coming Soon.....

The Tomac DH legacy continues with the Primer 220, a full blown DH bike designed to make mincemeat of the competition. The Primer 220 is the work of Mountain Bike Hall of Famer and Manitou-suspension fork founder Doug Bradbury, who's experience during Johnny T's pro racing days led him to design another bike of World Cup heritage. Featuring 220mm of luscious travel, the Primer has enough CNC-machined aircraft-grade 6061 T-6 aluminum to launch a space program.

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The Ragley's are coming!

http://www.bikemagic.com/news/article/mps/uan/6977
http://www.hotlines-uk.com/Brands.aspx?BrandID=891

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Hotlines sponsors Ben Instone

Hotlines sponsor the giant of UK TT scene

“At six foot seven inches Instone must be the giant of British Cycling” (Cycling Weekly, 22/06/2006)

Ben Instone is one of the UK's top time triallists. In 2008 he won bronze medals in the RTTC National Championship 25 andd 50, and he came fourth in the National Championship 10. He also placed fourth in the National Championship 100, his first ever 100-mile time trial.

 

When Ben was looking for a replacement for his current TT bike he knew exactly where to go:  the same place as last time!  Having been served so well by his trusty Lynskey TT bike last season he decided that this  season was the perfect opportunity to fine tune it to suit not only his height but also his massive power and riding style.  In addition to the custom TT bike Ben is also going to be riding the groundbreaking Helix frame from Lynskey this year.  Both frames use cold worked Ti-6AL-4V tubing to produce the ultimate in performance – strong, light, and stiff where it matters.  Although Ben has stated in the past that strength matter more than weight – his current Lynskey still just tips the scales at just 15.8Lb.

Getting Ben on board again was a massive boon for us as he’s such an important figure in UK Time Trialing.  Having seen the Lynskey frame it made perfect sense for us to team it up with the ultimate finishing kit from Control Tech.  Both his Helix and TT bikes will have finishing kit from Control Tech, although the Helix will gain the most finishing kit with everything from the Carbon clinchers to bottle cages coming from the masters of carbon and aluminium.

Watch this space for more news on Ben Instone throughout the season!

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Ragley Ti Full Production pics - just in!

NEW Neutron Mag-Ti pedals from Nuke Proof

Nuke Proof Neutron Mag-Ti Pedal

The NEW Neutron Mag-Ti pedals from Nuke Proof feature a forged Magnesium pedal body and Ti axle for the ultimate featherweight flat pedal for weight conscious riders. 
The low profile parallelogram design offers maximum ground clearance and features a deep concave which allows the foot to “sit in” the pedal which improves grip and comfort. There are a total of ten replaceable and adjustable pins per side to allow you to customize the level of grip to meet your own requirements.
The pedal body spins on high quality DU bushings with two sealed cartridge bearings per pedal to help spread the stress loads from heavy impacts and to prolong service intervals. The Ti axle features a lip seal between the axle end and pedal body to help reduce ingress of water and dirt which further prolongs service intervals.

Features:
• Forged Magnesium pedal body
• CNC Machined
• Titanium axle
• Parallelogram design
• 2 x High quality DU bushings & 4 x sealed cartridge bearings
• Laser etched graphics
• Colour: Black 
• Weight: 280g per pair!
• Replaceable and adjustable pins
Best Regards,

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Lapierre feature at Premier Demo Series at Glentress

Premier Demo Series hits Glentress trails this weekend

 

This weekend sees the third installment of the Premier Demo Series hit the truly fantastic trails around Glentress.  If you’ve been thinking about testing a Lapierre then you’ll not get a better place to put it through it’s paces than at Glentress.  No booking is required, just turn up on the day with your passport or driver’s license and a credit/bank card in your name and you’ll be able to test some of the best bikes around. 

 

The demo days run from 10am to 4pm on both Saturday and Sunday.  We’ll be set up at the Buzzards Nest car park (the “top” car park) and it’ll be signposted on the day – just keep your eyes open for the Lapierre tents.  As with all the demo days there will be a short demo loop signposted on the day so even if you’re not a Glentress regular you can make the most of the time you have on the bikes.

 

For full details check out www.premierdemoseries.com

 

HOTLINES NEW PHONE NUMBER!!! +44 (0) 13131 91 444

Hotlines phone numbers have changed- +44 (0) 13131 91 444

 

We’ve been in our new offices in South Queensferry for about a year now and we’re just about to move over all our incoming calls to the new phone numbers.  Up to now we’ve had a redirection on the old phone lines to ease the transition.  However, this redirection is just about to end so if you’re trying to get in touch with us from now on you’ll need to be using the right numbers! 

 

Phone: 0131 319 1444

Fax: 0131 319 2070

 

As always you can email queries or orders to sales@hotlines-uk.com and the new website is a great place to keep up to date with our brands, stock levels and general Hotlines news: www.hotlines-uk.com

 

this is our no.1 van. graphics will be changing soon.

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Andy's New Ride

Andy McIntosh who is one of our Technical/Sales gurus at Hotlines HQ has just built up this Spicy 316 with some Hotlines modifications.

Hayes Stroker Trail brakes in white, an NC-17 XC Ti saddle which weighs an impressive 192g and white NC-17 Magnesium pedals (386g) to match.

This keeps the weight of the Spicy down to a tad over 13.9kg!

NS BIKES - SUBURBAN

After the huge success and sell out of the sought after Suburban frame we are pleased to announce that they are now back in stock. If you are after one of these amazing frames I would be very quick as they are in limited numbers and they are flying out the door very quickly.

This top-of-the-line frame is on the cutting edge of the dirt/street market and is probably is the coolest frame on the market right now.

Specs:

24"/26" (80mm fork)

Headtube angle: 70,0/70,0

Seatpost angle: 71,0/71,0

Top tube length (physical): 553/578mm

Seat Tube lenght: 296/296mm#

Chainstay lenght: 375/388mm

Wheelbase (min): 1000/1035mm

BB height: 308/318mm

BB shell: 68mm

Seatpost: 27.2mm

Weight: 2.39/2.44 kg

Largest tire: 2.4x26"

Colors: Black, Green, Violet, White, Yellow
Includes axle positioners and derailleur hanger.

26TRIX - iXS Downhill Cup

26TRIX riders lineup is confirmed &Online registration for iXS Downhill Cup available.

Leogang, August 27th, 2008 – The Bikepark Leogang will host two international mountain bike competitions from September 19th to 21st. The 26TRIX dirt jump contest will unite 50 riders from 15 countries to battle for a prize money fund of 8.000 euros. And the last tour stop of the iXS European Downhill Cup 2008 will showcase pure racing action.

Photo by: Markus Greber

Back in the beginning of June, the 26TRIX contest had to be postponed because of bad weather conditions. But the course, which had been improved in comparison to last year’s track, is still waiting to be shredded. The riders from all over the world can’t wait to jump the big sized doubles:

Bartek Obukovicz - NS BIKES
Alan Hepburn AUS
Darren Pokoj AUS
Andi Brewi AUT
Georgi Fechter AUT
Niki Leitner AUT
Kurtis Sorge CAN
Mischa Breitenstein CH
Pascal Breitenstein CH
Damjan Siriski CZE
Andreu Lacondeguy ESP - ONEAL 26
David Acedo Rodriguez ESP
Inigo Yanci ESP
Lluis Lacondeguy ESP - ONEAL 26
Anthony Tomassi FRA
Antoine Dubourgnon FRA
Christopher Hatton FRA
Pierre Edourd Ferry FRA
Rodolphe Legendre FRA
Yannick Granieri FRA
Amir Kabbani GER
Andi Wittmann GER
Benny Korthaus GER
Joscha Forstreuter GER
Matthias Schell GER
Mike Plümacher GER
Pierre Grawitter GER
Simon Kirchmann GER
Taulan Dernbach GER
Timo Pritzel GER
Andras Szabo HUN
Giacomo Bisi IT
Nicola Pescetto IT
Umberto Nattino IT
Mads Andre Haugen NOR
Trond Hansen NOR
John Alm Högmann SWE
Linus Sjöholm SWE
Martin Söderström SWE - NS BIKES
Nisse Ornjäger SWE
Grant Fielder UK
Lance McDermott UK - ONEAL 26
Ricky Crompton UK
Sam Pilgrim UK
Sam Reynolds UK
Alex Reveles USA
Andrew Taylor USA
Greg Watts USA
Ryan Howard USA
Tyler Mc Caul USA

The big comeback of the 26TRIX in September will be split up in a qualifying and a finals day: Qualifications on Friday 19th from 11:30 am and finals on Saturday 20th from 05:00 pm. Be prepared to watch fifty riders battling for their way into the finals. On Saturday, the best 15 dirt jumpers will show their sickest tricks to win the 26TRIX 2008. You have seen the list of riders, so be sure that the contest will be packed full of mad action. On top, the rider with the best skills and most props will be crowned with the Oakley Sick O Award.

But as said, not only the dirt jump maniacs will be served in Leogang during this weekend. The racers competing in the last tour stop of the iXS European Downhill Cup 2008 will face a course with a length of 2.3 kilometers and a vertical drop of 480 meters. Bikepark Leogang’s downhill track called “Speedster” is known as a technically very challenging one. But not only pro riders are meant to take part. Also amateurs are welcome to register on:

http://www.ixsdownhillcup.com/

The iXS European Downhill Cup seeding runs are scheduled for Saturday 20th from 02:00 pm on, the finals for Sunday 21st from 12:30 pm.

Don’t miss this unique contest set-up! Diversified and hardcore mountain bike action is guaranteed!

Please take a look on the 26TRIX trailer: http://freecaster.tv/1000006_1005176

For further information about the Bikepark Leogang, the events for 2008 and the variety of tracks available, please visit: http://www.bikepark-leogang.com/

Lapierre Alpe Sessions 08

Danny Hart with the new DH920

Carbon Seatstays/Chainstays

The new Lapierre Spicy 916

Just arrived back in the UK from Lapierre's Alpe Sessions that launched another fantastic range of bikes for 2009.

L'Alpe D'Huez is a great place to hold a product launch and we all thoroughly enjoyed the Lapierre hospitality 100%!

Lapierre have definately made some great improvements on their 2009 range.

New for 2009

• Carbon Seatstays and chainstays on their high end models (300 grams lighter!)
• improved cable routing
• improved suspension hydraulics for more efficiency in descents
• 15mm through axle system on Zesty 514, 714 & 914

Megavalanche L'Alpe D'huez 2008

Rick Minshull took a very respectable 23rd place (out of 160!) in his qualifying heat and was set in Row F in the main Mega Race. With the weather closing in and the race in danger of being cancelled due to the storms the race winner was Swiss rider Rene Wildhaber - Red Bull.

Rick's Race Number

Amazingly 16 year old Danny Hart - Lapierre, was the top Brit in 14th place overall & was nearly 8 minutes ahead of any other Junior!

Here are a few interesting results:

3rd - Greg Doucende - Lapierre 0:46:56 A

9th - David Vazquez - Lapierre 0:49:46 A

14th - Danny Hart - Lapierre 0:50:29 A

170th - Rick Minshull - Hotlines 1:08:51 F

258th - Rob Forrest - Psyclewerx 1:18:55 J

For the complete Megavalanche Results click below:

http://www.megavalanche.com/photos/pdf/208.pdf

Lapierre @ Quench Cycles, Bedgbury

Quench Cycles are our newest Lapierre dealer and will take stock of a range of bikes from Tuesday 8th July. Dave and his excellent team have created a great shop in the heart of this excellent trail centre and are growing their stock levels on a daily basis.

If your making the trip to visit Quench Cycles make sure you leave enough time to go for a ride as Bedgebury Forest offers cycling for all abilities on its purpose-built cycle tracks. With 9km of family routes, 13km of challenging single track, North Shore and Freeride areas, there really is something for everyone.

QUENCH CYCLES @ BEDGEBURY

Azonic Steelhead Pro 2008

The Azonic Steelhead frame is a strong and stable hardtail that can be built into a bike which will handle whatever the hill throws at you.
Features:

4130 Chromoly tubing
IS chain guide and disk brake mount
1/4” drop outs
Adjustable brake mount
Removable derailleur hanger

Specifications:

• Head Angle - 71

• Seat Angle - 72.5

• Chainstay Length - 16.5” (420 mm)

• Wheel Base - 41.5” (1043 mm)

• Eff T.Tube - 21.7” (554 mm)

• Seat Post Diameter - 27.2 mm

• Seat Tube - 13.5”

• H Tube Length - 28.6 mm

• Bottom Bracket - 68 mm

• Colours - Black or White

NS Bikes - Shes a "Bitch" but shes a beauty!

Originally marketed as a freeride-all-round frame, NS Bikes decided to shift the Bitch into the jumping-all-round category, which is because that was the way the frame was actually used in most cases. The geometry of the Bitch seemed to be a little bit too radical for real freeride that would require riding to get to a spot, but was much loved by all guys who would use the frame for dirt jumping, hucking, occasional street riding.
So the 2008 Bitch fits in perfectly into the line up as an economic all round frame for extreme use.

Key features:

nice price

universal geometry that suits most riding styles

can be used with single speed or derailleur
Specs (100mm fork)Headtube angle: 67,0

Hotlines Demo Dealer Days

There are a number of Dealer Demo days coming up so place them in your diary ASAP.

Sunday 27th July

Psyclewerx, Bristol & Ryders, Llanvair Discoed - this will be held at Cwmcarn Trail centre.

Sunday 17th August

Torico, Sturminster - (this coincides with a round of the NPS 4X series so you may be there already)

Fort William Mountain Bike World Cup 2008

June 6th to 8th saw the Mountain bike Wold Cup return to Fort William for the fifth time and the driest weather we have ever had. It was so dry it was slippy!
Last year was the World Championships and so this year was a bit quieter but the racing was the best we had ever seen at the Fort.

Representing Hotlines at the Fort were Andrew (Hotlines HQ Sales/Tech Help), Ed (Hotlines HQ Manager) and Brooks (Hotlines Workshop Suspension Pro). Mike Dunn Head of R&D at Manitou was over with one of twelve prototype 2009 Dorados. This pair was air sprung and almost 1lb lighter than the pair of Travis’s we had with us. We also had samples of the new Stroker Ace Downhill brakes and new Stroker Gram Cross Country brakes.

Manitou Dorado

We also took samples of our Nuke Proof range including the new Warhead stem. A couple of Lapierre Spicys and Zestys rounded off our display nicely.

Lapierre DH for 2009

Racing

Friday night was 4x night and strong favourite Jared Graves was on fire all weekend, preparing for his biggest race of his career at the Olympics later this year. Jared had an unfortunate race last year at the Championships and made up for it by winning the men’s 4x. The women’s was won by Jana Horakova.
Saturday we saw the cross country men’s and the winner were Florian Vogel and women’s won by Marie-Helene Premont.
Sunday was the Downhill and the busiest day. With a little spell of rain early in the morning it had cleared up and was seriously hot. I think all of us got a bit burnt.
The British were looking strong and first off Tracey Mosley took the win in the womens.
In the top ten men four were British. Gee Atherton taking 2nd, closely followed by Steve Peat, Dan Atherton in 6th and Ben Cathro in8th, his best World Cup result to date.
One extra Brit to mention was the young Danny Hart who placed 35thoverall on board his 2009 LaPierre DH-230! Greg Minnaar last down took the win by over three seconds, a great win for him on his new team.

DH Results::
Course length : 2820 m / 1.75 Mile

1. MINNAAR Greg RSA SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE
2. ATHERTON Gee GBR ANIMAL
3. HILL Samuel AUS MONSTER ENERGY
4. PEAT Steve GBR SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE
5. BAREL Fabien FRA SUBARU MOUNTAIN BIKE PRO
6. CATHRO Ben GBR MOJO ORANGE
7. ATHERTON Dan GBR ANIMAL
8. RENNIE Nathan AUS SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE
9. CAMELLINI Julien FRA CHAIN REACTION CYCLE
10.BLENKINSOP Samuel NZL YETI
11. KOVARIK Chris AUS CHAIN REACTION CYCLE/INTENSE
12. LEOV Justin NZL YETI
13. STANBRIDGE Dan GBR MOJO
14. PASCAL Mickael FRA MSC BIKES
15. GRACIA Cédric FRA COMMENCAL
16. CAVALIER Amiel AUS GIANT
17. PEDEMANAUD Fabien FRA TEAM PYRENEES
18. DELFS Mitchell AUS KENDA TOMAC
19. GUARDIA PASCUAL Bernat ESP MSC BIKES
20. ATKINSON Bryn AUS GT BICYCLES
21. NEETHLING Andrew RSA GT BICYCLES
22. HUTCHENS Chris GBR MOJO
23. CANALS FLIX Pasqual ESP MASSI
24. SMITH Joseph ° GBR TOMAC FACTORY RACING
25. OULEGO MORENO Ivan ESP MASSI
26. POLC Filip SVK KENDA TOMAC
27. VAZQUEZ LOPEZ David ESP LAPIERRE
28. BEAUMONT Marc GBR TEAM BIKE RADAR
29. BRYCELAND Josh ° GBR SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE
30. VAGNER Adam CZE
31. COLE Cameron NZL TEAM MAXXIS
32. KLAUSMANN Marcus GER TEAM GHOST INTERNATIONAL
33. HART Danny ° GBR LAPIERRE

Hotlines at Qashquai Challenge - Lance McDermott (Oneal) wins €40,000!

Hotlines Demo Master Rick

The UK boys Sam Pilgrim and Oneal rider Lance McDermott stole the show in London firing up the 1’000’s of spectators right in front of Tate Modern one of the nations most popular art galleries. Sam Pilgrim from Colchester, Essex took the win for the biggest win in his career and Manchester’s Lance McDermott’s consistency scored him the title and the sports biggest cash prize of €40,000.

The wind picked up as the event went on and this affected some results in qualifying. Martin Soederstrom and Brendan Semenuk failed to qualify for the final and both missed a great chance to win the overall cash prize as they were placed in the top three going into the London Challenge. This left the door open for other riders who did not place well in Munich, and this had an overall impact on the overall results.

In the finals Sam Pilgrim scored the high score of the day and lit the place up with a very confident set up to a tail whip, huge 360, back flip one footed x-up, finishing with the biggest flair of the day from the left quarter to the dirt landing. Benny Korthaus moved into 2nd with a x-up, to one handed 360 table top, back flip, clean 360 tail whip, and down side foot plant on the battle ship sub box.

Lance McDermott put himself into the top three and overall winner with an ET to tuck no hander, back flip into a front flip finishing with a clean flair on the right quarter pipe.

Overall Standings

Lance McDermott
Benny Korthaus
Trond Hansen

LAPIERRE TO CONTINUE WITH VOUILLOZ

Lapierre have renewed their contract with 10X DH World Champion Nicolas Vouilloz for an additional 2 years. Vouilloz, whose partnership with Lapierre started in 2003, retired from the MTB international race circuit after the 2002 season to pursue his dream of rally car racing.
Since then, Vouilloz has been actively involved in the development of Lapierre long-travel bikes, working closely with engineers on product and suspension tests, in particular for the new DH model that is currently in the prototype phase. Lapierre has recently made important investments in future R&D projects, with Nico being an integral part of the long-term strategy.

Straitline Components are moving to new International Headquarters

Message from Greg @ Straitlines Components, Canada

"Ya that's right... we are moving shop to our new airplane hangar. I think I will soon become that guy who just randomly drops that in every conversation to gloat about...but dude we now own a airplane hangar!! The building is sick, retracting doors for fricken airplanes to roll up and into and if that isn't cool enough on it's own, my office will have a living room and fireplace. The facility is 4 times the size of our current factory and with all the space the sky is the limit. Now we can make our push on the bike division in the next year coming up and get down to some serious machining.

We will be moving shop in phases to avoid any machining downtime and will be keeping the old factory for massive foam parties and paintball shoot outs!

Click on the pic to see the new Straitline Components HQ

Dylan loves NS Bikes

Dylan shows off his new ride

"I have got my rig up and running and am thoroughly enjoying the massive difference between it and all my previous rides. Very tidy and light frame. The hubs and rims have built up nicely. Also light weight. Finishing kit all mint, light in weight and well colour co-ordinated.It's definitely a nice touch a frame without decals. The logo on the head tube and seat tube offer a crisp minimalist finish.I'm really stoked on the yellow bar-yellow frame combo. Setup looks tight.In the air the bike is very manoeuvrable allowing you to tweak and tuck and position the bike where you want it.Personally I am finding it a total change from my previous heavy jump bikes. It's going to take a little while getting used to my twitchy light weight front end and lower bar height. I haven't quite got my gear ratio sussed since I am running the micro drive 10t rear hub not the old 16-38.Totally looking forward to getting fully dialled in on it and introducing it to the comp scene. This weekend i am travelling up to Wisley trails for round to of the national dirt jump series. I will also be using the bank holiday weekend for a mini road trip around the jump spots near London. Thank you very much again for your awesome support with NS Bikes and I will proudly represent such a quality brand."

NS Bikes & Oneal at Qashquai Challenge Final

"Pope" flying high..

Bartek "Pope" Obukowicz with his Suburban 26 White Fork: Marzocchi 4x World Cup Brakes: Hope Mini Pro Carbon Stem: NS Quark Pro Handlebar: NS Jalapeno White Hubs: NS Roller Simple Pro/NS Coaster SS Pro

Nissan Qashqai Challenge Grand Final

May 22/23, 2008:

The season finale for the 2008 Nissan Qashqai Challenge is here with the world’s best mountain bike freeriders gearing up for a showdown in London. This Saturday the world’s top 30 riders will be fighting for the overall series title and the sport’s biggest cash prize. This is being held at one of the nation’s most popular art galleries, Tate Modern.Big things are planned for the grand final course in London, more information will follow later this week. There will be something for everyone; a live DJ spinning urban beats will accompany some of the world’s most famous professional mountain bike freeriders defying gravity over demanding jumps. The top 5 finishers from Munich: Martin Soderstrom (riding an NS Bikes Suburban!), Trond Hansen, Brandon Semenuk, Lance McDermott, and Paul Basagotia are within reach of the overall title and will be giving everything they have to take home mountain biking’s biggest cash pay out.The Atherton brothers from Wales, best known for their World Cup downhill and 4X racing are also set to compete in the grand final in London. Five of the 30 riders in the line-up are from the UK, with three in the top 11 overall; Grant Fielder, Lance McDermott, and Sam Pilgrim. 30 riders on the start list:

Darren Pokoj AUS
Andi Brewi AUT
Brandon Semenuk CAN
Kurtis Sorge CAN
Mitchel Chubey CAN
Mischa Breitenstein CH
Damjan Siriski CZE
Andreu Lacondeguy ESP - ONEAL
Christopher Hatton FRA
Amir Kabbani GER
Andi Wittmann GER
Benny Korthaus GER
Trond Hansen NOR
Bartek Obukovicz POL - NS BIKES
Martin Söderström SWE
Dan Atherton UK
Gee Atherton UK
Grant Fielder UK
Lance McDermott UK - ONEAL
Sam Pilgrim UK
Adam Hauck USA
Alex Reveles USA
Andrew Taylor USA
Cameron McCaul USA
Cameron Zink USA
Greg Watts USA
Jamie Goldman USA
Phil Sundbaum USA
Paul Basagoitia USA
Tyler McCaul USA

The course at the Qashqai Challenge final is like a rollercoaster with one straight line with 6 stunts including one drop, step-ups, dirt jumps and a massive quarter pipe.

Nico Vouilloz in the UK

Rick (left) & Ed Ibbetson our Hotlines HQ Manager

Rick with a demo rider

Nico with his "bling" lid!

Florian - Lapierre Export Manager

Zesty 714

Nico chillin'

I just received some more pics from the MBUK Magazine Demo day at Newnham Park. Here ya go!

Boneshakers Lapierre Demo Day - Harrogate

Rick Minshull - Hotlines Northern Area Representative with Nico's Lapierre Spicy 916

If you live in or around Harrogate visit Boneshakers Lapierre Demo Day on the 21st May 2008. (Boneshakers is an Independently owned and run bike shop)



Rick Minshull, Hotlines Team Representative for Northern UK, will be in attendance with our fleet of Lapierre bikes for all to see. http://www.boneshakersbikes.co.uk/

Hotlines Distribution/Lapierre @ MBUK Magazine Demo Day

May 18th 2008 and The Hotlines Team ascended on Newnham Park for the last in the series of MBUK Demo days. It coincided with the re-launched Newnham 90 so the crowds arrived in good numbers.

Lapierre star Nico Vouilloz together with Florian Robin, Export Manager and Amanda Bruck, Marketing Manager of Lapierre flew over to support the Hotlines Team.

The weather was great and by 10am the first Lapierre demo was slicing through the muddy terrain of Newnham Park and the smile of the rider was all too familiar.

Nico was interviewed, photographed and chatted the whole day to admiring mountain bikers. He signed autographs and also went for a group ride that was assembled by Bike Radar.

Overall a great buzz was created about Lapierre and the crowds flocked to see the bikes on show.

Newnham Park MBUK Magazine Demo Day

Doddy & Nico Vouilloz "Stylin it"