Ride big. Get free goodies.

We're quite excited to be givin' away some fine schwag from our very fine sponsors this summer! Join us in Nepal mountain bike trip and you can enjoy your new Contour HD camera, join us on our BC Sea to Sky trip and receive a free Chromag OSX bars and Trailmaster saddle and finally come on up to the Yukon on our Midnight Sun trip and we'll give you a pair of fresh Smith Optics shades. Ride...Big!

New Nepal video.

A quick edit from our fall 2011 Nepal mountain bike trip, Himalaya Heights. Enjoy!


Nepal mountain biking. from big mountain on Vimeo.

Ride High Alpine Singletrack in Switzerland.

We're really proud of this segment from Anthill Films' latest movie Strength in Numbers which we helped produce. Want to ride Switzerland next summer? Give us a call. The riding in Switzerland is amazing and this clip captures it perfectly. Enjoy.

7 Facts about Switzerland.

7 Facts about Switzerland.

1. Monks and clergy were the first true pioneers of alpine exploration in the Swiss Alps. The earliest recorded ascent of a prominent peak was in 1387 when six priests bagged 2132 meter Pilatus and were promptly thrown in jail for breaking the law. It's no longer illegal to climb mountains in die Schweitz.

2. Switzerland is home to the highest peaks, largest glaciers and deepest valleys in the European Alps.

Trail carved out of rock in Zermatt.

3. Switzerland has over 37, 000 miles of singletrack.

4. One of the most appealing aspects of riding in the Swiss Alps is the mixture of cultural and natural beauty which blends smoothly. And the cheese and chocolate that is consumed during every meal.

5. Switzerland has the highest vineyard in Europe, the Visperterminen, Valais, at 3949 feet. The Italians are trying to beat this with a newly planted vineyard in Cortina that's 100 meter higher.

Ryan Bowland and the Aletch glacier.

6. Europe's longest glacier is the Aletch in the Valais, 14 miles long.

7. Switzerland has 48 peaks over 4000 meters, more than any other country in Europe. France's Mont Blanc is Europe's highest peak at 4808 meters.

Perspectives: from shop mechanic to professional guide

From some of the highest zones in the Alps, to the prairie foothills of Calgary, the last few years of my mountain bike career has been an incredible journey. I’ve gone from wrenching on bikes and dreaming of travel, to living in some of the most spectacular riding zones in the world, and taking on the head guide position for the industry’s leader in adventure travel. To stay active and relevant in Calgary’s cycling community, I’ve involved myself with organizing movie premiere’s and events, but organizing Anthill Films’ latest flick, Strength in Numbers was easily the most rewarding.

Calgary premiere. I think i'll stick around for Miss Bala at 9pm, sounds like a great show.

 

A full section of Strength in Numbers was filmed with Big Mountain Bike Adventures, in the Valais region of Switzerland. The trails and people captured are experiences and familiar faces i’m proud to call some of my own. From the Pellissier family of the Hotel la Vallee in Lourtier, to co-workers Chris Winter and Wade Simmons. The epic trails and memories of Switzerland were captured beautifully by the Anthill crew, and I was lucky enough to be around to see these boys hard at work.

Mountain biker crowd: 1 girl, 34 guys.

 

During my time with the 2011 Alpenrock DH trips, Matt Hunter, Wade Simmons, and the Anthill crew landed in Switzerland to film this section of their movie, and share a our beautiful hotel with the guests. They met up with Verbier local Ludovic May, and between heli-time and sunrise/sunset shoots, were pinned what seemed like 24 hours a day. Watching these professionals go after their shared vision was nothing short of inspirational. To be able to personally know these trails, see the Anthill team working on them, and then third see the area captured in the greatest film of the year, was an incredible viewpoint

Stephen Matthews on the mic!

 

BigMountain Bike Adventures was a fantastic and perfect sponsor for a nearly sold out show. We packed in the seats and flooded the crowd with prizes. The movie was special to me because it showed a process that i’ve personally seen work. First thing is to get out there, become involved in the scene you love, and then seize the opportunities presented. In the future, it may give you a completely unique perspectives that no one else will ever have.

Words Stephen Matthews.

Preparing for your dream trip.

Our friends at VeloNews magazine recently published a special issue called Ultimate Ride Guide. Are you going on a mountain bike trip this year or planning one for 2013? Here are some handy tips on prepping for your big mountain bike adventure.

Pre-trip Training.

One of the biggest mistakes riders make it to approach a cycling trip like a final exam. You can’t pile on the training workload at the last minute like you're cramming for a test, it won’t work; you’ll just end up exhausted and slower than you were two weeks easlier. Instead, plan for your final high-volume and / or high-intensity training week to end 10-14 days before you leave for your trip. Whatever fitness you have at that last point is what youre going to have for your trip, and nothing you do in thsose final 10 days is going to give you more power or endurance. While you could say “the hay is in the barn” about 10 days out from departure, there are still plenty of ways you can burn the barn to the ground. Your actions and habits over those final 10 days can absolutely impact how rested and fresh you are for your mountain bike holiday, and that can have a significant influence on how much of your power you’re able to apply on the trail when it counts. You have to back off the number of hours you spend on the bike, but continue incorporating high-intensity efforts in those shorter and less frequent rides.

Your travel day.

Get a good nights sleep: don’t wait until the night before your trip to pack. You don’t want to be up until 1am packing and then have to wake up at 4:30 to get to the airport. The more rested you are for your travel day, the less stress you’ll place on your body as you endure the progression of planes, trains and automobiles the next day.

Eat clean.

There’s a lot of crappy food between your house and your final destination. You’ll feel better by avoiding heavy, high-fat options. To keep it simple, focus on consuming primarily water, raw fruits and vegetables and nuts during your travel day.

Stay clean.

You’ve been preparing for this trip for a long time so why risk it by picking up an illness in transit? Wash your hands frequently and keep them away from your face as much as possibly.

Pack for the worse-case scenario.

If the entire purpose of your trip is to be able to ride your bike at the other end, carry your helmet, shoes and pedals and one cycling kit in your carry-on. If your bike gets lost you can rent/borrow one. If your lugguage gets lost, at least you’ve got on complete kit and clothes on your back.

Getting the most out of your bike trip.

One of the best traval habits you can get into is to build your bike and go out for a 30-45 minute easy spin as soon as you arrive at your destination. You’re accomplishing a few things at once: you’re making sure that bike survived the baggage handlers’ best effofrts to destroy it, youre working out the stiffness and fluid retention issues associated with airline travel, and light exersive hels minimuze the impart of jet lag if you’ve crossed time zones. Don’t be the person who drives the pace or goes pounding up ever climb on Day 1 of a week-long trip, becsue no one wants to have to wait up for you on Day 5. If you have the opportunity to plan ahead, make Day 3 the big day of your trip, you’ve got a few days under your belt so you’ll feel smooth on the bike, but not so many miles in your legs that you’re suffering from excessive fatigue.

Above all, try and keep your trip in perspective. Most likely, you only get one big mountain bike vacation in a year, so do your best to let go of all the multitasking you normally do. Be a cyclist for a week, immerse yourself in the sport you love and soak in the sunshine, the scenery and the company of great friends. Ride as hard or as easy as you want, but do your best to disconnect from the numbers on your handlebars and connect with the human experience that only riding a mountain bike can provide.

Find a treasure in Iceland.

The Skógafoss is one of the biggest waterfalls in the country with a width of 25 metres (82 feet) and a drop of 60 m (200 ft). Due to the amount of spray the waterfall consistently produces, a single or double rainbow is normally visible on sunny days. According to legend, the first Viking settler in the area, Þrasi Þórólfsson, buried a treasure in a cave behind the waterfall. A local boy found the chest years later, but was only able to grasp the ring on the side of the chest before it disappeared again. We may not find this treasure, but while mountain biking Iceland we'll surely find our own treasures. Want to join us in Iceland 2012? We're excited about this trip. Click here for all the details.

The Skogafoss waterfall, just one of the many amazing sights in Iceland.

Olleros, Peru: the best trail on the planet?

The brief stats: 56 km, starting at 12, 500 feet and ending on the Pacific shore. This trail is absolutely unreal...natural berms, pump track features, buttery corners, perfect jumps and amazing views...that go on for hours! Want to mountain bike Peru? Click HERE for our Unforgettable Andes all-mountain trip and HERE for our DH departures. Trust us, Peru is shangri-la for mountain bikers.

weather forecast: san jose, costa rica

Hmmm. Are you craving some dirt beneath your tires and warm sunshine on your face in the next few weeks or months? If you love mountain biking, and can appreciate quality singletrack and want to head south for a week or downhill mountain biking or cross-country mountain biking, then let us know. Here's the weather forecast for San Jose Costa Rica in the next few days...pura vida eh!

Happy New Year mountain bikers!

Wishing you, your family and friends a fantastic year ahead...filled with perfect singletrack, howl out loud descents and amazing experiences while mountain biking. Cheers!

Another day, another potentially great ride.

Winter Fun!

Tropical bike holiday...

Got a hunkerin' for some technical downhill mountain biking this winter? Or maybe some cross-country riding with your partner or a friend? How about mountain biking in Costa Rica? It's rugged and mountainous and cool inland, yet sultry and hot and tropical on the coastlines. Where else in the world can you pull this off? We've got a bunch of departures this winter, here's the latest on our Costa Rica mountain bike trips:

December 10-17, Pura Vida DH: sold out
January 8-15, Pura Vida DH: sold out
January 22-28, Pura Vida DH: 2 spots open
February 18-25, Pura Vida DH: 2 spots open
February 25-March 3, Peaks and Beaches XC: 2 spots open *Join an exclusive surf camp post trip!
March 10-17, Pura Vida DH: 3 spots open *Join an exclusive surf camp post trip!
April 14-21, Pura Vida DH: 4 spots open

Oh hey, what's up? Pura Vida eh.

50% off flights to Peru!

LAN airlines is offering 50% off flights for travel between March 1 and June 30. That means seriously reduced flights to Lima, Peru and be available for both our May 4-13, 2012 Unforgettable Andes Peru mountain bike tour and our June 1-10, 2012 Inca DH trip. Come riding & save money! *Travel must be booked by December 12. Click here to read more about the LAN promotion!

 

Order a new jersey for Christmas!

Our new Big Mountain Adventures Sombrio riding jerseys are in and we're quite excited about them. Low key that'll keep you feeling great on the bike and looking good in the coffee shop post-ride. Want one as a Christmas gift, for a dear loved one or a nice gift for you for being such a good person this year? Comon' you deserve it...click here and order one up!

Life is now.

We're very lucky here at Big Mountain Adventures. Every few years a special group of friends hires us to create an epic mountain bike trip for them somewhere on the planet. We typically work diligently with them for a year leading up to the holiday, planning every detail carefully. We know that this particular group really appreciates an amazing trip and that they soak up every moment as it was their last, literally. I've never laughed and ridden so much in a ten-day period. I was reminded today of this group and it made me smile. Life is right now. Enjoy.

Photographer Derek Frankowski collage.

A collage of memories from professional mountain bike photographer Derek Frankowski on our Costa Rica mountain bike trip. That's Wade Simmons high-fiving the local children btw, besides being amazingly talented on his bike, he's a rock-star diplomat of all things mountain bike.

One scenic pic-nic and 100 goats.

Joe Schwartz and I were guiding a road cycling trip for our sister company Cycleventures in Tuscany, Italy in mid-September a few years ago. That's right, scenic rolling hills of golden earth, cypress lined roads, quintessential hilltop towns and perfect roads for road cycling - bella Toscana. And, yes, the same Joe Schwartz from Rampage and NWD films and all-round mtb shredding. Joe's not afraid. One day we decided to treat our group to an epic Italian lunch in a random field along a remote road south of Pienza. Sounded like a good idea we thought. That morning at map session, we gave them a rough idea of the location of said spread, and sent them on their way down the hill behind town. Next stop was the local mercato to pick up the ingredients: fresh tomatoes, bocconcini cheese, bresaola dried beef, balsamic reduction, fresh basil, a few melons, some prosciutto, some fruit, bread, other cheeses, and drinks. Done. We headed out and found a seemingly perfect grassy field just off the road in the middle of nowhere and began to chop and prepare the feast before the first cyclists arrived. Then we heard a strange whistling and some random calls in the distance. What the? Next thing we knew a heard of sheep emerged to our little sanctuary and they began taking over our perfect plan...

Joe and the impressive spread.

Some crazy sheeps where running, seemingly oblivious of the bounty ahead.

Schwartzy, casually guarding the bocconcini.

Catastrophe averted.

Good living.

Riding Huchuy Cusco: new Peru video.

Interested in mountain biking Peru next year? Our Inka DH trip might be what you need or for the all-mountain-with-a-heavy-influence-on-DH riders...how about our Unforgettable Andes trip?

Into thin Air.

Inspired by the European Alps.

Enjoy this collection of mountain bike photography taken on a Cloudraker all-mountain trip this past July.

Each summer we return to ride the Swiss Alps with the excitement of school children on the last day of classes before summer begins. Each summer we explore, scoping new lifts that lead to new trails. Some make the cut and others don't. Our all-mountain trip, Cloudraker, is a showcase of the best of the best that we've found in nearly a decade of scoping. The challenge each summer is to choose what epics to ride with those who join us. No matter how we shake it, each trip is always one to remember.