Sun Peaks on a Knolly
"Ride it like you stole it"
Words by Ed Snyder.
Date: 2009-08-06
Having the right tool for the job is a beautiful thing. Sun Peaks Bike Park opened on the last weekend in June and like most opening days for the past six years, I was there. The difference in this season's instalment was what I was there with. Knolly founder Noel Buckley offered me the chance to take one of his company's V-Tach frames for a spin "sometime" when we met up at Interbike last year. I figured there was no better time (and few better places) to try out Knolly's version of a monster truck than opening weekend at Sun Peaks. Luckily for me, Noel agreed.
Perfect start to a perfect day? Finding a fresh Knolly with your name on it in the bike room for opening day at one of your favorite lift-accessed hills on the planet.
I stopped by Knolly headquarters in Vancouver to chat with Noel and make sure I got settled on the correct frame size. When I arrived he was putting the finishing touches on sprucing up a sharp looking used white V-Tach. New tires, a freshly rebuilt fork and a solid selection of parts topped off the impressive frame. When I asked where it came from Noel mentioned "Oh, it's mine". I jokingly reminded him that all the bikes that we were surrounded by were technically "his". He fired back with "Nope, this is my personal bike". Gulp. "Yours?" I asked sheepishly. Yup. The man himself was loaning me his ride.
While this sounds great, it is a little intimidating to have the owner of a bike company hand you his personal steed. Noel helped me overcome my fears with a quick spin around the parking lot to check the fit, a solid pat on the back and a hearty "Ride it like you stole it" on the way out. Feeling a bit like the kid who just nabbed the biggest candybar in the store (and pinching myself to make sure it was real) I headed out to pick up a pal in North Vancouver and then pinned it east on the highway.
The heart of the beast: Knolly's Four by 4 linkage keeps things running very smoothly for the rider. | photo: Ed Snyder
Sun Peaks sits northeast of Kamloops and is a few hours from Vancouver, but if you can do the drive in the daylight it is well worth it. The scenery is terrific and it provides a great chance to catch up with old friends. We were ahead of schedule and stopped off at Full Boar Bike Shop in downtown Kamloops on the way through. The crew there was just as psyched as we were that the season was opening the next day and promised to see us on the hill. We headed out, finished off the drive up to the resort and checked in to Nancy Greene's Cahility Lodge, our traditional HQ for opening weekend. They feature an unbeatable deal for BroCard holders and we take advantage of it every year.
After heading to Macker's Pub for a pint, we started hearing the whispers around town that the hill was in fantastic shape. The trail crew had been hard at work and Mother Nature chipped in with just enough rain to help shape some new earthwork and keep the famous Kamloops dust at bay. Further good news arrived in the form of the rest of our party making their entrance in to town. More than a few pints later (what happens in Sun Peaks stays in Sun Peaks) it was off to bed with dreams of the first chair dancing in our somewhat hazy heads.
Sun Peaks started out with very few machine-made trails but they have seriously upped the ante in recent years. The bermed turns on Barn Burner are fast enough to peel your lips back. | photo: Adam Stein
Saturday morning was a bit cooler than the forecasted 17-18 degrees but that made for excellent conditions. The temperature combined with the recent moisture had the hill covered in tacky "hero dirt" and when the lift cranked up, it was on. After breaking in the new brake pads on the V-Tach and tweaking the suspension settings I set out to see what the frame was capable of. I quickly learned the answer is "way more than I am". Every place I pointed the bike it went without question. The rougher and steeper the trails got, the more the bike felt at home. Sun Peaks features plenty of rough and steep trails and by lunch I was pinning it down them almost as fast as I ever have. The Maxxis tires (2.7 Minion in the front and 2.4 Ardent out back) provided awesome grip that rarely had me feeling out of my comfort zone.
Can you say solid? The V-Tach can and does. Thanks to adjustable dropouts (and shock linkages) you have a multitude of bike geometry choices at your fingertips.
After lunch I decided if the bike had that much game I should try and up mine, so I went hunting the skinnies and jumps. I ran just about every skinny on the mountain and found the V-Tach was right at home on them too. Just a quick touch on the front brake to set the attitude of the bike and then all you have to do is steer. The frame stiffness makes it easy to think about your line rather than the bike. Once I polished off the thin bits, air time was next on the menu. While I am not a spectacular jumper I appreciate a bike that is well-mannered in the air. The Knolly is a heavy bike but it feels neutral railing off lips and matching transitions. It allowed me to push further and faster off more features than I have in the past. Even when I screwed up my line in a big way I never felt like I maxed the frame out.
Local 'Loops riders grab serious style points on launches like this step-up at the begining of Steam Shovel | photo: Adam Stein
After a running laps until the lift shut down we headed back to the room to get cleaned up, grab some dinner and get ready for the premiere of Kranked: Revolve at Masa's Bar and Grill later that evening. The movie didn't disappoint the assembled crowd. Garret Buehler kicked things off with a blazing segment, followed up by some interesting guys like Rene' Wildhaber (an endurance DH racer from Europe) that kept things rolling. The highlight of the film for most folks in attendance was the closing seggie featuring NSMB.com's own Dylan Dunkerton and Curtis Robinson along with the rest of their "Coastal Crew" just killing it, in unison. Great riders on great features filmed by seasoned pros like Bjorn Enga add up to quality images that keep viewers coming back for more. It was a great way to wrap up the fist day of the season at "the Peaks".
Sunday dawned with warmer temps but nothing severe. The dust stayed away for the most part and while some braking bumps started to show up, all in all the conditions were prime again. After an a.m. bolt check (note: always do a thorough bolt check after thrashing a freshly assembled bike for a day... the neck you save might be your own) we were right back at it for more of the same. One of the best parts about Sun Peaks is pinning hot laps down favourites like Kaboom, Honey Drop and the incomparable Sugar/Sweet One. Even runs down side trails like CatTrax brought a big smile to my face, but that may well have been the Knolly working its magic underneath me. It really is a terrific tool for the job when the riding gets big and/or overly technical.
Sugar/Sweet One is a classic run I wake up dreaming about. If you told me you were going to shuttle it in February I'd ask "What time?" and go get my shovel. It's that good. | photo: Adam Stein
All too soon we had to call it a day, rinse off bikes and riders and get loaded up to head for home. As always happens with good trips, the end came too soon but I'll be back to Sun Peaks whenever I get the chance. By the same token, if Noel is kind enough to turn me loose on one of his creations again I'll be on it faster than a dusty downhiller hits a cold beer after the lifts close. In short, I recommend both experiences (riding Sun Peaks and swinging a leg over a Knolly) as highly as the rating scale allows. If you get the chance to do either in the near future don't wait; just do it.
Sun Peaks put together a video to showcase the hill this year featuring few Kamloops locals you might have heard of. Here is what they have to say about it: "We set out to make a new bike park short video simply with the idea of getting people excited for the riding season at Sun Peaks. We were stoked to have Matt Hunter, Graham Agassiz, Chayse Marshall, Dylan Sherrard, Ian Killick and friends come out to shoot. Actually it wasn't too hard finding people for the shoot when we told them one of the two days of shooting would take place before the park opened to the general public. The trails featured in the video include Barn Burner, Insanity One, Steam Shovel, and Smitty's Steeps."
Ed Snyder
Love the riding at Sun Peaks? Been there this season? Own a Knolly? Wish you did? Spill all your wishes, wants, likes and dislikes right here...
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