Cougar Angie
The more things change...
by Angie Ho
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When I first started riding the mountains of the North Shore over a dozen years ago, I could ride for five or six hours at a time any day of the week, not running into another soul! At times it was a little creepy being in the misty woods solo. The only sounds were the wind through the trees, occasional birds chirping and the grouse who lived for years near the top of the Old Buck trail on Mt. Seymour - she always made the woods sound so lonely and scary! |
Angie in Action |
Back then, Ross Kirkwood's trails, The Stupid Grouse, Seventh Secret, Griffin, and the Tunnel of Love were about the only "extreme" mountain bike trails on the North Shore mountains. They were hard trails then and all of our skills were needed to stay on the trail and on our bikes!
Our bikes then, were of a different breed - you might have seen a few at the end of Diggers' most recent video. "Team Herberber," consisted of Dan Cowan, Mtn.Bike Mike, Chad, Glenndolyn, Wayner, and others, riding in spandex on rigid bikes sporting cantilever brakes, skinny tires, straight handlebars and 150 mm stems to boot! We were out in the woods year round, summer, fall or winter hiking in three feet of snow and surfing down by BLT light at night!
Todd Fiander's first secret trail on Fromme, Ladies Only, was well hidden at first. We were given explicit instructions to hike our bikes in and sweep our tracks clean with a branch! I used to spend five days a week up on Grouse, 99% of the time running into Digger building or fixing up his trails. He was a great teacher, running along beside me, instructing me where the "line" was. He knew every rock and root on his trails, of course! Most of the time, I'd be just coming down when the crew was heading up, and I'd always be talked into another lap with the boys. We'd usually start at the gravel pit, and ride down the Dump trail to Oil Can, or Pile o' Rocks, to Granny's (one of our favorites at the time) or to Ladies, and Lower Ladies and then head back to On Top Bike Shop for munchies, and a look at ourselves on the video. On Tuesday nights anyone who could make it would meet at the gravel pit for a bbq before riding down.
In the past few years the Shore trails as we've known them have drastically changed. With the technology of dual suspension bikes and disc brakes we have been able to go way beyond what we used to think was possible! The Refrigerator at the bottom of Granny's, used to be "the" stunt to ride! Now the four foot rock is nothing more than a curb-sized hop for most of the riders who frequent the Shore trails.
Digger's "North Shore Extreme" series were the first videos to inspire riders all over the world with our home town riding style - Freeriding. Second up, the Kranked videos, and Rocky Mountain's Fro Riders gave the movement more fuel, striking a match and igniting the whole Freeride scene!
Now even fourteen year old kids are riding the much of the same stuff as Dangerous Dan Cowan, building stunts in their backyards, and filming their own videos!
"Urban riding" was born from the "free ride" scene as well; riders taking to the city streets practicing wheelie drops on man made stunts. While the owners of these office buildings may not like the two-wheeled freaks on their property, Urban riding has caught on everywhere, allowing riders to ride technically, without having to be in the woods.
As a manufacturer and dealer of "North Shore Inspired" Bike and Body Protective Wear, I talk to riders all over the world about the trails they are building and riding, the bikes and they are using and ideas for equipment still needed. Input from riders helps keep Core Rat on top of the ever growing freeride movement. Equipment is constantly being updated and modified to keep pace with riders pushing the boundaries of technical riding.
This summer I expect the Whistler Bike Park to be packed with those riders eager to pay the thirty bucks ($10 bucks off with your BroCard - ed) for the chance to dramatically increase their "jumping" and "extreme riding" skills, keeping them honed for riding the most radically challenging trails in the world!
Heads Up!
Angie Ho is the brains behind Corerat, a local manufacturer of burly clothing and armour for you and your bike. Corerat gear is designed to you and your bike out of the ER. If your local shop doesn't have her stuff you can order from her website.
Angie lives and rides in Squamish BC.
