Oakley Riders Eero Ettala, Nicolas Muller and Kevin Pearce ride Japan!


"Tracking Eero" Japan Action Webisode from OAKLEY on Vimeo.

"This was the first time I have filmed in Japan. And it snowed almost everyday! Once again the crew was amazing, Nicolas Muller and Kevin Pearce made it so much fun. Those guys kill it. And all of our riding styles are so different. Nicolas really knows how to take advantage of that Japanese terrain. He is the powder master!"

"We filmed powder lines in Asahidake for a few days and then I had to go back to Sapporo and compete in the Toyota big air. (we need dialogue about winning the comp for the 2nd time) During my stay in Sapporo it snowed like 1 meter in Asahidake, so went back there after I won the big air."

"It was one of the coolest trips I have been on. The only minus point on the trip was the gnarly hiking, but I guess I should just look at it as a free gym pass."

Eero Ettala

Music - Duran Duran - Hungry Like The Wolf

Todd puts Austin Smith through an advanced training course for the Olympics.

Newest installment from our guy Josh Zerkel up at Wisp Resort. Make sure to check out all of Josh's other videos at Josh Zerkel Vimeo

It was a case of 'three times the champion' for Tim Johnson (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com) at the US National Cyclo-Cross Championships in Bend, Oregon, today as he took home his third stars and stripes jersey. The Massachusetts native took the prestigious single-day event by storm, winning by nearly 10 seconds ahead of local star Ryan Trebon (Kona-FSA) and Jonathan Page (Planet Bike).
"It was so easy to make a mistake today," said Johnson. "The race isn't won in the first lap but it's lost in the first eight or nine of the ten laps we did. I felt smooth and fast and that was all I was thinking about. I broke the race down into chunks and every couple corners. I tried to have a trouble free last few laps. I wasn't trying to gain any time, just tried to go as fast as I could," he added.
Johnson won his last cyclo-cross national title in 2007 in Kansas City. This year, he was the odds on favourite after taking nearly 10 season victories and winning the North American Cyclo-Cross Trophy series overall title. Read More at www.cyclingnews.com

Pathfinder of WV Holiday Store Hours: 


Starting Sunday December 6th, 2009


Monday Through Friday: 10:00am-7:00pm


Saturday: 10:00am-5:00pm


Sunday: 12:00am-5:00pm

Pathfinder Team Riders Josh Zerkel, and Corey Snyder taking advantage of the first snowfall at Wisp Resort.


BLOWN ZONE from Josh Zerkel on Vimeo.

The rumors are true. As winter has arrived, so has Norwegian phenom Andreas Wiig to Forum’s pro team. Joining Peter Line, Eddie Wall, Pat Moore, Jake Welch, Stevie Bell, John Jackson, Nic Sauvé and Daniel Ek, Andreas is set to give it 110% this season. Whether riding the park, at a slopestyle event or filming in the backcountry, Wiig continually pushes his limits.
"It's an honor to be part of such a talented and progressive team, a team that is setting the standard in snowboarding today," says Wiig. "I already know most of the guys on the team and I'm looking forward to riding with them. It's going to be good times."
"There is no better fit for Forum than Andreas. Forum is a cutting-edge freestyle brand and that is exactly who Andreas is, always taking it to a new level," states Director of Team Marketing Bryan Knox. "We are all extremely happy to be working with a rider of this caliber."
Thinking back to when his snowboarding career began and how he got to where he is today, Andreas is looking forward to focusing more on filming and shooting photos. Although he’ll continue to participate in select contests globally, the emphasis of Wiig's upcoming season seems to be reconnecting with his roots.

Stay tuned to forumsnowboards.com for more Andreas news throughout the season.

Man I wish that we had some snow like this out East...It's coming though (fingers crossed). It's amazing to watch these guys just launch off these huge gaps, however I guess the waist deep helps. Enjoy!

              With Winter quickly approaching and the days getting darker earlier it is becoming a must to have a lightweight, powerful, headlamp. Enter NIteRider and their amazing lighting systems. Pathfinder of West Virginia stocks a number of NiteRider headlamps including the MiNewt and MiNewt Mini USB and Mini USB Plus. The MiNewt Mini USB Plus is a must have holiday gift for three simple reasons. First, it's amazingly bright at 110+ Lumens, Second it's really lightweight, and Third it's a very inexpensive way to light up the trail in front of you. The plus features a light with the option of attachment, helmet or handlebar, and the USB option allows for easy charging on the fly at school or at work. The MINewt is extremely small and when it's on your head it feels as though it's not even there. So Make sure to come in and check out all of the NiteRider lights at Pathfinder of West Virginia, and get yours before the darkness drives you crazy!

FEATURES
Now With Battery Charging Indicator!
110 + Lumens
USB rechargeable Li-ion Battery Pack
Lightweight – 175g
3:00 Run Time
SYSTEM INCLUDES
LED Headlamp
Li-Ion Battery Pack
Handlebar Mount - Fits up to 31.8mm
4.5 HR Smart Charger
Helmet Mount (Plus model)
36” Extension Cable (Plus model)

This past winter Devun, Iikka, Lauri, and Biittner hit St Moritz and the Arlberg to try and get some of that Euro pow. It worked well. See for yourself.

Wishing all of our friends and customers a very Happy Thanksgiving, safe travels, and great food!

Todd goes to Florida, Orlando to be exact, to work on promotions for the Dew Tour. Next thing he knows he's washed up in one of the largest man made wave pools in the country with only a surf board to save him! Fight for your life and enjoy this Tuesday's Todcast!

Pathfinder of WV/ Forum Snowboards Team Rider Josh Zerkel Showcased on Forum's Website @ The 2009 Motown Throwdown!




Pathfinder would like to congratulate Josh on his efforts in the past and his continued work to be one of the best snowboarders in the SouthEast! Keep em coming Josh! Check out the full post @ Forum Snowboards

 

Dura-Ace features and feel but with a tad more weight – and a lot less money.


Shimano's Ultegra road group has long been the workhorse of the lineup, offering near-Dura-Ace functionality and weight but with prices that average consumers could afford. We've already gone over the tech specifics so we'll skip over all of that and go straight into how well it works and feels after several months on the road. As expected, the all-new Ultegra 6700 loses some weight – over 150g! – and has gained trickle-down changes from its recently revamped Dura-Ace 7900 stablemate but along with the good comes a few letdowns as well.

Ergonomics – flatter perch, easier reach
The all-new Ultegra 6700 STI Dual Control levers are a virtual dead ringer for Dura-Ace: they're now more rectangular in profile with less of a taper than before, the body has more girth and is similarly squared off, the straighter top surface makes for a flatter transition to the bar, and the outwardly canted carbon fiber main lever blades are shapelier and easier to reach from the hoods, plus they're easier on bare skin when it's cold. Now that the shift cables are neatly concealed beneath the bar tape, the once-prominent bulb atop the lever has been downsized (for better or worse depending on your grip preferences) and the overall look is more businesslike than before.
With all being said, not everyone will be happy with the new shape. The bigger body (measuring 1cm bigger in circumference than 6600 at the narrowest point and a whopping 3cm at the base) will clearly appeal to those with larger hands but those with smaller mitts might find it hard to get their fingers wrapped around. Though it offers a more positive feel overall, the squared-off shape feels a bit less organic, too.
Reach adjustment is now built in, however – well, sort of. Unlike Dura-Ace's hidden screw-type adjustment, Ultegra's reach is tuned by inserting one of two included rubber shims. True, the adjustment increments aren't as fine as a result but the rubber shims handily fill in the space for a more finished look than Dura-Ace's unsightly gap.

Shift performance – hidden cables but more friction
There's simply no way around it: the new hidden cables look better but the more convoluted routing also yields noticeably more friction than before – and unfortunately, Shimano's 1:2 cable pull ratio makes it more sensitive to that friction than its main competition. Whereas the Ultegra 6600 levers feel silky smooth, light and positively connected to the derailleurs, 6700's feel is more vague and heavier and the connection is slightly muddied. High-zoot cable sets such as from Gore help, though, so you may want to factor that into the budget.
In addition, the repackaged internals also yields lever throws that are at least as long as before with a similar amount of 'dead space' before anything actually happens. Long-time Shimano users likely won't notice much but shifts require more movement than Campagnolo's Ergopower and feel like a veritable mile versus SRAM's ultra-short mechanism.
Overall rear shift performance is still excellent, though, with reliably consistent chain movement across the cassette – it's just not as direct feeling anymore. Just as with Dura-Ace, downshifts are now limited to just two gears per full sweep instead of three – bummer.
On the other hand, front shift performance is absolutely awesome thanks largely to the stiffer front derailleur pivots and fantastic new outer chainring (more on that later). Full-power upshifts and downshifts are impeccably smooth and well controlled and a notable step or two ahead of the pack. As with Dura-Ace, there's no longer an outer trim position but we can attest that you won't miss it as long as the front derailleur is properly adjusted – chain rub is nonexistent in any cassette cog while in the big ring.
We tested the standard drive configuration (130mm BCD, 53/39T) but from experience with other Shimano groups have no reason to expect the compact version to be any different performance-wise. In case you need it, there's a triple option, too.


Ultegra 6700 – best version yet or more of a lateral move?
Shimano has finally silenced its external shift cable routing critics by concealing the lines but has unfortunately hurt its trademark Light Action shifting feel in the process. Though appreciably lighter than before and with best-ever front shift performance and braking, the new Ultegra is still a notable letdown in the all-too-important metric of rear shift performance. It's vague feeling, the throws are much too long, and the fact that you can now only downshift two rear gears per sweep instead of three like before is a definite step backwards.
Overall, Ultegra 6700 is still a pretty good package with Shimano's usual high levels of fit and finish and riders coming off of much older equipment are sure to be impressed. But just as we found with Dura-Ace 7900, riders on the previous generation of Ultegra (especially the superb SL variant) probably won't be quite as compelled to upgrade.

To learn more about the Ultegra 6700 Group come into Pathfinder of West Virginia and check it out on the
Cannondale Cyclocross 3. And make sure to read the full article at www.cyclingnews.com