Donovan Cycling Services

After the rains…

tim — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 03:31:26 +0000

WOW… What a week of weather it has been here in California. With 6 day’s of continuous rain, I was starting to get some serious cabin fever. No riding for a week. Finally today I woke to sunny skies and snow capped mountains, truly a postcard day! So with brisk temps and a huge motivation to get out and ride I grabbed my camera, suited up and hit the road. Oh what a great day for a road ride! The roads were clean of the usual debris due to the on slot of rain, the temps were brisk and the views, well just spectacular. My route was what I like to call the Menifee 8’s. I literally do a figure 8 around the east side of the Menifee Valley. With wide open roads, low traffic and views to die for this is by far one of my favorite rides to do. I leaving right from my house and the ride is about 1 1/2hrs. If I want to add some more mileage I’ll go out to Diamond Valley Lake which adds another 1 1/2-2hrs making for a spectacular pedal through the valley! Well I hope you all got to get your ride on at some point this week. Here are a few pics I took today on the ride., I love were I live!

Keep riding, Tim

It’s been awhile.

tim — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:32:10 +0000

Yeah it’s been quite a long time since I have updated my blog here on my site. Keeping up with the growth of the business, taking on new projects, paying the bills and getting a ride in every once in awhile, well my site has suffered. I apologize and pledge to keep up on it with more frequent updating. In fact there will be some changes to the site over the next few weeks as I reorganize and expand! I have now become a dealer for Dumonde Tech Chain Lube (check home page) and will be expanding the used bike sales section over the Xmas holidays. Interbike 2009 was very impressive this year with the bicycle industry looking healthy and poised for a great year in 2010! With lots of new product and innovation the industry continues to stay on the fore front of technology providing comfort and performance at every level! So get out and ride. With cooler temps and those fattening holiday coming up, now’s the time to log in those miles. Remember a happy bike makes a happy rider so don’t neglect your machine. See me for all your full service repair and maintenance needs!

Keep riding, Tim

Sunset over Santa Rosa

A Mammoth week!

tim — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 22:45:16 +0000

This past week I was fortunate enough to spend some time with family up in mountain bike heaven…. Mammoth Lakes! What an absolutely beautiful place, with mile after mile of sweet single track and spectacular views abound, you will think you have arrived in heaven! Not only is the mountain biking killer but there is excellent fishing, hiking and golf to boot. A true recreation paradise and that’s just the summer months. I myself have been vacationing up in Mammoth for over 40 years and it still excites me just as much as when I was a young kid. The MTB riding up there is some of the best in the world! With a complete MTB park on Mammoth Mountain consisting of ramps, jumps, drops, bridges and over 30 miles of single track, your blood will be pumping all day long. There are also plenty of XC trails off the mountain scattered through out the area and lot’s of scenic road rides as well. If you are looking for adventure on and off the bike then Mammoth is the place for you! Just an easy 5-6 hour drive from the LA metro area. A great place to beat the summer heat! Here’s a few pic’s of the area.

Enjoy the ride… Tim

Big Bear Epic!

tim — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 17:50:45 +0000

How many of you out there have been mountain biking up at Snow Summit in Big Bear Lake Ca. and wondered were all the single track is??? They don’t show it on the web site, trail maps or promos. They don’t physically mark the trails. The maps just show all the fire roads with a couple of quick little fingers of single track. So what’s up with that? Snow Summit promotes excellent mountain biking, but once they let you of the lift your left pretty much in the dark. Well fear not, I have discovered were they have been hiding it! There is an amazing amount of single track all around Snow Summit. With fast technical descents from the top or gnarly lung busting climbs up, it’s all there for the taking! Yesterday myself and a couple of my hommies hit up BB and had a KILLER session. We spent all day taking the lift up and ripping the single track down. Each decent is approx. 20 minutes of eye popping, heart racing, pure adrenaline rush!!! With cool mountain temps. spectacular views of the lake and surrounding area, we couldn’t of ask for a more perfect day. It was truly EPIC! Here are a few pic’s of some of the action. If you are craving some sweet, real mountain single track and need some guidance, contact us about an individual or group guided ride on the mountain. Your body and soul will thank you.

Enjoy the ride… Tim

I’ll have a California “BLT”!

tim — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:39:40 +0000

This weekend I was finally able to get out of town for some much needed camping and mountain biking. The destination was the Laguna Mountain Recreation Area located in San Diego County. This area has some of the best Mountain Biking in all of Southern California! Camping at the Laguna/El Prado campground gives you instant access to miles of rolling single track around and through out the entire meadows. You can also link up to the famous Noble Canyon Trail from here. The area is simply gorgeous. With breath taking views, crisp clean air and trails for all abilities, it’s a experience you will want to share with your friends and family! If you would like more info on the area, or to set up a guided individual/group ride please don’t hesitate to contact us. The Big Laguna Trail… “BLT” is one place you will want to ride again and again!!! Here are a few pics of the meadows, thanks for visiting the site and enjoy the ride.

Tim

Love your bike.

tim — Thu, 28 May 2009 22:02:38 +0000

The summer heat is on it’s way and now is the time to tune your bike up! With winter gone and spring just about behind us it’s time to rid your ride of all those creek’s and squeak’s. Water, dirt and grime all can take it’s toll on a bike. On all terrain/mtb bikes, areas like your bottom bracket, suspension pivot point’s, head set, drive train and brakes usually need the most attention. Clogged shift cable housing can also cause poor shifting. With Road, Town and Cruiser bikes the same applies minus the suspension part’s and possible gears. If you are a avid rider you should overhaul your bike once a year, tune ups twice a year. If you don’t ride as much you should at least tune your bike up at least once a year. By doing this you will increase the life of the bicycle and increase your fun as well. Nothing beats a smooth ride!!! Right now here at RIDEWITHDCS.com we can have your bike tuned up and ready to go in 1 day or less. So don’t wait, take advantage now of our competitive pricing and friendly, honest service.

Enjoy the ride, Tim

A happy bike trail side

Vail MTB Park

tim — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 17:09:41 +0000

New MTB trails at Vail Lake Resort!

The MTB Park is ever expanding at the Resort. With Robert (racersandchasers) and Jason (12 HRS. of Temecula) leading the effort and help from a crew of volunteer’s the Park is really starting to take shape! Off the main divide, at the top of “The Damn Climb” are 2 killer, sweet ,single track trails that will differently get your heart pumping. One of them, used for the Super D race course, has some white knuckled, ridge line action then moves to a couple of real technical drop sections and ends with rolling single track. Super fun ride!!! The other starts with a steep drop into some killer flowing single track that cuts and winds through the hill’s. A very picturesque ride that will amp you up! These trails with several other’s at the resort offer a lot of great riding for all abilities and levels. There’s a $5.00 entry fee but it includes access to the pool, jacuzzi, showers, water slide and all the riding your legs can handle. Camping is also available. If your interested in riding the resort and would like some one to show you the way around I offer guided rides of the area, check our guided ride/tour’s section for more info. This is one of the best times of the year to get out and ride. With everything in bloom, sunny skies and perfect temps there’s no excuse to not get out and spin those legs and stimulate that mind… Lets ride!!!

The MTB Vibe

tim — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:59:42 +0000

Wow the weather for riding around here has been primo! Yesterday we went for a MTB ride in the OC on the Santiago Oaks Trail. I’ve been out there a few times but have never really figured out the trail system and the best direction to ride it. As my brother Danny and I headed out to start our ride I was thinking to myself that it would sure be nice to ride with some one who is familiar with the trail. Just as we came up to a fork in the trail another rider came spinning along and asked us if we need some help. Perfect, I told him we weren’t too familiar with the trails out here and if he could point us in the right direction. He said “better yet why don’t you just tag along and will ride them together, I usually ride alone so it would be good to have some company for a change”. Eric, super cool guy (and super strong rider) rode with us for a couple of hours, showing us all the different options out there and which way to ride them. Thanks again Eric for a killer ride (and your patients). That’s one of the elements that makes Mountain Biking such a cool sport, the camaraderie between riders, the sense of community. Not all sports offer that but Mountain Biking just seems to be a big BROFEST. Everyone is always pumped, smilin and willing to help each other out. Weather it’s in the parking lot or out on the trail it’s always a good vibe! So the next time your out on the trail and some body looks a little confused, ask them if they need directions or have them tag along. Chances are someone else showed you how to ride that loop your on the 1rst time…

Here’s a few pic”s of the ride. Sorry no action shots, to stoked on the terrain to stop riding! Again, many thanks Eric for hooking us up on the trail, very cool! We’ll spread the love…

view from the top

Spring time bloom

Tour of California huge success!

tim — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 17:45:54 +0000

With over 2 million fans over 9 days of racing and 300,000 alone on the last stage 8 in Rancho Bernardo/Escondido the Tour of California was the largest sporting event ever for the state of California. On Sunday in downtown Escondido the scene was crazy with over 100,000 fans lining the streets in anticipation of a classic finish with the worlds best cyclist. In the end Levi Leipheimer and team Astana held off the attacking field and took the overall classification. Sundays mountainous (Tour de France like) stage 8 proved to be worthy as one of the toughest a stage as any of all the Grand Tours. After the stage Lance Armstrong called the Tour of California now “one of the top 3 or 4 hardest races in the world”! The scene on the streets throughout the course, especially on Mnt. Palomar, was like a page out of the Tour de France. With fans dressed in wacky outfits, cow bells in hand, chanting for their favorite rider, it felt like July in the Alps not February in California! Cycling is growing in this country and the TOC will be a big part of it for many years to come.

Final Standings: Overall 1rst- Levi Leipheimer (AST) 2nd- David Zabriski (GRM) 3rd Micheal Rodgers (THR)

King of the Mountains: Jason McCartney (SAX)

Sprinter: Mark Cavendish (THR)

Best Young Rider: R Gasink (RAB)

Another rainy day.

tim — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 19:48:47 +0000

Well it’s another rainy day here in Southern California, 5th day in a row. That doesn’t happen real often here so it becomes a bit of a challenge to get your ride on. Yesterday I had to just suck it up and go out on the rode for an hour, I was getting stir crazy and the leg’s were screaming… let me out! As long as it’s not pouring rain, riding in it is kinda fun, you just need to dress properly (click on training/riding tips).Another option to keep the legs spinning during bad weather is riding the bike on a stationary trainer. You can do this with either a road or mountain bike and there are many choices out there for trainers. The way I like to do it is put the trainer in the garage, open the main door, turn on some music and spin for 45 minutes to an hour. this way I still feel like I am outside, it’s chilly and frankly not as boring as being indoors. I also like to read a magazine as well.

We are just 6 days untill the start of The Tour of California and hopefully this will be the last rain for a few weeks. All the teams are set and this years field is the biggest assembly of world class riders ever for a US race. Virtually all the top names on the circuit will be there and this could be a preview of what’s in store for the Tour de France!!! Versus network will have complete live TV coverage and we will be bringing you daily updates her at RIDEWITHDCS.com so check in daily! I would also like to give a huge shout out to my good friend Vince from http://dirtcartel.com/. With out all his awesome help I could not have been able to develop and maintain this site! He is a super good guy and has a KILLER MTB WEB SITE so click on the link and check it out. It’s full of product review, interviews and all that’s Mountain Bikes!!!