17 inches and counting. La Nina is back, my friends. In fact, word on street says Mount Hood Meadows might even open some lifts this weekend. With that kind of a forecast, it’s a good thing we’re giving away two ten passes to Meadows, as well as a weekend getaway to Stratton Mountain Resort in Vermont (includes lodging, lift tickets, rentals and dinner) and full Nau winter kits for all in our Winter Stoke Giveaway. It’s your last chance to enter, so sign up today.

Yeah, we know, Halloween has come and gone. But some of us like to think that feather boas and vampire capes should be an accepted clothing option every day of the week. Our friends at River City Bicycles think so too. In the second of our series of dispatches from the River City/Gates Center Track Cyclocross team, John Walrod and his crew show the cycling world that fat suits and pumpkins are nothing to mess with.

A road trip to Bend, more costumes than we needed, a few trench coats and our hotshot Carbon Drive Raleighs: Cross Crusade is all about the Halloween bash. Some would even say that the early races in the series are meant to build up enough fitness to be able to race in a costume on Halloween. And the post Halloween races are nothing more than victory laps meant for dominating crappy, store-bought costumed racers.

But Alex, Ryan and Seth think that every race is meant for racing.  I —aka RadBot 3000—am of the costumed school of thought. Luckily we balance out quite well. They get results; I get the hot media: (yep, that’s the front page of the Bend Bulletin, the local newspaper).

Long story short – too much dust, too much booze, too many flats, too many costumes, and not enough rain for trench coats.  Seth, Ryan and Alex posted actual results against dudes who get paid to race.  I grabbed a ton of facial lacerations from my huge pumpkin head and sheet metal cuts on my thighs from the RadBot 3000 legs, but I also distracted the competition while the boys stole the glory.  Teamwork.

-John Walrod

[Here at Nau, we like people who are challenging paradigms, trying out new technology and pushing their chosen area forward. We also really love bikes. So when the River City Cyclocross guys asked us to sponsor their team, it was a no-brainer. The Gates Center Track/ River City Bicycles Cyclocross Team has been formed to show the cycling world that single speed and belt drive are both more than viable options for riding and racing. Based in the Pacific Northwest, with exposure to the largest body of cyclocross racers in the country, they're poised to showcase and advocate for the virtues of belt drive single speed bicycles. Here, in the first of a series of dispatches from the team, John Walrod introduces the single speed rocket ships bikes they ride.]

“Single speed – really? Belt? Why would you do that?” Those are the questions that precede the inevitable – “Can I try it?” That’s followed by “Holy @)#(!, that thing is a rocket!”

This summer I was invited by my good friend Dave Guettler to join Alex Criss, Seth Patla, and Ryan Weaver on a cyclocross team co-sponsored by his shop – River City Bicycles (super shop of the country and shining star of Portland, OR). I have raced for Dave for about 10 years but this idea was different, we’d be teaming with Gates Carbon Belt Drive to do the drivetrains on our bikes. Long story short – we recently took delivery of 4 Carbon Fiber Raleigh Hodala frames and built them up with the Gates Carbon Center Track belts.

Cyclocross Magazine did a review of this very bike earlier this year. The bikes are flashy and really light (belts/pulleys end up a fair bit lighter than a chain) and they garner tons of attention. Riding in the first few races we dialed in the fit and waited for a true test to come. That came a week ago in the form of unexpected rain at the CrossCrusade season opener. Thank you Nau for the super dope trench coats – they are gonna get some high mileage this year!

Single speed bikes are counter-intuitive: Gears are supposed to make you more efficient, right? Not always. On many cross courses, as well as mountain bike tracks and urban adventures (just ask any messenger), some of the best riders sport one gear. Why? Because there are no derailleurs to fail, there’s much less friction in the drive train—a big efficiency savings—plus much less weight. A reliable bike that weighs a lot less and is more efficient sounds good huh? Yeah, it’s really good.

In the mud, which we got in spades last week, single speeds shine: no parts to argue with, and nothing to fail you when you need it most. Just one gear, and you, both agreeable to the task at hand.

Single speeds are better in the mud than gears and the Gates Carbon Center Track makes my old chain single speed feel like a donkey. Chains, even single speed chain bikes, clog up. I won’t bore you with more words – look at this: I couldn’t get into my pedals, and somehow my drivetrain was as clean as the day it was installed!

- John Walrod

It’s happening. Ski area web-cams in California, Oregon, Utah are showing white. Friends in Tahoe are posting early-season touring pics on Facebook. Long-term weather forecasts are predicting the return of La Niña. Winter is ramping up!

Here at Nau, all this early season excitement is just adding fuel to the fire of our winter stoke. So to give it a positive outlet, we’re giving away everything you need to take advantage of what’s sure to be an epic winter.

For our first-ever Winter Stoke giveaway, we’ve got two great prize packages: East Coasters can win a weekend for two at Stratton Mountain Resort, complete with lodging, lift tickets and rentals; West Coasters can pick up one of two 10-passes to Mt. Hood Meadows. Best of all? We’ll outfit all the winners in complete mountain kit—including jacket, down, pants and insulation—from Nau.

To win, submit your entry at nau.com/ski and stay tuned to our Off The Grid newsletter—we’ll announce the winner November 16th.

Our friends at Warm Current have combined three of our favorite things—surfing, sustainability and giving back—and created an ingenious non-profit that helps underserved kids learn how to surf. For the past three years, they’ve collected tired, old wetsuits and surfboards, polished them up, and used the gear to outfit kid’s surf camps across the Pacific Northwest, Peru, Mexico and Morocco.

Now, for the first time, they’ve launched a brilliant fundraising campaign, The Faces of Warm Current, that will help spread the love of surfing and the outdoors to kids that would otherwise go without.

This is how it works: From now until July 31^st, you can donate a mere five bucks and purchase a square containing a message or photo that will become part of a giant mosaic on the side of the kid’s surf camp trailer. The money will be used to buy new kid’s surfboards, new wetsuits and a trailer that will tour up and down the West Coast.

Even if you’ve never ridden a wave, this is a cause to get on board with. Break out your old wetsuit and send it their way. Teach a lesson. Donate a five spot (or more). And if you haven’t done so already, check out their website: Warmcurrent.org.

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vimeo Direkt

In New York City, a cyclist got a ticket for riding outside of the bike lane and decided to make a movie showing why it’s often necessary to do so. He was fined $50 for his infraction and he really, really wants his money back, so much so that he decided to smash into anything blocking the bike lane to prove his point. This guy has got to be a stuntman because there is no way that anybody in their right mind would pull these kinds of shenanigans without wearing a helmet.

As a side-note, according to the video, it’s not even illegal to ride outside the bike lane anyway. Did he prove his point or simply trash his body and beach cruiser for internet views?

Weigh in!

Sometimes board meetings come up in the afternoon that are simply unavoidable. Last week one happened at around 3pm. And I had no other choice than to squeeze into my black suit and deal with three other members of the board.

Well, better a 3-hour board meeting than a 3-hour bored meeting, right?

Last week I stumbled across a pretty amazing youtube channel by a guy in Sweden who calls himself “Log Cabineer.” He shoots these really simple videos of a record player spinning old vinyl in front of the landscapes surrounding his cabin. They are powerful, calming, and have the amazing ability to transport one from their seat in front of a computer screen to a magical outdoor setting. Something about the way each video feels like a still life, with very subtle movements—clouds shifting, a fly hitting the surface of the lake—and the music mixing with the ambient sounds of nature is really enchanting. Have a look. Oh, and check out the video where the dog grabs his beer on command. What a life.

Skateboarding has always been a controversial sport around here, not in a “skateboarding is not a crime” way, but from a brand perspective. Basically, there are some people who feel like skating isn’t a “Nau sport” and others who do. A couple weeks ago we came across a video that we all agreed upon—Killian Martin: A Skate Regeneration. No doubt, his style is highly influenced by ‘80s freestyle skating, along with his background as a gymnast and his obsession with surfing. Killian’s also getting a lot of love in the fashion blog world for a video that shows a totally different take on street skating, where he’s decked out in ‘50s-style clothing and pulling off his crazy acrobatic moves to a soundtrack by Ricky Nelson. We’ve always appreciated athletes who push boundaries, and if this style proves to be a new direction for skate culture, we’re all for it.

20 hours, a lot of inches. Positive change in New Jersey.