October 20, 2006
Hans' & Peaty's Irish Pub Crawl
Dublin, Ireland

Audio Slideshow

"That's it, I had enough, I can't stand anymore pubs for at least a month or lets say a week", after spending the last 6 days in an RV camper together with the current Downhill World Cup Champion Steve Peat and Irish photographer Victor Lucas.

Our mission was to hit some of Irelands best biking spots, while visiting as many pubs as possible along the way. The camper was packed with several bikes from each of us. I brought my GT i-drive 7 and GT i-drive 5 bikes as well as my Trials bike, Peaty brought his V10 DH bike and his Santa Cruz Nomad freerider.

Our first stop was the Guinness Brewery and a little urban asult through the streets of Dublin, before we hit the road to head west towards Croagh Patrick, a famous pilgrimage mountain on the west coast of Ireland. Once we finally arrived on the other side of the country on the narrow winding roads, we had managed to stop at 7 pubs, including Sean's Pub, the oldest one in Ireland dating from the 1600's.

At this point I have to confirm the rumors that the creamy dark Guinness beer does indeed taste better in Ireland.

We got a slow start the next morning, not so much due to hangovers, than the misty and moist weather. Even though we had to first carry and push our bikes for 2 hours uphill, we decided to bring the heavy artillery - the big bikes. Saint Patrick's mountain proofed to be quite a challenge, the weather was foggy and rainy, often we had a visibility of less than 20feet, until we eventually reached the small church on top of the mountain. It was windy and cold, tradition has it that pilgrims have to run 15 times around the church to get rid of their sins, we didn't even bother to ride the 15 laps.

The downhill was superb - big loose stones and steep slopes. Shortly after we left the summit the sun started to peak through the clouds and opened up a breathtaking view below us. The lush landscape and coastline was eye-candy, just as it was to watch Peaty skip over the loose rocks at high speed. It was a fun ride down, the trail offered many different lines, which kept it really fun and interesting. Campell's Pub was a good call and the beer tasted even better after we had to earn it hard. Peaty wasn't in the mood to skip many pubs, his mission was to hit at least 30 different pubs during our 6 day trip, and half pints weren't an option either. That night we parked the RV at a local mountain bikers house and took it easy.

Our next stop was the Burren, a vast rocky landscape, with little vegetation and miles of cracked rock slaps, which were actually quite fun and challenging to ride. We rode parts of the Burren Way, an old historic route and popular hiking trail. Medieval castles and 5000 year old dolmen and stone circles marked the way, the weather wasn't great, but at least it didn't rain; yet. It was good to get out of the RV and spin our legs through this remote countryside. In the late afternoon we arrived at the Cliffs of Moher, which were for me the main reason why I wanted to come to Ireland. The 600 feet tall cliffs are entirely vertical and the edge is very abrupt. My dream was to ride along the small narrow ledge that was between 6 feet to 6 inches wide and looked like a long curvy balcony without a handrail.

Upon arrival at the Cliffs we had to postpone those plans rapidly. The weather was getting worse and herds of tourists were all over the place, plus the security guy wouldn't let anybody near the edge of the cliffs.

We changed our plans and did a pub crawl instead, hoping for better conditions and luck in the early morning, before anybody else would get there. It turned out to be my favorite pub experience of the trip. In the small seaside village of Liscannor we found 4 pubs next door to each other. Five Pints of Guinness later and after a great seafood dinner and some fresh oysters it was time to hit the second pub, after a quick drink to quench our thirst, we moved one door over to Egans Pub, where locals were playing Irish folk music and the old fireplace was keeping us warm. We were told earlier, that with a bit of luck, "T. O'Brien" pub would open at around 11pm, sure enough the doors were open and 3 characters, straight out of the 50ties, were sipping on some drinks. It was like being set back in time, this place has been around for a long time, but it must have been at least 50 years, since any of the interior, including the suit and tie of the bartender have changed.

Locals warned us of the upward drafts, that blow people off the cliffs - and sure enough the wind was picking up over night. We got an early start, and even the extra strong italian coffee I brewed couldn't clear our heads. Even though the conditions and weather were less than good, this was our one and only chance to ride the cliffs, so we did. It was a rad feeling to ride along the exposed edges and jump over some of the gaps. As time went on we started to feel more and more comfortable and daring. Shortly after we got done it started pouring rain, nonetheless we continued the trail on top of the cliffs, which was one of the more spectacular trails I have ridden. We followed it all the way to Hag's Head. From there we drove to RV to County Kerry in the South of Ireland.

Our next stop was the beautiful town of Killarney and Ross Castle. The following day we did a killer XC ride on the Old Kenmare Road, another classic hiking trek. We were joined and guided by Rory, a local mountain biker. Once again, the riding was better then I expected, the trail was about 20 miles long and had all sorts of elements we had to tackle, some good uphill sections, water-crossings and muddy sections as well as very slippery rocky sections which required trials skills. Peaty and I challenged each other for little "ride-off's", to see who could make it further. Some sections we tried over and over again, until one or both of us would make it. It was interesting to compare our different styles, Peaty convinced me that speed can be a good friend, even when its super rough and technical, as long one has the skills and cajones. The landscape kept changing, sometimes it looked like the Scottish Highlands, then it was moss covered forests or northshore style trails which led us on railroad beams across the swampy areas. We arrived completely soaked at the RV. The rest of the time we spent pursuing Peaty's 30 Pub goal, with stops in Kenmare, Cork and last but not least Dublin, where we were joined by a bunch of the local riders and I gave a little trials demo in one of the pubs.

31 pubs, excellent trails and good memories. We boarded the ferry to the UK the next morning.

Hans Rey

All photos copyright by Victor Lucas: victor@freezefocus.com

October 6, 2006
Check out this movie trailer: "Leaps & Bounds - The Story of Bike Trial" by Desmond Lee
Its unbelievable - the best film ever done for our sport!

http://www.trialsmovie.com/

Crank Brothers Party at Interbike Ghost Bar/Palms
Check out the Blue Man trailer, starring Greg Herbold, Kirt Voreis and Hans

Watch
http://homepage.mac.com/crankbrothers/iMovieTheater10.html

Download
http://homepage.mac.com/crankbrothers/FileSharing6.html

New DVD
Hans Rey’s Classic Videos Collection (1992 - 1997)

All of Hans Rey’s original extreme biking and trials videos are now available on one special collectors edition DVD.

The DVD includes:

• Hans No Way Rey
• Level Vibes
• Monkey See - Monkey Do
• Big Five
  plus a recent interview with Hans about the making of the videos

Plays all regions
Approx. Length: 2 hours

Price: US $20 - plus shipping and handling

Sept. '06
New Hans / Wheels 4 Life products

Several new products, either designed by Hans or benefiting his charity "Wheels 4 Life" are hitting the market soon.

• Check out the sneak preview of Hans' new Kenda tire "Telonix". This tire will be available in the following sizes 2.2, 2.4 and 2.6. It will be launched at Interbike tradeshow in Las Vegas. It will be a multi purpose all-round tire.
  
  
• SQ Lab launches special edition "Wheels 4 Life" seat.
  Each seat will raise Euro 5.- for Wheels 4 Life
  More info at: http://www.dersattel.de
  
  
• Crank Brothers just launched a special edition 50/50 Wheels 4 Life pedal, in the popular rasta colors red/gold/green. Crank Brothers will donate $ 10.- for each pair sold. This is a limited edition of 1000 pairs.

September 11, 2006
Check out the video of Hans riding the Mottolino Bike Park in Livigno - Alta Rezia - Italy

http://www.altarezia.eu/_manage/upload/Alta_Rezia_Region/mottolino%20web.mov

June 26, 2006
New!!!!!! Hans' Classic Videos are now available on one DVD

The original extreme biking and trials videos from freeriding pioneer Hans "No Way" Rey, are now available on a special collectors DVD. Including "Hans 'No Way' Rey" , "Level Vibes", "Monkey See Monkey Do" and "Big Five"; plus a recent interview with Hans about the making of the videos. These videos are legendary; they inspired and paved the road for many of todays freeriders. Total length approx. 2 hours, plays all regions.

Price: US $20 - plus shipping and handling

April 17, 2006
Hans Rey interview with Cycling News

Ormoc City, Philippines - April 3rd 2006

Hans Rey Philippines Road Trip

As I write this I'm sitting in the beautiful garden of the former Governor of the Leyte Province. The Larrazabal Family is the organizer of the 5. Terry Larrazabal Bike Festival, one of the biggest cycling events in Southern Asia. I was invited to the festival as special guest, ambassador and trials showman. I decided to ride my bike prior to the festival to some of the incredible natural sites in the Philippines, little did I realize what the Philippines had to offer in terms of mountains, volcanos and over 7100 islands.

This wasn't a typical "Hans Rey Adventure Team" trip, it was more like a road-trip, consisting of several mini-adventures. For the majority of the trip I was joined by Italian photographer, Marco Toniolo, and a local videographer. Goyo, the organizer of the festival and my host, prepared a great plan of action, that left little room to breath but plenty of room for incredible memories.

March 22.-24.: After a 16 hour flight from Los Angeles to Manila, I arrived at 5:30 am. A couple hours later Marco arrived from Germany and immediately we went to a press conference at the National Tourism Office. With an hour and half delay, which is considered on time in the Philippines, we started our well attended press conference. In the afternoon we got ready for our trip up north to the Mountain Province and the world famous Banaue Rice Terraces, considered the 8th World Wonder and a UNESCO World Heritage site. But first we had another live TV appearance before we started our 12 hour all-night drive. Talking about jet lag, we didn't have a chance to even think about it. Thirty minutes outside of Manila the nicely paved express way ended already, and the rest of the trip was an windy and dangerous mountain roads. In the middle of the night I was woken up, as our car all of sudden did a u-turn and drove back. One of our support vehicles had come of the road and flipped into a riverbed 25 feet below! The car and the two bikes on top (luckily not mine) were totaled, miraculously the two passengers were unhurt.

I brought two bikes with me, just to be ready for any situation, a GT i-drive 5 all-round bike and my new GT - Hans Rey signature trials bike (frame).

With a reduced crew we continued our trip, in the morning we arrived near Banaue from where we started immediately our first bike tour to the remote village of Batad, where, for the past 2000 years, locals had carved beautiful rice terraces into the surrounding hillsides. It looked a lot like the terraced Inca hills near Machu Picchu, Peru. First we had to climb a long dusty Jeepney road in the brutal mid-day heat. But then we descended on a beautiful footpath into the small village of Batad, where people live in primitive huts, most them without electricity, running water, etc... Needless to say, we went to bed shortly after dark around 7:30pm in a simple backpackers hostel.

March 25.: With the crack of dawn and the call of the roosters we awoke in the midst of the 'rice terrace amphitheater'. My first goal was to ride to the beautiful waterfall on the bottom of the valley, about 100 levels of terraces below. It proofed to be very tricky to ride along or down the terraces, many sections, very steeper than I could ride without a death-wish. The narrow dirt path' along the edges were uneven, nerve-wrecking, and ready to grumble under my tires. The waterfall was a long way from the top of the mountain range we had to still climb, before we could make our way to the next stop. Sagada, known as one of the adventure capitals of the Philippines but too far off the beaten track for most people to ever make it there. The weather was brutally hot and some local riders showed us to their favorite trails.

First we went to a place called Echo Valley, site of the 'Hanging Coffins" a sacred burial area surrounded by limestone cliffs, it was very eire and after my experience with the spirits several years ago in Borneo, I was extra cautious and respectful. Some of those coffins are 500 years old! We proceeded to the local market, to buy some tropical fruit for breakfast, before heading to a wonderful trail in a pine forest that led us to some gigantic caves. Later that afternoon we found ourselves once again cramped in the Toyota Defender for another 12 hour drive back to Manila. The roads can be quite scary and sketchy, the drive back was more stressful than riding the steep rice terraces.

March 26.: Today was a trials show in one of the biggest shopping malls of Manila. The turnout was incredible, I couldn't believe how big and enthusiastic the local biking scene was. The people were so happy to meet me and have their photo taken with me. As I found out, many of my past adventure team trips are constantly being televised on the Discovery Channel Int.and other TV networks. People brought all sorts of foreign, especially american, biking magazines to be autographed, it was quite nostalgic to see some of the 10 - 15 year old features and ads.

March 27.: Another media day, 5am wake-up call for an appearance on the biggest morning TV show. Jumped over some Jeepney's, the classical, colorful Philippine mini buses and over a transvestite TV host. Next was a hour long live interview with the "Larry King" of the Philippines, broadcasted worldwide on Philippine networks.

Enough of the big city! It was time to hit some more trails, next up - the active Taal Volcano and its crater lake.

March 28.: We got an early start to climb Taal Volcano. First we had a fun descent to the edge of the first lake, from where we boarded a small boat, that took us to the island. It was a hot and dusty mission. The one hour hike and bike was on a sandy horse trail, and despite all the trash along the way, it is a favorite tourist attraction. Once we reached the top we were rewarded with a fresh coconut and a awesome view of the crater lake. This volcano is on and off active, and we could see the smoke from several cracks in the earth and smelt the sulfur in the air. Four local riders joined me on this trip, mountain biking can be considered an upper class sport in the Philippines - however; the bikes, skills and attitudes of the locals weren't any different than from any other biker around the world. I guess mountain bikers have all similar genes? The downhill was a good laugh and worth the efforts.

March 29. - April 1.: Marco had to fly back to Munich, due to prior obligations, for me it was time to fly to Ormoc City in the Leyte Province to attend the Terry Larrazabal Bicycle Festival (www.tlbf.org). This is a big familiy event, purely fueled on passion. They have sixteen races in 4 days, basically a mini Sea Otter. From a 3 day road stage race to XC, 4X, DH, SuperBMX, Freestyle, Fun Rides and the first ever trials comp in the Philippines. Nearly 600 entries from 7 countries. Its a great event and everybody has lots of fun, reminded me a lot of the early days of mountain biking in the US.

This place is beautiful! Nice beaches and surrounded by mountains and coconut and banana tree forests. The fun ride was at a idyllic lake in the mountains, with 80% single-trail. The trail was guarded by local military, due to ongoing NPA guerrilla rebel encounters and kidnappings, but usually the rebels are most active only in the very south of the Philippines all other islands are pretty save.

I pulled a muscle in my back and got some treatment from the local doctors.

April 2.: Today was the grant finale and award ceremonies for the festival. I used the opportunity for my non-profit charity, 'Wheels 4 Life' (www.wheels4life.org), and presented 12 bikes to the Bishop of Southern Leyte who will distribute the bikes to some of the survivors of the recent devastating mudslide, where the majority of the villagers (over 1000!!!) were buried alive. I also gave some more bikes to families in need of transportation near Ormoc where we had the festival. For me it was a great joy giving these bikes out personally, especially since it was the first time since I had started my charity. I hope many thousand's of bikes will follow these ones.

April 3.: Time to go back home, the Sea Otter starts this week. This was a great trip with lots of good riding and great people. Everybody, in the Philippines is super friendly and seems very content, no matter how their standard of living is. This country and its people are on the rise, well worth a trip not just for bike riders. Thanks to Goyo and his family and all the bike riders of the Philippines.

Hans

All photos copyright by Marco Toniolo (marco@bike-board.net)
More photos at: http://www.marcotoniolo.com/photos/showgallery.php/cat/580

Mar 11, 2006

Sponsor Update

The new year is already in full swing.

I’m happy to announce my 20th season with GT Bicycles!

I’d also like to announce my new cooperations with Kenda tires and tubes, we are already working on a new signature tire called ‘Telonix’. I also partnered up with Crank Brother for pedals and with Camelbak for hydration packs.

I will continue working with longtime sponsors Adidas, Alta Rezia Region, LUK Automotive Systems, Adidas Eyewear, Fox Shox, Mavic, Bell, Shimano, Clif Bar, SQ Lab saddles, Syntace and Sambazon (Acai).

I have already done several trials shows at the Tour of California, the QBP Frostbike Openhouse and at a private party in Los Angeles. I attended Ray’s MTB Event in Cleveland (where I filmed for CNN) and ISPO in Munich. So far I already made 3 cover shots this year.

At the moment I’m getting ready for a big trip to the Philippines, where I’ll attend a bicycle festival and do some mini-adventures at some spectacular volcanos and the famous rice terraces in Banawe. Photographer Marco Toniolo will join me.

Feb 28, 2006

Take It Slo

A blog from Tom Ritchey and Gary Boulanger, directors of Servant Leaders Outreach, a nonprofit organization whose primary purpose is to serve others in the bicycle and outdoor industry by investing in their professional development and well-being, for the benefit of accomplishing tasks and goals for the common good.

Click for info.

Sept. 15, 2005

Val de Mesdi

Hi all there,

I`m proud to announce, that our long term planned but never realized first descent through "Val de Mesdi" (Mittagstal) is successfully finished.

"Val de Mesdi" is one of the most famous off pist skiing and climbing routes in the north italian dolomites.

Bike legend Hans Rey and Christian (Picco) Piccolruaz, extrem freerider from Innsbruck, incredibly overtook gravity on their way from approximately 3000 vertical meters through the valley to the italian ski-resort Corvara.

The partly 40 degrees steep "Val de Mesdi" definately never saw something like a mountain bike tire ever before.

You`ll see one of the pictures as a double page "hot shot" in the next coming german BIKE-Magazin. The full story will appear in the german FREERIDE-Magazin next year.

Here a few pics of this epic trip

Enjoy....

Markus Greber
(all photos copyright by Markus Greber - mgreber@t-online.de)

Aug. 6th 2005

Hans competes in Trialsworx

Today was my first time that I competed in a trials competition since 1998!

It was a fun event held during the Crankworx Festival in Whistler, Canada. The Baia family organized a very nice event with good sections, some of them were in the center of town others were in a nearby creek and park.

Many emotions and memories came back during this comp. I competed in the Expert class, and I was totally unprepared for the event, hadn't even practiced in weeks. When I saw the sections a couple days before the event I decided to give it a go. Not even remembering the rules or knowing who I would compete against.

I started out a bit rusty in the first lap. I had three "5's" in a row. Mainly due to fatigue. I forgotten how aerobic and demanding trials is, especially in a competition setting when riders tend to be tense. I felt like I had the skills, but I just didn't had the strength, which resulted in dumm mistakes. One long section I cleaned until the last 5 feet, then I got stuck on a little piece of wood - crashed and got the worst pedal-bite in years (also that is part of the long forgotten memories).

The very next section, which was even named after me, cost me 5 points as well, after a piece of bark broke off the log and my bike fell outside the section......

The second lap however, made my day. Even tough my strength was fading, somehow I managed to pull it together - and the "old Hans" was shining through.

I cleaned the first four sections, then I got a two in the creek, where I had taken a humiliating bath in the first lap and I got a one at the man-made section in town.

I ended up in second place, one point behind Stevie Baia. But this event wasn't about the result - yes my second lap stoked my ego, but it was about the memories and the respect I gotten from many fellow riders and spectators. Many of these competitors had heard of me or seen my in videos, but never had a chance to see me ride or ride with me. Props go out to the organizers and judges and the Elite riders who really stepped it up. If I had to do it all over again, I'd spend a lot more time in the gym.....

June 28, 2005

Hans' & Frischi's Alta Rezia Freeride Tour
Super, Super, Super e ancora una volta Super!

A few days ago I finished my latest 'Hans Rey Adventure Team' trip together with Cross Country legend Thomas Frischknecht from Switzerland. We did a 6 day freeride tour in the heart of the Alps utilizing ski-lifts, gondolas, trains and shuttles to get around and to the top of some of the best singletrails in the world. We did close to 60,000 ft (20,000 m) vertical downhill trails. The Alta Rezia regions consists of approx. 40 villages partly Swiss and partly Italian; our route started in St. Moritz via Tirano via Livigno to Bormio, with many detours and surprises along the way.

Click here to read entire story

April 4, 2005

Hans' latest adventure team trip in Copper Canyon Mexico
with April Lawyer and Brian Lopes

We have just concluded the latest Hans Rey adventure to Copper Canyon in Northern Mexico. Our mission was to be the first to ride mountain bikes on the technical and difficult Chinivo Trail to the heart of the canyon, the old mining town of Batopilas.

My partners for this trip were none less than Biker X  World Champion Brian Lopes and downhill racing diva April Lawyer.  Brian and I rode the new GT i-drive 5 with Fox 36 forks, April rode her Intense5.5/Maxxis bike.
Click here to read entire story

Stoked Hans with his new downhill rig
(DHi with 40ies)

Hans Rey's Bike Profile
2003 Oil on paper,27.5" x 39.5"
$1500
by Taliah Lempert
More info: http://www.bicyclepaintings.com/gallery/hansprofile.html

March 2, 2005

I'm happy to announce my plans and sponsors for 2005.

2004 was one of my most successful seasons ever. I keep staying very busy with my Adventure Team trips, TV work, promotional and consulting work for my sponsors, trials shows, and other related projects.

I'm happy to announce my 19th season with GT Bicycles and Swatch Watches. Thank you and all my other sponsors to make it possible to live my dream.

I have been also working with Adidas, LUK Automotive Systems, and Shimano for over 12 years.

All my other agreements include: Fox Shox, Maxxis, Syntace, Adidas Eyewear, Mavic, Bell, Clif Bar, Sambazon-Acai, and SQ lab seats.

I'm very happy to announce my new cooperation with the Alta Rezia Region, located in the heart of the Alps. This region includes 40 Italian and Swiss villages/towns such as St. Moritz, Livigno (site of the 2005 Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships) and Bormio. This is one of the most beautiful regions I have ever ridden my bike in, it not only reflects my love for Italy and Switzerland, but it has an incredible trail system with some of the best singletrails and bike route in the world. The region has a very mountain bike friendly infrastructure in place already and plans to expand and improve everything, including bike parks and supplying GPS roadbooks for bikers as well as bike schools. Livigno has already 12 Mountain Bike Hotels, which especially cater to the bike rider's needs.

One of my highlights for this season will be an Adventure Team trip with Mountain Bike legend Thomas Frischknecht. Together we are planning the "Alta Rezia Freeride" which will be a 6 day singletrail tour on freeride bikes on some of the nicest singletrails in the Alps, using lift access and public transportation to get near or to the top of the peaks. This tour will become a permanent route, people will be able to follow in our tracks in the future with the help of maps, GPS or roadsigns. There will always be access to public transportation such as alpine trains or buses to get back to ones car, no matter if a rider chooses to ride the whole route or just a single stage. More into: http://www.altarezia.ch/

My next Adventure Team trip will be at the end of March with Brian Lopes and April Lawyer at Copper Canyon in Mexico. Copper Canyon is in the Chihuahua Desert in Northern Mexico, it is 4 times bigger than the Grand Canyon and also deeper. We are going during Semana Santos, Easter Week, were the local Tarahumara indians celebrate with colorful costumes, rituals and dances. These native indians live in remote dwellings and villages in traditional ways, they don't speak spanish and have nothing in common with modern civilization. They are notorious for being the best long-distance runners in the world. The Mining town of Batopilas lies in the bottom of the canyon, and was the capital during the mining hay days about a century ago. It was the biggest silver mine in all of Americas for over 40 years.

An additional highlight is the famous and scenic Chihuahua al Pacifico Railroad, which is rated amongst the top ten train journeys in the world. We will ride our bikes on long forgotten trails to the heart of the canyon.

Everything will be filmed for TV and photographed.

I'm planning another trip in April to South Africa. After some promotional work with the Adidas Cape Epic Mountain Bike Race, I will attempt a first descent on Table Mountain in Capetown, riding my bike down Platteklip Gorge, one of the steepest hiking routes on the mountain.

Several other projects are in the works including involvements at the Bike & Soul Freeride Event in Saalbach, and the Mountain Bike Worlds in Livigno, etc....

The attached photo is royalty free, it was taken at a recent trials show during the Alpine Ski World Championships in Bormio, Italy.