This photo was submitted to us during our Adventure Cycling photo contest a few months back, and we liked it so much we decided it needed to be featured as a Lane Love.

Having ridden Mt. Diablo’s road a few times I wanted to ride something I wasn’t familiar with, so I went with Mark. Trying to pick up the pace so I won’t get dropped I catch up to the four other riders. Looking back I find out that no one else follows. Not a good sign. We take Shell Ridge to get to Rock City. The ride was fantastic, hot and dusty. Half because of the trail and half because Mark was giving us a proper lesson of eating dust. I forgot the route we went mostly because I was tried, out of shape and tried to keep up with Mark. One route we went was Dusty Trail. Found out that the trail was in a word, dusty. So dusty is fact that I took a really soft fall down one of the trails trying to avoid a biker coming down.

You can read the full ride recap here.

Have a lane that you love? Send us a photo! You can post it to our Facebook page, shoot us an email at blog[at]ospreypacks[dot]com or upload to our Flickr group and we might just feature it here on our weekly photo feature, Lane Love.

Lane Love California, Mt Diablo, trail

Love the perspective on this shot, taken on the Santa Cruz Rail Trail.

According to the photographer, Richard Masoner:

The Big Trees Roaring Camp Railroad between Santa Cruz and Felton is the popular walking and biking trail. It roughly parallels Highway 9 and the San Lorenzo River to take you through Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park.

This is an active railroad, so be sure you know the train schedule if you walk or ride on these rails. It’s a tourist railroad with no trains during the winter.

Have a lane that you love? Send us a photo! You can post it to our Facebook page, shoot us an email at blog[at]ospreypacks[dot]com or upload to our Flickr group and we might just feature it here on our weekly photo feature, Lane Love.

Image: richardmasoner

Lane Love bike path, California, Santa Cruz

If you love bikes, then the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California was the place to be April 14th -17th. Sea Otter, as it is most commonly called, is a celebration of all things bike and acts as a kick start for the spring cycling season. Besides the jam packed competitive schedule that includes road, short track, cross country, downhill, and dual slalom racing, Sea Otter is an amazing bicycle festival with something fantastic for bicycle lovers of all disciplines.

Companies from around the globe exhibit at the Sea Otter Expo, often introducing new or upcoming products and mingling with the 50,000+ attendees. Non-profits and bicycle advocacy groups are in attendance to promote their cause and raise awareness for cycling related issues. Top name professional athletes use the Sea Otter as an early season test of fitness and shakedown of the new seasons equipment. The entire vibe surrounding the Sea Otter Classic leaves you wanting to hop on a bike and ride, whether it be for a joy ride down the coastal bike route or a top speed flight around the grueling race course.

Here is a pictorial journey showing a few of my favorite Sea Otter memories.

Daily stunt shows provided entertainment for all

Read more…

Advocacy, Events, Non-profits, Photos California, Monterey, Osprey events, Sea Otter

We’re at Sea Otter this weekeend, and there’s plenty of stuff going on, so we tried to get a picture of every one of yesterday’s events: BMX, mountain biking and road biking.

If you’re in Monterey, come swing by our booth and say hi! We’ve got demos and plenty of schwag!

Adventure, Events, Osprey Life BMX, California, mountain biking, Sea Otter Classic