Corey Stanke 5/4/21 Corey Stanke 5/4/21

4th Annual Last Ditch Effort

When the 4th Annual Last Ditch Effort race at Alpental was announced I couldn’t resist going to capture the event. I mean what better way to cap off an epic winter than with a wild banked slalom race and despite the variable weather conditions it did not disappoint. Hopefully the gallery below will convey even half the fun that was had that day. Just remember “slow is smooth, smooth is fast”.

Corey Stanke 11/3/19 Corey Stanke 11/3/19

Tenth Annual Bermsled Halloween Race

If you're an avid mountain biker living in the Seattle area, chances are you've at least heard of GHY Bikes' Bermsled Halloween race put on every year. And if you haven’t… well you've been missing out. Out of the many amazing bike events we have in the northwest, it's easily near the top of my can't miss list. In fact I turned down a post-meeting beer offer just to get there in time for race runs. Yeah it’s that good.

Now the trail isn’t super technical and the racing isn't ultra competitive, but that's exactly what makes it such a great event. It has such a chill vibe, riders of all ages and skill riding in their Halloween costumes and simply having a great time. Oh yeah, and finding out which friend is the fastest down the sickest downhill pumptrack trail in the area. Thanks to AJ and the rest of the guys at GHY bikes for all the hard work they put in to make it all happen.

Travis Erickson in the starting gate.

Optional rock jump, probably the most prominent feature on the trail.

One of the better viewpoints on the trail.

Dylan Hohn nails a flat corner that appeared to give a few riders some trouble.

With the unusually nice weather, there was plenty of riders in costume.

This mid trail double was popular with spectators.

“I felt slow” -Kyle Plante in between gasping for air.

Young shredder Molly sending the long jump contest, a new part of the event this year.

Surprisingly there was only a few crashes during the long jump.

It wouldn’t be a long jump contest without plenty of squashed suspension.

Josh Gibb takes the lead.

When in doubt, throw a no-footer.

Bryson Welsh came from the sofa to the lead… on a hardtail nonetheless.

Not to be outdone, Lucas Chalcraft sends it massive for the win.

Corey Stanke 11/13/18 Corey Stanke 11/13/18

A Bermsled Halloween story.

When I first moved to Washington several years ago my very first introduction to the unique bike culture here was going to GHY Bike’s Bermsled Halloween race. And boy was it an experience! It was a typical cold and rainy fall day in Washington but as someone who grew up in northern Michigan and moved away before the fat bike movement really took hold, riding bikes this time of the year was never really an option. So when I saw all these people dressed up in their halloween costumes, racing a super slick trail in rainy and 40 degree weather, I thought to myself “This is insane… but weirdly fun!” Now that I’ve been through a couple winters here I almost look forward to riding in this weather, but that’s a topic for another time.

This year was the ninth annual Bermsled Halloween race and a big thanks goes out to AJ at GHY Bikes for putting this on every year. Also to everyone that helps out, from trail maintenance to cooking burgers, we appreciate all the hard work! With that said enjoy the photo story below of the most chill and fun bike event in the northwest!

P.S. If you see an image you want, just hit me up here or on Instagram and I’ll send you a link to download.