So we were fortunate enough to get backstage passes to this years Coachella music & art festival in Indio, CA this past weekend (Thanks Kevan and Goldenvoice). We had an amazing time watching one of the most diverse music lineups you’ll find anywhere. Everyone from Scars on Broadway (ex members of System of a Down), Cold War Kids, Flogging Molly, Death Cab For Cutie, Portishead to Prince of all people.

DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE ROCKIN THE MAIN STAGE 

The people watching doesn’t get any better than Coachella as you can tell from this picture I snapped of the tripping clowns to the super butch girl with a fur loin cloth and I almost got trampled by a really drunk and haggered looking David Hassellhof.

Tripping Clowns!!! 

Fur is in and yes this is a girl…..

More pictures of some amazing music from trip hop icons Portishead and Cafe Tacvba.

Some truck art 

We just got back from Sea Otter and had a sandblast! No rain this year but lots of wind and swirling dust. Division 26 had a great presence both on and off the mountain. You could see our clothes everywhere including the new sleeveless basketball Jerseys and many of the beanies, fitted caps and hoodies we had sold out of by the end of the weekend. Bob and D26 also got a little love from none other than Rachel Atherton don’t be jealous boy’s…….

As always Eric carter and Rich Houseman find themselves in the mix, after qualifying EC slipped a pedal and ended up going out in the first round to Steve Peat claiming 25th, but Rich Houseman hung tough and snagged 12th in Pro Dual Slalom. EC redeemed himself in Pro DH with 12th and Rich threw down 13th against some of the world’s fastest racers. New Team Riders Aaron Gwin & Kevin Aiello shined! Aaron took 10th in Men’s Pro DH ahead of EC and Houseman while Kevin Aiello finished the weekend strong taking first place in both JR Expert Dual Slalom and Downhill. Both of these guys are killing it this year and we expect big things in the future. Justin Wyche also pedaled hard and placed 16th in JR Expert DH.

On a truly sad note from Sea Otter; I didn’t know Mark Reynolds founder of Wicked Racin personally who tragically passed away on Saturday while racing DH, I did want to mention our sincere condolences to his family and friends. It of course put a damper on smiles and the day just didn’t feel the same after news of a fellow biker passing while doing what he loved best. It’s a reminder that our sport is not for the faint of heart.

So after a ton of hard work and sleepless nights we let the fury of Division 26 loose on the world with an official press release today. We are working hard, but there is only so much time in the day so keep checking back as we add more products and content. We are currently working on more technical gear and will be adding short sleeve and long sleeve casual riding jerseys to the mix by mid May with riding shorts to follow by Interbike if not sooner. We will also be working hard on making our site content rich with videos and interactive material including art, music and all things 26 inch.

Ride On!

D26

So we hooked up with about 25 riders including Rich Houseman, Chris Van Dine, Yeti Grassroots team, 1 great photographer Maxine Irving and BNC production’s crew to blaze virgin trails in the soon to be VAILocity bike park at Vail Lake resort in Temecula, CA being designed and built by none other than Division 26’s own Eric Carter.

We ripped brand new downhill lines that got better with each and every run, while enjoying the wide-open spaces that is Vail Lake resort. Within time this will be a much-needed So-Cal hot spot for Mountain Biking without barriers.

The horses that would carry us up…

A few of the D26 Devoted.