DIRT RAG named Presenting Sponsor of Kenda BikeFest
Magazine Influencing Fest Culture on and off the Bike.

HANCOCK, MA (May 8, 2008) – Organizers of the 2008 Kenda Bicycle Fest have great sponsors, thousands of attendees, dozens of exhibitors, and a solid history of producing one of the best cycling festivals in America.

But they needed the right media partner. The plucky, independent magazine Dirt Rag fit the bill. “Our festival has a fun, Eastern heritage,” said Bruce Fina, one of the festival’s founders. “And Dirt Rag has been there for more than 12 years. It’s a great fit.”

“(We’re) supporting the event because we believe in it,” said Maurice Tierney, founder and publisher of Dirt Rag, who is celebrating the 20th year of the magazine he founded in Pittsburgh, PA. “We'd like to see it become as big as Sea Otter, (referring to the California event drawing 40,000 cyclists) but I don't know if we need a competitive aspect or not.”

Despite its humble beginnings, Dirt Rag has developed into a true voice in the wilderness for bike nuts worldwide. The magazine celebrates the poetic and powerful elements of a cycling lifestyle. Although created as mountain bike publication, Dirt Rag has increasingly been embraced by urban messengers, cyclo-crossers, hard core commuters, mechanics, builders, and even roadies.

“The metamorphosis of Dirt Rag matches that of the festival,” said Festival Director Joan Hanscom. “We’re still about mountain biking, it’s the core of who we are. But our partnership with Dirt Rag has also brought some new energy to our thinking about what to do with our time off the bike. Dirt Rag is hosting its own tent full of activities – The Dirt Rag Salon. Some are about the bike, some are about how to enjoy the time off it. From Bourbon and Whiskey tastings to advocacy and sustainable trail building seminars in partnership with Philip Keyes of NEMBA, they’re doing great stuff with us this summer.”

Among the highlights happening in the Dirt Rag Salon this year is an official screening of “Klunkerz” with special guest stars on Friday night, the always-popular Expert Ride at Intermediate Pace with Maurice Tierney, Women’s Rides with Dirt Rag editor Karen Brooks, Tech Seminars with expert staff, and a Dirt Rag Reader’s Forum which will give fans of the magazine the chance to sit down and chat with the folks who bring you the magazine – it’ll be a chance to swap stories, hear some great tall tales and learn more about what’s going on in the world of mountain biking.

“It’s the only real mountain bike festival that I know of,” said Maurice Tierney. “You know, like, when you just go somewhere, hang out, and ride and camp.”

The entire atmosphere of the event is a throwback to the early days of mountain biking in the 1990s, when the sport was as more about the rendezvous than a race.

Founded in the fall of 1995, the event initially drew hundreds of young firebrands interested in bikes, bands and beer. The event grew in popularity, moved to the Berkshires, and switched to a mid-summer date. That generation of pioneers, however, has gone on to become parents of a new generation of young cyclists, many of whom have made this a summer ritual. Their passion for cycling has grown to include going green as much as getting air. But there remains a strong passion for cycling and a great party.

“It’s non-competitive,” said Tierney, noting he looks forward to Dirt Rag focusing as much on the party as on the pedaling. How will he help? “Better interaction with everyone involved, more fun, better trails, more advocacy, more trail building.”
 
And Dirt Rag, with a global readership approaching 60,000, has been a key steward of those pioneers and the next generation.

For more complete information about the Kenda BikeFest presented by Dirt Rag, visit the festival website at www.bicyclefest.com.