A Fun Day/ Practice day will be held at Trafalgar on Australia Day, Wednesday January 26, 2005.

This will give riders an opportunity to test out the new sections of the track and practice for the Norco Battle of Trafalgar. Riders not planning on racing at the Norco Battle are still welcome to ride at the Fun Day.

There will no updates on 4XFEVA for a couple of weeks as I am away on hols.

I'll be back in the second week of January ready with fresh info on the Norco Battle of Trafalgar and other 4X stuff from around the country.

Take it easy. Take time to think what Christmas is all about.

Cheers. Brendan.

Check out the cool Aussie MTB calendar for 2005.

Pro photographer Gavin D has sent me one and says, " It features images from four or five Australian photographers and has been designed by Nathan Lorkin at Relish Communications."

It has Dirt Jump, 4X, Downhill, XC and Trials pics. It also has dates for events throughout 2005 and club and other contacts.

If you are interested in more details about the MTB calendar please email Michael (the guy who is looking after orders) and he will be able to help you out.

Gavin D also has a BMX calendar available with some more cool pics.

If you want a BMX calendar, email Gavin. Both calendars are a tad over $20 each. Get in to 'em.

Also, Gavin is available to take pro pics of you. He does some good stuff. I've bought a few pics from him and used them to send to sponsors as a "thankyou". Just let him know when an event is on and ask him to be there.

He is a damn good photographer and is keen to keep supporting our sport. If you want pro photographers like him to keep hanging around, support him. You can check out his site.

Sam Hill, Australia's biggest rising star took the win at the National MTX round at 3 Chillies Farm, Chittering, WA on the weekend.

You can check out more info and pics here.

Pic courtesy of perthmtb.com.

Brendan working on the step-up double on the all-new bottom section of Trafalgar. It is ready to race for 2005.

With six months in the making and around 150 cubic metres of dirt used, the new look bottom third of the track at Trafalgar is now complete and ready for 2005.

Last week I made my way down to Trafalgar to attempt to finish off the new bottom section of the track.

I hired a local earthmover who did an absolute champion job, and I was on another tractor. After two days solid of earthmoving and shaping, I finally managed to complete the section.

The track is now longer and has an extra two corners, and three jumps.

The new section will demand more rider ability and greater fitness. It will also make for closer racing.

Check out the pics and read the new section below. Note that the pics were taken during a big dump of rain so they don't do justice to what the section really looks like. - Brendan.

After landing the Big Gap, the new section takes a sharp left. Pro riders may be able to hug the flat corner but most riders will have to take the 1.5 - 2 metre high berm to get around it.

This corner is likely to give you the most "G's" you'll find for a long while. Railing it at top speed feels fully awesome and scary at the same time.

The 4X Fun Day that was meant to happen @ Trafalgar yesterday had to be cancelled due to way too much rain leading up to it and on the day. Like 5 inches in two weeks. It was all slop and mud!

The Pushi crew (who manage 4X Fun Days) and I woke up Sunday morning to the sound of dumping rain and it didn't stop for the next few hours.

We still had about a dozen cars turn up wanting to ride. You guys are fully commited! Apologies to all those who came and had to be turned away. Can't help the weather.

No dates have been confirmed yet for further events at Trafalgar. I'm in the process of trying to secure some support to pay for 2005 events. Hopefully I'll have a calendar available by early to mid December.

I went down to Trafalgar a few days earlier to finish off the bottom section of the track. I finally got it finished! Stay tuned for the story and pics. - Brendan.

For those of you who have been wondering where this site has gotton to, it goes like this: The site address 4XFEVA.com was up for renewal and I was a day or so late to renew it.

Anyway, someone who has nothing at all to do with MTB or 4X decided that because a lot of you typed in 4XFEVA.com on your computers in the past year, that he/she needed to have that name him/herself.

As a result, he/she claimed it and I had to go searching around to try and find another available site address. Luckily this one wasn't too different to the other one. So from now on, 4XFEVA can be found on the web @ www.4XFEVA.net. Please spread the word around.

Cheers. Brendan.

The Vario Skizzo retails for $3200.

Ryan from Singletrack Imports was at the last 4X Fun Day at Trafalgar on this Vario Skizo.

He's a young guy getting in and having a go with the whole importing thing. Its great to see youngens stepping out.

Well done Ryan.

Anyway. Back to the Vario Skizo bike. It retails for $3200 and is spec'd with Marzocchi DJ III's, LX drivetrain, beefy FSA BMX Smack Daddy cranks, and Hayes HFX 9 brakes. I didn't get a chance to ride it or even to have a good look at it @ the Fun Day so I can't give it the thumbs up or down.

According to Ryan, the bike will feature in the November edition of AMB. You can check out all the details of the bike @ his site.

My new son Isaac (Zac).

Whilst @ home spending time with my new-born son Isaac (Zac) and his mum, I've been doing some brain storming for 2005 plans for Trafalgar.

I won't give too much away yet but if the plans for events and track design come together, 2005 is set to be another solid year of fun and frivolity at Trafalgar.

Stay tuned for details over the following weeks. - Brendan.

There will be no updates on 4XFEVA for a few weeks as Brendan is about to become a dad and is having some time off.

There will be no updates on this site for the next three weeks as I will be away from the computer and at home with my soon to arrive baby.

With the arrival of the little fella/ chick (don't know what sex it is yet), it will mean that the completion of upgrades to the Trafalgar track will also be put on hold for a few months.

This is scary stuff becoming a dad.

I'd much rather take on Rennie, Robinson, and Hill on the world's maddest 4X track than be in the delivery room with my lady as she pushes and heaves out a little one.

But don't fret. I'll be back ready for more MTB stuff - keen as ever to get Traf pumping again. Although I'll be sleep deprived, I'll keep hammering out the 4X stories from around the country on 4XFEVA.

- Brendan.

Don't miss the last Fun Day for 2004 @ Trafalgar on Sunday Nov 14. Pic: www.digitalpics.com.au

The final 4X Fun Day @ Trafalgar will be held on Sunday, November 14.

For more details on Trafalgar Fun Days click here to go to the "Event Info" page.

The Fatties have a 4X race on @ Eildon Dec 5.

The Fatties have announced that there will be a 4X race @ Eildon on Sunday December 5.

This may be the last chance to race on the course before the National Champs in March 05. Keep your eyes on the Fatties site for more info.

The third and final round of the GT MTX series @ Newcastle will be on October 3.

Entry is $30 and there will be four classes. For more info click here.

The all new 2005 GT Chucker 1.0. Designed for youngens getting into 4X. Check out more details at GT's site.

GT have a new range of 4X bikes for 2005 that are available now!

The all new Chucker series is designed for people getting into 4X and dirt jumping.

There are three models available. The 1.0 is the top of the line and retails for only $799. The 2.0 is $599 and they are doing a 24" for $499.

The range is part of GT's ongoing commitment to building up 4X.

Brendan likes these bikes. He's just put in an order to get one himself to mess around on.

Don't miss this little beauty of a DVD. Inertia rocks!.Thanks to Pushi for giving us a copy.

The launch of the award winning mtb DVD "Inertia" is happening this weekend.

To get your eyes on it first, go to Pushi.

Thanks to Pushi, I've got my hot little hands on a copy. It features 4X racing at Trafalgar (the front cover is a pic from Traf) & Bacchus Marsh, plus freeriding and DH stuff.

4XFEVA welcomes the joining of GT as a major partner of the site.

GT have been supportive of 4X mountain biking in Australia for the last couple of years and it is for this reason that we are stoked to have them on board.

It is great to know there are people around who believe in 4X and are willing to get behind it and work to make it grow.

We look forward to working with the guys @ GT to keep taking 4X into the future.

The start straight of the '05 World Champs 4X track at Livigno, Italy. Looks good. Pic: stiksandstones.com

The 04 World Champs were help last weekend with Eric Carter from the USA taking the win. Mickael Deldycke (France) took second spot and last year's winner, Michael Prokop came in third. Roger Rinderknecht (Switzerland) placed fourth.

Fastest Aussie was Michael "Tiger" Robinson on his Intense, placing 7th. The pic above is of next year's World Champs track in Italy. For more pics of the track go to stiksandstones.com

The only Bike Show held in this land each year is in Melbourne for '04.

Check out the gear for '05 - bikes, forks, parts, and accessories.

Entry is $15 for adults, kids $10, and family $30.

The official spiel from Bicycling Australia goes like this:

Find out the best destinations to visit in the Where to Ride section.

As always, be awestruck by the pro's in the hugely popular BMX, MTB trials and roller derby demonstrations. Don't miss the unicycle stunt riders as they appear at the Show for the first time this year, ready to amaze on one wheel!

This year we are back in Melbourne at the historic Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton , only moments from famous Lygon Street and its restaurants. We would love to see you in Melbourne on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th October, 2004 .

Show details:

When: Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th October, 2004

Time: 10am – 5pm both days

Where: Royal Exhibition Building , Carlton , Melbourne VIC. The Royal Exhibition Building is located between Rathdowne and Nicholson Streets, Carlton . Parking can be accessed from Rathdowne Street .

Ticket Prices: Adult $15; Concession $10; Family $30; Children <10 FREE  (Concession = children >10 and concession card holders; Family = 2 adults and unlimited children)

For more information on the Bicycling Australia Show, please click here.

GT's Simon Anderson at the recent Fun Day at Trafalgar, ripping up the new berm that leads from the Big Gap into the new section.

A huge turnout of over 100 riders and spectators at Delhuntie Park , Trafalgar on the weekend made it the biggest 4X fun day ever held there.

The 40 plus riders were greeted with blue skies and sunshine, and one rider scored a super cool Weet-Bix shirt as a random entry giveaway, thanks to Sanitarium Weet-Bix.

Riders came not only to get in a day of 4X practice but to check out the recent upgrades to the Trafalgar track. As the upgrades are still a work in progress, riders rode the current track for most of the day however some gave the new section a go toward the end of the day.

It was great to see a heap of young guns at the Fun Day. Young teenagers made up over half of the riders present at the Fun Day. Also, two girls made an appearance on their tredlies. One of them was Amanda Patterson, who crashed heavily on the track last year but was back to beat her fears. Also making a return after a big crash was French dude Ben Hergott. After breaking some vertebrae earlier this year, he was back and going big as ever.

But the day wasn't all sunshine. The clouds came over during the middle of the day and light rain fell for about an hour making the track greasy and tricky to ride. Then with half an hour to the finish of the day, it absolutely dumped down with rain, ending any chance to get another run in.

The big numbers at the Fun Day confirmed that 4X is still going strong in Victoria and hints of bigger and better days to come.

A big thanks again to Petri from Pushi Bike Shop for his effort in running the day. As well as doing rego and keeping things going, he also found time to do some runs on his new Sinister DH rig. He recently became the importer of this brand of MTB's so keep your eye out for them.

Check out the pics from the day by clicking on the pic or going to the gallery page.

Local Tom Mulligan testing out the new gully section at the recent Fun Day.

Brendan made the 4 ½ hour epic journey across Victoria to Trafalgar a few days before the Fun Day to do more upgrades on the track.

His aim was to try and complete work on the new bottom section, but upon arriving, found that with 8 inches of rain having fallen on the track in the past weeks, work would be very limited.

Despite this setback, he was able to put in a low berm after the Big Gap and changed the section that was going to be a 2 metre drop into a long down ramp followed by a small 1 metre drop. Apart from this though, not much else could be done.

The riders at the Fun Day checked out the new section and despite it being boggy, said it looked good - like a luge or a big waterslide. They loved the Vert Berm and were super keen to get back to the track and hit it flat out when the section finally dries out.

The whole new bottom section still needs another 2 days of work to complete and will need tweaking after riders test it out. But when it is finished, it will certainly be more technical than ever and more fun to ride.

Brendan is currently sussing out dates of when he can get back down to Trafalgar and get it all finished. Keep posted for details.

Petri from Pushi Bike Shop testing the Vert Berm on his all new Sinister DH rig.

More upgrades will be happening at Trafalgar this week - plans are to finish the bottom section of the track.

Course designer, Brendan Scale will be heading to Trafalgar for a few days this week to continue upgrades to the track at Delhuntie Park.

He will attempt to finish off the bottom section of the track in time for the Fun Day this Sunday.

This will include putting in a berm after the Big Gap, widening the next straight, putting in a set of doubles and grooming the finish jump.

Thanks to Stephen Robinson from GT, we've got a few of Josh Stephenson's pics from the GT MTX #2 held @ the Newcastle 4X track on the weekend.

Yes they are all GT riders - cause Stephen is from GT. GT guys took first place in both Elite and Juniors.

4XFEVA is celebrating its 1st birthday this week.

4XFEVA, the only 4X specific website in Australia, celebrates its first birthday this week.

In this time we have had over 7,000 hits from riders around Australia and overseas. Some weeks we received over 500 hits like when the Victorian 4X Championships was on.

We have endeavoured to provide informative and accurate 4X stories as well as provide some really cool pics of 4X riders in action.

We regularly receive emails from guys and girls who want info on 4X because they think it is so cool and want to get into it.

Props to those who have been there for us like Vicnet, who host the site free of charge, and all the other sponsors like Delhuntie Park, Sanitarium Weet-Bix, Fat Tyre Flyers, MTBA, Troy Lee Designs, Horsham Cyclery, and Diamond Screen Print. Most of all, thanks to "The Man" for giving us all this good stuff.

We hope the next 12 months is going to be even bigger and better than the first. Props to y'all for supporting us. Cheers!

Round 2 of the GT MTNX Series, "The feel good day of winter" race, will be held again @ the Newcastle (Black hill) track on August 7 & 8.

Entry is $50 and day licenses are available if riders don't have MTBA license. There will be practice on the Saturday from midday and Sunday from 9 - 10.30am. There will be 4 classes: Elite, Women, Junior, and Sport. Qualifying from 11am and racing from 1pm.

For more info: www.blackphoenixfilms.com

Sport class riders in action in the first corner @ Eildon recently.

The track was in sensational condition for the Fatties July 4X club race at Eildon on the weekend. As much as it threatened, the rain never broke through leaving the track much firmer than at the National Champs there earlier this year.

Many a rider took a tumble but no serious injuries were had as riders raced through the Motos for the 47 riders. It was great to have the support of Pushi, GT and Maxxis at the event providing over a thousand dollars of prizes for the happy winners in each category.

More results and pics are available at ftf.com.au

Results for Elite: 1. Simon Anderson , 2. Adam Robb, 3. Shannon Rademaker, 4. Nick Cruickshank.

Benny Reynolds, the man who has made DH happen in Victoria, drifting on the sweeper between the two gaps @ Trafalgar @ the recent Open Day.

The pics from the Trafalgar 4X Open Day a few weeks ago are now available to see.

Check them out by clicking on the image or going to the gallery page and follow the links from there. Enjoy!

The work on the Newcastle MTNX/ 4X track over the past month or so looks to have paid off with some serious upgrades happening.

They have outlayed some serious bucks to get a fully pro looking steel start ramp. That stuff aint cheap, believe me.

Amongst other things, they have a nice set of two pack doubles set up on one of the straights too. Check out the pics below. Pics courtesy of GT.

The new "pro" looking start ramp @ Newcastle track.

One of the new sections on the track. Looks sweet.

Riders launch together for the camera @ the June Open Day @ Trafalgar.

35 riders showed up to the June Open Day @ Trafalgar and were welcomed by slippery conditions.

With over five inches of rain falling on the track in the two weeks leading up to the Open Day, riders struggled to hold it together down the track, especially around the sweeper between the two gaps.

However, it wasn't long till the sun came out, the skies turned to blue, and the track started drying out. Soon the greasy mud turned to sweet, tacky, super fast, dirt. This was the only clear sky day in two weeks - who said the Big Guy doesn't look after us.

Open Day organiser Brendan Scale did a few runs and said the track was the fastest he had ever ridden it. The takeoffs on the jumps were grippy which meant you could hit them at full speed, and the sticky berms meant no braking - you could hit them flat out and rail them the whole way around – sensational.

Pro photographer, Gavin D was there clicking snaps all day, getting some final pics for his 05 calendar. Keep an eye out for it come September this year.

Props to Petri from Pushi for co-managing the day. He did a great job running the show, even hiring full face helmets and knee/shin guards to kids that didn't have any. Thanks mate.

Prototype GT I-Drive 4X'er. Only one of ten in the world. Rides like a dream.

Stephen Robinson from GT was there with a new prototype Brian Lopes short travel I Drive.

It is the only one in Australia and one of only ten in the world. It looked pretty sweet and rode really well.

Brendan did a few sprints, and rode some of the track and was impressed with its stiffness. Stephen says the bike is likely to be available as an '05 model. Keep your eyes out for it.

The all-new "Vert Berm" @ Trafalgar. You can hit this at warp speed and rail it with ease.

Brendan brought a group of young guys to the Open Day who stayed on for a couple of days to start the 2004 upgrades.

First job was to divert the track from the big gap through to the finish. Bring in two tractors and half a dozen guys on shovels for two days and you have amongst other features, the all new “Vert berm”, three metres high at its apex and half a metre of full vert.

Hit the "Vert Berm" at any speed a bike can go and you'll rail this baby with ease, roosting out of it as fast or faster than you came into it.

Other features of the new section include a two metre high, rollable dropoff, a new set of doubles, and an upgraded finish jump. The upgrades still need a couple days' work before its ready to be raced on, but it promises to be nearly as fast as the old track but a lot more technical. Big props to the two young guys, Palmer and Wilko, who did most of the shovel work during the upgrades.

Track layout of Trafalgar 4X - the red sections are the proposed '04 upgrades.

Trafalgar 4X will be undergoing upgrades immediately following the Open Day next Sunday.

A team of a dozen guys will be on tractors, shovels working furiously over the days following the Open Day to face lift the track.

The changes all involve adding more corner to the track. The first change will be putting a 90 degree corner in after the first jump to make the start more interesting.

The second change will be making the stutters bigger and making the following corner a lot deeper.

The third change is big. Right after the big gap the track will take a sharp left to make things really interesting. There will be a 2 metre high drop off, a short straight, a tight right hand berm and then on to the finish striaght with doubles and a step down finish jump.

Stay tuned for more updates and pics. See ya @ the Open Day!