We've got a special one for you: The history of Sea Otter. PLUS - Coen powering through sketchy trails, Bienvenido’s drift that’ll make you cringe and more. LET'S SEND IT 👇
1607 words of pure stoke.
Read time: 6 min 02 seconds.
Photo of the Day
Matt’s whip over that hip jump is still burned into our minds - pure style in motion.
Gee and Jono follow suit as they ride the same legendary lines at DYFI Bike Park.
📷 Dave Mackison behind the lens.
Video of the Day
Coen Skrypnek, wet trails, and loads of flow.
Last week, we gushed about the Yalla’s specs, but now you get to see it do what it does best: take on slippery, root-infested, rain-drenched trails like a true champion.
Watch as Coen powers through mud, leans into sketchy corners, and handles the slickest, most unpredictable terrain with the kind of confidence that only comes from years of sending it.
⏰ Watch time - 2 min 25 sec
Bonus: We clicked for the bike, but stayed for the cinematic roast of consumer culture.
Whether you're here for the Ozark Trail analysis or the accidental social commentary, one thing’s clear: this guy rides budget bikes harder than most of us ride carbon dreams.
And somehow, the reflectors survive every hit.
Budget bike or not - this is good riding, full stop.
⏰ Watch time - 7 min 38 sec
Send of the Week
That drift cost Bienvenido five years of tire life and none of his pride. #WhenInDoubtDriftItOut
The History of the Sea Otter Classic
PC: MB Action
Every spring, a few things are guaranteed to happen.
The trails start drying up.
Someone in your group chat has run out of excuses for missing rides.
And Monterey, California gets overrun by a stampede of dirt-caked weirdos yelling about tire inserts and SRAM prototypes like it’s Comic-Con for people who eat GU gels recreationally.
This fever dream is called the Sea Otter Classic.
But before it became a four-day buffet of racing, product launches, taco trucks and mild dehydration, it started as something much simpler.
A guy. A bike shop. And a casual history of flying fighter jets in wartime.
Yes You Read That Right
Frank Yohannan, the man who gave birth to Sea Otter, spent the early seventies in the back seat of an F4 Phantom jet flying actual combat missions over Cambodia.
That’s not a metaphor. That’s just his resume.
While most people’s midlife crisis involves buying a gravel bike and talking about coffee roasts, Frank’s involved dodging missiles and then deciding the bike industry needed more events with dirt and fewer explosions.
After surviving 57 missions, he left the military, got an MBA, ended up doing Pentagon things, and then somehow got roped into organizing a bike race after a conversation in a Rotary Club and a bike shop.
Honestly not sure which was more dangerous.
The First Sea Otter Was Basically a Group Ride With Paperwork
In 1991, Frank and his buddy Lou Rudolph decided to throw a little event at Laguna Seca Raceway.
They called it the Laguna Seca Challenge, which sounded like a golf tournament but was actually just a bunch of mountain bikers trying not to eat it on fire roads.
There were 350 racers and about 150 spectators, most of whom were either hopelessly lost or just standing in line for a porta potty that hadn’t been cleaned since 1986.
Frank said if he could just break even, he’d be happy. He did. So naturally, he did it again.
This is how every bad habit starts.
PC: Thomas Fanghaenel
Enter The Sea Otter
By 1993, they decided to rebrand because they were scared the racetrack would kick them out and didn’t want to rename the event every year like a dodgy nightclub.
So they picked something safe. Something local. Something that didn’t scream high-speed carnage : a sea otter.
Rick Sutton, one of the new organizers, literally drew a sea otter on a napkin.
They slapped the word “Classic” on the end to make it sound fancy and - it worked!
The Sea Otter Classic was born. Half animal. Half party. All dirt.
PC: MB Action
Growing the Festival: Slalom, Downhill, Enduro, and E-bikes
Sea Otter began mutating like a trailhead rumor.
First came more race disciplines. Then an expo. Then a full-blown industry circus.
By the mid 90s it was the Coachella of carbon fiber.
They added dual slalom which quickly became the crown jewel.
Basically two riders drop into a course that looks like someone built a BMX track drunk, and they battle to see who can make it to the bottom first while gravity tries to murder them.
Spectators loved it. Riders mostly survived it. Everyone got dust in their teeth and called it a win.
Eventually downhill was added in 1999. Then enduro in 2014.
Then e-bike racing in 2017 which made traditionalists clutch their Pearl Izumi bib shorts in horror while secretly signing up.
COVID, Virtual Otters, and the Ghost of Events Past
In 2020, when the world ended for a bit, Sea Otter got cancelled, un-cancelled, and then cancelled again. Everything went online.
They called it Sea Otter Play which sounded like a preschool but was actually a desperate attempt to keep the vibes alive.
No one knew what they were doing. But they did it anyway.
Which is also kind of the spirit of mountain biking in a nutshell.
In 2021, Sea Otter was scooped up by Life Time Inc, a company that owns gyms and (surprise) giant bike events.
Naturally, panic set in.
Would Sea Otter now feature yoga sessions and juice bars? Would you need a membership just to spectate the slalom? But nope. Frank kept the reins.
The tacos stayed as overpriced as ever. And the dust? Still eternal. All was right in the world.
Legends Walk Among Us
Sea Otter has played host to some absolute legends.
Tinker Juarez has been racing here since the Paleolithic era.
Kyle Strait missed only one year because he was busy backflipping off cliffs at Rampage.
Jill Kintner has won so many events at Sea Otter, she probably has her own VIP parking spot by now.
And through it all, there’s Frank.
The guy who flew jets. The guy who built this whole thing from scratch, fueled by sheer determination and a wild gut feeling that mountain bikers might just appreciate a little friendly chaos.
PC: MB Action
The Moral of the Story?
Next time you’re standing in the sun waiting for a burrito while someone hands you a flyer for a dropper post you didn’t ask for, take a second to thank Frank.
And if you see a sea otter out there, salute it.
That little guy is the face of a festival that should not have worked but absolutely did.
Long live the Otter. Pass the sunscreen.
Dream Rides ❤️
The paint’s pretty enough to win a pageant, but make no mistake, this bike’s built for battle.
With XC legs and enduro instincts, Kate’s Allied BC40 looks ready to sprint, suffer, and send with zero hesitation.
It’s the kind of bike that could win a World Cup, then take a bow.
Got a bike that makes your friends drool? We wanna see it! Shoot us an email at editorial@thesenditdaily.com, and maybe your ride will be the next superstar.
Trail of the Day
Corkscrew, North Vancouver, British Columbia
A North Shore classic - tight, techy, and packed with roots, rocks, and just enough woodwork to keep things interesting (or terrifying).
The legendary long skinny has been retired in favor of a coaster, but there’s still plenty of narrow sketchiness to test your balance and your nerve.
Keep the chaos going by linking up with Salvation for more woodwork and wobble, or merge into Incline and roll out via Power Line with whatever pride you have left.
Laugh of the Day
They’re so damn sneaky 😂
That’s all for this week folks. We hope everyone gets some saddle time out there. See you all Monday! 🤙
For the ❤️ of two wheels.
We write The Send It Daily Monday - Friday (we’re out riding on the weekends). We do not proofread our material before sending and did not get A’s in English.
Our mission is simple: To advocate and bring awareness to the athletes that Send It and the media teams that capture it.
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