Here at Downhill247.com we know (hope!) you enjoy our coverage of races, with all the front line info, along with photos of all the top riders hitting their lines throughout the weekend. However, we thought that you may be interested in seeing just what goes on over a race weekend in the pit tens, over the barriers and in places you generally just don’t see. So we have put together a small piece on the first National gravity cup round at Mt. Buller. We hope to show you a little bit of the going-ons behind the scenes with some of the top teams and riders you see performing over the weekend.
There is plenty of preparation for each race weekend from teams, riders and all the media crew that come along with the event, in the case of the national series, this is SBS and Cycling Australia, along with the magazines and photographer/videographers associated with each team.
So! Leta��s dive in and have a look at what you may skip over on any given race weekend.
Here’s Jake Lucas in the Kona Factory Racing tent, doing his best to interview Henry Blake from Clint White Racing, who is clearly being distracted along with Dean Lucas by something obviously more interesting than Jakes camera.And later on in the day, here is Connor Fearon relaxing before his seeding run on Saturday, sporting a pretty swell T-shirt also if we say so ourselves! Though sometimes things seem very frantic in team tents, as components are swapped for seeding or race runs, the general feel in every teams tent is always a friendly and relaxed one. Therea��s always smiles and laughs in each tent.As we walk around the pits we spot a familiar face in the NSD tent; Chris Kovarik, proving that even if youa��re a big name in the race scene you still want to work on your own bike. Chris was swapping over new tires and checking pressure when we walked through, so we decided it was best to leave him to it and kept on cruising on our walk through.Turning the corner we found the one and only Sam Hill, doing exactly what CK was up to (the secret might be out here, change your own tires!) Also looking pretty busy we decided to leave Sam to it. Ita��s great to see Sam looking comfortable on his new ride, we are all wishing him the best of luck in the upcoming season with his new team.As we keep walking we find a familiar face again! Jake is now interviewing David McMillan, riding for Swell Specialized this season David was looking really fast throughout practice. That smile isn’t just for the camera, Dave just made his third mistake talking about practice and seeding, practice makes perfect! HahaAs racing draws nearer the tents go into a strange lull as riders run off to get changed, but once they return the entire pit area picks up and becomes vigorous with activity. Here we see Connor Fearon having a chat with the rest of the team in the tent with the NSD tent and YVC in the background. We also spy another Downhill247.com shirt… Theya��re everywhere!As race runs get closer we see the start tent start to fill up with riders as their start times draw near. Ben Hill has a look around to see whata��s going on and why exactly there is a photographer at the start tent as the usher tries to organise the start list with its corresponding riders!Once Bena��s race run is over, his weekend isn’t completely over! Come the end of his race run Jake pulls him aside for an interview for the CWR team video. A ridera��s work is never done!After taking the win Thomas Crimmins is directed off the hot seat and towards the lifts in preparation for the Elite Womena��s runs.Come the end of the Womena��s racing Caroline Buchanan takes the win, after her first race on the new bike with the first win under the belt she is interviewed by Cycling Australia. We can see Caroline giving her thoughts about her run and the track.After the women, all eyes go to the Elite Mena��s runs, the one everyone watches, especially with names like Hill and Kovarik racing. As Sam takes the win he assumes his spot in the hot seat, again we see Cycling Australia having a chat with Sam as Connor Fearon takes it all in, still catching his breath.Sam Hill attracts some serious attention from all things media related, as we see Jake Lucas having a chat with him post-race.After all those media commitments pass we see another familiar face, Troy Brosnan came over to have a look see, still unable to ride due to injury.Come the end of the day everyone makes their way back to the top of the hill. Here Connor Fearon and Robert Conroy have a chat about photos and race runs. Though everyone wants shots for their own outlets therea��s no squabbles, everyone is matea��s trackside, and thata��s what makes this sport one of the best sports in the world!
We hope you enjoyed our little look into things, so next time youa��re at a race take a second to think of just what goes into getting a rider down the hill.
Article (including photos) credited to Jason Stevens.
One thought on “Inside Info: Behind the scenes!”
Great insight into the Elite riders – the rest of us just sat on the ground and thought “shit” we’ve got to make it down this track as fast as possible without crashing!
Great insight into the Elite riders – the rest of us just sat on the ground and thought “shit” we’ve got to make it down this track as fast as possible without crashing!