Sunday came and the weather showed up. What an epic day of racing, did anyone see that coming? As the end of the season nears and points become crucial, the weather really threw a spanner in the works for some. Another amazing world cup race, here’s our account. Enjoy, and try not to get mud on you!
Sik Mik living up to the name here through the mud and rocks. An unfortunate race run for him, an error sent him off-track, and into 28th place. In such wet conditions the track really had its way with the riders.Stevie on the gas, he has shown up and performed once again to take the win – taking the World Cup overall isn’t out of reach; Gee’s got some ground to make up with only 17 points between them! Austria is going to be a big race for everyone!Rachel Atherton had some sketchy moments through the ankle-deep rutted mud in steep forest sections, but here she looks natural and confident. A solid run for Rachel to take 1st place. We bet underneath all that mud there’s a huge grin and wide eyes!Tracey Hannah went well with 7th place, holding it together with a fast, edgy run. That’s got to be a confidence booster for next weekend!Connor Fearon had some serious rain during his run, which left a dampness to his weekend. Next weekend is a chance to end the season on a high note – Aussie Aussie Aussie!Oi! Oi! Oi! Troy Brosnan screaming through the frame, out of the wood section and onward to 10th place, and the best-placed Aussie in Mens ahead of Sam Hill in 15th. Troy has been up there all season, what will the final round bring?
A tough race for the Aussies I guess you could say we don’t like riding in the wet; “your bike gets muddy” Sam Hill, Schladming 2008. That’s a pretty good assessment.
Here’s how the Elite Men lined up at the bottom in Norway:
Mens Finals:
1. Stevie Smith 3.40.174
2. Danny Hart 3.41.815 + 0.110
3. Andrew Neethling 3.42.957 + 1.837
4. Samuel Blekinsop 3.44.039 + 2.527
5. Greg Minnaar 3.44.163 +2.594
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10. Troy Brosnan 3.47.544 + 3.251
15. Sam Hill 3.49.926 + 4.904
28. Michael Hannah 3.54.323 + 14.720
29. Jack Moir 3.55.102 + 16.370
39. Connor Fearon A�3.57.916 + 18.994
UK rider Michael Jones took the Junior Men’s title by a comfortable 3 seconds. Amongst the carnage and mud he held it together and it paid off.Dean Lucas came in 29th place, keeping it together and dirtying up the Aussie kit. Dean will be out there for the win next week in Leogang, more exciting racing action!
Will the weather have a say in deciding the World Cup Champion? We’ll catch you in Leogang, Austria to find out. Stay tuned!
As the climax of the Norway World Cup round approaches, riders had their final full day of practice. Overcast weather loomed, while the riders made late line decisions and showed off their ever-impressive race pace!
After claiming the title of 2013 World Champion, Rachel Atherton is just as fast this weekend. Here she’s focused, before the breathtaking Norwegian scenery.What’s in the Atherton’s water? Dan looks crazy fast through this flat corner on, definitely on the pace! Both wheels in the air and leg out moto-style, this is the confidence riders aspire to hold on the bike!The Hannah couple are both racing this weekend, but only Tracey took advantage of practice. Polygon has really staked its claim as a World Cup bike this season, as have the Hannahs – we’ll be cheering loudest for our Aussie riders this weekend!Greg Minnaar is also flying off the back of a World Champs title. He’s definitely performing just as well as any other rider on the course. Will this weekend be another notch on the belt of 2013?A big style check compared to Dan, but Steve Smith has his eyes on the prize. Stevie’s riding on pace here in Norway, it’s going to close racing tomorrow!Wide open, sideways drifting is one way to keep your speed in check, but even better, it looks awesome! We’ll see what those in the know think come racing.
More excitement and action from Hafjell tomorrow. In the meatime, follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more photos and exclusive content.
A fresh set of stripes for the newly crowned World Champ, Rachel Atherton put down a strong display in qualifying to take first place by just under a second. Emmeline Ragot and her 27.5″ wheeled Lapierre right behind her!
Well qualifying here in Norway has revealed a super tight field with the top 10 being separated by less than 5 seconds! In the end it was another dominant performance by the Athertons with Gee and Rachel sitting atop of their respective classes.
The man to beat in the World Cup series this year, Gee Atherton, took the fastest qualifying spot by just over 0.1 seconds, he will have to throw down faster come Sunday to keep the rest of the pack from bettering him.
Mens Qualifying:
1. Gee Atherton 3.30.051
2. Mik Hannah 3.30.161 + 0.110
3. Loic Bruni 3.31.888 + 1.837
4. Greg Minnaar 3.32.578 + 2.527
5. Stevie Smith 3.32.645 +2.594
…
6. Troy Brosnan 3.33.302 + 3.251
10. Sam Hill 3.34.955 + 4.904
43. Jack Moir 3.44.771 + 14.720
55. Connor Fearon 3.46.421 + 16.370
72. David McMillan A�3.49.045 + 18.994
99. Chris Kovarik 3.56.466 + 26.415
101. Sean McCarroll 3.56.901 + 26.850
Three Aussies in the top 10 is always good! Loic Bruni looks like he is really stepping it up for third, will he come through on race day? Jack Moir continues to impress, this time with a 43rd. We know Connor Fearon doesn’t rate this as his favourite track, struggling to find his flow on it and stoked to see David McMillan sneak into the top 80 in 72nd place.
Frustrating wouldn’t even begin to explain what Chris Kovarik would be feeling when he punctured near the bottom of the course, missing qualifying by 19 places. His partner in crime, Claire Buchar, qualified 8th in the woman’s field.Mic Hannah is knocking on the door of a win, second in qualifying and looking strong.
Australia’s sole female competitor, Tracey Hannah qualified 5th after missing this round last year due to injury, she would be expecting a podium this week and we all know she is capable of doing so!
Just like brother Mic, Tracey Hannah is looking strong on course too, fifth in qualifying should set her up nicely for a podium this weekend.
Junior men saw Dean Lucas, who is battling for the overall, qualify 9th 7.944 seconds back and Luke Ellison had a shocking run coming in last in 42nd place but he qualifies to line up for finals come Sunday.
Dean Lucas on the hunt, he wants that junior overall jersey!Sam Hill clearly impressing a few spectators on what is really the only new section on the course – a jump over the cross country track!
So what’s left now? A few more training sessions then race day! Check back soon.
Connor Fearon was having fun on some of the big jumps in Norway, the added style was a bonus for everyone watching!
We finish our wrap up of the 2012 World Cup series with Connor Fearon’s Inside Info from Hafjell, Norway. This is what he had to say;
Norway was the final round for the season and I was hoping to finish it off on a high note. The team got to Hafjell a few days prior to the race. Turns out there nothing to do there when ita��s freezing cold and raining. Despite being labelled a�?Europea��s #1 bike parka�? it turned out to be below average and we couldna��t ride the race track until official practice. The exchange rate there is through the roof as well it felt like I spent more coin in the last week in Norway than the other 4 months of the tripa��
So the start of the week wasna��t all that exciting I was hoping I would cheer up after walking the race track on day 1. The track has a few different sections. Some jumps and corners in the open sections I really liked. Once the track weaved into the wooded sections it became my nemesis, it got pretty slow, technical and awkward. Definitely far from my preferred type of course.
Connor hitting the main rock garden (or jungle as it was being referred to!) on the course, not sure if that is optimum foot/pedal position this time round!
During practice I tried my hardest to pick lines that would open up the track a little bit even if it meant going over rocks and taking wider corners. The coolest obstacle on the track was the massive natural gap halfway down the track. I dona��t think the course builders meant for this to be jumped but it happened anyway. I hit the gap in practice and race run for the fans even though I cased it every time and might have been slower it was still the most fun I had on the track!
My race run was pretty solid until the last sections of the track where the wind picked up a lot and it felt like I was going backwards. I got blown badly by the wind on the last jump and almost crashed, doing this I stomped the ground pretty hard with my leg and hurt my knee which stopped me from pedalling to the finish. I got 38th position in the end which was disappointing because I moved back in the overall (Although beating Peaty still who had a problem in his run).
So my first full world cup series is done and dusted and Ia��m just about ready to head home now! Ia��ve learnt a lot in this season that will help me improve myself for the next world cup season. For now ita��s time to go back to Australia just in time for summer, have a good off season and come out swinging next year!
So Connor’s last race of the season might not have quite gone to plan but he still finished up 34th in the overall, combined with his 3rd place at World Championships, that’s a very impressive season! What will happen next year, downhill247.com will keep you in the loop!
Wild times here in Norway, as Thibaut Ruffian proves, drifting his way around one of the grassy turns on the track!
The race here inA�Norway ran to a different scheduleA�compared to the six previous World Cups.A�With it being it the last race of the season apparently the decision was made to hold the finals on Saturday allowing spectators to party on Saturday. The flip side of this is that crowd numbers were possibly a little less as the locals had to work on Friday!
Elite Men:
1. Steve Smith 3.31.76
2. George Brannigan 3.32.16 + 0.40
3. Greg Minnaar 3.33.90A�+ 2.13
4. Gee Atherton 3.34.05 + 2.29
5. Nick Beer 3.34.90 + 3.13
…
7. Sam Hill 3.36.51 + 4.75
11. Mic Hannah 3.37.41 + 5.64
20. Bryn Atkinson 3.39.06 + 7.30
38. Connor Fearon 3.43.12 + 11.36
47. Mitch Delfs 3.46.50 + 14.73
55. Josh Button 3.48.25 + 16.49
We were walking up the track as Bryn Atkinson went drifting past, two feet up, nice!Look at the concentration, unfortunately for Steve Peat a crash in his race run pushed him down to 71st.Mechanics are often little known and just go about their business but without them riders would be left high and dry!Just like mechanics, the media are generally little known but just get on with their job. Here photo guru Jacob Gibbins gets a lift to the start of the track.Some took their filming/photography a bit more serious than others!A lot of cameras were focused on this gap but only a few riders would send it.Emeline Ragot finished 2nd just over 2 seconds behind Rachel Atherton.Mic Hannah just missed out on a top 10 finish in 11th place.Australia’s highest placed finisher was Sam Hill in 7th.Greg Minnaar can never be ruled out, 3rd in the race and 2nd in the overall.Second place was George Brannigan, the young Kiwis best result thus far.Stevie Smith was all smiles for the cameras! 1st place…
Next to wrap up the race and the series for 2012 we will bring you Connor Fearon’s Inside Info from the race, stay tuned.
Today was the first day of practice here at Hafjell and it was a long day with an open practice session in the morning before the top 80 men/top 20 women had their own practice session. It was a fun day on the course though, the general consensus from the riders is that the track is a whole lot of fun and a good race track to boot!
The jumps at the top of the course saw the riders having some fun throwing down some big whips, this meant a fun day for everyone else watching!
Lets take a run through today’s proceedings;
It was a tentative start to the day with no one quite knowing what the cloud and fog had in store as everyone got on the gondola to head up to the top of the track…Fortunately as the gondola went up it broke through to the sunshine and the weather stayed dry all day. On another note, check out the roofs of the local houses here in Norway, got green?There was no shortage of riders serving up the style up the top of the track as Connor Fearon demonstrates!Some riders were slightly more business orientated, such as Mark Beaumont and were keeping it race through the jumps. We could literally have a whole gallery of action from these jumps. There was a huge cable cam set up through these jumps, rumours were it was for an upcoming Anthills Film movie…You can’t blame them though, no matter which way you look the scenery is fantastic as Josh Button demonstrates.There’s more to the track than the jumps at the top! We sat in this rock garden and it doesn’t surprise us Steve Peat was the fastest in timed practice. He studied this rock garden for some time and then proceeded to hit it smooth and fast, won’t back down! Stevie Smith on the other hand ‘rode the buffalo’ laughing and hooting his way down, Josh Bryceland described it like “a monkey in a sidecart”. Josh was commenting that there still wasn’t an obvious line yet while Stevie was saying on this track because it is so fast in some places you are forced to take one line!Before the riders hit the track the UCI actually went through and smashed out various rocks from what riders are calling the ‘rock jungle!’Ben Reid threads the rocks and trees, there are numerous line choices all the way down the track.Sam Hill didn’t hit the track in practice until relatively late, he did a few runs scouting lines, being a new track many riders were taking slightly longer to get up to speed.Aaron Gwin was getting around on board a custom Trek made to commemorate his overall 2012 World Cup series win. Things weren’t going all his way, going down in the rocks, you can see the mud on his right shoulder.This track is a physical one, you could hear how tired all the riders were near the bottom of the track!If you didn’t know it was there you would miss it! Can you see the man carrying the torch cut into the side of the hill?It was good to see Brendan Fairclough back riding, he was doing runs with Andrew Neethling and Sam Hill at various times of the day.Damian Spagnolo always seems to be a bit of a dark horse, he was looking good today.Conditions were good, the biggest issue today was the news the UCI may decide to lower the amount of points female riders are awarded in the series and thus reducing their value on a pro team for the overall teams classification. More news on this issue as we get it.
That wraps up the first day of practice, tomorrow the riders have another practice session followed by qualifying.
