The second triple-discipline World Cup of the year, after last weekend's Andorra event, returns to the legendary Fort William, Scotland venue this weekend. Here's a rundown of what to expect from mountain biking's elite competitors.
It's been four years since the dust settled on the last Red Bull Rampage, four years of unrest among riders hoping a similar event would fill the void left by this big-mountain contest, four years of searching for new venues, four years of rumors and speculation, and four years in which the sport has changed markedly.
Simply over the top. The Athertons pull a hat trick: Dan Atherton took the 4X yesterday, and then Rachel and Gee both qualified first in the morning, and then both hung on for the win in the finals. Such a feat is unprecedented in Mountain Bike racing, and likely bike racing, period.
Weeks of rain leading up to this weekend's Andorra World Cup event was bad news for the 4X event more than any other. Despite the tricky conditions, competitors poured it on and gave the Andorra crowd a spectacle of great racing as Dan Atherton and Anneke Beerten took the win.
Under the constant threat of rain, the World's elite cross country competitors battled in Andorra last weekend. The course stood out as one of the most technical challenging in the series as of late giving an advantage to riders with exceptional bike handling skill.
Vallnord, Andorra is surrounded by high snow-capped peaks, and appears to be a skier and biker's paradise. But it has rained non-stop for the past two weeks, and despite today's sunshine, the ground is pretty much mashed potatoes. And with the weekend forecast looking mostly wet, the races are all likely to be pretty sloppy.
Fenasosa Bike Park is the brainchild of Jean Phillippa Orban, a former Moto GP racer from Belgium who relocated here at the end of his career. The Fenasosa concept includes a private, shuttle-served mountain bike park, limited to a maximum of 45 clients per day, which is something more like what you get in a back country snow cat operation deep in the Selkirks—solitude, exclusivity at a price, and an experience that is hard to shake.
Several big surprises highlighted the finale of the 2008 Nissan Qashqai Challenge in London, England this past weekend. Local boys stole the show at the London final, firing up 50,000 spectators in front of Tate Modern, one of the nation’s most popular art galleries.
Despite record snow levels, the trail teams at Whistler Mountain Bike Park have made amazing headway clearing the park's trails for early season riding.
The ninth annual Lisbon Downtown race was held May 18, 2008 in Lisbon, Portugal with racers taking to the infamous cobblestone stairways winding down the old city from the Castelo de Sao Jorge. As cats scrambled off the race rack citizens watched from their laundry filled balconies to see Steve Peat take his 7th consecutive win.
Everything in the bike industry, it seems, eventually comes full circle. A little more than a decade ago Frank Scurlock was a high-ranking employee at RockShox, the suspension company created by Paul Turner.
The June 2008 Issue of Bike magazine is on newsstands now...
Knolly Bikes is pleased to announce their newly formed partnership with Ryan Berrecloth. Ryan will be utilizing Knolly Frames for his various riding endeavors for the next two seasons.
Martin Soederstrom won a captivating final in Munich’s Olympia park on the biggest Qashqai course of the year. It was an amazing event across the board, with the final round approaching May 24th at London’s famous Tate Modern Gallery.
On a gorgeous day in Northern Slovenia, Sam Hill and Sabrina Jonnier put their stamp on the season opener with resounding wins, letting everybody know they are still the king and queen of downhill.