Australian Gravity Enduro Series – Fox Creek

Troy Brosnan racing the second enduro race of his career, both have been in his home town of Adelaide!

Round 3 of the Australian Gravity Enduro Series rolled into Adelaide over a quiet weekend in May, with around 140 riders competing it was another good turn out for the series with good racing across the classes. The event was made up of 4 timed stages with 2 loops to get riders around. Surprisingly there were no major injuries considering how quick riders were going, especially on the ‘steep’ sections. Some unlucky riders did run into kangaroos on Saturday whilst out at Fox practicing but nothing major.

A few stray kangaroos on course were the only real concern for most riders who were practicing Friday and Saturday. Stage 3 was a new trail and only cut in for this event.

Of the 4 stages 3 were pre-existing tracks and there was a good mix of stages that required a combination of fitness and technical skills. Stage 2 was the same track as used in the South Australian downhill state series so it was fast and suited the more technical riders. Stage 3 was new for the event and one of the most challenging aspects for riders was how it changed between Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Being brand new it bedded in as the weekend wore on (excuse the pun!), there was a lot of almost powdery like dust to be had on this stage. Stage 4 was a bit of a rider favourite (check out the intense competition on Strava!) A�’Green Smoothie’, this trail is really fun to ride with big flowing corners and jumps if you were keen. Most tracks were pretty dry as the weather leading into the event was unseasonably warm in Adelaide.

There was something over the four stages for all riders. Sam Hardie showing the physical effort!

Showing that local knowledge pays off, both the men’s and women’s podiums had Adelaideans (that’s a real thing right?!) on the top step. Troy Brosnan was the favourite coming into the weekend but with riders like Dan MacMunn, who are veterans of the relatively young enduro scene, it wasn’t going to be a cake walk for Troy. We had a chat to Troy about his weekend and this is what he had to say “I was using the event for training and to ride with some of my Adelaide mates. I made sure I climbed all the ascents before the stages”. Troy raced on his 29er S-Works Enduro bike and in only his second enduro event he took the win! What makes it even more impressive was the fact Troy didn’t practice on Friday & Saturday unlike some other riders and therefore rode stage 3 completely blind as it was created for this event. “It was hard to know where to push as I was going in blind but this stage had less pedalling and there was fresh dirt”, for the record Troy got second on that stage.

Get your speed tuck on, Troy Brosnan winner of round 3.

Talking about second, there was initially a draw for second place between Simon Buzzacott and Dan McMunn as the timing system couldn’t differentiate riders by larger than the closest second. In the end Simon claimed second as he had the fastest time on the last stage. Talk about close racing! In the women it was Jackie Schapel who used her fitness, skills and local knowledge to full effect taking the win.

Second place for Simon Buzacott, it was close though with a countback to the last stages' results required to determine the 2nd place getter! — Second place for Simon Buzacott, it was close though with a countback to the last stages’ results required to determine the 2nd place getter!

Elite Men

1. Troy Brosnan

2. Simon Buzacott

3. Dan MacMunn

4. Dave West

5. Cameron Ryan

Elite Women

1. Jaclyn Schapel

2. Genevieve Mckew

3. Rosemary Barnes

4. Vanessa Thompson

5. Alyssa Lyons

Jackie Schapel off and into the stage, eventually claiming the overall title win for round 3.

That wraps up this round, the next race is scheduled for June 29th in Western Australia at Mount Gunjin.

Images: kaneophoto.com.au (@kaneophoto)

Facebook:A�www.facebook.com/downhill247
Instagram:A�@downhill247

May 28, 2014

Inside Info: Lenzerheide

You know when a rider of Steve Peat's caliber is getting excited about a track it is something special. — You know when a rider of Steve Peat’s caliber is getting excited about a track it is something special.

If you have been following Steve Peat on Instagram @stevepeat you would have seen what he has been up to during the break between races. Aside from just having a good time and being the god father of mountain biking he has been spending some time inA�Lenzerheide, Switzerland. These pictures immediately piqued our interest as the track looks steep and fast! With Champery a few hours down the road are we in for another classic course? Let’s hope so, we have to wait until 2015 to find out as the world cup stops in to the town then.

Unfortnately we don’t have a whole lot more information on the track yet but we knew we needed to share what we could with you guys. The prospect of seeing the world’s best tear down a ‘proper’ track have us salivating, be sure once we know more we will let you know!

Even Sam Hill picked up on Steve's post asking about it he was pretty stoked to find out he would be heading there next year! — Even Sam Hill picked up on Steve’s post asking about it he was pretty stoked to find out he would be heading there next year!

2015 here we come!

Images: Steve Peat (@stevepeat)

Facebook:A�www.facebook.com/downhill247
Instagram:A�@downhill247

May 22, 2014

Inside Info: The Hutchison UR Team Mother Ship!

The pit set ups at World Cups is a pretty impressive site!

One of the most important tools in any racers quest to win is their team van/truck/pit set up. Not only do the team mechanics do their thing from it but it gives the riders somewhere to relax, get out of the public eye at races, store all their gear, etc basically it is a home away from home. There are some impressive rigs out there but one of the most dialed setups goes to Hutchinson UR and their mother ship! This is the same beast that Australia’s own Mic and Tracey Hannah call home for a large part of the year. Check out how it transformed over the months to become the beast that it is today!

Not too impressive to look at, this is how she started off!

It was actually a super market delivery truck that was then converted into a rally team's transporter before the Hutchinson guys got onto it! — It was actually a super market delivery truck that was then converted into a rally team’s transporter before the Hutchinson guys got onto it!

The team did everything themselves. These photos of the grinding also cost Tim the photographer a lens courtesy of the flying sparks!

"From welding to painting, cutting out new windows to replacing entire panels" the team did it all! — “From welding to painting, cutting out new windows to replacing entire panels” the team did it all!

One of the coolest features of the truck is the top deck, where people can hang on top of the trailer to get a prime view over the pits and surrounds.

After all the work was completed a fresh lick of pain to give her that factory look!

Set up in all her glory, you can see the top deck here.

With all the races the team attends the mothership covers some kilometres!

It is a real shame these truck stay in Europe and couldn’t make the trip over to races such as the Cairns World Cup, they add another dimension to the race experience!

Images courtesy: Hutchinson UR/ Tim Bardsley-Smith

Facebook:A�www.facebook.com/downhill247
Instagram:A�@downhill247

May 15, 2014

SA State Series – Fox Bowl

As Inside Line heads into its 20th race season for round 2 we headed to good old Fox Creek and the infamous Bowl track. With the weather in Adelaide during the week being wet everyone was bracing for another wet Fox race (surprise surprise!). However, Mother Nature smiled kindly on us with excellent weather over the weekend, by finals Sunday some riders were saying the track conditions were as good as they had experienced. Check out some of the images below from RF Photographics (www.facebook.com/rfphotographics – head over and give them a like they do great work).

Slightly ominous on the drive up to Fox but the good weather prevailed.

In fact the weekend conditions turned out almost perfect!

The track was similar to it has been for any years so riders knew what to expect.

Angus Maddern on the hunt, Angus is always a contender at Inside Line races.

The training rig was out, things are getting serious..... — The training rig was out, things are getting serious…..

Everything was green due to the winter conditions.

There was a good spectator turnout, it must have been everyone treating their mums to a day out of racing for mothers day!

There were probably a lot of mums worried about their off spring ending up like this! Fortunately nothing was too serious... — There were probably a lot of mums worried about their off spring ending up like this! Fortunately nothing was too serious…

Connor Fearon was always going to be the man to beat, you don't argue with World Cup speed! — Connor Fearon was always going to be the man to beat, you don’t argue with World Cup speed!

There were a lot of trail/enduro type bikes at this race and in fact 2 of the top 5 elite riders were on them!

In the end, Sunday afternoon in sunny conditions the finals kicked off, as always there was good racing across the classes and the spectators were there to cheer. In the under 19 men it was Drew Gartery 2.28 seconds clear ahead of Darcy Grooby followed by James Chambers. Elite women was taken out by Cami Miller 3.91 seconds ahead of Moira Love followed by Simone Cameron. In the elite men’s class it was the favourite, Connor Fearon, who took the win by 4.82 seconds. His time was 2.16.47, interestingly enough Connor himself said he was chasing sub 2.15. Second was Angus Maddern followed by Cam Ryan on the first of the enduro bikes, Steve Gebert 4th and Simon Buzzacot rounded out the top 5.

Never really in doubt if he kept it up right Connor Fearon took the win.

Next race in the series is Eagle!

Images: RF Photographics (www.facebook.com/rfphotographicsA�and follow on Instagram @rfphotographics)

Facebook:A�www.facebook.com/downhill247
Instagram:A�@downhill247

May 13, 2014

Inside Info: Connor Fearon – Australia

Connor Fearon, dwarfed by an angry rock garden sweeps through unfazed.

Home town race and therefore a home town Inside Info from Connor Feraon, the whole time in cairns even we noticed just how much support he had! So with out further a-do take it away Mr Worldwide;

As soon as I heard about the world cup in Cairns I was quietly confident. Even before I knew anything about the track I just had this feeling it was going to be a good race for me. My first world cup at my home country would really mean a lot to me. In my head the whole 2014 season was going to be good for me, I proved I had improved my fitness by a fair margin in South Africa with a 25th but I wanted better. I dona��t often voice my goals but I wanted to get a top 5 podium at the Cairns world cup, it was pretty much my goal from the end of last year when I proved to myself I could mix it with the best. Matty and I got to Cairns about a week early and did a lot of the obligatory tourist activities. Ia��ve never been to Cairns but highly recommend it as a holiday destination!

Track walk revealed a track that Connor liked the look of.

We stayed riding distance from the track but I actually never bothered to look at it until the official track walk day on Wednesday. The track itself is really good, it has everything; open turns, fast wide jump sections, whoops, technical rock gardens and root sections! I liked the look of it. The weather was really good in Cairns right up until the first practice runs on Thursday. The skies opened up and it rained hard. The track was really slippery due to the clay surface that covered most of the hills around the area. I felt good on the first run, this reflected in timed training when I was 2nd to Gee Atherton by less than a second. Qualifying rolled around on Friday, it was still raining hard the track was getting slower and harder. Nobody realised how physical this track was until they had to put a full run down to qualify. My whole body was screaming I could hardly turn the pedals at the end. Unfortunately I had a little crash at the start of my run. Despite the hiccup I still qualified 9th and the fastest Aussie. This meant a lot to me and boosted my confidence even more. It felt like all the hard work I put in during the off season would pay off. I had a lot of friends and family at the race and generally everyone at the event was stoked for me to qualify so well. Everyone was telling me they wanted me to do well at the race.

9th in qualifying after 2nd in timed practice, all good signs!

When I was warming up for my race run I was actually pretty calm, I was confident with my speed and fitness I just had to ride like a had been in practice. I rode pretty aggressively in my race run and nailed all the technical sections at the top. There is a long right hander thata��s quite fast before a jump. I came in faster than I have and didna��t let off the gas. At the end of the corner my front wheel washed out and quicker than I could react I hit the deck. I bounced off the ground and it felt like forever before I hit again. I remember sliding along the ground and almost being oblivious to the fact I was crashing. I couldna��t believe what happened. I didna��t jump back up too fast because I was pretty hurt and I knew I wouldna��t be in contention for the result I hoped for. The crowd the whole way down the track and especially at the bottom was huge. Ita��s definitely the most spectators Ia��ve seen at a world cup. They were extremely loud and supportive as well. Ia��m sure they pushed the Aussies to ride faster! I finished my run and rode back to the pits pretty swiftly as I was a little salty about crashing! It really set in when I was sitting in the medical tent getting a few stitches in my leg and I could hear the commentator announcing the winnersa�� So unfortunately this race wasna��t as good as I had planned. I dona��t think I made any mistakes by crashing I was pushing the limit and in this sport thata��s what you have to do. One good thing is due to the points I got in qualifying I moved up in the overall to 22nd. By the end of the season I want to be well in the top 20 so Ia��ll take what Ia��ve learnt from this race to the next world cups to achieve that goal. Ia��d like to thank my sponsors Kona, Fox Head, Maxxis, Sram, Rockshox, Stans no tubes, Truvativ, Yakima racks and of course downhill 247! Hopefully ill have something more positive to report next time round.

The eyes are the window to the soul, or something like that! You can tell Connor was disappointed but he handled it professionally and will be on that podium soon!

Not quite the result he was capable of but a lot of lessons learnt.

There is now a slight break before the world cup circuit hits up Europe for round 3.

Images: Jason Stevens Photography, JB Photomedia & in house images.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/downhill247
Instagram: @downhill247

May 5, 2014

Pick Of The Pics – Cairns WC

Not only is Steve Peat racing to top 10s in World Cups but he is continuing his mentoring with the Steve Peat Syndicate. One of the SPS juniors hitting the rock garden.

Cairns world cup, the hardest race in the series for quite some years. It was a combination of the track and the tropical weather that really made things difficult, not only for the riders but the media, the A�event crew and the spectators! Come with us as we relive the action, the emotion and the mud!

Ben Power shreds the last of the prime switchbacks that open the course, ready to head into more technical features.

Sam 'Blinky' Blenkensop keeping control on perhaps the slickest part of the course. — Sam ‘Blinky’ Blenkensop keeping control on perhaps the slickest part of the course.

In fact he kept it under control most of the weekend being the fastest qualifier meant he was last rider down on Saturday.

Blinky's teammate, Emmeline Ragot, fully focused during qualifying. — Blinky’s teammate, Emmeline Ragot, fully focused during qualifying.

Not everyone got it right though... — Not everyone got it right though…

Loris Vergier drops in to the final off-camber chute, on his way to the finish of a flying race run.

Tegan Molloy on one of her first runs of the weekend, scoping and easing her way into the course.

Renowned for his wet weather ability Danny Hart works the rock garden.

You can't get an idea of how much water fell over the week unless you were there! — You can’t get an idea of how much water fell over the week unless you were there!

Aaron Gwins kit didn't stay white despite his white hot speed! — Aaron Gwins kit didn’t stay white despite his white hot speed!

Not sure about the style here... — Not sure about the style here…

Greg Minnaar gets sideways, holding a technical line through the roots and mud. We'd like to tell you he rode out of this one, but instead he layed down and held the bike off the mud! — Greg Minnaar gets sideways, holding a technical line through the roots and mud. We’d like to tell you he rode out of this one, but instead he layed down and held the bike off the mud!

Troy Brosnan sporting the national champs sleeve.

No doubt downhill is one of the toughest sports going around, to finish off this Pick of the Pics we finish with some lifestyle shots, showing the emotion and energy at a race!