The second round of the Tasmanian Downhill series saw Glenorchy mountain bike park back in action for the first time since Oceania championships back in March. The course had had a bit of a tune up since then particularly to the bottom a�?Bombshella�? section to open it up and make it faster.
Josh Fuller launching off the improved gap in the a�?bombshella�? section.Aaron Oates.
In classic Tasmanian style the week before the race saw grey skies and rain leaving grim predictions for race day, luckily the sun was shining by Saturday morning drying out the majority of the track for riders to get their lines dialed on the practice day.
By Sunday the dust had revealed itself all over the track with plenty of riders getting loose on their way down. Sundaya��s practice went off without any major incidents apart from a few riders ending up in the bushes after taking one too many corners at full speed.
Simon Palmer testing the limits of his new Norco Aurum.
A turnout of 49 riders was reduction from round 1 with a few riders away at mainland events or choosing not to attempt the challenging course. Despite this fun was had by All with Ben Hill coming home with the win in Elite with a 3:18 followed by Aaron Oates and Josh Fuller. Under 19 was won by Dan Booker with Simon Palmer in second place then Derek West.
Ben Hill brought his flair for race day.
Thanks to Track X, Iron House Brewery, Bike Ride, Dirt Art, Thrifty Car Rentals and Hill Street Gourmet Meats for their support throughout the series . The series heads North on December 7th and 8th for the third round in Wilmot.
Photos & Words: Andrew Palmer
Follow the rest of the Tas DH 13/14 season with Downhill247.com
Nathan Aver with lift off…Ben Hill sideways in the dirt!Dan Booker with some wise words.Danny Young making use of the large table top at the bottom of the courseAaron Oates highlighted through the dust on a solid run.Remy Adderton with his eyes well ahead.Dan Booker leaving a trail of dust on the way to first place for the under 19a��s.Callum Fagg on his way to first place in the All Mountain category.Tim Sumpton kicking up dust amongst the Tassie bushMartin Branfield taking on the bottom berms.Derek West on the gas!
Danielle Beecroft coming through the rocks, despite being the sole competitor in her class she was still charging hard.
We had so many images from the weekend we just had to share them so here is part 2 of our Oceania’s coverage from Glenorchy, Tasmania.
Starting off witha video… Here we have Ben Power getting sent wild over the jumps near the bottom of the course, this is not for the faint hearted! (Ben’s okay though!)
Now you might think this is David McMillan because we all know David does whips but this is actually his team mate, Jackson Davis, getting his style on!Simon Palmer dropping in!Josh McDonald out in the open near the botom of the course.Joey Vejvoda finished 7th.Tom Matthews rounded out the top 10 in Elite Men.The colours in this shot are crazy but that’s because of the white powdery dirt that lines much of the track. Of course Troy Brosnan’s style doesnt hurt either!David McMillan again! This time his wheels are on the ground though.Joel Willis heading through the final lower section before coming out into the open.Jackson Davis rounded out the top 10 in 10th!With that we are done with Oceanias.
Oceania’s was the last big race of the 2012/13 Australian domestic season but that wasn’t stopping the whips from flowing!
The Final chapter of the 2012/13 Australian National Series was Oceaniaa��s, a standalone event but an important one for many riders trying to chalk up a big result. So off we headed to one of Australiaa��s most southerly points. This year the Oceaniaa��s were held in Glenorchy Tasmania, just a short drive from Hobart but one of Australiaa��s best downhill tracks.
The long weekend meant that many people got a full day’s practice in on Friday.
Friday practice brought with it some awesome looking weather, from inside a car at least but when you stepped out you realised it was super cold, and very windy in some of the open sections of track. This wind caught many riders off guard through the lower jump section. The most notable off was Ben Power, not suffering any weekend ruining injuries, but a spectacular off all the same!
There were some wild times due to the wind at the bottom of the track but else where on the track riders were still battling as Luke Ellison shows us!
Riders continued to roll through the course and it began to get very dusty, ruts formed and some sections became super loose, many having rocks torn out of the ground due to the solid braking. By the end of Friday the track was beginning to change, this meant Saturdaya��s practice was almost like starting over again.
Whooooo-weeee! David McMillan cracking that whip!Ben Hill adds his style further up the course.But it wasn’t just those two throwing down the style…
Saturday practice saw riders pushing that little bit too hard, which resulted in a lot more riders appearing into the open jump section at the bottom a little worse for wear. Many were covered in dust from little offs and mistakes through some of the looser sections back up the track. Due to the rather small turn out and the completely relaxed attitude of the event, many riders were having plenty of fun on the bottom set of jumps! Two riders of note to turn up the style were David McMillan and Ben Hill who were throwing sizable whips all day.
The powdery conditions in some places meant you either hit your line or were back pedalling fast as Claire Buchar demonstrates!Troy Brosnan found a rock that took a disliking to his rear tube and stole all its air!
As seeding came around the track had grown some teeth and rocks had started appearing in some of the high speed sections, Troy Brosnan found out the hard way flatting in his seeding run. This sent him to the bottom of the pack, meaning he would have to do a run early Sunday, would this potentially be an advantage due to the ever changing track conditions? Troy wasn’t focused on that, he was clearly disappointed in flatting but looked forward to his race run Sunday. At the end of Saturdaya��s seeding Kovarik Racing had stolen the show, with top qualifying honours going to both Chris and Claire.
Chris Kovarik took the number one position after seeding on Saturday…As did Claire Buchar by making it down the track unfortunately being the sole Elite female entrant…
Sunday brought some excellent racing, even with the very minimal field. Danielle Beecroft claimed the win for Under 19 females, disappointingly being the only female rider in her age group and only one of two females racing downhill the entire weekend.
Under 19 Female champ, Danielle Beecroft, you have to commend her effort despite being the sole entrant, this course tends to do that.We are keen to see how Danielle goes overseas later this year.
Thomas Crimmins also had an early start due to a fall in his seeding run, this didn’t faze him though as he crossed the line to take honours in the Under 19s mena��s class, could this be a prelude to a potential advantage for Troy Brosnan?
Thomas Crimmins comes in hot!But rode it out no worries and took the win in Under 19’s.Luke Ellison negotiates a tricky rock garden and brought it home in second place.
Claire Buchar claimed the win in the Elite females, again being the only female in her class. Ironically though, she was not actually able to claim the Oceania title as she is not from the Oceania region.
Claire Buchar has been having a good Australian domestic season but again was the only competitor in the Elite Female class!Due to her citizenship she was unable to claim the Oceania’s title though!
As the Elite men started rolling down the hill we Saw Troy Brosnan come through early and set a blistering pace topping Chris Kovarika��s qualifying time from the day before. Troy assumed the hot seat all the way through to the top 5 riders.
A flat saw Troy Brosnan head off early in the day for his final run, with a strong run he was sure of spending some time in the hot seat!Another strong race for Jack Moir, third in the end, he must be hungry for a win though?!
As the top 5 began descending the times became increasingly tight, Jack Moir came through less than half a second behind Troy. It was now essentially Troy vs. Chris, Chris is renowned for taking enormous chunks of time out race tracks the world over. Could he do it in this circumstance? He would have to top his qualifying time by a sizable margin to claim the win. As Chris appeared over the first jump in the open section he appeared to have the clock under control. He pedalled hard over the line to stop the clocks 3 seconds in the green and claim the win at Oceaniaa��s.
A strong seeding result set Chris up for the win, he dealt with the deteriorating conditions perfectly.Chris cranks across the line to take the title!The top 5 were; Chris Kovarik, Troy Brosnan, Jack Moir, Kaine Cannan & David McMillan.
For many of Australiaa��s top racers this was the final race in their Australian Campaign, we here at Downhill247.com would like to wish all of them the best of luck at the upcoming Sea Otter and for the rest of their International Seasons!
We have a bumper set of photos from this race so watch out for part 2 up soon!
Troy Brosnan’s return to racing over the past few weeks hasn’t been smooth sailing unfortunately but expect him to be up there tomorrow come finals. Seeding today saw Troy well and truly down the order with a flat tyre. Image: Andrew Palmer
It is not all bunnies and Easter eggs this weekend with Oceania’s being held at Glenorchy, Tasmania. Seeding today showed the main contenders were those who have been competing all season in the National Series, bar Sam Hill. Results as follows;A�
Elite Male
1. Chris Kovarik 3:13.24
2. Jack Moir 3:16.30A�+ 3.06
3. Kaine Cannan 3:17.53 + 4.29
4. David McMillan 3:21.03 + 7.79
5. Joey Vejvoda 3:22.29 + 9.05
Elite Female
1. Claire Buchar 3:57.57
Under 19 Male
1. Luke Ellison 3:21.98
2. Brent Smith 3:25.69A�+ 3.71
3. Brent Capel 3:27.80 + 5.82
4. Matthew McCorkell 3:31.13 +A�9.15
5. Thomas Crimmins 3:31.23 +A�9.25
Under 19 Female
1. Danielle Beecroft 4:46.94
A good day for Kovarik Racing with both riders seeding first. Image: Jason Stevens
Check back for the full report for the weekend up on the site after the race.
Ben Hill had an awesome Tassie series, plus he is a style merchant! We will be doing a full Inside Info with him soon, watch out now! Image: Andrew Palmer
This weekend Glenorchy mountain bike park hosted the 6th and final round of the Tasmanian 2012/2013 gravity series. All the riders were keen to do as well as possible to gain maximum points in an effort to improve their overall result for the series. When Sunday morning rolled around a heavy fog and rain blanketed most of the city leaving riders nervous the race would turn into a mud bath. Surprisingly though, the rain didna��t make its way to Glenorchy and the track stayed relatively dry for the entire day.
Glenorchy is one of the best downhill race tracks in Australia and with Oceanias just around the corner this was a lead up event for many of the locals! Image: Andrew PalmerThere are still plenty of interesting lines being used, as Kaine Cannan shows us… Image: Andrew Palmer
Riders punched out heaps of practice runs in the morning in an effort to familiarise themselves with the course and their lines once again. Seeding runs went well for all with everyone making their way down the course safely. Riders also treated the event as a practice for the Oceania Championships, which are being held at Glenorchy from the 29th of March. As usual downhill247.com will be covering the event so be sure to check back then.
The final round wrapped up with Dan Booker taking the win in Under 17a��s, with Connor Greatbatch and Ewan Favretto following behind. Ben Hill and Brent Capel tied for first place in Under 19a��s! Simon Palmer finished in second with Ben Chopping in third. Kaine Cannan took his 6th consecutive win for the series showing his dominance over the Elite field. Remy Adderton took second place on his brand new bike, riding it for the second time that day. Aaron Oates took third place in elite. The Women’s category was again won by Christina Sergeant with Jill Brady in second place.
Dan Booker took the win in Under 17’s and gives us the thumbs up for another successful season! Image: Andrew PalmerEwan Favretto took out third place in Under 17’s. Image: Andrew PalmerBrent Capel and Ben Hill tied for the win on the day! Ties happen every now and then for downhill but we can’t think of too many that have happened for first place! Image: Andrew PalmerSimon Palmer sends the tabletop near the bottom the course and takes out second place in Under 19’s in the process. Image: Andrew PalmerAaron Oates took the more conventional line near the bottom of the course and third place in Elite in the process. Image: Andrew Palmer
The overall series podiums were also held. Under 17a��s was won by Dan Booker with Tyler Wickham and Ewan Favretto following him. Under 19a��s was taken out by Ben Hill with Brent Capel and Simon Palmer trailing him. Elite Mena��s was again won by Kaine Cannan, Aaron Oates in second and Andrew Weatherhead in third.
You have to hand it to Kaine Cannan, 6 from 6 is a super effort! Image: Andrew Palmer
The organisers would like to thank the sponsors; Ride Bellerive, Hill St Gourmet Meats, St Johns, Moo Brew and Track X as well as all the event organizers for another fantastic Tasmanian downhill series. We head back to the Apple Isle soon for Oceanias, stay tuned!
