| Sunday 1st June - DH day! |
| Sunday started in rather an unusual fashion, with everyone (except Rob) woken by a rather loud bang! The jury is still out on what it was, but the most common concensus was that it was a gas canister exploding! Blimey!! But other theories included thunder, a tank back-firing, and the fact that mike had eaten my Spicy fajitas for the previous nights tea, was not over looked! Breakfast was as an eclectic mix, as the previous evenings efforts. With DC going for the ravioli, Rob and Nick doing the bean thing and Mike going for that favourite breakfast delight......Chicken Musroom pot-noodle! My offering was a sainsbury's bacon and egg breakfast thingy. Now admittedly it did look like re-processed sick whe i dropped it into the frying pan (much to everyones amusement), but whoaaa baby did it taste good when cooked! Not laughing now are we pot-noodle boy!! |
| With breakfast out of the way, and cuppas firmly polished, it was aquick shower then back upto the ranges to watch the proper racing! |
| The Downhill! We arrived back at the ranges at about 10:30. Just in time to miss the chicks practicing. Bugger! So it was off for a quick recce round the trade village! Bugger! Still too pricy!! Hmmm what now??? After some heated disucssion, and about three rounds of cheeseburgers it was back up to the top of the hill in the Gongola to watch the men practicing! |
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| Handy things these Gondolas (Check out the arty grey pic!!) |
| Up on the top, it was time to sit back and let your jaw drop at just how fast these guys and girls throw themselves down hill! Its just mad! Riding up in the Gondola the crack goes something along the lines of "Yeah i'd take that higher line, then nail it over that big rock, to set me up for the next berm, it's totally do-a-ble" However it's not until you stand next to the course that you realise just how much you would die, if you even tried! Respect! As we sat in awe, at just how fast these kids we're going we started to get a bit immune, and phrases such as " go on ya big pussy, gun-it!!" started to leak out! All untill the last rider, who naturally we assumed to be shite! However as he got cloeser, there was something distictly firmilular about the rigid riding style, super tricked out bike and lid, and warp speed! " Christ its Peaty!!" " Go-on Stevie!!", For those not in the know Steve Peat is Mr UK MTB, and is also stupidily fast! After that excitment, it was time to mosy on down to finish arena, to stake our spot for the main event! |
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| One of Arai Global guy's giving it some over the rock garden |
| Racing - Once we had found our spot, in thus case next to the final double before the finish, it was time to wait. As always at MTB events waiting is what you do, dunno why, it just is. After about 45 mins, the announcer guy said that the first girl was on course! At last!! So as more and more riders came into view, the speed started to gradually pick up, as did the spectacle! With No Pepper to cheer on this year, all of Northbays whooping and hollaring was reseved for Miss Moseley! (tracymoseley.com) As Trace came into view she was looking fast, and so the crowd reacted accordingly..... yeahhhhh!!!!!! etc... For me it was dilemma time. Do i look away, i hate watching my mates do risky stuff (unfortunate considering i spend so much time rideing with Knoxy!!) do i get the camera ready for an action shot, or do i just scream profanities?? To late! " Go on Moseley F@%$ing pedal woman!!!!". I would at this point like to apologies to the young boy and his father who we're stood infornt of us for the language! Just got a bit emotional! Unfortunatley Moseley couldn't quite match her heroics of last year, but still kept the flag flying with a solid forth. In the end some French chick (Who looked about 12 i might add!!) won. |
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| The women's podium. For goodness sake! don't waste it! |