This year’s already been huge – five-time downhill World Champion (three senior, two junior wins) Sam Hill joined the team roster in a furore of internet chatter and anticipation alongside Matt Simmonds and Joe Smith. The guys are also riding a brand new bike in the shape of the Nukeproof Pulse, as well as all-new parts courtesy of fresh sponsors. With a reinvigorated team dynamic and a shakeup of the bikes, everything’s in place for their most successful season yet!
#OnTheHunt follows the team through their pre-season travels, starting with a visit to Chain Reaction Cycles headquarters in Northern Ireland, where Sam, Matt and Joe met the CRC family, visiting the offices and warehouses of the world’s largest online bike store as well as taking the time for a quick spin with CRC staff on the local trails. Then it was on to their annual pilgrimage to San Romolo, Italy, to put their team issue Nukeproof Pulse bikes to the test. Working closely with new suspension sponsors, RockShox, the riders took the chance to dial in their bikes, eeking out every piece of performance possible to take them to World Cup glory in 2013. It wasn’t long before the crew were jetting off again, this time to the Chain Reaction Cycles-sponsored Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California, to take part in one of the first major cycling festivals of the year. As well as debuting their new bikes and kit, the team competed against the best racers on the planet in the dual slalom and downhill races.
2013 is set to bring us the most incredible season of racing yet, and none more so than for the new-look Team CRC/Nukeproof. The time for talking’s nearly over, and with less than seven days to go until the start of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Fort William, Scotland, Team CRC/Nukeproof are #OnTheHunt
No one deserves anything other then your best performance. Sometimes you out perform everyone, other times your beat. He hasn't been consistent in his career, had his ups and once he lost his top notch form Sam has been a hit and miss. He's one of my top favorites so I will wish him all the best and hope he gets his mojo back.
Yeah I hope Sam does well, but the whole team is an awesome workforce and any one of them deserves a good couple of results! Matt and Joe WILL be in the top ten this year.. Fact. Dettol protects. Fact.
Anyone got any info on those schwalbe DH tyres they are running ? they look kinda like a muddy mary thats a bit more suited to the dry end of the spectrum
Red yellow black frame, strangely remember that being the colour scheme of the Specialized Demo one year. I would like to see Sam pull a few good results this year though its getting tougher as there are so many awesome riders that could easily win a race.
The only thing I could decifer from the foreign language that is twitter (no idea what that craps about) is a comment about enduro and "I am specialized" make of that what you will
yeah, someone else mentioned on another site, that sammo stopped mid run to have what looked like a chat with spectators...
anyways, i'm holding out for him saving it for the actual race season races. But i can't shake this niggling speculative thought that everything that's wrong with Sam is hanging around his neck, literally and figuratively.
If that's not "good" then I don't know what is!