 | It's been a rough season, man, really rough. I just seem to be getting little niggly injuries all the time, little set backs... fingers, collarbone separations and stuff. It would have been really easy to get frustrated so I've just had to be patient and bide my time. My fitness isn't where it was last year and my confidence is definitely not, but this is a step in the right direction! I was going for it in my run for sure, but I struggled to find my rhythm really. I think it was down the conditions being brutal; some bits I nailed, but others I was holding on too tight, telling myself 'relax you pussy!', thinking about that all the way down. I only race for myself you know, so there's no one I need to prove something to, but it's so frustrating when you're not where you want to be! It's all in your head. It's such a head game, man. Nothing changes.... Nothing changes other than your mental state. It's mint to get the win. - Josh Bryceland - SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE |
Today was a mixed bag of weather with clouds sun and rain rotating in and out about every 15 minutes. Luckily heavy rain only fell once at the end of practice and never effected the race.
Mont-Sainte-Anne... pas de 'bike park' ici monsieur.
Looks like there's still time to shotgun a seat in the grandstand. Or better still, just get up on the track and see all the insane action point blank.
Myriam Nicole gets ready to go to war at 8am. It's been a rough season for her more than most, but today she would finally find some better luck.
Sadly the day would end too soon for Emmeline Ragot with her title chase over and no chance of competing at the World Champs after crashing on her final practice run.
The things you find out while scrolling Instagram during trackside downtime. Just before women's finals we found out Emilie Siegenthaler and Emmeline Ragot both were at the hospital with injuries sustained in training.
Disaster struck on Emmeline's last practice run of the day when she decided to skip the yellow box drop at the last minute. It was too late and she was forced to ride off the edge too slow. Landing to flat she broke her elbow and ankle on impact, somehow staying on the bike all the way back to the pits.
Rachel Atherton warms up with the help of a fan to keep cool. As cool as possible, at least, in the balmy weather that just couldn't make up its mind.
Is some self-sculpted kinesio tape really all that keeps Rachel gripping?
Locked and loaded and ready to back up her hard-earned first place quali yesterday.
Morgane and Myriam talk about their rock slab game on last runs before finals.
Manon Carpenter had a strong top section and gave Rachel a solid run for her money this weekend.
Carpenter wore a bit of MSA dirt this morning in practice, but at least fared better than some of her rivals and would go on to take 2nd place.
Always be yourself. Unless you can be a unicorn. Then always be a unicorn.
That five gallons of maple syrup did Miranda Miller some good. Fifth place for the Canadian.
Miranda made a big mistake on the final jump, but her fantastic top sections kept the dream alive.
Miller. The rockstar. On the podium.
It was a mighty fine return to the podium for Myriam and only 0.2 seconds behind second place.
| The number 13 plate was alright I guess - I finished the weekend with no injuries and I'm back in the top 10 for Windham next week! Even if I have a problem in qualifying everything will be fine as I'll be protected so it's great. Today was a lot of fun even though it's so rough and I made a mistake in my favorite section - the rock garden so I was angry at myself and it was hard to go again! Still I am very happy to be back on the box! - Myriam Nicole - Commencal Riding Addiction |
Tahnee can't miss the podium nowadays, riding to 4th, just 4.6 seconds back on Atherton over the marathon St Anne course.
A little stoked to be mixing it right up there with the best of them once again.
Eddie Masters and Bernard Kerr took some time to watch the Women from the grandstands.
Manon on the hot seat with Tahnee and Myriam as Rachel makes a big mistake on her final run and almost throws it away.
A mix of pain and pleasure on Atherton's face as she crossed the finish of Mont-Sainte-Anne's brutal track in 1st place.
Rachel knew her run was messy and actually looked quite surprised to have set the fastest time.
Atherton, Carpenter, Nicole, Seagrave and Miller on the top steps of St Anne.
The familiar taste of a job well done.
There was a Legends Race today with Trek Factory Racing's Jon Rourke piloted "Old Foldie" to dead last. He was passed by Galdalf legend, who was much older than he. Notice the 53 tooth chain ring on that bad boy, and the leaking beer.
Once you pop you can't stop... Things were a little less serene up on the hill.
In the junior field, Laurie Greenland took win number two today, and also the overall lead.
Alex Marin hits the last drop on his way to second place ahead of Crimmins.
Greenland laying down the law here in the first North American round, only time will tell if he can match the performance down South next weekend.
Andrew Crimmins never managed to piece this one together and today lost his hold of the overall despite another podium.
After so many 3rd place finishes it was good to see Alex Marin go one step closer to the elusive win.
MSA... It's not for sissies. Max Warshawsky about to exfoliate mid race run.
The guys start to lean in closer as top qualifier, Jacob Dickson, nears the finish line before the numbers go red.
Three teenagers guaranteed to kick your sorry ass.
Blenki's bike getting greased for a long day on Canadian bedrock.
Brosnan's mechanic, Aaron, does a final bolt check on his Demo.
Every man and his dog, out to watch the racing here in Quebec.
Rain on the hill but sun on the horizon as the elite racers hit the track.
Danny Hart and Markus Pekoll check out the ever changing lines from the gondola on their final trip to the top
Fairclough slamming some slabs on his last practice of the race weekend.
Gwin was pushing hard in morning training and went through the tape more than a few times...
Last run before finals are usually important for Gwin's race process, but he found himself derailed once again.
Loic tackles the bedrock in the middle woods one last time before finals.
Troy Brosnan looked a little bit like a bag of candy dialing in his lines during the morning training.
Fast and aggressive... Sam Blenkinsop looked great in training, but just didn't have the pace to challenge the front runners today.
Sadly Norco's Harry Heath couldn't back up his amazing 7th place qualifier today and had to settle for 24th.
Sam Hill rode to twentieth place today, surely not the result he would have wanted on this track.
A comeback from injury is always tough when the level's this high, but Hill is making ground.
Luca Shaw, the rocket man. Another top 20 for the young American.
Joe Smith drops into the final corner above the finish arena.
George Brannigan found some solid form today, finally finding his way back to the top 10.
Brendog keeps stepping up his game this season. 9th place for the man who displayed some seriously amazing riding ability on track this weekend.
In this form, Fairclough has every chance of landing on the podium before the season is out... Today he was just 5.9 off taking the win for himself.
Danny Hart trucked hard all weekend, but in the end he couldn't get the strangle-hold required to tame the beast and take his first win, coming in 8th.
Earlier in the season Gwin seemed totally bulletproof. Now with 7th place the cracks may be starting to show, but the series is still in his hands headed to Windham.
| It seems like I've had some rough luck in the qualifiers this year and this time was weird with the crazy rain storm right before we dropped in. I kinda just guinea-pigged the first turn for everybody and it was definitely a lot slippier than I thought it was gonna be. So that was a bummer and then today I just struggled all day. On my last practice run I started feeling pretty good and it was drying up a little bit, but then it went and rained again before my race run. I felt like I rode some things great, but just made so many small mistakes in the mud, sliding out and missing my lines, even at the bottom on the easy stuff. Still it was good to stay off the ground and you know, get a few points. Windham's one of my favorite tracks and Val di Sole is about the sickest track ever, so yeah really excited for the next two! - Aaron Gwin - Specialized Racing DH |
Mark Wallace truly made the rock slab section of woods his own, doubling up and gapping everything smoother than your average backyard pumptrack.
Wallace came home top Canadian and almost matched Team mate, Dean Lucas' podium performance in the previous round.
Sixth, just 0.6 off the podium, comes as his best result to date. No doubt his blistering pace through the rocks played a big roll for the youngster.
Marcleo Gutierrez was once again on the podium today, finishing fifth place. He looked confident all weekend, and that's another solid result for the Colombian.
3rd place qualifier Marcelo Gutierrez crossed the line in his race run to grab the final podium position here in Mont-Sainte-Anne.
All time DH hero, Minnaar, went and pulled out another casual podium... surprising just about nobody.
Two landings from the line and it was to be just 0.02 seconds that would decide the day. Truly a hair's breadth.
Loic Bruni looked unstoppable and even losing pedal power wouldn't stop him claiming the fastest second split.
Hard time spent in the hot seat ahead of the big guns.
He returns! Ratty pulled out his first win of the season and who knows, the possible beginning of a winning streak?
Ratboy charging through the crowds.
Josh "Ratty" Bryceland on his way to his first victory since Windham last year.
Troy Brosnan keeping the candy theme alive... this time 'Starburst'.
Brosnan laying on the anchors after a powerful sprint to line.
Stoked to keep up with the title chase, but naturally a little disappointed to miss out by so little.
The moment Troy crossed the line and Josh realized he won his first World Cup of 2015. Cheers Ratboy
Bruni and the unicorn.
All smiles after coming so close once again to his first pro win. Just how a true champion should be.
Troy Brosnan was close; 0.225 off a win here at Mont-Sainte-Anne. The margin to second was only 0.025. That's incredibly tight racing on a track of this length.
A derailed chain far above split one kept Bruni from putting in any pedal strokes for the final 2 minutes of the track. although the splits suggest it may not have affected him negatively.
When the pressure's off, the beers and the smiles come out. Usually in that order.
Cheers Sam.
Cheers Greg.
AG, still in the driving seat headed back to home soil, albeit by a mere handful of points.
Back. On. Top. Josh Bryceland sheds the champion's curse at steps back up to the top.
Drown the rat!
Loic's third 2nd place of the season and we're still waiting for him to go the whole distance. He looks happy enough to wait a little longer.
A quick podium shower to rinse off the mud and sweat and Ratboy was ready for the party.
That's a wrap from Mont-Sainte-Anne. Needless to say: It's been emotional. Time to pack up and head to the United States for the penultimate round of the 2015 season.
About the Photographers
Dave spent the bulk of the past 17 years racing professionally before realizing that despite qualifying for the random World Cup final here and there, the next generation was just way too fast and way more talented. Upon hanging up his racing boots in 2010, it would be a few years until Dave picked up a camera and started shooting the odd race here and there as a way to stay in touch with all the friends he had made over the years, and the rest as they say is history. In just a few years time his photos have graced the pages of just about every MTB magazine and major media outlet, while his commercial client list includes a who's who of the cycling industry, and he is lucky enough to shoot regularly with some of the best riders on the planet. Currently at Pinkbike, Dave shoots the Downhill WC and the Enduro World Series as well as contributing to the occasional editorial story.
Matthew DeLorme is just one of Pinkbike’s motley crew of World Cup Photographers. He currently lives out of a Ogio bag, and calls the road his home. Delorme works for Trek Bicycle, covering their MTB racing programs. He can usually be found laying in the dirt trackside, cracking jokes and saying things that make little to no sense. He enjoys capturing accessory moments and the journey every bit as much as catching the action shot.
Nathan Hughes was snared as mainstay Pinbike media crew for the 2013 World Cup season and has been trapped behind the lens and the keyboard ever since. In between the biggest bike events of the year Nathan can be found on client shoots, making far-off travel stories and trying to catch a moment to spin the pedals himself. A great appreciation of the wilderness, the fear of a normal life and the quest for the perfect picture will have him hooked and looking to raise the bar for years to come.
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dv65 0.071511
Brilliant photos Pinkbike, well done.
P.S.
Ноw to say "Am I really high" in another words? Is it an idiom or slang? Thanks.
next one will be loics time I hope
"Unlucky" Loic - man, how many times will this guy get second, have a mechanical, or a small slip. Once he keeps things right, he should be killing it. Loic will get his day, no doubt.
Super happy for Ratboy - great to see his carefree attitude. I'm sure it bites at all the very serious racers out there (Gee, Gwin, Loic, Troy), to see this guy frolic away. But, there is some crazy raw talent going on that you just can't deny.
Awesome photos! Definitely adds a level of detail to the events that does not come through on the Redbull feed. Thanks for the great work!!!
Keep it up!
It is f*cking annoying when someone on a computer 15 feet away opens pinkbike without warning me and I spy a pic of ratboy before I work out whats going on. Kinda ruined the whole race for me.
A: 'relax you pussy!' - Ratty
Long live the Rat. ????
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_America there you go