2009 Season Re-cap: Luke Stevens

Dec 4, 2009 at 18:37
by Calgary Cycle Race Team  
I had a great 2009 race season and now that it's fall I’m relaxed and have time to look back on the summer. A big part of my season and the good times I had all year are due to my team, my sponsors and the great bunch of riders I see every weekend all summer long. Calgary Cycle has been awesome keeping my bike running smoothly and race ready. I’d like to thank all my sponsors, Calgary Cycle, Trek, MRP, Troy Lee Designs, Oakley, Dakine, Fernie Alpine Resort, RockShox Suspension, The Tower Group, Chromag, Industry Nine, and ODI. And a special thanks to the mechanics that helped me this season including Rabbit, David and Buckwheat.

Here’s a brief summary of my major races:
Mt. Tremblant – Canada Cup

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It was my first time in Quebec but I’d heard a lot about the race course. It was pretty confusing finding the right direction on the roads with all the French signs but we managed to get there. Tremblant is a really rocky track and has some awkward sections. It was tight and rough up top, followed by a sick steeper rock section with a huge rock slab that you had to cut across. Then it came into a flat section with difficult rocks and a creek crossing. I’d never ridden technical rocks on the flats. On the first day of practice I managed to get a decent pace going but was having a lot of trouble with a few sections. I usually can make my lines work easily but on this track they weren’t working out. By race day, I figured out that you had to just bomb a few sections and try to carry your speed. I had over practiced a little, trying to learn how to ride a few sections but had an alright run. Cadet riders were spaced with only 45 second intervals which were too tight on this course. I was having a pretty good run and then I started catching people. I had passed two people within the first 2 minutes of the track. Coming into the lower section I looked ahead and saw a stationary group of 4 riders who must have crashed into each other. I had to pass them through a flat rough rock section. It was pretty hard but I managed to make it through, skimming one guy with my bars and knocking into another. I still managed to take the category win with a decent overall result of 10th place. Hans Lambert came down with an amazing run and almost lost it at the end but took the win clearly. I was about 15 seconds back of first overall but knew I could have done better with less passing and a clean run. It was a great race and I was already looking forward to the next Canada Cup race at Bromont.



Race the Ranch

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This year was the second time I’d raced the Ranch. Last year it was really fun but crazy hot and dusty. You could easily ski down the track as the dust was so deep. The track had changed a little from last year, opened a few corners up which made for more speed with lots of loose sections. The track was pretty mint on the first day of practice but by the next day huge moto ruts were in all the corners and even from the highway, you could see the dust rising off the trail. It was awesome, you could get so loose and lean into the ruts. I was having a ton of fun. There was a lot of pedaling on the lower section of this track though which was especially brutal because of all the dust in the air. On race day it was really hot and I spent most of my time trying to stay cool and relaxed. When my race time came around I was feeling pretty good. I held it wide open up top and got super loose and sprinted the pedal sections all out. It was a pretty good race run with not many mistakes. I took my category and got second overall by 2 seconds to another Calgary rider, Mitch Thornton, who’d had a great run.



Panorama Mad Trapper

This was my third time racing the Mad Trapper. Last year there was a pretty good course and I managed to get decent results so I was looking forward to this race. The race course was changed this year to a more technical course with several straight forward high speed sections. During practice, I was having quite a lot of fun on the course and had some nice lines. As the course was ridden it changed a lot in one section with loose rocks and running water so I was always choosing new lines. On race day I was feeling decently confident and had all my lines picked out. I had a pretty good run, got a little wild up top but kept it smooth and fast in the lower section. I managed to take my category by a decent margin and then it was just an anxious wait to see how I’d do overall. It turned out that my time held up all the way to the end and I got the fastest time of day. Tyler Gnitt had a great run and was within one second of my time. It was my first BC Cup overall win so I was pretty happy. Plus I knew I was headed to Bromont the next weekend with a positive mind set.



Bromont – Canada Cup

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I was really excited to race at Bromont because it was on the World Cup course and I’d heard and read that it was great. I’d never raced here before but I knew it had some steep, rocky, turny, technical sections – just what I like. There was only one day of practice so my first day there gave me the opportunity to ride some of the other trails at Bromont. They were amazing, very different from the trails out west, and my riding felt really good. I walked the race course the evening before first practice to see what I’d be racing and it looked awesome with some great rock gardens. I couldn’t wait to ride the next day. The next morning, I got registered and headed up quickly to the mountain to throw down a few laps before too many riders came out. I got most of my lines dialed in pretty quickly and was having a great time. I maybe over practiced a little bit but was still feeling fresh for the race. On race day I was heading up the chair for my run and saw I huge black cloud behind the mountain. The course had been quite wet all week, but it was nothing like this. Five minutes later it started to hammer rain. It was still raining hard when I got in the gate, so I knew it was going to be a fun run. I had a pretty sick run with only a few minor mistakes. I crossed the line with a pretty good time. My time held through my category and put me in 4th overall in the race. I was really happy because I got the fastest Canadian time of the day and picked up 4th overall behind Sam Hill, Mitch Delfs and Neko Mullally.



Massif Du Sud - Canadian Nationals


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The next big race was the Canadian National Championships at Massif du Sud. It seemed like Massif du Sud was in the middle of nowhere; we drove through a bunch of really old quaint towns and finally arrived there. There wasn’t even any cell phone reception, so we had to use the phone booth – yes they still exist. I walked the course and it looked pretty sick. Fast and rough up top, then more technical with a twisty and steep section in the middle and finishing with a flatter section. The next day we got registered and started riding the course. It was really fun and it was nice to have lots of technical, sick lines to choose from. It rained everyday which made the course pretty loose. I had a pretty good run, felt slow up top, good through the middle and decent at the end. I pulled off a good time taking my category, which meant I was the Canadian National Champion in the Cadet class. I was pretty happy about that. My time put me in 9th overall which was alright, but disappointing compared to my previous result in Bromont. Hans Lambert pulled off a pretty sick run and managed to take the overall and become the new Canadian National Champion. It was my last trip to Quebec for the year which kinda sucked because I really enjoyed riding here.



Alberta Champs – Rum Runner

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The Alberta Champs was at a small hill along the border between BC and Alberta in a town called Blairmore. I had raced here on the same course the previous year, so I knew what to expect. The course was very narrow, loose and challenging. I already had the course memorized and knew most of the lines so I only had to do a few runs. My younger brother was also racing so I rode with him for all my runs which was pretty fun. Come race day it had rained overnight and a bit in the morning making the course pretty challenging since it was so narrow and loose. Fortunately by the time my race run came around it had dried up a lot. I had an alright run just trying to stay on the trail and carry speed. I came over one of the steep rock slabs a little too fast and blew the corner and took a small digger into the ground. After my crash, I got really wild trying to make up time lost by my crash. I took my category and took the fastest time of the day, which was pretty awesome. I was also stoked to see my little brother, Cole, pick up 2nd place in his first big race.

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Crankworx - Whistler

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This was my second time at Crankworx. I had decided to race three races this year instead of the five I'd raced last year. I was bumped up a category, from U15 to Junior, which was great of the organizers. My first race was the Garbanzo Downhill. It was a pretty awesome course with some brutal pedal sections. I got quite a few runs down but knew I needed to save some energy since it was the most physically challenging race of my year. I had a good run and gave the pedals everything I had. I managed to take my category by under a second from Tyler Allison, which was crazy close since the course was so long. After Garbanzo I didn’t feel great and seemed to have lost some drive and focus. Next up was the Giant Slalom but I just wasn’t feeling it. On race day I was taken out pretty quick which really sucked because I usually enjoy racing slalom. For the Canadian Open, I was trying to get back in the groove and practiced a fair bit but couldn’t get anything right. I ended up doing way too many runs and my body was pretty sore. Race day I was having a decent run through the top but then my tired body kicked-in and I started losing my pedals and was way off line. I crossed the line and ended up in 5th place. I was really disappointed with my run, but learned to make sure I’m feeling well before riding and racing. An Australian, named Troy Brosnan, in my category pulled off a pretty sick time to win my class.



Sun Peaks – Canada Cup

The next race was the Canada Cup at Sun Peaks which is an awesome resort near Kamloops. My friend, Jordan and I got to ride there a week prior to the race which was awesome and the weather was super good. We even got to witness a wild fire start from lightning. The race course was the same as last year and it was super dry this year and the dust and ruts were huge. I was riding pretty loose and fast. I knew what I had to do to pull off a good time on this course. On race day I was on my warm up run before the race and I decided I would let go in one steep super loose spot. I made the first part pretty clean but got knocked funny and came down nose heavy onto the next steep and pounded into the ground near the bottom. There was tons of dust which padded my fall a bit but I was pretty shaken up and had a few good cuts. I rested as much as I could but my confidence had been shaken. I had a pretty lame race run and couldn’t get off the brakes. I still managed to take my category which I was happy about since my run didn’t really work out. I would have been beaten by a fast Riley Suhan from Golden but he went down in the same section as I did on my practice run. I ended up in 22nd overall which was pretty disappointing and my time was way off but that wrapped up my racing season.

-Luke Stevens



Stay tuned to Pinkbike for Part 2 of the 2009 Season Re-cap by Cody Ratte.

SHAMELESS PLUG:
Just a reminder for all of you deal seekers you there- Calgary Cycle has the 23 Days of Christmas Sale happening right now. Visit www.calgarycycle.com to check out the daily specials and to view the items that are on sale the whole time.

Happy Holidays!

Author Info:
ccraceteam avatar

Member since Apr 20, 2007
17 articles

19 Comments
  • 10 1
 I raced with this dude. He's really fast
  • 2 0
 Great write up Luke! It's great to see Alberta boys doing so well Nationally. I can't wait for next year. Looking forward to what Cody has to say now.
  • 2 0
 I can't believe he didn't mention winning the Unicorn 5000 among his major accomplishments in 2009! Hahaha...
  • 2 0
 I know, at first I thought Race The Ranch and he meant Unicorn 5000 as that was one hell of a winning margin on such a long course. Long live the Unicorn!
  • 1 0
 Is that race running next (this coming) season? I heard it was great and i would like to get out and shred it!
  • 1 0
 Ya it's on May 9th. Limited registration like last year.
  • 2 0
 Hey Luke, I hope you can make it out to the Race the Ranch again. I've been building a new straighter, bigger, faster, rockier course that I know you will love.
  • 1 0
 dude lukes my hero. man ive got pics of him dressing up like batman with my bro and now hes achieved all this. Its crazy man, hes so sick
  • 2 0
 wonderful experience 2009
  • 1 0
 Really fast rider, swept the q-cup in his category..
Picture of Luke in Bromont
  • 2 0
 nice work Luke! congrats on the great season!
  • 1 0
 Beauty! You a a pretty rad season man! I'm stoked as hell for ya, and Cody's article should be awesome too!
  • 1 0
 Unbelievable racer and a really cool guy. This is the future of Canadian DH racing right here. Way to kill it Luke!
  • 2 0
 luke stevens and cody ratte are the best. my fave riders in canada
  • 2 0
 Ahah , Quebec (L) Smile
  • 1 0
 luke stevens his fast, killer fast and younge. kid killed me at bromont
  • 1 0
 yeah man, way to represent calgary! killing it so hard, keep it up bro!
  • 1 0
 congrats luke
  • 1 0
 The young blood cometh.







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