Who’s it gonna be this year? Can Gwin repeat? How about Danny Hart? And then there’s a fit and healthy Rachel Atherton in the mix as well as the return of Tracy Hannah. What a season it’s shaping up to be!
The MenIn the men, everyone’s wondering if Gwin can repeat the absolutely dominating season he threw down in 2011. I don’t think it’s a stretch to state that, barring an injury, he can and he will. He showed last year that his pre-season preparation was as meticulous as his assault on the circuit. Nothing in that formula has been changed. Which leaves it up to the competition to catch up.
And the competition is pretty fierce. So I don’t expect Gwin to be quite as dominating this season as he was last year. For one, the ‘young guns’ of Troy Brosnan, Danny Hart, Brook MacDonald, Sam Blenkinsop and company are coming on strong. For another, the ‘old guard’ of Gee Atherton, Greg Minnaar, and Sam Hill don’t exactly like getting their collective Asses handed to them as regularly as they did last season. You can bet every single contender—young gun and old guard—has stepped up off-season conditioning in an effort to close the gap that Gwin so easily exploited last season with his superior fitness; and that no effort has been spared to gain that mental edge, too.
Gwin should dominate, with a rotating cast of podium regulars evenly mixed between Hart, Hill, Minnaar, MacDonald, Gee-man, Bren-dawg, Brosnan, Needles, Steve Smith, and (once he’s healthy) Blenki. Cam Cole, Luke Strobel, Peaty, Leov, and a few others will likely step it up a bit, too. But Gwin looks to remain king.
The WomenOver on the ladies' side, things are a bit harder to call: with Tracy Moseley racing select events, she is leaving a gap for any of five fairly evenly matched riders to exploit: Sabrina Jonnier, Rachel Atherton, Florian Pugin, Emmeline Ragot, and Myriam Nicole—and I’m not forgetting Tracy Hannah; more on her below.
Sabrina Jonnier has had a season to heal up from the broken tailbone that plagued her all last year. Her ability on a bike isn’t a question, but dialing in her new whip may have her off the back a bit for the early season, and she may be losing focus: she’s been in this game for a long time. Then there’s Rachel Atherton: a fit and healthy Rachel can really throw down on the pedally courses, and her handling skills are more than sufficient for her to beat out the competition on courses where her ability to hammer the pedals is not a factor. Florian Pugin can handle a bike exceptionally well, as can Pom-Pom, but neither of them are well known for being able to put power on the pedals. Ragot is both an exceptional bike handler and has the fitness to power the pedals a bit better than one might otherwise expect for someone of her stature—her podium last year on South Africa’s pedal fest DH track was not a fluke.
But there are two wild cards in the deck, too; one is a mature and focused Tracy Hannah making a return to the World Cup DH Circuit; early season races show she hasn’t lost a step with her time off. The other is Jill Kintner: her transition from 4X racer to DH racer is complete. Her handling skills are top notch as is her physical prowess. But for whatever reason, her ability to put it all together has had mixed results. But if she can find that missing mojo, a win is easily within her reach, as well as a strong overall placing on the season.
For 2012, look to see a healthy Rachel Atherton battling it out for the overall with a healthy Sabrina Jonnier—if Jonnier can regain her focus. Emmeline Ragot will be right in that mix, too. Forecasting a winner between those three will be hard to do until sometime after Fort William. Pom-Pom and Pugin will likely take a top step or two, as well, with Kintner and Hannah making regular podium appearances as well.
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