Freecaster Plans 2012 Pro DH Series
At the end of the UCI World Cup series this year we heard rumors that there would be no Freecaster broadcast of the 2012 World Cup DH. The contract between the UCI and Freecaster had run out, and the UCI in negotiations decided to ask for a much larger licensing fee, a fee that is rumored to be more than €130,000. This was a fairly ridiculous amount for Freecaster, so they simply declined. No more Freecaster DH action on Sunday mornings, more than a few people here have expressed their unhappiness over this.
This morning there were a few posts on various websites around the world about Freecaster starting there own DH Series, and we are happy to confirm that this is true. While not a replacement for the current UCI World Cup series, the DH1 series will be complimentary series, and the dates won't interfere.
Pinkbike correspondent Si Paton has been in touch with Ray Dulieu and had this for us today:
Stay tuned for more info as we get it...
This morning there were a few posts on various websites around the world about Freecaster starting there own DH Series, and we are happy to confirm that this is true. While not a replacement for the current UCI World Cup series, the DH1 series will be complimentary series, and the dates won't interfere.
Pinkbike correspondent Si Paton has been in touch with Ray Dulieu and had this for us today:
 | The new series is planned around 8 races filmed with min 8 HD cameras. Open amateurs will be on Saturday, with the small final on Sunday, and the top 10 amateurs against 20 seeded pros on Sunday PM. 57% more prize money than UCI. Just waiting for teams to sign up. Santa Cruz and CG Brigade have already. Dates are complementary to UCI. DH1 is just an addition to world cup not a competitive series. All venues consider the optimal routing for teams. UK date set just after fort William. Location almost confirmed. Final should be in Crankworx - Ray Dulieu |
Stay tuned for more info as we get it...
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Is crankworx going to become the new World Championships?
is now the time to start pushing to have DH in the Olympics? Yes, even if it has to replace XC. It is the original mountain bike racing genre after all.
Still, should be an entertaining series!
- bike racing is a money losing venture for most teams. more events (even if they are close) mean more travel, and more expenses, and more payment to support staff. it's going to cost more, and that may hurt the smaller teams and the privateers.
- riders will be on the road all summer now - no breaks. some, like the kiwis and aussies, who don't go home during the season, won't care. the americans and euros who usually do go home for a spell may find the season to be grueling.
- prospect for injuries goes up substantially. twice as many courses, and greater rider fatigue, mental and physical.
i guess in the perfect world, this series would trump the UCI - that would be ideal, but I don't think it will work. snowboarding tried hard to fight the FIS in its early days - hell - even Terje Haakonsen boycotted the FIS events, but who runs snowboarding now? The FIS controls who gets into the Olympics, and thus controls snowboarding. I expect a similar outcome here.
Sorry to piss on the parade. I hope I am wrong.
-The bigger purses the racers will earn will help offset some of the teams costs. Also, doing more races will give teams more exposure whether they are big or small, it would be stupid for teams not to do these races if they are near the World Cup races they are already going to. The increased purses will be especially helpful to privateers and amateurs who will have a chance to compete with the pros.
-As for the riders not getting breaks during the summer, big deal, they are pro athletes. This isn't anywhere near as grueling as the outdoor AMA motocross circuit, and most of those guys race Supercross all winter on top of that.
-There will possibly be more injuries, but lets face it, this isn't a safe sport. In some ways I think racing more often at a high level might make racers less likely to have crashes, because they become more conditioned to racing and make less mistakes. That probably depends upon the rider, though. But I think the racers who race both series will gain more in the long run than the racers who only race one series, because of the increased training.
I also don't think the comparison to snowboarding is a good one, since DH isn't an Olympic sport. The UCI might have the World Championships, but DH1 has both Crankworx races, existing fan base support, and a successful existing broadcasting format; Freecaster.
I hope this can be great - it should be. I will tune in.
Also, if you are expected to race twice as much, wouldn't you want more money from the team straight away. I mean, none of us would agree to work twice the hours for the same pay. It may be mountain biking, but for those that have been around a while, it's also a job.
If it got big enough to eclipse the UCI world cup, presumably they would take more than 20 pro's to the final (otherwise a lot of hard working atheletes are out of a job!). Hope freecaster don't shit on the private edits of the races like they did before though..
Oh and this is what somebody who actually knows says about this new series (Martin Whiteley dirt.mpora.com/news/freecaster-launch-2012-pro-dh-series.html): Key thing that’s being missed here. This proposed series is NOT an alternative to the World Cup. It is just another series….just like there is the iXS Cup, the Pro GRT in America, and like there has been many others like Maxxis Cup etc. The only difference is that this organizer wanted all teams to commit before he went out to try and find the money to do all these great things like big prize money and Freecaster coverage. Without a big sponsor, that probably won’t happen. Freecaster are still talking to the UCI about covering next year’s World Cup. So there is no talk of a ‘breakaway’ as that would be shortsighted. The UCI World Cup has 20 great years of history and prestige built into it. Rob Warner I know would rather commentate the World Cup than anything else as it has that prestige. Sure, the UCI may not be running it perfectly, but do you don’t throw away your bike because it has two flat tyres do you? The frame is not broken, the bike just needs some work. So yes, there is room for a secondary series, or a bunch of them, and the teams will choose which races to go to, but this new series is not an alternative to the World Cup. No-one really thinks that, not even the guy organizing it.
Also stop stealing peoples pictures and posted them as your own, thank you.
FREEEECASTER GOOOOOO!!!
- apparently they plan an amateur race the day before the big one, and the top10 of the amateurs are fit to compete the next day against the pros. (Dont know how this would work as they'd probably be quite tired)
- Trek World Racing and the Athertons are said to be the only ones (of the top teams) not having agreed to participate in this series.
- the Crankworx festival is rumoured to be included in the package as well, but nothing is confirmed yet.
Credit to Laurens, on the Dirt comments section of their article for highlighting this.
"Wow, there’s a lot of ‘experts’ here talking about what my team will or will not be doing, yet none have spoken with me?! Love the internet. Firstly, this rubbish about Trek not caring about DH because of their role in road cycling, biggest crock ever. Get over it ‘raddog’. I know these people and they are super passionate and supportive of all TWR has done for the brand. They don’t invest in carbon DH without a lot of thought. Secondly, about this series by Freecaster…I own the team and Trek sponsor it…no decision will be made because of Trek’s involvement in road, never will. This proposed series is just the European Cup under another name. They wanted us to commit to another 8 races on top of the World cup, and other events we normally do, and to do that by September 30th. Apart from Santa Cruz, NONE of us were ready to do that. We all want the UCI World Cup to be the premiere property, and we want to see it be the best it can be. having said that, there is room for a secondary series, and teams are free to choose which they prefer to do, iXS, Euro Cup, Pro GRT etc. Freecaster’s contract with the UCI runs out at Dec 31, but as far as I know, they haven’t said if they are not renewing. That could still happen from what I’ve read lately. So please stop hating on TWR and Athertons for not going with a series most people know very little about. We have the salaries and careers of athletes and staff to think about and our sponsors, and there are no people more passionate about DH than those that own and run these teams. Things will become clearer in the coming weeks, but for now, we are still exploring all the options."
Seriously.
Please get Rob Warner to do the commentary.
That would be awesome.
Cheers.
Love from
Pinkbike Users :-)
When you said that. You're blaming roadies for this. Don't do that please.
I can't support the best trick time bonus though. Nothing is more objective than a clock; introduce tricks and every race becomes subjective and open to interpretation.
what about warner though??
Also, this news is awesome!!! wahooo!!
Could you imagine?
LOOK. AT. THE. CURL!!!
they just have a lot of passion and that why you see them going nuts just like we do when we see world class dh racing.
It;s all about passion!
Oh and this is what somebody who actually knows says about this new series (Martin Whiteley dirt.mpora.com/news/freecaster-launch-2012-pro-dh-series.html): Key thing that’s being missed here. This proposed series is NOT an alternative to the World Cup. It is just another series….just like there is the iXS Cup, the Pro GRT in America, and like there has been many others like Maxxis Cup etc. The only difference is that this organizer wanted all teams to commit before he went out to try and find the money to do all these great things like big prize money and Freecaster coverage. Without a big sponsor, that probably won’t happen. Freecaster are still talking to the UCI about covering next year’s World Cup. So there is no talk of a ‘breakaway’ as that would be shortsighted. The UCI World Cup has 20 great years of history and prestige built into it. Rob Warner I know would rather commentate the World Cup than anything else as it has that prestige. Sure, the UCI may not be running it perfectly, but do you don’t throw away your bike because it has two flat tyres do you? The frame is not broken, the bike just needs some work. So yes, there is room for a secondary series, or a bunch of them, and the teams will choose which races to go to, but this new series is not an alternative to the World Cup. No-one really thinks that, not even the guy organizing it.