Day 2 Photo Epic: Relentless - EWS Whistler 2019
Photo Epic presented by ODI
Any hopes of the standard dry and dusty Whistler EWS went right out the window following Saturday evening's first stage down from Top of The World. The rain came in for the last 20 or so riders and did not let up through the night and into Sunday morning. As racers set out for the opening stages temperatures dropped significantly and the winds picked up just enough to ensure a proper day of suffering was soon to come.
While racers had one battle on their hands against the cold, rain, and wind, there was an even more treacherous one lying in wait on the mountain and in the surrounding valley. Enough moisture had come down to saturate much of the dry and dusty Whistler dirt. There would be plenty of mud to add to the already slippery mix of big rock slabs and polished roots. Whistler in the dry is challenging enough with all its raw technical elements and weathered trails, but add a heavy dose of moisture to the equation and facing five muddy stages would not be for the faint of heart.
It would be a battle of attrition and nerves to keep bike and body in one piece, all while riding that fine line of aggressive and fast, without crashing or blowing off track. It would be unreasonable think anyone could have a clean race in conditions like this, so it would come down to minimizing mistakes and adapting on the fly to ever-changing conditions. Those big-time gaps built up by Richie Rude and Isabeau Courdurier on Stage one were certainly going to come in handy should anything go sideways over the five final stages.
Things would heat up right from the get-go as Sam Hill and Eddie Masters pulled themselves into podium positions on the first stage, and Andreane Lanthier Nadeau (ALN) took a win in the women's race to tighten the gap against Isabeau to just four seconds. And just like that, another tight and exciting race was right back on.
Richie would build his lead to over a minute and was then able to ride conservatively and safe for the last few stages. Behind him, a battle continued with Sam Hill and Eddie Masters, and Adrien Dailly even snuck in a stage win to keep everyone on their toes. Heading into the last stage, Sam pulled some time to hold down the second spot with Eddie in third and, barring disaster, there was little chance of the order changing on the final stage. There was drama in the women's race. Crashes by Isabeau and mistakes by ALN saw Noga Korem charge through into second position. Isabeau would head into the final stage with a strong lead, but it was by no means as safe as Richie Rude's in the men's ranks.
Stage six would see lots of crashes and mishaps, most notable from Isabeau who crossed the line and had to be helped out of the finish area. However, nothing was drastic enough to cause a shakeup in the overall. In the end, Richie and Isabeau would take the wins with Sam Hill and Noga in second, followed by Eddie Masters and local Canadian favorite Andreane Lanthier-Nadeau.
The rain may have stopped but it was cold, foggy, and plenty wet all day long.
Overnight precipitation lingers into Sunday.
It was wet and wild out there today.
Richie Rude came out swinging and would nearly double his lead to win by a massive, 55-second margin.
Thomas Lapeyrie had his best ride in what seems like ages to land in seventh.
Ines Thoma claimed a stage win, but would have to settle for fourth in the overall.
ALN was within two seconds of Isabeau after Stage three, but she would eventually fade and was overtaken by Noga Korem.
The woods outside the bike park trails were tight and awkward. Add in some mud and slick roots and there was lots that could go wrong.
Slippery off-camber roots with trees on each side. We overheard one person saying the course wasn't hard enough, but most would disagree.
The day started on two classic Whistler valley trails: Jaws and Billy Epic.
Fresh off ACL surgery Yoann Barelli was out on crutches supporting his fellow countrymen and friends.
Adrien Dailly took a stage win and would end the day in fourth, just two seconds off the podium.
Part mud, part loam, full fun.
Theo Galy looking strong on Stage 3
Eddie Masters brought home bronze, we were all stoked to see this great finish for Eddie.
Kate Winton making easy work of the Billy Epic chute.
Sam Hill sliding sideways.
Sam Hill was on the hunt today and pulled back large amounts of time to all but Richie Rude.
Jesse Melamed toughing it out for the fans in his home town.
The man of the weekend: Richie Rude proved that he is still a dominant force to be reckoned with - four wins and a second in his last five EWS starts should have his competition worried for 2020.
Eighth: another strong EWS result for Matt Walker.
A lap down Golden Boner is usually a dust-filled affair. The rains changed that for better or worse.
Robin Wallner: one of the few riders still standing at the halfway point on stage three's big fire road climb. He would go on to finish the day in tenth.
The climb on stage three's Golden Boner trail was savage.
Stage four started higher up the mountain, but the highlight was Sabertooth Horse, a freshly built trail on near Creekside Gondola.
Visibility was a real concern for the racers.
Curtis Keene, winding down the fresh dirt of Sabertooth.
Kevin Miquel, into the mist.
Isabeau had some big crashes and was under pressure from ALN all day. But, she kept her cool and would leave Whistler with another win.
Noga Korem fought through the fog and mud and charged the last few stages to jump up into second.
Shawn Neer appears to have taken a pedal in the shin earlier on.
Miranda Miller, charging through stage three.
A happy, but exhausted Eddie Masters took third and put quite a few points into Florian Nicolai for the overall title chase.
Kevin Miquel, very happy to have the day over with.
Fourth for a healthy Katy Winton as she works her way back up the ranks.
Domination is really the only word needed to describe Richie Rude in Whistler this year.
A busted hand and custom set up for Jesse Melamed who would tough out the day and help Rocky Mountain earn the team title.
Happy that it's over.
Ninth for local hero Miranda Miller.
An ecstatic Noga Korem once again on the podium in second.
Nursing and injury across the line Isabeau would once again take the win - by just 16 seconds after over an hour of racing.
Sam Hill slowly chipping away at it, just one step away from the top in Whistler.
Quiet and confident, Richie Rude once again let his riding do the talking.
Richie Rude and Isabeau take top honors in Whistler with Sam Hill and Noga Korem in second, followed by Eddie Masters and Andreane Lanthier-Nadeau in third.
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Still stunning to me that Downhill is 3 mins of downhill and Enduro is 20x that plus climbing. Uplift or not that's a lot of riding.
Perfect.
Ya = lighten up too my friend. It's all good
He was however mentioned in the live race feed that we run concurrently to the race. And you can see his name "in lights" under the front page article that is focused on the overall results.
Cheers
Sadly the false native and BS rings louder than the facts and a lot of people passing judgment and blindly commenting have no clue despite this all being in public domain for months.
Easier to make it up I guess ... Sadly
;D
Safe to say the vast majority agree with you. But it's the minority of outliers who choose to tell the loudest in protest every chance they get :-)
Please share what trails we're destroyed? Having actually ridden them all during training and racing I must have missed the ones you are talking about.
Lots of EWS racers would like to have more trails outside the bike park and move beyond the lift assist program, but @davetrumpore is correct, the bike park trails are durable and have a full paid trail crew backing them up. The park also seems to use the EWS as a chance to "ride in" some newer trails.... you can figure out where your issues are pretty fast after an EWS.
Jaws/Billy were the only WORCA trails used this year, as it's a lot to ask of a local volunteer group. That said, we got a new rebuild of Jaws out of it (which was basically a non-sustainable trail prior to the rebuild), and Billy is a pretty durable trail given the amount of rock. Yes, the EWS would love more trails on the Westside, but it's too much for WORCA to manage, especially given the 100's of daily riders already hitting those trails.