Let the Dust Fly: U23 Photo Epic - Cairns XC World Champs 2017

While the world cup season started long ago, it seems as though it has gone by in the blink of an eye. Here we are in Cairns, Austrailia for World Champs already. With heated battles through out the year in the U23 men we knew there would be some exciting racing for the rainbow stripes. While Kate Courtney took a commanding lead of the World Cup this season, she was pretty much expected to run away with the win here in Cairns. The track here in Cairns had different ideas. The racing was full of spills and flats, and if you weren't out in front right away you would struggle to see through the dust the hung in the air from the riders ahead. Martins Blums suffered a flat right away that put him out of the running, and Sam Gaze rode to title number two in the U23 men. Sina Frei would get out in front early, while Cate Courtney would have back luck in the first lap and spend much of the race catching up. Cam Wright took a spectacular win for the junior men, and Laura Stigger took home gold for the Junior Women.

Rim deep fluffy dirt makes for some congested climbing sections and sinuses.

Were you in the sh*t? Yeah, I was in the sh*t.

Don't let the dry conditions fool you. It's slick as snot out there. The dust covered rocks claimed many a racer.

Cam Wright took a commanding win for the Junior men. He will be one to watch in the future.

Joel Roth keeps it low in the Junior men race. Roth took second.

The men's U23 final start list.

The last big race of the year for the U23 men.

Simon Andreassen warming up in the Specialized pit.

The last transponders wait to be mounted.

The dust will be hanging in the air all weekend.

Not the way Martins Blums wanted things to play out today. An early flat put him out of the running.

Surfing the brown pow, only uphill.

Sam Gaze got out front between laps two and three and never looked back.

Sebastian Carstensen Fini rode a strong race, contending for a medal throughout the race, but finishing in fourth.

Milan Vader of The Netherlands pushes hard as he enters his final lap. A strong performance with a 5th.

Young Kiwi Privateer Ben Oliver had a stellar day, finishing up 9th in a stacked field.

Maximilian Brandl avoided the pit falls of Cairns to move through the field into third.

Sam Gaze got out front between laps two and three and never looked back.

Jacob's Ladder looks rather unimpressive from the top, but a nasty drop into a pretty rowdy rockgarden claimed many victims.

South Africa's Alan Heatherly rode a solid race, defending his number two number plate.

Once in control of the race, Sam was able to set the pace and rest when he needed, without the attacks

Sam Gaze was unbeatable in Cairns.

A well deserved bronze for Max Brandle after coming back from an injury.

Domination. Double. Dearing.

Lift it for the cameras. Sam Gaze enjoys the glory.

There's an old saying that "you eat a peck of dirt before you die", these racers will probably have eaten a peck of dirt by race end.

It's like a spray tan, but different.

The fairy tale ending to Sam's not so perfect season.

Courtney gets ready to go to work.

Richards revs up the engines.

Just making sure you don't have any motors in there.

Cairns still showcased some impressive webbings, but the spiders were on strike.

Alessandra Keller crashed in the first lap, throwing her to the back of the field. An amazing catch up saw her end in third in one of today's excellent displays of perseverance.

Kate Courtney got caught up in a crash, struggled with a bend derailleur yet managed to finish her season off with a silver medal in the World Championships.