Video: Phil Atwill Talks Split-Second Decision Making
On the race field, minute after minute, second after second, everything can change. After hours of training spent looking for the perfect line, the fastest one, sometimes you have to start again from scratch. Twenty minutes of heavy rain and roots and rocks are covered in mud, or maybe half an hour of shiny hot sun and everything is dried up. This is when you have to look at things around you from a new perspective. If you want to be successful in downhill racing a strong spirit of adaptation is a key point. Learning how to constantly change your point of view is an indispensable quality.
Sometimes it is within our race run that we are suddenly asked to adapt to a new scenario. Where before we had our line, tested, safe, clean, now there is a big rock, maybe brought there by the rider who left the start gate before us. In this case, the ability to change is measured in tenths of a second, you have to pick a new line like that, counting only on your instinct. This is the only way to take home the fastest run. This is the most intimate essence of racing, being ready to change the world around you at any time.
 | The ability to change and adjust to the current situation it’s definitely going to make you a stronger person and a better racer". – Phil Atwill |
All photos by Alex Luise
Additional footage credits: Propain Dirt Sixpack Team
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