EWS Round One, Giant Toa Enduro: Results - Crankworx Rotorua 2017

 Been watching the 50-01 Cedric vlogs for the past few days, and I really want Ratboy to kill it. Dude just seems like he's always having a blast on his bike, and it's contagious!

 @scott-townes: Rat has never said that in print or video--it was a Claudio comment during Rat's last DH race. It's Claudio that trolled us. Or Rat trolled Claudio : )

 @scott-townes: Didn't we learn that that was just Claudio speculating? I don't think Josh himself ever mentioned it at all.

 I don't know what to think anymore..... Damn you Claudio!!!

 @scott-townes: Rat boy has been known to be a closet workout monster. It's a lot easier to married yourself as a drunk party animal that shreds

 @Loamhuck: autocorrect

 STAY ON YOUR BIKE EDDIE

 I'm gonna pump my tires nice and hard now.

 It's good that Minnaar wasn't there. It would be at least 10 exchanges of Tweeter butthurtness with Peaty and Lopes using hashtags like #notarealsport #notagoodcourse #oldguysrule #sad

 @Geriatric-J: FAULT !!!!!!!!!! www.instagram.com/p/6Lsj9pmbDl/?taken-by=ratboy_bryce

 Can't wait for wyn tv

 Rat boy 8th

 @chyu: indeed. I want to be a hard man now as well.

 I never knew the guy could pedal a bike!

 Eddies Enduro training is finally paying off!

 @Maverickdh00: he probably brushed out some cheat lines lol

 @makripper: true, so Eddie, local fairies will stay mum as well and trails will Nvr be the same again now.

 Does anyone know who he is racing for this year?

 What ever they were according to his Instagram write up it caused the mud to stick ????

 Is it really you? Ratman, father of Ratboy?

 By 9 seconds!

 So awesome. He is going to be a force this year.

 Not just one stage winning.. plus it looks it would have easly won the CG if not lost more thant a minute in SP4...

 Won two stages with big gaps to second place, without the one bad stage result he might have won the overall.

 I think the guys with the quick times got in before the rain

 Rule #1: Never doubt the Kiwis in Rotovegas.

 @OriginalDonk: esp when its

slipery when wet!!! BJV

 Times are really close. Rude is sitting in 39th but is only 1 min 8 seconds back. I'm not sure on the course for tomorrow, but it still seems like it's anyone's race, especially if there are some longer stages.

 @DMal: its only a one day race

 @aushred: Ah, makes sense. Plus I checked out the live feed and things seems to be separating a bit more.

 You reckon? I always thought hometown advantage was always gonna be a big part of today's race (as it was in '15). I was not surprised at all to see Wyn and Matt on the podium. I had Keegan up there too instead of Eddie, but hey.

Surprises for me were how well Sam Hill and Ratboy went.

Amazing riding — the conditions made the racing pretty tough going.

 @AlanMcCrindle: Nah, I was there. The trails were wet from the rain two days ago and again in the morning before any of the pros hit the hill.

Stages 3 and 5 would have been hellish in today's conditions - peanut butter mud, ruts, slippery roots and slick rock.

 @DDB1: the fact that Sam hill and rat boy did well says a lot about about the tracks as they are quite possibly the two most technically gifted riders in the field

 @multialxndr: Totally. Watched Ratboy come through a nasty section on Stage 6 and he made it look like nothing. So smooth.

 @DDB1: you can see that here. He just went straight through whilst others are sliding sideways.
spokemagazine.com/content/ews-hecklefest

 @ugez: Yeah I saw that this morning - GOLD!!

 Kiwis don't hurt tree fairies and root fairies simple as!

 Wyn is so rad. Rooting hard for him

 EWS at the start of the year....Rampage at the end. What a lad!

 Sorry meant to up vote and obtuse won't let me change it

 Year after year I'm impressed by kiwis in the mtb world. Such a small community and yet such good results on the international scene.

 Wyn won!

 Surprised you lot haven't claimed them as your own

PS Pavlova is ours!

 Your turn next in Derby, u cant have it all you greedy Ockers! Roll on Smash Derby!!!

 @handynzl: Ha! Well, yell out when you want Russ back....!

 Results just shows the lads are really good in riding mud. Haha

 @ugez: Results show who rips on their local trials! Saying that Callaghan is back to back champ in Ireland!

 Good man Greg!

 @MrEoghans: that and guys who are good in riding mud

 @ugez: you know it brother, good to see IRL and NZ on the podium

 CAME FOURTH!!!!!!!

What? I thought we were shouting???!!??!!??!!

 75th..

 He just won stage 6.

 All of the top guys were screwed by the starting order. Heard it was a big advantage to be starting early before the trails were totally destroyed. Notice that none of the top 10 guys were were up there. BTW Adrien Dailly would have won if not for the issue on Stage 3. Crazy fast for his first Pro race after moving up from U21.

 @salespunk: Yeah, and the earlier starting guys got the rain on other stages. It is what it is. Just racing and having fun.

Starting in the third to last group yesterday in the Challenger was, however, somewhat of a handicap. We started 40mins after the first group but were still expected to make the stage cutoffs in the same time as the first groups. We were racing from the roll off, and playing catch up all day.

Slippy and fun, nonetheless, and I was putting in times faster than when I last rode the trails and that was when the trails were dry, unlike yesterday.

 @rideonjon: that's a good stage to win too ????

 @salespunk: mate that's racing, champs don't sweat that stuff, it swings in roundabouts sometimes going last is an advantage, prob not today, but said yesterday he should have taken the 5.5 29er for the mud, still he's a champ came back to 20th so some damage control for the series!

#noexcuses

Roll on Derby!

 @salespunk: I know...nuts right??? I thought Dailly would be fast this year but he's gonna be challenging for the overall because of this race. If he can stay consistent he'll be a threat every race.

 did anyone win........

 More impressive is that his time would have him almost in the top 10 OVERALL. Amazing!

 He actually looks set to take 2nd. Up 18 seconds gointo stage 7. Not surprised as he absolutely screamed by me at last year's vedder enduro. Kid is fast!

 Max is a shredder %100. Keep an eye on that kid

 He raced a couple of rounds last year. He's a good kid, and he's been working hard--definitely has the potential to be a force to be reckoned with!

 Nice consistent riding Max!

 We all get a finishers medal, mate

 @Tmackstab: No - I don't think so. Oh, except for those who entered after the deadline.

 Chicken dinner?

 @ratedgg13: Beer for dinner

 @ratedgg13: Dynner, bud... Dynner...

 @handynzl: But only if it arrives nek minnit

 @ratedgg13: haha! Where is that damn skateboard???!!!??!!?

 He's had two crashes on stage 6, i hope he can hold the lead.

 @rideonjon: read his dropper is stuck at max height for final stages

 @multialxndr: Yah i saw that hopefully he was able to do something about that before dropping into the last stage.COME ON EDDIE!!!

 @rideonjon: Having the saddle up on that last stage won't be too bad. There aren't too many sections where it will actually cost him time

 @Mattdavys: Good to hear,i'm really rooting for Eddie to win.He's the peoples champ.

 Puncture stage 7

 Lol pinkbike turns emojis into words

 Eddie's crash
spokemagazine.com/content/ews-hecklefest

 @ugez: this is awesome
Thanks for sharing

 And Hill always

 Hell yeah! Masters boys fighting it out to the end!

 No doubt. That 3:15 gap to second place seems huge!

 Tacky and pristine. Proper riding!

 @handynzl: graves said it's an abortion out there.

 @jclnv: It's just weather, and when it rains things get wet. He was sociable enough last Sunday evening when he and Curtis Keene chatted to me at the entrance to Hot X Buns, so I'd just say it was a bad day at the office for him. Either that or he is thinking of the laundry bill for wearing white kit when riding in the wet and mud

He'll have battle stories, and laugh about it tomorrow.

The trails don't get ripped up that bad in Vegas when it rains as you rarely get standing water (it all sinks into the peat/sand/pumice/dirt combination that is Vegas dirt). Te Rua, which was stage 1, would have been the worst hit as it's very steep, tight off camber corners, and only a few months old, but the others are all well weathered from multiple years of use and handle the rain quite well. The Rocky Horror section at the end of stage 5 would also be tricky as the rocks / boulders in there are mossy and slippery on even a dry day.

All that being said, I bet you won't find any amateurs saying it was an abortion.