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THE FINE LINE

2007 Fox Sponsored British Championship Race Report

You will have heard the Record Company Executive’s statement ‘….you look terrible, you sound terrible, you can’t play….you will go far’ well it is a good analogy for the National Champs weekend. The parking was terrible, the weather was terrible, the atmosphere was bad, but the track was great…..despite the mud.

To be fair the organisers cannot help the weather, which was the source of all the problems. The car parking/camping field had been flooded and the intermittent and at times torrential rain did not help the conditions and the atmosphere.

As far as riding goes the majority enjoyed the track especially the ‘Star Wars’ section……fast chase through dense forest and undergrowth. With some steep sections and bends with rock, roots and sloppy mud it all added up to a great track.

Our thoughts go out to Steve Peat and his crash during his seeding run, we hope his ankle and back mend soon.

On a positive note Mark Scott Ecosse Downhill’s Juvenile Rider won the Juvenile section making him the 2007 British Champion, well done Mark we are really proud of you. With Danny Hart and Josh Bryceland taking the Youth (~3.19 minutes) and Junior (~3.15 minutes) wins respectively, it was a good weekend for Ecosse Downhill Racing and our friends…..

It was very disappointing to see that Mark as the Juvenile winner only received a t-shirt and hat….when the other categories received Fox forks/suspension etc. Many of these riders are sponsored (some even by Fox) and get significant support, which includes bikes, forks, suspension etc……surely companies such as Fox and the organisers of races should be encouraging young riders to enter and progress in downhill racing by giving them the decent prizes rather then prizes which are paramount to ‘two balloons and a stick’ when looked at relatively, they may be young, but look at their times…..watch out Elites the future is coming.

It was a long way to travel for all of us North of the boarder for a disappointing race event, but ‘hey’ that’s racing………!!!. It was still great to see so many ‘highlanders’ and one or two friendly ‘Northerners’ (Lowlander Sassenachs)……..

PITFICHIE SDA 8th JULY 2007

Image: Pitfichie SDA 2007

Ecosse's Mark Scott 2nd in Juvinille

The SDA at Pitfichie in Aberdeenshire was a confused weekend....the new cousre was in a really bad state after a week of rain, so a last minuite decision by course builder Craig McBeth to change on to the old track took the local rider advantage away, as most of them had been practising on the new course for weeks......

The weather added further to the confusion, practise day on Saturday was dull and cold, with about an hour of rain, but at night the rain really came down and the course changed....!!!

On Sunday morning the course was hard going at the top, requiring a significant amount of peddling, something Downhillers try and avoid....the Xc'ers had the advantage, some even seen to be sitting down. The offcamber caught a few out, with many coming to a complete stop on the off camba....aided in some cases by a strategically placed tree.

Sunday's weather added again to the confusion, the practise runs were in really muddy conditions, but as the race started and the sun came out the course drained quickly, which allowed for yet another change in conditions, with many improving their times on their second run.

The uplifts were slow due to the passing on the fire road which cannot be helped and the real time timing had technical problems, but all in all a great weekend and well orgainised race yet again by the SDA committee....well done to Dave, Stuart, Iain, Alan and the lady's et al.

Image: Pitfichie SDA 2007 A

Ecosse's Grant Garden 2nd in Junior

MAXXIS CUP ANDORRA 15-17th June 2007

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Image: Danny Hart 1st and Bernard Kerr 2nd

Image: Tom Rodgers 2nd

MAXXIS INTERNATIONAL CUP ANDORRA 17th JUNE 2007

We really are the best in the world (it is not all Green Street like some think)…..the British that is…at least at Downhill Mountain Biking.

We have just returned from the Maxxis International Cup in Andorra where we had mixed weather, but great racing…..it appears our continental friends don’t like the rain…..at least they are not so used to the rain as we are in the UK.

Practise started on Friday 15th June 2007 in fine sunny weather on a course not previously used. The uplift was by Chair Lift, after a short ride down a 4X track from the main Car Park. The course was dry, fast and technical with only one step down from a short North Shore section and a couple of small rock jumps.

Saturday’s practise was in similar track conditions, but with more cloudy and windy weather, albeit more riders turned up so the queues at the Chair Lift took longer, with a number of inexperienced riders on the track it was difficult to get a full run.

It all changed for Sunday…..for the first run the rain was coming down very heavy and the track changed completely, becoming very muddy, which in turn slowed down the riding. As the race progressed into the second run the rain stopped and the sun came out occasionally, with good drainage the track started to dry out and the race times began to improve.

The British riders achieved some great results, noticeably:

Cadet Class

- Danny Hart 1st Place
- Bernard Kerr 2nd Place

Junior Class

- Alex Bond 1st Place (out of 23)
- Robert Williams 4th Place
- Dan Millard 7th Place (Ecosse Downhill Rider)
- Joseph Horton 9th Place
- Boris Kerr 18th Place

Master 40 Class

- Keith Wilson 1st Place

Female Class

- Calamity-Jane Cann 4th Place

Senior Class

- Tom Rodgers 2nd Place
- Matthew Pinches 3rd Place
- Nick Platt 7th Place

Elite Class

- Nikki Whiles 16th Place
- Stevie Rufell 17th Place

Thanks goes out to Maxxis for yet another great event….if you have never been to a Maxxis Cup…..‘GO’……. you will really enjoy it…..well worth the journey.

If you have any questions about this site please email me at ecosse-downhill-racing@hotmail.co.uk

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Image: danny hart

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Image: Josh Bryceland

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SDA Round 2 Dunkeld

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Image: james scott and danny hart

Image: daniel millard and mark scott

Innerleithen NPS

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Image: Greg minnaar

Greg Minnaar Travelled all the way from South Africa

Image: chris ball and steve peat

Image: mark scott and grant garden

Team Riders Mark Scott and Grant Garden

Inners SDA

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Image: Mark Scott - Wins

Mark Scott (Team Ecosse-downhill-racing) took the Win in Juvenile !!

Image: dan and grant

Image: gump and scotty

ProBikeSport Revival Race - Innerleithen

Image: mark on podium

The team has just returned from the ProBikeSport Revival Winter Race, and we must say it was one of the best races we have been to in a while. Great Weather, great track (Selected by Chris Ball), Great up-lift and an all round great event.

We travelled to Inners on the Friday night to ensure we had a good sleep and ready for practise on Saturday. This race was the first time the new uplift service (riders in Bus'and bikes in Trucks) has been used. Even though all the riders were stacking up waiting to get on the uplift, it felt like DH racing was starting to go luxury, with the heating in the Buses with proper seating compared to the old way of sitting in a cattle truck covered in sheep crap.

On Sunday the good weather did'nt go anywhere and the track stayed dry and fast, albeit cold. When the race runs came the team seemed relaxed and happy after their practise runs, and they were ready to race.

After the race runs the team all seem happy enough with their race runs and results, although Dan Millard had a wee stack which cost him time and a place in the top 10, and Grant Garden was held up by the rider in front of him. Mark Scott made the team proud by walking away with a 3rd place in Juvinille Class...well done Mark.

The Team would like to thank ProbikeSport for holding such a great race in such short notice.

Keep an eye on www.IanLinton.com for your race pics.

Image: Dan Millard

Image: grant garden

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