While this year's highly-anticipated edition of Crankworx Whistler officially begins with training runs on July 21, the first medals will be awarded on July 23 at the Canadian Open downhill. That means, of course, the unveiling of the 1199 track.
Named after late Canadian rider Stevie Smith's watershed 2013 season, the brand-new venue features a myriad of line choices for the world's most creative pros to play with. Three enormous drops and lots of steep sections up the physical ante. 1199 begins near the top of Creekside gondola and winds approximately 2.5 kilometres to just above Creekside Village in the Timing Flats. Over 500 metres of descent are involved.
Finn Iles, Jakob Jewett and Lucas Cruz headline a strong contingent of local downhillers. Iles is the most accomplished of the bunch, and he's back to his elite ways on the World Cup circuit with second place in Val di Sole and two top fives in Lenzerheide and Leogang.
Jewett is riding high after a decisive dual slalom victory at Crankworx Innsbruck. while Cruz ended up fifth at an NW Cup event in Washington.
Among women, Gracey Hemstreet of Sechelt and Georgia Astle of Whistler will have their hands full with Austrian sensation Valentina Holl. Two of the three are ranked top ten in the UCI Downhill Elite Women's standings (Holl in second, Hemstreet seventh).
Hemstreet's last pro victory came at a DH test event in Lourdes. Astle is coming off two Crankworx Whip-off medals: silver in Rotorua and bronze in Innsbruck.
Going into this month's festivities, Bas van Steenbergen of Vernon is the King of Crankworx with 596 points and a slim lead over Kiwi contender Tuhoto Ariki-Pene with 559. Australia's Jackson Frew completes the top three with 500 points even.
The battle for Queen of Crankworx isn't as close. Aussie phenom Caroline Buchanan sits alone at the top with 803 points, well clear of Martha Gill from Great Britain and her 600 points. New Zealand's Jenna Hastings is third with 580.
Check back in with Pique Newsmagazine for more Crankworx Whistler coverage.
