Another day, another triumph for Ryan Gilchrist.
The Australian seemingly caught fire on Wednesday evening to nail down top spot on the Air DH podium (4:13.737). The battle for silver was razor-close, but Jackson Frew (4:18.588) ultimately edged out Richie Rude (4:18.942) for that distinction.
"Coming across that line, I didn't think I even needed to look back because everyone was screaming very loud," Gilchrist remembered. "I'm here with my team, my uncles came by and there were some friends from my hometown. To be able to throw it down in the Boneyard—probably one of the biggest stages in the sport of mountain biking—is very, very special."
A lesser man would have wilted on A-Line less than 24 hours after giving his all in the punishing Garbanzo DH, but Gilchrist's enduro chops allow him to complete five 13-odd minute stages back to back. He shouted out Yeti Cycles for providing him the right tools for the job, as usual, and one of his contemporaries for helping with a game plan.
"My teammate Mick Hannah always says that winning these races is about average speed—get your speed up and keep it there," explained Gilchrist. "And these corners are really nasty, so you have to focus on doing them in one movement and staying smooth and fast."
Hannah grabbed silver in last year's Air DH and evidently continues to be a reliable source of intel.
'Swinging for everything'
Frew hadn't done his overall ranking too many favours after a seventh place at the Canadian Open DH and eighth in Garbanzo, but he's glad to finally be on the board.
"It's awesome," he said. "Out of the gravity-based events, Air DH was probably the one that I was most nervous about doing well in. Really, really pumped it's done, and now the most physical ones are out of the way."
The Aussie also kept his recent shortfalls in perspective.
"I wouldn't say necessarily [my week] is about facing adversity," Frew continued. "It's more about recovery: going 13 minutes or whatever at 100 per cent on Garbo and bouncing back for another physical one. There's no real technical areas you can make up time, so it's all about not braking anywhere, catching backsides on all the jumps and carrying your momentum.
"It's really hard to make time on A-Line, but really, really easy to lose it. A lot of credit goes to [my sponsor] We Are One. They've been developing some very good bikes and very good parts that make it comfortable for me."
Rude is likewise pleased with his latest effort. Though best known for his enduro exploits, the Connecticut native is now two-for-two in other disciplines this week including a Garbanzo DH win.
"Had a lot of fun in practice trying to go fast behind Ryan," said Rude. "I feel like I didn't carry as much speed as I could have, but pushed hard and it was the best I could do. Nice to apply yourself to something different. I had to stiffen up the suspension on the bike, put more air into the tires and try to scrub jumps as hard as I could."
On the other hand, Tuhoto-Ariki Pene is likely licking his wounds as a disappointing start to Crankworx Whistler for him continues. The incumbent King settled for Air DH 12th, with his best result to date a fourth in the Canadian Open.
That means Frew and his 765 points are well within striking distance of Pene's 792, with Gilchrist out front at 986.
"We've still got three races, which means there's 300 points up for grabs and anything could happen," Gilchrist said. "I'm in a good position, but the more points the better and we've seen Tuhoto come back from bigger gaps than this in the past. Incredible competition and some really exciting times for me and everyone involved."
Added Frew: "100 per cent [I'm going for the crown]. I think I've secured third place so I can't go backwards. Now, I'm absolutely swinging for everything."
Stevie Smith…Junior?
With the exception of a minor dual slalom hiccup (in which he still wound up third), Mack Manietta has been pitching a shutout.
The U15 speed demon has struck gold in all three DH events, conquering A-Line in 4:35.569. Sebastien Harrisson did well for silver (4:36.409) and Hong Kong's Danny Ng turned a few heads by claiming bronze (4:43.315).
In any case, Mack's trifecta of victories puts him—unofficially—in line for the Stevie Smith Memorial Award.
"I'm just happy I can get it done," Mack said. "It's good that we have a good competition."
"He works really hard," elaborated Mack's father, Kristian. "That's a given—he hits his goals, not ours. But what I'm most proud of is the way he goes through it. He's very coachable. And the whole Stevie Smith thing: what a role model he was, and what a goal to aspire to. Mack's Aussie, but he's now a Canadian citizen. He's not a pro yet, but I still think they should give him the award."
U19 Air DH contestants Mikey Delesalle (4:28.645) and Anthony Shelly (4:31.406) did the Maple Leaf proud in second and third respectively, but neither could match the winning effort of Lewis Allbon (4:24.406).
"It was pretty scary—scariest race here by far," Allbon opined.
Luke Mallen (4:31.156) narrowly outdueled his brother Alex (4:31.882) for U17 bragging rights, while third-placer Camden Rutherfurd returned to the podium four days after his spectacular Canadian Open DH breakthrough (4:32.457).
Max Darlow emerged on top of the boys' U13 invitational (4:48.002) as he got the better of Kyan Macleod (4:58.973) and Skye Greene (5:02.692).
Full results are available here.
