This past weekend the iXS European Downhill Cup celebrated the season finals in Brandnertal. At the end of an exciting and extremely demanding race under more than difficult conditions, Monika Hrastnik and Joshua Barth entered the books as the winners of the iXS EDC 2018.
Wojciech Czermak
On the first September weekend the iXS European Downhill Cup invited the downhill elite to its fifth and last race of the season. For the first time in EDC history Brandnertal in Austria hosted the final round of the cup and despite the unfortunate weather it was a great weekend at the bike park in Vorarlberg. After eleven seasons it is safe to say that the European Cup has become a real hotbed of talent! Numerous Elite riders started their international careers among other young and talented riders. Top athletes like Tahnee Seagrave (GBR), Brook MacDonald (NZL), Brandon Fairclough (GBR) or Emmeline Ragot (FRA) have been regular guests over the years. This year Amoury Pierron (CVN – Commencal Vallnord) took his first EDC podium when the season was opened in Maribor and now that the season is out, his name already belongs to the odds-on favorites after he won three World Cups and the overall WC title before the last race was even over.
The overall weight of the EDC and its title once more became clear this weekend, when numerous riders were eager to finish off the season with a bang, knowing that whoever wins the title automatically belongs to the elite. More than 200 riders from 29 different nations made their way to Austria to fight for the title – and a fight is what they got! That this would be a rather wet weekend already became obvious during the track walk and the forecast did not exactly promise improvement any time soon. Compared to last years’ track, there have been a few modifications like the addition of a massive stone field to name only one of them. Friday’s training started rather slow, but as the day went by the course got more and more crowded with riders trying to find the best lines for the race, even though the overall conditions weren’t exactly inviting.
Nina Hoffmann
Weather wise, Saturday did not give any reason to get one’s hopes up, but the increasing excitement and anticipation made up for the poor conditions. After one more training session the qualifications started in the afternoon. While most riders tried to play it safe due to the weather, it was extremely difficult for the Elite Men to find the right balance between a low-risk performance and the necessary speed to make it to the Super Final. But some of the riders seemed to have something completely different in mind anyway.
The odds-on favorites and, therefore, fiercest competitors in the Elite Men category were Joshua Barth (GER – Carbocage) and Bryn Dickerson (NZL – FS Funn Factory Racing), who only were separated by 23 points in the rankings. After an injury from the World Cup in La Bresse last weekend, 27-year-old Dickerson had some problems with his foot, but with the title within his grasp, all seemed to be forgotten this weekend. And also 23-year-old Barth was eager to take the title, especially as this might pave the road to his overall goal to join an elite team. While all eyes seemed to be on the two of them, there was even one more contender for the title with Stanislav Sehnal (CZE – Kellys Factory Team), even if the gap towards the top was a little bit bigger than Dickerson’s with 86 points. And, of course, there were numerous other competitors who were eager to win this weekend, like Emmanuel Pombo (POR – GT), Matthew Walker (NZL – Cube Global Squad) or Johannes von Klebelsberg (ITA – MS Mondraker).
At the end of the day von Klebelsberg set the only time under 3 minutes, pushing Joshua Barth to second place with a 5-second gap. Bryn Dickerson finished in third, shrinking Barth’s lead in the rankings to a mere 13 increasing both the pressure and anticipation for Sunday’s finals even more.
Monika Hrastnik & Anne Haisch
In the Elite Women category Monika Hrastnik (SLO – Blackthorn) was seen as the odds-on favorite for the title right from the start and looking back at her season, she has all the reasons to be proud already. She started out by being crowned European champion in Portugal in April already and 5 months later she finished fifth in this year’s World Cup rankings and is officially listed among the World’s top four. After four EDC races she entered the stage with 610 points, three titles and a clear 130-point lead this weekend. In the qualification, however, a crash only brought her the fifth place, while Nina Hoffmann (GER – Santa Cruz Bicycles) set the best time. Even if that would not be enough to reach the Hrastnik in the rankings, Nina Hoffmann also delivered a perfect season. As German Champion and with two sixth places in the World Cup in what is only her third Elite season she is clearly headed towards the top!
The third and final day started exactly like the others did and only very few lucky riders seemed to have some dry clothes left. Even though mud usually calls for a lot of fun, after three days of constant rain it simply seemed to be enough. Nevertheless, some riders still pushed through and focused on the rankings and the upcoming finals. And after a last training session in the morning it was finally time for the last race of the EDC season 2018.
Stansilav Sehnal
In the Masters category Dominik Dierich (GER – Trek AmperRad) succeeded with a 5-second lead towards Fabian Buschor (SUI – RSF), who also ended up in second place in the rankings. Billy Caroli (SUI – Fabien bike tramelan) finished in seventh place, which brought him the title, even if it was a really close call with only 10 points towards Fabian Buschor in second place. Dominik Dierich completed the podium.
In the U17 category there were still 5 contenders from 5 different nations for the title after the qualification. At the end of the day Luke Williamson (GBR – Atherton Academy) set the best time of 3.15,663 minutes, even if he did not belong to the top 5 in the rankings. Blake Ross (NZL – Cube) finished in second place in Brandnertal and was crowned champion of the season, followed by Benjamin Beck (GER – Pivot Cycles Devo Team) and Goncalo Bandeira (POR – Miranda Factory Team).
Luke Williamson
Ellie Smith (AUS) dominated the Pro U19 female category this weekend, while Lisa Gava (ITA – 3stars) took the overall title even after a DNF in her final run.
In the Pro U19 category Kendall Mclean (CAN – Kovarik Racing) succeeded, with Aaron Gungl (AUS – Yarra Valley cycles) in second and Hamish Mcleod (NZL – Alta) in third place. The overall rankings, however, were led by three other riders, crowning Zak Gomilscek (SLO – Sinter Brakes Team) followed by Tristan Botteram (NED – Ripstar / Bombshell Team) and Elia Saurer (SUI – Hot-Trail Racing).
After a rather sobering qualification, Monike Hrastnik started early into the Elite Women category and had a lot of time to sit back and relax in the Red Bull Hot Seat. Kim Schwemmer (GER – Herobikes) really came close, but missed the lead by 3 seconds after having some problems during the last section of the race. Nina Hoffmann, however, did not fail and crossed the finish line with a clear lead of 28 seconds and won the last race of the season. Hrastnik on the other hand was still crowned the 2018 EDC champion, followed by Nina Hoffmann in second and Sandra Rübesam (GER – Nukeproof) in third place.
Elite women podium
In the Elite Men category the weather clearly took its toll. The most telling example for this being Bryn Dickerson, who finished in 18th place this weekend, which automatically cost him his title. In the meantime, Joshua Barth showed some nerve, finished in third place and was crowned champion at the end of the day.
Stanislav Sehnal didn’t seem to have a problem with the conditions either and finished in fifth place in Brandnertal and, thus, completed the podium in the rankings. Johannes von Klebelsberg again set the best time of the day, even if he didn’t crack the 3-minute mark this time, and finished with 1.7-second gap towards second place Christopher Philogene (RSA – 2 Bros Racing).
Elite men podium
This weekend seemed to be all about the weather and it’s a pity that another race in Brandnertal will be remembered as a real mud bath. Nevertheless, the track made for loads of fun this weekend and under better circumstances it would have been another perfect race weekend for everyone. For now, we are looking forward to seeing riders and visitors again next season, when the iXS European Downhill Cup returns for its 12th season!
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Official website: ixsdownhillcup.com
Photos: Rick Schubert