When I started training with Todd Schumlick from PerfomX I thought I was working hard, but it’s like a result, once you get that result you want to do better. And I hadn’t noticed back then until now how poorly I was putting those efforts into that training. I’ve realized now what my body is capable of and how I should be doing it. At the time back then I thought I was fit and strong but now I’ve figured out what it really takes. It’s like my bike, I know my limits, I know how hard I can train now. I feel like every year I can get stronger. I’ve definitely felt myself improving on every little thing each off–season and during each race season.
Hafjell in Norway was the final round of the 2012 World Cup. You couldn’t change much ranking wise. Did you throw caution and consistency to the wind to clinch your first win? What did you do differently or what was different to this race from the others?It was just straight up actually wanting to win. There’s a difference between saying ‘I want to win this race’ and actually wanting it and for me forever I’ve laid out all my goals and I know what I want, but I know in the back of my head I’m always not sure if I’m 100% capable of it. But going into Norway I was feeling extremely confident after Whistler and I just straight up wanted it and had the feeling that I could and that was what gave it to me I think.
Was this ‘want’ before arriving in Norway, after walking the track or after the first practice?It was after Worlds. I was third and knowing there was one race in the season left I just wanted to end on a high note. It was different too, when you are that confident and comfortable riding that speed does not feel fast. So in Norway I honestly did not feel real fast I just felt comfortable. And when I did my qualifying run that’s when I knew 100% that I could win, because my quail run felt pretty mellow but I won by like five seconds or something. My bike felt as good as it could feel, everything was perfect, I wasn’t even thinking about the bike and that was just allowing me to focus on the trail itself.
His Mechanic Nigel Reeve recalls Steve’s focus in Norway, “He had pure stone cold focus. You know when you look in someone’s eyes and they are staring back at you and they are saying ‘I’m going to do this’? He had failed as far as he was concerned at Leogang. It was all or nothing now. He had nothing to lose and everything to prove. I don’t know, that was a pretty weird weekend for both of us, we both knew he was going to win but he had this calmness about him.”
Team manager Gabe Fox adds, “Steve was on a tear after his second at Windham, it was a major let down. He made a mistake at the top of the course. You can’t make up the time needed against the Worlds best on the second half there. Crankworx proved his anger, he won everything, smashed the f–k out of everyone. Three very different races, three decisive wins. Not much more to be said. Worlds again and he decided to give the world’s best a massive head start by blowing corners at the first split, a disappointing third place finish for him, I knew shit was going to get real in Norway. The race was won well in advance. After his first run down the course, there was no way he was going to lose. He came back to the pits and said the course was amazing. The burning intensity in his eyes. I knew it was it on!”
We will tackle Brook Macdonald next issue, but I wanted to know what Steve thought of him and the more experienced riders.Brook is still like two years younger than I am, and Minnaar is…I don’t know how many years older than us. Minnaar and those guys have perfected their racing, they know exactly what they can do and what they are capable of. They can ride at that comfortable level and win. But younger guys like Brook and myself, we are still learning these things. I think Brook had a great season in 2011 with multiple podiums so he came into the 2012 season just looking for wins and pushing it hard. So maybe this was another learning year for him. He was able to win, but he had some slide outs and crashes and that will probably help him for next year.
There are a handful of guys who are capable of winning. You look at the times and you see how close it is. We have all done timing and we know we can go seconds faster all the time…every race. You never finish a race going ‘holy crap that was the best race ever’. Norway was a great run, but like I said, you always feel like you can go faster, that’s just how it works. Once you have reached a speed, that speed is no longer the fastest speed you are capable of…you just think you can do better. Like if I was to go the speed I did in Norway three years ago I would probably shit my pants because I just couldn’t handle it then. This year Norway I was completely comfortable at that speed but it just takes a long time for those things to come along perfectly.
It seems like Steve has found the delicate balance between comfort, speed and consistency, all built on a solid base from a dedicated training regime that might just make him a regular contender for that top step. Even so, he still sees the bigger picture and is one of the few people not to lock his bike away in the closet when the season is over. He ended the 2012 year riding with mates and going on trips positively motivated and still enjoying riding after ending the season on such a good note. Not one to take the sport of DH too seriously he realizes there is more to just racing in this short DH career. He once again has film projects he’s involved in, this time in Brazil with the Coastal Crew in January. He says, “It’s no big deal hiking up the hills for filming, it’s what I’d be doing anyway, now there are just more cameras to document it and make me look cool.”
