Here’s your world champs 5-a-day from Victor Lucas.
If you took a poll and asked people who they would most like to see win the worlds… The majority answer would have to be ‘Steve Peat’.
He was looking very fast through the rocks today and with his recent stretch of podiums he has got to be up there as a favourite.
Another man on a mission – Fabien Barel has been focusing on this race ever since his knee injury. He is riding on of the lightest bikes here with single crown forks and airshock with lockout. As he said ‘It’s a big challenge on this bike, but you need to take a risk to win here.’
The 4X course has lots of inventive features named after Ozzie landmarks like Uluru [a very big rock] the Bungle Bungles [round humpy things] and Bells Beach [no idea what that is]. And there are two lines round the first corner which should help make racing interesting.
The big event today was the inaugural Pump Track World Championships. What must have been thousands of fans crammed into a tiny but beautifully prepared backyard in suburban Canberra. The worlds best all had a go, Brendan Fairclough was fastest qualifier of the five lap race and missed out to Hannah for the win. The action was encouraged by MC Robbie ‘skinsuit’ McNaughton and fuelled on beer and energy drinks. Great fun.
Great fun until this lunatic got so wasted he decided to a streak around the track. That was a laugh too until he launched himself on top of me, caught me blindside and buried me and my camera headfirst in the deck. I have a damn sore shoulder now. Cheers dude I hope you have the hangover from hell.
victor lucas photos from the World downhill mountainbike championships
