Wanganui mountainbike ace Sam Blenkinsop had to battle rain and fog to claim 12th place in the third round of the UCI World Cup Downhill at Fort William in Scotland yesterday.
The dry and dusty conditions in qualifying gave way to rain as the wet weather turned the 2.8-kilometre run down the famed track in the Scottish Highlands into mud, while mist rolled in to create visibility problems and wreak havoc with riders.
The 23-year-old Blenkinsop arrived in Scotland in 22nd place overall after finishing eighth at Val di Sole in Italy last week, and had to settle for 12th after clocking 4 minutes 56.245 seconds - a good performance in the conditions.
The Lapierre International team rider has now moved up to 12th overall.
Christchurch rider Cameron Cole was the best of the New Zealanders in 10th place, while 20-year-old George Brannigan from Havelock North enjoyed another solid effort in 21st, with national champion Justin Leov from Dunedin finishing 32nd.
Last round winner Aaron Gwin (Trek World Racing) took advantage of an early seeding run after crashing twice in qualifying and again in practice yesterday to fly home to win in 4:48.210. He finished nearly a second clear of the Great Britain pair of Danny Hart and Gee Atherton.
The riders now cross the Atlantic for rounds of the downhill and cross-country at Mont Saint Anne in Canada on 23-24 June and Windham in the US the following weekend.
Results
Elite men: 1, Aaron Gwin (USA, Trek World Racing) 4:48.210; 2, Danny Hart (GBR, Giant Factory) 4:49.044; 3, Gee Atherton (GBR, GT Factory) 4:50.726.
New Zealanders: 10, Cameron Cole (Lapierre International) 4:55,774; 11, Sam Blenkinsop (Lapierre International) 4:56.245; 21, George Brannigan (DeVinco Global) 5:02.342; 32, Justin Leov (Trek World Racing) 5:04.551; 69, Brook Macdonald (MS Mondraker) 5:27.394.
Standings after three rounds: 1, Gwin 650pts; 2, Greg Minnaar (RSA) 565pts; 3, Atherton 495pts; NZers: 11, Cole 217pts; 12, Blenkinsop 214pts; 14, Leov 204pts; 17, Brannigan 189pts; 24, MacDonald 166pts.