One explosive week of mountain biking is about to unfold in Rotorua where the first round of the Crankworx World Tour sets the stage for a year of heady competition.
Launching the three-stop tour, the inaugural Crankworx Rotorua will blaze a new trail for Crankworx, stepping up competition with the
first stage of the new Crankworx Series titles, laying the foundation for the King and Queen of the Crankworx World Tour and determining which Slopestyle rider has the first shot at securing the new Triple Crown of Slopestyle.
"The World Tour has really caught the riders' attention. Whether it's the race for the Triple Crown or the allure of the four new Crankworx Series competitions, or the new King and Queen titles, Crankworx Rotorua has certainly drawn an unprecedented level of talent," said Darren Kinnaird, General Manager of the Crankworx World Tour.
Competition opens with the Official Oceania Whip-Off Championships tomorrow where 15-year-old Whip-Off World Champion Finn Iles (CAN) will try to duplicate the stunning performance, which earned him the title in Whistler.
A win on Kiwi soil means stealing the title in the adopted homeland of mountain bike photographer Sven Martin, who invented the sport; but pulling out the skill and steeze to reign supreme will not be easy against the likes of Brendan Fairclough (GBR), Eliot Jackson (USA), Brendan Kerr (GBR), and Tyler McCaul (USA), the man who won the first Whip in 2012.
"Last time, there was a lot of pressure because everyone was pushing for me to get in," said Iles, who won the right to compete in 2014, though under age, via a social media campaign.
"When I got there, it turned out it was just a lot of fun and the only pressure was just the pressure I put on myself. And this time, it's almost like there's even less pressure. It's just have fun and see what I can do."
On Thursday, riders invited to compete in the Mons Royale Dual Speed & Style will ignite old rivalries and potentially create a few new ones as they try to balance the race for the finish line with the bonus marks available for difficult tricks.
Both the Crankworx Les 2 Alpes winner, Cam Zink (USA), and the 2014 Whistler top spot, Kyle Strait (USA), will be back on the track. Meanwhile, New Zealanders will be watching their fellow Kiwis Kelly McGarry, Connor Macfarlane and Phil McLean go head-to-head for the win.
"The field is much deeper than anyone really knows. Martin (Martin Soderstrom) and I have been the most consistent in Speed and Style finishes, but with the format being so volatile, and the competition being so tough, there are a lot of people that are capable of winning that really haven't had a chance to shine. Strait won Whistler, (Greg) Watts almost took me out in Les 2 Alpes, so they are obviously now on the radar; but people like Tyler McCaul, Cam McCaul, Thomas Lemoine, and others will remain tough to beat," said Zink.
Also running Thursday, the Rotorua Pump Track Challenge presented by RockShox brings the toughest women's field assembled for a Crankworx Festival to date. With 2014 champion Caroline Buchanan not competing, four-time Pump Track Queen Jill Kintner (USA) will look to recapture her place atop the podium.
She faces Anne-Caroline Chausson (FRA), 2008 Olympic Gold medalist in BMX, Sarah Walker (NZL), 2012 Olympic silver medalist in BMX, BMX and 4Cross World Champion Anneke Beerten (NED) and world-class downhill riders like Tracey Hannah (AUS), Emilie Siegenthaler (SUI) and Casey Brown (CAN).
Equally stacked is the field for Friday's Crankworx Rotorua Downhill presented by iXS for which race officials are holding a draw for the Number 1 plate.
