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Tuesday, 23 June 2009 19:41

hill Racing was in fine form this past weekend, with both crowds and beer flowing right along with the course. Maribor, Slovenia was the location for the MTB Downhill and Four Cross World Cup #5.

Much like last year, Maribor threw every bit of bizarre weather in the hat for yet another amazing weekend of racing. The UCI was forced to postpone the Downhill qualifing runs due to lightning and torrential downpours, so instead the 4X racing fired up for an amazing display of mud riding skills.

Fairclough

Joost Wichman and Caroline Buchanan came out on top. These two SRAM athletes went to the top of the box to celebrate their second wins of the season. Joost had a couple of hair-raising moments early in the course, but near the end pulled off a great inside pass on Graves for the win.

Bryceland

In the Women’s Four Cross, Caroline Buchanan played it cool while current WC overall leaders Jill Kintner and Anneke Beerten tangled and took each other out. If Caroline keeps playing it smart, we should see this lady mixing it up for years to come. Congratulations!

Brendan

In the DH final, many people were taken by surprise with the return of Fabien Barel. Fabien had been out with a serious knee injury much of the season, but he grabbed the hot seat early and stayed in it for the rest of the day. As the racing continued, what were once nasty and wet conditions began to look like they would become dry. This forced team mechanics into a frenzie of swapping tires and cleaning bikes.

more hill

The Monster Energy / Specialized team had a great race, placing both Sam Hill (second) and Brendan Fairclough (fifth) onto the podium. Greg Minnaar finished in a solid third place. In the overall series standings, Minnaar continues to hold onto his grip for the lead. Steve Peat is in second and Monster Energy/ Specialized Sam Hill takes up third. There is a bit of a break before the circus skips over the pond for the two Canadian rounds, so stay tuned!

Minaar