Eleonora farina

15 Oktober 2020

2020 world cup round 1 Maribor

admin Allgemein, racing 2020, brook macdonald, Eleonora farina, maribor, maribor 2020, mike jones, racing, uci mtb worldcup, uci worldcup, worldcup, worldcup racing

Qualification 2:

: pretty dark in the woods- the view is a factor for sure.

: seems like Bike has ups and downs, but was the slower quarry time a technical move for an early star time?

: easy 28th place for Brook- building his way back to the top.

: Ele is performing well these days.

: who thought, we will see Brook in worldcup racing that quick and who thought he will already perform on this level- this guy...

: 18th place in race 1 for Mike- what can we expect for race 2?

: track looks maybe inviting, but it is difficult to ride on the root carpets in the woods of Maribor.

: Briefing... Brook and Mike.

Qualifying went pretty good for the MS Mondraker Team. We will see all riders in Sunday’s race. With a 3^rd place Eleonora pulled out another top result, Brook sent it into 28^th place and Mike by the skin of his teeth crashed his way into 57th place. The weather forecast for the race is overclauded, but now rain, we will see if this changes the track to the worse or better.

race day 1:

: muddy but rideable- the Micheline tires keep traction.

: Mike Jones railing corners.

: motocross like tracks in the takeoff... the landing didn't look any better

: Mike Jones on his way to 18th place.

: Ele with a very consistent performance this week.

: vision in the woods is another factor for this week.

: happy Ele- this is how we want to see her.

: First world cup first podium.

What a day- Eleonora started with a crash this morning, just one hour before she had to get back up to the start for her race run, but nevertheless she managed to get down a solid run, maybe a little bit conservative, but good enough to finish in 4^th place. First world cup in 2020 and first podium for her- we can’t complain.

Mike had a good run, but unclipped in before the rock garden and couldn’t clip in again. He rode the rock garden unclipped, clipped in after the section and fought into the finish. The effort got rewarded with an 18^th place, which is a good start into the 2020 season. For Brook it doesn’t went as planned. He couldn’t unclip in a slippery section to put his foot out and crashed. Not a big crash, but big enough to lose some seconds, which throw him back in the final ranking to 39^th place. Probably not what he expected, but Brook is building his way back up and there is no doubt we will see him back in his natural habitat: the world cup podium.

Qualification 1:

: Ele in the morning training session...

: Representing the Italian national champion jersey

: cut a good figure in the infamous rock garden of Maribor

: Brook back on a worldcup track- not very sure about a year ago.

: Mike seems to get a long with the rainy conditions.

: mud fest in Maribor

: muddy conditions, but components resist and work perfectly.

: back to shiny pre race conditions.

Qualification ended with mixed feelings. Ele had a little crash, but finished in 5^th. She was not happy with the result, but in general happy with her performance. Mike had a so-so run, but qualified in 33^rd position. Brook had a crash in the top section. He slid out in a corner, but managed to get back on the bike and finished in 54^th place. As he was protected he would have been qualified anyway and he will still start in the flied of the top contenders.

Practice:

: this is the nice picture of racing in autumn

: Maribor- a unique venue close to a bigger city.

: Eleonora cuts a good figure

: Brook looking faster and faster

: those Micheline tires grip...

: Mike Jones seem to be back on a good perfomance level.

: characteristic for Maribor- wild root sections.

: autumn racing

We are finally back to world cup racing and Maribor is usually a good start if the season starts in spring ad not in autumn. Brook, Mike and Ele had a good day out in the woods and learned the track pretty quick, so they could get up to race pace. Conditions will be different for qualification and race day as rain is forecasted. Maribor what a beautiful place on Indian summer days…

Track walk:

: difficulties at the uplift- team effort solves the problem

: Brook back on the worldcup circuit.

: autumn conditions with slippery leafs

: race 1

: race 2

: high speed section in Maribor

: this is Maribor- infamous rock garden

: at this time of the year also the light and the view are factors.

Back to world cup racing. Round one of the 2020 UCI MTB world cup takes place in Maribor Slovenia. The conditions are like to expect that late in the season, changeable weather conditions, with the track being covered in leaves and the light is getting dark pretty early already. Beside all the new restrictions we have because of Covid we also have a new situation regarding race. Both race in Maribor and Lousa are supposed to be double races, which means we have qualification 1 on Thursday and race 1 on Friday and qualification 2 on Saturday and race 2 on Sunday.

This is on one hand double the chance, but also double the effort and difficult for riders as they have to learn 2 different tracks in sections and they only have the normal amount of training time. Stay tuned on RedBull.Tv and follow the race.

6 September 2019

Final world cup round Snowshoe USA

admin Allgemein, racing 2019, Eleonora farina, final round, laurie greenland, Snowshoe, uci mtb worldcup, usa, worldcup

This is the daily report from the final world cup round in Snowshoes, West Virginia, USA. The 2019 UCI MTB world cup got us to Snowshoe mountain which is about 4 and a half hours west of Washington DC. The ski resort is located in a national radio quiet zone near the biggest moveable radio telescope of the world: the Greenbank telescope.

Stay tuned for more news.

Day 3: Qualification

: Laurie at the rock drop in the training session

: crash marks in qualification- not the best sign.

: pretty crowed on the track already.

: no points for qualification at the world cup finals- Laurie took it easy.

: Eleonora was not fit enough to race. Another concussion in 1 week time... not worth risking it.

: Brook is always with us- KIA KAHA

: new Renthal bar in place. final race preparation has started.

: Stefan oru carbon specialist is double checking Laurie's helmet.

One rider left in the game for 2019 UCI MTB worldcup finals in Snowshoe… not what we hoped for when we came to North America, but now we have to deal with it. While Brook is doing big steps in his reha, Eleonora had to step back from racing in Snowshoe. The concussion from yesterday would have effect her too much. Laurie is the last man in the game and as there is that special rules for world cup finals, where you won’t get any points for qualification, Laurie decided to take it easy. He tried some things on the track, but one line didn’t work out as planned and Laurie crashed over the rock drop. Nothing has happened, but currently we are pretty nervous.

Day 2: 1st practise and times training

: Mark in USA mode

: Also Laurie pays homage to the USA.

: last check before training.

: first jump on track right after the start.

: spectacular rock line...

: ...with a rock turn right after.

: 2 crashes and another concussion today- Eleonora will not ride or race this weekend.

: 2 riders out, 2 mechanics out- different tasks this weekend.

Well not it has happened what we tried to avoid think about. Our riders flied get reduced by Eleonora Farina and now Laurie is the only remaining rider for the MS Mondraker Team. Eleonora crashed twice in her training and showed signs for another concussion in only 1 week time. Eleonora and the team decided to step back from a start to not risk any consequences.

Day 1: course walk

: It's been a while since the boom in these parts.

: It may not be the rust belt, but there's still a ton of cool history oxidising in the forest.

: A terrapin and not a smooth-shelled one at that.

: US back country

: Natural flow before the rocks really kick in.

: A beautifully shaped berm before things get super technical.

: Laurie USA outfit

Track walk was pretty exciting as Snowshoe Mountain is a brand-new venue to us and the organizers modified the track, which was used for national mountain bike events. The track is different from what we used to race on the world cup circuit, but for sure the track offers a kind of everything we are asking for… and more. With 2 riders left we are going into this race and as usual we will work for podium results- stay tuned.

29 August 2019

UCI MTB world championships 2019

admin Allgemein, racing 2019, brook macdonald, Eleonora farina, laurie greenland, mont sainte anne, msa, UCI, world championships

This is the daily race report of the 2019 UCI MTB world champion ship in Mont Saint Anne Canada. This is one of our channels where we keep you updated.

Day 3:

: wet condition after overnight rain.

: Eleonora struggled a bit after having a whiplash syndrome from a crash on the day before- just rolled out of the start in her qualy run. Sh

: Brook had a got quarry run and finished in 3rd.

: picture from the training before quails- Laurie could finish his qualification run, but is protected for finals.

: not an easy situation, but nothing we can't handle.

: Brook happy after 3rd place- the pace is there.

: not the easiest conditions, but the custom mudguard does the job.

: serious chat after the race- not a big problem, but checking options.

That was a hard one today. Rain overnight made the track quite slippery and the rain during qualification didn’t made it easier for the riders. Eleonora was struggling with a whiplash effect from the day before and decided to just roll out of the gate as she was protected for the race. Laurie was on a good run, but as mentioned many times already this track is very hard on the material. Laurie got in one of those situations, where you simply have bad luck and suffer from a mechanical, which never happened before. He broke his rear wheel and was not able to continue his run and finished with a DNF. Like Ele, Laurie is protected and the effect of the defect was not sustainable. Brook had a good run- not on the limit and without mistakes yet, but good enough to finish in 3^rd.

Day 2:

: Eleonora- struggling with the wet conditions in the morning.

: some parts on the track especially the rock garden were pretty slippery in the morning

: Laurie in his custom union jack kit

: quite a lot of natural features in MSA.

: the track in MSA is a material killer

: Head mechanic Ben is stoked to work at the special world champs bike designed bike.

: Laurie's race rig in British national colours.

: body mechanic Denis is working on Brook.

1^stday practice and riders were finally allowed to show all their custom stuff and finally get on the track. The course in MSA is a material killer regarding tires and rims. Sharpe rocks and the highspeed cost a lot of spares and keep the mechanics busy. The track was wet in the morning and the women struggled a bit, while it tried up during the day and the conditions were way better for the men’s training. The track is really difficult in the wet as there are a lot of rocks, which get rogue when they are wet.

: Ben build Brook's machine.

: zustoße leimtet edition Renthal bar.

: custom paint job by color monkeys from Belgium

: Mandrake the magician was the inspiration for the name Mondraker.

: Laurie's mechanic Mark build up this machine.

: a little Banksy as homage to Laurie's hometown Bristol.

: Shimano XTR brakes.

: well equipped bike... thx to all the sponsors and people behind the scene to make this happened.

First day of practice was also the first appearance of Mondraker’s world championship designed bikes. The graphics show the comic of “Mandrake the magician”, who was the inspiration for the name Mondraker. Mondraker’s aim always was to be innovative, which they already showed with some inventions such as the forward geometry or their zero suspension concept and Mandrake is a comic character, who was able to make everything out of nothing. As a little brand out of Spain Mondraker showed some crazy bikes, which were ahead of their time, but in sustainable influenced the bike industry. Big thx to the guys of Mondraker and the guys of color Monkeys for the realization and Mahalu.at for the design concept.

: Brook and his special world champs helmet

: Aroha... a word which Brook's grandpa used to say.

: all graphics designed by Brook's mum and dad with special meanings.

: painted at penthouse customs.

Brook got this special helmet of Red Bull inspired of graphics designed by Brooks mum and dad and realized by Painthouse customs. There are quite a lot of details on the helmet such as the region where Brook is coming for, a New Zealand Tiki, the Kiwi bird, a picture of Steve and his grandpa and the word Aroha which stands for a special thing between Brook and his grandpa.

Day 1:

: Laurie is pretty excited to be back in MSA. After not racing here last year because of an ankle injury he has an open score to settle

: Stefan checking out the track to set up Eleonora's bike this week.

: course walk at world champs is pretty mixed between national teams and factory teams...

: head mechanic Ben... inspecting the track.

: one of the biggest drop on the circuit- you can't see the landing, but it's gnarly

: Brook with the Kiwi team- helping some of the younger ones out!

: MSA jungle

: gnarly when it's wet.

Here we are in Mont Sainte Anne for the 2019 UCI MTB world championships- our season highlight. Mont Saint Anne is located at the east coast of Canada 1 hour’s drive from Quebec. MSA is with Fort William the oldest track on the world cup and already hold 2 world championships. The last time was in 2010, when we managed to have 2 podiums with Stevie Smith in 2^ndand Lewis Buchanan in 3^rdin the junior’s race. These are some impressions of the track from course walk. The track hasn’t changed a lot regarding track layout- it will be long, fast and gnarly in some spots.

You can also follow us on https://www.facebook.com/MSMondrakerTeam/or on https://www.instagram.com/msmondrakerteam/.

7 August 2019

World cup round 7 Lenzerheide

admin Allgemein, racing 2019, brook macdonald, Eleonora farina, laurie greenland, lenzerheide, uci Umtb worldcup

This is our race journal from the 7th world cup race of the 2019 season in Lenzerheide. We will update the journal every day with the latest news and pictures of the day. Stay tuned we keep you posted!

Day 4: finals

: Eleonora finished 6th just 1 second off 3rd.

: for sure not what Brook hoped for 16th place- strong performance, but 2 bigger mistakes hold him back from a top 10.

: still slippery conditions...

: good crowd along the track...

: miserable conditions in the morning with some fog.

: Laurie on the finish jump- finished in 6th place not much off the podium.

: birthday kid Ben with a pretty cool present!

: still some media interest after his first ever world cup victory last week.

Well, not the result we were aiming for, but with Laurie in 6^th, Eleonora in 6^thand Brook in 16^thwe showed some strong performance. The conditions where not easy, with rain over night, fog and slight rain in the morning. The track was slippery in the morning and dried up from rider to rider. Eleonora was a little bit too much on the brakes she said and got 6^th– just 1 seconds of 3^rd. Brook had two bigger mistakes unclipped once and finished in 16^thplace- happy with finishing still in a good position, but not satisfied. Laurie had a good run, just little mistakes here and there, missed a line and finished in 6^th. Overall the result is not bad, but simply not what we were aiming for. We are now heading to North America for the world championships in Mont Saint Anne and the last round of the 2019 UCI MTB world cup in Snowhoe/ USA.

Day 3: Qualification

: head mechanic Ben chatting with Mr. MS himself.

: Brook in his pre race focus zone.

: Unlucky Mike Jones- again! AWith a flat tire in qualification he is not going to race finals.

: No time for it in a race run, but look at the panorama. Lenzerheide for sure worth a trip.

: already a lot of people on the track in qualification.

: Mike Jones- missing the bit of luck...

: Brook got a flat tire on the same spot on the track... just after 1st split... 2nd fastest at split 1.

: Eleonora qualified in P6 with a safety run...

Well… qualification was a little bit unluck for us. No one to blame really, just some bad luck. Brook and Mike got a front flat tire on the same spot on the track, just after split 1. While Mike had no chance and struggled to come down the track, Brook kept pushing as he was on a good run before with the 2^ndfastest time at split 1. Eleonora put a safe run down, to make it again into the finals. She finished in 6^thplace and made some point for the overall. The weather forecast prognoses stable weather with a slight chance for rain after 15:00. We hope for equal conditions and a race, which will not be effected by the rain.

Results:

Day 2: practice and timed training

: finishing touches before 1st practice run...

: Mark Sterland- super stoked about Laurie's 1st world cup win

: Brook- 6th fastest time today.

: Eleonora 2nd in timed training

: Brook going sideways.

: Mike Jones showed up with some decent times- 4th fastest time today.

: Ele already pretty solid in some sections.

: Brook and Laurie sharing lines.

First training day was very good for us. For sure not every rider shows cards in timed training session, but we are happy to have 3 riders in the top ten in men’s training and Eleonora in 2nd position in the women’s training. As aid this is not 100% significant yet, but it shows that our riders are on a good pace. The conditions changed from wet in the morning to try in the afternoon. Weather for the qualification should be constant, but the forecast for Saturday is unstable.

Day 1: track walk

: Laurie in serious talks with the technical delegate of the UCI

: start section in Lenzerheide.

: horrendous conditions in Lenzerheide leaving their marks...

: Brook followed by cameras of RedBull.tv

: Red Bull drop into the finish.

: pit chit chat...

Here we are in Lenzerheide for the second last round of the 2019 UCI MTB world cup. Lenzerheide hosts the last European round this year and welcomes the world cup circuit with very bad weather conditions. The track got a little bit overhauled, which is why we miss the well-known rock garden this season and why we have a new steep section in the woods. In the current conditions the track will be for sure challenging, but we hope for better weather for 1^stday training and qualification.

1 August 2019

world cup round 6 Val di Sole

admin Allgemein, racing brook macdonald, Eleonora farina, ici mtl worldcup, laurie greenland, mike jones, round 6, thibault laly, val di sole

This is our race journal from the 6th world cup race of the 2019 season in Val di Sole. We will update the journal every day with the latest news and pictures of the day. Stay tuned we keep you posted!

Day 4: Finals

: not the day of Eleonora- she crashed and had a flat tire... this makes it impossible to get on the podium these day. Ele finished in P8

: Brook at the last jump landing on the 15 meter mark. 30th place for him after the crash in the top part.

: teammates: Mike and Laurie.

: First world cup victory for Laurie Greenland.

: well deserved Champagne shower by the current world champion Loic Bruni

: the taste of success...

: the men behind Laurie: Mark Sterland

: even the race didn't went as planned, Brook was happy for his team mate Laurie.

What a race and what a result by the end of the day. The day didn’t start as planned. Eleonora struggled in the morning trainings runs. The track changed a lot after the junior’s race, which made it impossible for her to repeat the 4^thplace of the qualification. After a crashed in the middle bit of the track, Eleonora suffered from a flat tire, lost some more time and finished in 8^thplace. Mike had a conservative run on the wrong side of the limit after crashing in the past 2 races. Mike finished in 31^stplace.

Laurie came down in the last top group of qualification. He pushed from the very to and was on a flyer. Not as wild as in previous years, but he managed to increase his lead to the current leader Loic Bruni. Laurie crossed the finish line in lead with 7 more riders to come including top contenders Amoury Pierron and his team mate Brook, who had the best wet time in the qualification on the day before. Pierron had a good run with some little mistakes and couldn’t beat Laurie’s time. Next to come was Brook, who looked good in the top pit of the track, but unfortunately crashed out of the camera views. That crash throwed him back in the ranking and Brook finished in 30^thplace. With just 4 more riders to come, the first world cup victory was more and more in reach. Not one of the upcoming riders was able to beat Laurie’s time and so he finally won his first world cup by a margin of 2,8 seconds.

This was the first world cup victory for the MS Mondraker team since 2016. We are super stoked and happy as these moments make us what we do… the moments of joy when we won a race.

Thx to the whole team and all the sponsors for the support and making us win.

Results:

Day 3: qualification

: still good conditions for the women.

: try conditions in the morning training session.

: Farina with a save run into P4- full gas tomorrow!

: Mike Jones with a re-run after a red flag.

: Laurie Greenland 3rd fastest wet time- P10 in the end.

: mud is sticking everywhere.

: rough cleaning after the race run.

: still in good shape...

Well that was a hard day for use. We started with not too bad weather in the morning. The track was partly dry even it was raining the whole night. The weather seemed to be stable and the women had a dry qualification race. Elenora rode very save to make sure to qualify, which she managed with 4^thplace.

With about 10 riders in the men’s qualification the weather changed to the worth possible. The sky opened its doors and heavy rain effected the upcoming riders pretty bad. Mike got a red flag in his run and had to re-rum, which got him into 31^stposition. While a lot of riders where struggling bot Laurie and Brook had very good runs and entered into the group of riders, who came down in dry conditions. Brook finished in 5^thwith the fastest wet time and Laurie ended up in 10^thplace. Thibault Laly was unlucky again and crashed. He didn’t get seriously injured, but it is unsure if he will be able to compete in Lenzerheide.

Full results:

Day 2 practice & timed training

: Thiabult went down hard, but should be able to ride in qualification.

: building back up his confidence after two big crates in a row- Mike Jones. P15 in timed training

: Laurie pretty confident here in Val di Sole- the track suits him.

: Solid performance of Brook in VdS- P10 in timed training.

: home race for Ele- finished 3rd in timed training.

: toolbox wars- different level

: Stefan Dopplinger: Master of toolbox

: good day on the mountain for Laurie...

First training session in Val di Sole went good for us. The conditions where very dry and dusty and it seems like the track will not hold till finals. Thibault had a crash, but without serious consequences. Ele showed a strong performance again with a 3^rdplace in timed training. Brook set the 10^thbest time of the day and Mike finished in p15.

Results and Startlists

Day 1: course walk

: mud slinging when it's wet...

: Val di Sole, but it's raining?!

: quite a few options...

: good mood in miserable conditions.

: Mark checking Laurie's race wheels from the race last week in Pila- Mavic Deemax's still in good shape.

: Brook happy with the feel of his brakes.

With the 6th round of the 2019 UCI MTB world cup we are dropping into the 2^ndhalf season with just 4 more race to come. Val di Sole is one of those places we know pretty well and we probably had our biggest victories here. For sure the world champion and vice world champion titles here in 2016, but also the 2^ndplace of Laurie here last year where some of our highlights. The track has a big name in the Downhill scene and counts to the hardest tracks on the planet.

While we had good weather in the past few years we started with rain into this week and the forecasts are unsure for the upcoming days. One thing is for sure: if it will rain this track with the mix of loamy ground, rocks and roots will be the hardest of the year.

11 Juli 2019

world cup round 5 Les Gets

admin Allgemein, racing brage Vestavik, brook macdonald, Eleonora farina, laurie greenland, les gets, mike jones, thibault laly, uci worldcup, worldcup

This is our race journal from the 5th world cup race of the 2019 season in Les Gets/ France. We will update the journal every day with the latest news and pictures of the day. Stay tuned we keep you posted!

Day 4: Finals

: Laurie in a good mood- ready to enter the podium agin.

: Unlucky Mike Jones- showed best performance all weekend with times to enter the podium, but crashed in his final run- 53rd.

: Eleonora proofed again her ascending form- 4th place and another podium.

: entering the podium in front of an amazing crowd.- Laurie Greenland 3rd.

: first podium for Laurie Greenland in 2019.

: back on the podium... moments of joy!

: 2nd podium in a row for Eleonora Farina.

: Brook gave all after a tough weekend and managed to finish in top 15.

Great weekend for the MS Mondraker team in Les Gets/ France. We are back in the game with 2 podiums of Laurie Greenland with 3^rdplace in men’s racing and Eleonora Farina with 4^thplace in the women’s race. Brook MacDonald managed to finish in the top 15 after a tough week with massive crash on day 1. Unlucky Mike Jones crashed with 2^ndand 3^rdfastest split times- without a doubt on a podium run- and finished in 53^rdplace.

The team finished in 4^thplace of the day, but made up some positions in the overall. We are now in 4^thplace in touch with the top 3.

Results & Standings

Day 3: Qualification

: last race preparations for Eleonora.

: Mark and Stefan discussing the latest adjustments...

: Eleonora got 4th with a safety run- for her it is about to qualify and getting the protection status back.

: Laurie had a smooth run, which got him into 11th place.

: Brook still struggling after yesterdays crash.

: Thibault Laly missed the qualification.

: Alos Brage Vestavik did not qualify- not happy about a too conservative run.

: Not happy, but 37th place will do it for now.

Qualification went pretty good for us. We got 4 out of 6 riders into the finals with promising positions for the race. Eleonora got 4^thwith a safety run- for her it is about to have a run, which gets her in the finals where she can attack. She took some safety lines and lost a few seconds, but everything is in place for finals. Laurie had a smooth run, which got him into 11^th, Mike had an okay run, which still got him into 10^thplace. It seems to be a very good track for Mike as it is about to hold speed on the open sections. Brook still struggled because of his big crash on the first training day, but managed to finish in 37^th. Thibault and Brage rode to conservative and missed the qualification for finals.

Day 2. practise and timed training

: skeptical view from Mike's mechanic- today he must have pulled something out the sleeve.

: Ms Mondraker team train...

: strong performance in timed training of Mike Jones- 7th.

: big crash in the morning, but kept fighting thru the day.

: Laurie had some good sectors, after struggling in the morning with his setup.

: Eleonora was fastest today in 4 out of 5 section times...

: ...happy with that.

: always a smile on the face no matter what.

Todays practice started with a shock moment in the morning. Brook had a big crash in his first run and another one in his second run. This holds him back a little bit during the day, but he will be fine for qualification. Laurie struggled a bit in the morning with his bike setup, but found a good configuration by the end of the day. Mike showed a relay good performance in timed training and finished in 7^th. Eleonora struggled a bit at the beginning. Most of the girls had problems with the last jump before the finish- the height of the drop and the speed are frightening factors, but Eleonora managed it. She got 3^rdbecause of a small crash, but was fastest in 4 out of 5 sections.

results/start lists

Day 1. Course walk

: THE MS Mondraker Team

: Les Get start panorama

: Still pretty wide, still pretty grassy reaching the bottom of the upper section.

: Mike Jones and his mechanic Stefan Dopplinger on the Les gets road gap.

: chairlift life: Brage Vestavik and Laurie Greenland

: no hunger games for Laurie Greenland.

: A wonderful, touching moment between friends and competitors. Luckily there is no audio to spoil this still image.

: Brage dreaming big.

To most of the people Les gets might seem like a brand-new venue for the UCI MTB world cup, but in fact we have been racing here already back in the 90s. The last world cup happened here in 2002 and the last big race here was the world championships in 2004.

The track here is more old school with more natural features, wide open corners in the grass and high speed. This is for sure going to be a very interesting race.

4 Juli 2019

world cup round 4 Vallnord Andorra

admin Allgemein, racing 2019, andorra, brage Vestavik, brook macdonald, Eleonora farina, laurie greenland, mike jones, thibault laly, uci worldcup, vallnord, world cup racing, worldcup

This is our race journal from the 4th world cup race of the 2019 season in Vallnord/ Andorra. We will update the journal every day with the latest news and pictures of the day. Stay tuned we keep you posted!

DAY 4: FINALS

: fully focused in her world cup comeback race.

: Eleonora managed to get 5th with a clean run.

: First world cup podium in 2019.

: enjoying the good times.

: Laurie on the very smooth run- not at his limit yet.

: Brook was really happy with his run and to be just 0,7 off the podium.

: boys celebrating... team spirit at its finest

: hot seat from a different perspective.

This was a pretty cool race for us and we can’t complain at all: we have 3 riders in the top 10, we got a podium and we finished 2^ndin the team of the day ranking. Eleonora had a good run and finished in 5^thposition, which meant her first world cup podium of this season. Mike was again unlucky and suffered from a mechanical, which led to a crash. He managed to get down and finished 48^thplace. Laurie came down with a good run, but was a little bit irritated by dust swaths in the woods. He finished in 9^thplace and made up some positions in the overall. Brook finish in 6^thplace and was just 1,3 seconds of the podium. He also made up some positions in the overall and sits now in 7^thplace.

Results:

Day 3:

: Eleonora back to speed- P6 for her in qualification.

: Mike Jones building up his form curve again P27 for him

: Brook hasn't had a good run- a few mistakes cost him some sections- he is happy though P7.

: Mike Jones in one of the more natural wood sections.

: the track in Andorra offers a good mix of different conditions.

: Thibault Laly crashed in quails and could qualify for the race- P 83.

: Laurie into P8 with an easy run as he called it.

: Thibault introduced Brage to our Normatec recovery system... pretty sick tool if you are burned out after days like this.

We can’t complain after qualies. We had a good time and got 3 riders into the top 10 and 4 of 6 riders into the finals… there is not a lot more you can ask for. Eleonora qualified in 6^thplace and is back on pace after her longsome infection, which is why she missed the races in Fort William and Leogang. Brook didn’t have a perfect run- a few little mistakes summed up to 1 or 2 seconds, but he finished in 7^th, which is pretty promising for finals. Laurie had a smooth run and didn’t pushed too much- P8 for him. Mike is keeps building his form back up and finished in 27^th.

Brage had a solid run and just missed finals 0,7 seconds in 64^thposition. Unlucky Thibault felt good and had a good run until he crashed- 83^rdplace for him.

Results

Day 2:

: Stefan is checking the balance of the the Michelin tire.

: Eleonora leaving the pits for the first run of the day.

: the boys take the opportunity to share lines on training runs- pretty hard sometimes.

: "what you reckon is the best line?"

: Brook sending it.

: track is pretty dusty- Laurie can tell.

: Brook said that the hot weather and the dust makes this track the most physical demanding so far.

: Mike in attack mode.

Andorra is another level this year- the hot weather in combination with the deep dust makes this track thy most physical demanding. The boys and girls got some good training runs in and feel ready for the qualification.

With a 5^thplace of Brook, a 14^thplace of Laurie and a 18^thplace of Mike we had 3 riders in the top 20, which is pretty promising considering the fact that most of the riders already went up to race pace to see what is possible on this track.

Results and start lists

Day 1:

: good mix of natural sections...

: with man made sections...

: high speed section with loose gravel.

: cofactory pilot Brage Vestavik following the factory riders like being their shadow.

: Finish jumping the arena of La Massana.

: Brage Vestavik tries to look sharp...

: pit life... hanging out after lunch and sharing impressions from course walk.

: little rain in the evening after course walks... thunderstorms expected for day 2.

Here we are back in Andorra, a mini state in the Pyrenees between France and Spain.

We connect very good memories with this place: double podium in 2018, podium in 2017, victory in 2016 and the win of the team overall in 2016…

This season hasn’t been that good for us so far, but we hope this will be our turning point. The track walk didn’t show any major news to us, which means the track is basically the same like last year.

One major change for this race is, that Laurie as well as Brook will test a new bike setup with mixed wheel sizes. This setup was tested first at Crankworx Innsbruck and now we will test the setup under world cup conditions.

31 Mai 2019

world cup round 2 Fort William

admin Allgemein, racing 2019, brook macdonald, Eleonora farina, fort william, laurie greenland, mike jones, thibault laly, UCI, worldcup

This is our race journal from the 2^ndworld cup race of the 2019 seaosn in Fort William/ Scotland. We will update the journal every day with the latest news and pictures of the day. Stay tuned we keep you posted!

Day 4: race day:

: this is what we call miserable.

: one of the necessaries this week: tear-offs. No worries, those will be collected after the race.

: Last training session for Laurie.

: Brook going over the Red Bull road gap.

: Brook was pushing hard in his race run: 9th place.

: Brook going over the Scotland arch jam.

: Laurie dropping into the last section.

: Laurie on the second last jump before the finish.

Well, this was it. Fort William in done and in the books- unfortunately not with the best end for us, even we managed to finish in descent positions. Brook finished in 9^thplace, Laurie end up in 15^thspot and Thibault became 60^thand made his first world cup point in 2019. Eleonora could not race because of an infection and high fever, but she will be back for Leogang/ Austria. Overall this was not a bad race, but for sure we hoped for better. Fort William is simply no joke and it takes a lot to show outstanding results. For sure we will come back next year, to prove we can do better and hopefully we will make it on the podium then.

Day 3: qualification

: Eleonora in the last training session before the qualification.

: Brook finished in 6th with a solid run

: unlucky fellow Mike suffered from a mechanical on the front wheel. unfortunately not protected and will not race the finals

: Laurie had a mechanical as well, but the protected status makes him race the finals.

: Thibault happy with his 43rd place.

: Laurie before his race run.

: signing session at the Mondraker pits with quite some interest.

: good crowed here in Fort William

Qualification today ended with mixed results. Brook had a good run and finished in 6^thplace. Laurie and Mike suffered from mechanicals. While Laurie has a protected status and is qualified for the finals Mike unfortunately is not protected and will not race finals. Thibault also had a good run and managed to qualify for the finals with a 43^rdplace.

Eleonora had a big crash in the upper rock section. She hit the ground pretty bad with her hip and finished further back in the field. Even she is protected and could race finals shew won’t by doctors recommendation.

Day 2: 1st practise

: goggle setup- probably the most important these days.

: Laurie in his fancy Fox pants with a zebra animal print.

: conditions and atmosphere on track were surreal.

: Brook on one of the wooden bridges in the upper part of the track.

: Mike showed a good pace trout the training.

: Thibault Laly crossing one of the little creeks.

: mudpack for the Mondraker Summum

: soaking wet

No news on day 2 training. The weather conditions have been miserable like on the day before and it doesn’t seem to get better. Timed training was a kind of meaningless as no one was really trying to set a best time and rather prevent crashing under those conditions.

We used all the training including the timed session to test different setups, but the conditions make it really hard to focus on that.

Day 1: track walk

: track walk time in Fort William. Boys and girls checking out the track- just minor changes.

: weather is miserable in Fort William... cold and wet, but Eleonora is still smiling.

: Laurie in a good mood... Micheline hat keeps him warm.

: Fully prepared Mike Jones.

: happy Brook MacDonald... no matter of the weather!

: classic pit preparation in Fort William

: Mark Sterland preparing Laurie's bike.

: some interesting talks between Laurie and his mechanic Mark.

Welcome back to the mountain bikes world cup classic. Fort William is for mountain bike downhill what is Kitzbuehl for downhill ski racing. The venue with the most spectators, the biggest party and one of the fastest tracks on the circuit. This track is infamous for its length, for mix of rocks and hart ground at the top and the muddy conditions in the lower woods. Furthermore the track is known for the speed and the long pedaling section before the finish.

While we had perfect conditions in 2018 we are facing miserable conditions now. It is currently very cold mixed with a lot of rain and while other sports would cancel training or even the race, we keep on going as long as riders can be transported to the start.