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On the podium 5th Place
On the podium 5th Place
On Sunday Sam Blenkinsop (Yeti/Fox Factory Team) took his first ever step onto the World Cup podium with a classy ride in Round 2 of the Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Vallnord, Andorra. Sam became only the 2nd New Zealand male DH rider to do so, following on from Justin Leov who also finished fifth back in 2005 at Angel Fire (USA).
Now team mates, the two kiwis trained well all week on the course but it was clear that the two and half minute track was a little more to "Blinky's" liking. The team used their own timing equipment throughout the week and Sam was showing speed on all sections of the course and recording times that were within range of a win.
Following on from his showing on the World's course in Italy, at the test event last month where Sam qualified fastest and finished 7th, he was widely tipped in the paddock as the next rider to stand on the podium for the first time. Sam was pretty stoked by the whole thing.
"I was way nervous backstage at the podium, getting up on the box for the first time, there was heaps of press. I could get used to this though, I'm really happy to do it for Yeti and Fox in my first year on the team. The track was mean as, and I pretty much enjoyed training on it all the time. The top section of corners was pretty sweet and I got the bottom section dialled later on, so even though I made a mistake in the semi, running wide and hooking up on a tree, I knew what I had to do in the final. I like Fort William too so I'm keen for the next race".After a unanimous petition from the top riders in the world after the 1st round in Maribor, the UCI returned to the 5 rider podium, and not a 3 rider one.
Sam's podium result also moves him into 9th overall in the World Cup, just 2 points behind his team mate Justin Leov.
Semi Final Results:
1. Gee Atherton (GBR) 2:41.632. Sam Hill (AUS) 2:43.31
3. Fabien Barel (FRA) 2:43.44
4. Steve Peat (GBR) 2:43.98
5 Steve Smith (CAN) 2:44.98
7. Sam Blenkinsop (NZL) 2:45.25
Final Results:
1. Gee Atherton (GBR) 2:35.352. Sam Hill (AUS) 2:35.66
3. Greg Minnaar (RSA) 2:36.73
4. Steve Peat (GBR) 2:37.49
5. Sam Blenkinsop (NZL) 2:38.71
Sam Blenkinsop on team Yeti/Fox
Sam Blenkinsop on team Yeti/Fox
Sam Blenkinsop (Wanganui, NZ), one of the youngest riders to hit the World Cup circuit, is bringing fresh downhill talent from down under to the Yeti / Fox Shox Factory Team in a two-year signed deal.
It was back in 2005 that Blenkinsop emerged in the foreground of downhill racing at the World Championships in Italy, where the skill and riding style of the 16-year old stood out on the challenging Livigno course. His solid top ten in the junior category was an early indication of the raw talent Blenkinsop has brought to the circuit.
The following year, Blenkinsop took the world racing scene by storm with a silver medal on his home turf at the 2006 Rotorua UCI World Championships as a junior, even after an over-the-handlebar crash. Blenkinsop soon after moved up to the elite ranks and finished ninth in the elite downhill at the 2007 UCI World Championships in Fort William, Scotland, and top 25 World Cup overall—all within his first year of turning pro.
“Yeti has a long legacy of grooming young talent,” said Chris Conroy, Yeti’s president. “Sam is a very exciting rider and we are looking forward to see him progress to the top ranks of the sport.”
Blenkinsop is considered one of the hottest up-and-coming racers and is now joining forces with members on the recently expanded Yeti / Fox Racing Shox Factory Team. The Global team will compete primarily in World Cup competitions and will include Jared Graves (Toowoomba, AUS), fellow New Zealander Justin Leov (Christchurch, NZL), and Ross Milan (Golden, CO). The Yeti / Fox Racing Shox national team will include Rich Houseman (Temecula, CA), TJ Sharp (Boulder, CO), Chris Boice (Albuquerque, NM), and Rudy Unrau (Boulder, CO).
Blenkinsop and Leov are currently racing head-to-head in the New Zealand North Island DH series. And just last week, in the absence of Leov, Blenkinsop took a decisive win at Round 2 in Rotorua. The series will take them through March before they hit the road for World Cup racing and training with the team in Europe.
With goals to be regularly in the top ten this year, Blenkinsop is on his way to rival the big names of the sport on the 2008 World Cup circuit.
“It’s awesome to be joining such an amazing team”, says Sam. “There’s such a history of top riders that have raced for Yeti, and it means a lot to me to be invited to join the team. The bikes are wicked, and I’m already a big fan of Fox Shox having raced them last year. With team mates like Jared and Justin, I’m going to learn heaps this year, can’t wait to get racing on the new rig.”
Yeti Cycles has been home to some of the biggest names in the sport and has the longest running professional mountain bike team in the industry. The company is located at the base of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado.
Blenkinsop from Leov At Round 1 in New Zealand
Blenkinsop from Leov At Round 1 in New Zealand
Sam Blenkinsop (Gravity Group) got the better half of a near dead heat with Justin Leov (Yeti/Fox Factory) at the opening round of national downhill racing season in New Zealand.The 2008 season is different this year with there being a North Island series known as the North Island Cup, as well as there being a South Island Cup. The idea being that this will ease the costs of traveling from island to island, as riders now have the opportunity to focus on one of the two series, or do both if they wish. A separate one-off National Championships decides the National Champion.
This past weekend saw the first round of the North Island Cup held in Napier. In the lead up to the event, there'd been a little rain on Friday night after the practice sessions, and before the Saturday finals. This meant the conditions were a little treacherous for the riders on their first race runs, and thus were quite a bit slower than the second runs.
Sam had three tenths of a second on Justin in race one, and both were clear of the rest of the field on the steep and technical track, as the sun started to dry things up for the second run. They both then stepped it up by another 4 seconds in the second race, with Justin improving just a little more, but not quite enough to catch Blinky; the final margin just 8/100ths of a second.
"The cheeky bugger just got me!! That was an awesome track to start out the season and we were both having fun out there. I'm really happy to be back from my collarbone injury from the crash at the end of last season, and it's good to know I'm keeping pace with Sam. Really motivated for the 2008 season, looking forward to more racing here in New Zealand then heading over to Sea Otter in April," said Justin Leov soon after the finish.
Results:
1 Sam Blenkinsop - 2mins 33.837secs2 Justin Leov - 2mins 33.845secs
3 Wyn Masters - 2mins 38.38secs
4 Glenn Hayden - 2mins 38.81secs
5 Michael Davis - 2mins 39.39secs
The next round of the North Island Cup will be the first weekend in February, in Rotorua.