[dropmachine]

I think Stevie has potential for sure, but the next big thing? That I dunno about. Hes got a ways to go, and I won't lie when I say it'd be great to see, but I also know it won't be easy.

I'm not bent out of shape at all really. I am simply suggesting that perhaps people are getting a little ahead of themselves over this.

 

[BC VAN]

well knowing him, it will feed him and he will go faster, he knows he is close....

as it is being said here he is not a newcomer to sport....

i don't think the result is what creates the bad pressure...it is the expectations of companies and people writing checks that makes it tough.....

some can handle that some can't.....it's what makes champions...when you sign that contract for a lot of money your on the hook to back it up,


i hope before the season is done he can establish a series of consistant results?

hopefully he can focus on just racing until the end of the season before he starts getting offer's.

for real, this kid is fast...he smoked all of us at a mtn state cup dual slalom with smooth consistent runs, which showed me 2 things....he can consistently ride the same line over and over and he is not pressured by riders who are established names....his mind set is the fastest guys are only people and if they can go that fast why can't i?

i see a lot of riders now in the DH that are very good skill wise but don't believe in themselves and the ability to put it on the wood,

if you can't visualize it your never going to get there...

Gwin can already see it

Woo, again with the critical point. I dig your brain.

BCVAN, you will know more then anyone, so perhaps you can tell us what doing something like winning does to the racers brain. What kind of pressure does that put a guy under? Is it a crack or flourish sort of thing?

 

[ridea]

From a completey un-bias point of view, I think theres got to be somthing pretty special about this guy to come from nowhere...litteraly and get a result like this,not forgetting a few weekends before he smoked the rest of the yeti team at a us race. It'll be interesting to see how he does on more technical tracks, MSA is flat out which i wouldve though would suit his mx roots, when things get slow tech and tight it might be a different story. But having done this I think its somthing he would learn pretty quickly anyway. itll be interesting to watch.....
oh and i dont totaly disagree with drop machine, your right to be stoked, its been a long time coming for the us guys but i wouldnt get too ahead of yourself ie talking about big sponsors etc, untill youve seen a few more races from the guy...not to say that im not expecting great things from this guy because this was a hell of an achievement.

 

[NJMX835]

Wow, I didn't know Canadians were such dicks. GFY

They just hate our freedoms, that's all!

 

[BC VAN]

again injury aside....this guy will have a nice contract from someone next year, i know there are a number of companies as well as agents talking about him already...

i know he wants to stay with Yeti, he likes the group and the bikes so hopefully for him they will give him market value, what ever that is? TBD i guess, and he can continue on his path of

THE CHOSEN ONE! haha

From a completey un-bias point of view, I think theres got to be somthing pretty special about this guy to come from nowhere...litteraly and get a result like this,not forgetting a few weekends before he smoked the rest of the yeti team at a us race. It'll be interesting to see how he does on more technical tracks, MSA is flat out which i wouldve though would suit his mx roots, when things get slow tech and tight it might be a different story. But having done this I think its somthing he would learn pretty quickly anyway. itll be interesting to watch.....
oh and i dont totaly disagree with drop machine, your right to be stoked, its been a long time coming for the us guys but i wouldnt get too ahead of yourself ie talking about big sponsors etc, untill youve seen a few more races from the guy...not to say that im not expecting great things from this guy because this was a hell of an achievement.

 

[bizutch]

A good case as well would be Sanjay. Everyone was in awe of him winning Big Bear in expert on a hardtail by a huge margin. BCD backed him. I helped him line up some sponsors. He rode & raced, got better, faster...then got a ride on Commencal in Pro class...and POOF! The real world came calling & he answered the phone.

He wasn't the most commited racer, mind you, but he had a moment in the MTB sun & chose other avenues that interested him more. Gwin might do the same. Oh and the point about Mte. Saint Anne suiting a moto rider's style is a good point as well. A European technical track might make him just one more US rider who can't ride Euro tracks for all we know.

I hope the kid succeeds because success breeds success and havinga success story to emulate motivates kids like Ethan Quall & Neko Mullaly. Those guys are the real future of US DH.

 

[demo 9]

looks like his moto style influences his riding style, bubba scrubbing that roller thing, real impressive, possibly next sam hill?

 

[nixhexss]

What's the song in that Yeti vid?

 

[spocomptonrider]

The song in the Yeti video is - Alice in Videoland - Lay Me Down.

 

[alloutproductio]

Give me a break. Is the US so pathetically desperate to get a top 10 rider back in DH that they will cling to anything that comes? Anything to puff out the chest and chant I suppose.

Granted, what he did was pretty cool. However, its hard to call him the chosen one the US has waited for when the guy has only done 1 race. Lets see him get some consistent finishes, then I'll be more impressed.

only 1 race?? he just won the snowmass msc 2 weeks ago (beat leov & blinky), won the slalom at chalkcreek msc & got 10th at the seaotter dh (fastest american), not to mention podiums at most of the winter fontana series.
gwin is no joke! & as a scandalous plug, checkout his first video part in stars & bars.....

 

[boogenman]

go ride your ****ing bikes people. We can have this discussion after the next 3 races.

 

[CBJ]

If I have already ridden my ****ing bike today can I then post some more?

 

[bizutch]

If I have already ridden my ****ing bike today can I then post some more?

DITTO! I even had to climb 50 feet down a bank and carry 4 landscape logs back up trail that a trail vandal ripped out and threw away!!!

 

[Ian Collins]

freedom haters!

 

[aaronjb]

Anyone care to revisit their opinion?

/resurrected

 

[CBJ]

I just got back from riding my bike again.

 

[illnotsick]

America!

 

[BikerBoy28]

Give me a break. Is the US so pathetically desperate to get a top 10 rider back in DH that they will cling to anything that comes? Anything to puff out the chest and chant I suppose.

Granted, what he did was pretty cool. However, its hard to call him the chosen one the US has waited for when the guy has only done 1 race. Lets see him get some consistent finishes, then I'll be more impressed.

Impressed yet?

 

[demo 9]

Impressed yet?

 

[blackohio]

Hahaha! How do those feet taste boys?

 

[Total Heckler]

Give me a break. Is the US so pathetically desperate to get a top 10 rider back in DH that they will cling to anything that comes? Anything to puff out the chest and chant I suppose.

Granted, what he did was pretty cool. However, its hard to call him the chosen one the US has waited for when the guy has only done 1 race. Lets see him get some consistent finishes, then I'll be more impressed.

Wow, I didn't know Canadians were such dicks. GFY

Impressed yet?

Hahahaha

 

[bikerpunk98199]

what a twat

 

[Tedman]

"Originally Posted by dropmachine.com
Give me a break. Is the US so pathetically desperate to get a top 10 rider back in DH that they will cling to anything that comes? Anything to puff out the chest and chant I suppose.

Granted, what he did was pretty cool. However, its hard to call him the chosen one the US has waited for when the guy has only done 1 race. Lets see him get some consistent finishes, then I'll be more impressed."

And yes, we love chanting the letters, USA...USA...USA...USA. Wave that flag boys!

Oh, Dropmachine...please come to Windham WC. You'll be impressed!!

 

[kidwoo]

Anyone care to revisit their opinion?

/resurrected

I'm man enough to say it. I can admit when I was wrong. No shame in honesty. I jumped the gun on this one.

You guys are forgetting the most important part.


The huge bar hump at the finish.


Not only may the US have a successful racer on the horizon. We may have a successful racer with a personality and a sense of humor.

 

[time-bomb]

This is one thread that is worthy of being resurrected. Nicely done

 

[Tedman]

This is one thread that is worthy of being resurrected. Nicely done

 

[time-bomb]

 

[MDJ]

Funny, but I just watched First for the first time the other night. There was a segment with a US rider that was being billed as America's next great hope, and it wasn't Gwin. Oops

I was suprised because I didn't realize the movie was that old, bu I guess it must have been from at least the year before he even hit the radar.

 

[TWeerts]

America. We go TOO FAST.

 

[aaronjb]

I had a chance to chat briefly with Aaron at Highland. He seems low-key but very focused, and he was friendly and professional all around.

More than most other guys who get to ride a bike down mountains for a living, he seems to genuinely appreciate how fortunate he is.

 

[Udi]

I've never even seen the guy in person, but I've noticed in all the videos he always comes across as super modest and polite.

It makes him very easy to like, especially compared to that other fast US senior... "I wanna be top american, on the top" etc.

 

[Ithnu]

I've never even seen the guy in person, but I've noticed in all the videos he always comes across as super modest and polite.

I've met him several times, when he was in CO riding for Yeti, he is a very mellow guy. He just seems like a normal guy who likes to ride.

 

[General Lee]

"Originally Posted by dropmachine.com
Give me a break. Is the US so pathetically desperate to get a top 10 rider back in DH that they will cling to anything that comes? Anything to puff out the chest and chant I suppose.

Granted, what he did was pretty cool. However, its hard to call him the chosen one the US has waited for when the guy has only done 1 race. Lets see him get some consistent finishes, then I'll be more impressed."

And yes, we love chanting the letters, USA...USA...USA...USA. Wave that flag boys!

Oh, Dropmachine...please come to Windham WC. You'll be impressed!!

For starters, you dug up a 3 year old quote, completely out of context, and ascribed it to the present.

At the time it was pretty well justified. Prior to Gwinn the forum jockeys took every one-time decent result by an American to be a sure sign of the second coming. But for the most part never lived up to the hype and pretty much hit a plateau in terms of speed and results. In no particular order you might remember: Straight, David K, Warren, JD, Riffle, Strobel . . . all incredibly talented riders on their day, but no amount of wishful thinking can get you on a WC podium.

Gwinn broke that trend, and Neko looks capable of doing the same. Richie Rude is showing some ridiculous potential as well.

'Merica F#$* Yeah!

 

[Mr Ridiculous]

For starters, you dug up a 3 year old quote, completely out of context, and ascribed it to the present.

At the time it was pretty well justified. Prior to Gwinn the forum jockeys took every one-time decent result by an American to be a sure sign of the second coming. But for the most part never lived up to the hype and pretty much hit a plateau in terms of speed and results. In no particular order you might remember: Straight, David K, Warren, JD, Riffle, Strobel . . . all incredibly talented riders on their day, but no amount of wishful thinking can get you on a WC podium.

Gwinn broke that trend, and Neko looks capable of doing the same. Richie Rude is showing some ridiculous potential as well.

'Merica F#$* Yeah!

Americans: We may be wrong 9 times out of 10, but by god we'll let you know the one time we get it right.

 

[UiUiUiUi]

Americans: We may be wrong 9 times out of 10, but by god we'll let you know the one time we get it right.

qft!

must spread rep!

 

[karpi]

Americans: We may be wrong 9 times out of 10, but by god we'll let you know the one time we get it right.

hahahahah! best quote eva!

 

[MDJ]

Americans: We may be wrong 9 times out of 10, but by god we'll let you know the one time we get it right.

haha

The non-Americans were quick to jump on that one.

The Americans are still scratching their heads.

 

[bdamschen]

haha

The non-Americans were quick to jump on that one.

The Americans are still scratching their heads.

9 out of 10?!?! we weren't wrong when we invented the bill of rights, jack daniels, flight or the grand canyon! So that's 5 more right there.

 

[Bikael Molton]

can this thread go away again please?

 

[Banga]

9 out of 10?!?! we weren't wrong when we invented the bill of rights, jack daniels, flight or the grand canyon! So that's 5 more right there.

Don't be so quick to claim flight, a guy down here in NZ may have beaten your Wright brothers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Pearse