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Leogang 2013 - Season ender...

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Tomasz

Monkey
Jul 18, 2012
339
0
Whistla
Maybe it's just the GoPro effect, but I would prefer to see some more tech/challenging sections in there. Stuff which doesn't just slow you down but really challenges you to get through - like at Jelly.
 
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bobsten

Monkey
Oct 23, 2008
240
0
rain rain go away
Does anyone else feel like a lot of these tracks are turning into bike park-esque, high speed freeways (aside from Andorra & VDS)?

Ft. Bill - Freeway w/ rox
MSA - Freeway w/ dirt & rox
PMB - Freeway w/ not sure - ULTRA FREEWAY
Leogang - Freeway w/ dirt, roots, some rox
Norway - Freeway (albeit super sick freeway) w/ a rocky detour

Just thought bubbling
 
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trib

not worthy of a Rux.
Jun 22, 2009
1,688
711
I think that's due to the nature of who can afford to put on a DH WC. I know that Fort Bill for instance is used by hundreds of riders of all types of abilities, it's difficult to keep a track super gnarly when its been constantly ridden and needs to be ridable by more than just the worlds best.
 
jackalope

jackalope

Mental acuity - 1%
Jan 9, 2004
7,750
6,218
in a single wide, cooking meth...
I'm not sure if bob is being critical or not, but I like the variety, and thought Hajfell offered a great mix of MX jumps, "park-esque" berms, some open flat turns (at mach WTF no less), and gnar-brah rock farms. To me anyway, there's more to DH than just steep, unrelenting rock & root gnar.
 
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gemini2k

gemini2k

Turbo Monkey
Jul 31, 2005
3,526
117
San Francisco
bobsten said:
Ft. Bill - Freeway w/ rox
MSA - Freeway w/ dirt & rox Yeah...have fun in those woods sections
PMB - Freeway w/ not sure - ULTRA FREEWAY
Leogang - Freeway w/ dirt, roots, some rox definitely some really tech, steep stuff in there
Norway - Freeway (albeit super sick freeway) w/ a rocky detour Did you see some of those turns? Those rock gardens were no joke either
Click to expand...

I think people overestimate their riding abilities when watching WC tracks. What might seem "boring and bike park-y" is actually a trail littered with super technical sections and humongous features.
 
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bobsten

Monkey
Oct 23, 2008
240
0
rain rain go away
gemini2k said:
I think people overestimate their riding abilities when watching WC tracks. What might seem "boring and bike park-y" is actually a trail littered with super technical sections and humongous features.
Click to expand...
I'm not trying to down play how much of a huge pussy I am. And I don't mean to sound like the tracks are boring. It just seems like it's very rare that WC offers tracks like Andorra.
 
dcamp29

dcamp29

Monkey
Feb 14, 2004
589
63
Colorado
bobsten said:
I'm not trying to down play how much of a huge pussy I am. And I don't mean to sound like the tracks are boring. It just seems like it's very rare that WC offers tracks like Andorra.
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I agree with Bob... he is a huge pussy. hahaha.

Would like to see more gnar though:

 
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Tomasz

Monkey
Jul 18, 2012
339
0
Whistla
I don't think that our personal skills are relevant, Gemini. We're talking about what's entertaining to watch, not what we could or couldn't do. And personally, I like seeing rock gnar a lot more than ALine/Crabapple Hits races.

I want to see tracks which are difficult for the pros to get through, not just tech sections which serve as speed bumps.
 
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Da Peach

Da Peach

Outwitted by a rodent
Jul 2, 2002
13,801
5,313
North Van
Pretty sure these guys just make it LOOK easy.

Find the line, then ride it. Finding it is hard enough, then hitting it at Mach-ridiculous is a whole different dimension. I know. I raced once. And no, I wasn't last. Quite.
 
yd35

yd35

Monkey
Oct 28, 2008
741
61
NY
GoPro goggles are a lot like beer goggles. They turn hideous gnar into not ideal, but ultimately acceptable.
 
bizutch

bizutch

Delicate CUSTOM flower
Dec 11, 2001
15,929
24
Over your shoulder whispering
Mt. Snow is the most boring track you could ever watch on a TV. Ride that evil bastard in person and know just how fricking brutal stuff is in real life instead of on the net.

I see these tracks and stuff like Leogang does "look" kinda tame, but I just think back to that beast of a mountain and don't recall ever having too much travel or wide enough tires to survive it unscathed.
 
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Tomasz

Monkey
Jul 18, 2012
339
0
Whistla
gemini2k said:
Bingo. There are plenty of sections on WC tracks that are as or more gnarly and dangerous as the mt. snow yardsale. It's just that the level of riding now is leagues higher than it was back in 2006.
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That's not the point. No one is saying that we could ride the tracks. But, as you say, the riders and equipment have evolved. So the tracks should be made more challenging to match.
 
William42

William42

fork ways
Jul 31, 2007
4,029
789
Am I the only one that thinks a race at rampage would probably be the coolest thing ever to happen involving bicycles? seeing dudes huck themselves off 40 foot cliffs going 30-40mph sounds pretty rad.
 
dhbrigade

dhbrigade

Chimp
Feb 21, 2006
89
2
Never really understood why they put tons of gravel on those bikepark tracks. Leave a track as natural as it is and ride it as hard as you can. Within 2 years you will get a beauty of DH track.
 
rosenamedpoop

rosenamedpoop

Turbo Monkey
Feb 27, 2004
1,284
0
just Santa Cruz...
Man worldcup DH is so pussy... I was out shredding my local track Fukkdemon, and I realized that no one had ever shredded a trail so hard. I was like "oh my gawd, this is like the best riding ever ridden", this shlt should be a worldcup track and I would dominate those fagbrains...
 
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El Zilcho

El Zilcho

Chimp
Aug 27, 2009
10
0
NSW, Australia
bobsten said:
Does anyone else feel like a lot of these tracks are turning into bike park-esque, high speed freeways (aside from Andorra & VDS)?

Ft. Bill - Freeway w/ rox
MSA - Freeway w/ dirt & rox
PMB - Freeway w/ not sure - ULTRA FREEWAY
Leogang - Freeway w/ dirt, roots, some rox
Norway - Freeway (albeit super sick freeway) w/ a rocky detour

Just thought bubbling
Click to expand...
Despite not being on the same level as Champery/VDS etc., there's nothing tame about those tracks (disclaimer: I haven't ridden any of them, but have plenty of mates that have); Leogang and Hafjell have some serious tech, and MSA and FW are crazy fast and rough. Gotta remember too that nothing ever looks as steep on camera.

Also, at least 3 of the top riders didn't finish this season due to injury, I can imagine that getting worse if every track was on par with Champery. (FWIW those kinds of tracks are my favourite too).

Edit: Stevie can do it, would be good to see Sam get back on top as well.
 
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G

General Lee

Turbo Monkey
Oct 16, 2003
2,860
0
The 802
dhbrigade said:
Never really understood why they put tons of gravel on those bikepark tracks. Leave a track as natural as it is and ride it as hard as you can. Within 2 years you will get a beauty of DH track.
Click to expand...
Wait for snow to melt, open bike park, close bike park, ski all winter, wait for snow to melt. . . . sell tickets while never touching a shovel again. Lather, rinse, repeat for 4 or 5 years.
 
dhbrigade

dhbrigade

Chimp
Feb 21, 2006
89
2
General Lee said:
Wait for snow to melt, open bike park, close bike park, ski all winter, wait for snow to melt. . . . sell tickets while never touching a shovel again. Lather, rinse, repeat for 4 or 5 years.
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Exactly. Know some czech tracks that are handled like this. They get rougher and rougher every year. Great fun to ride.
 
norbar

norbar

KESSLER PROBLEM. Just cause
Jun 7, 2007
11,516
1,738
Warsaw :/
gemini2k said:
I think people overestimate their riding abilities when watching WC tracks. What might seem "boring and bike park-y" is actually a trail littered with super technical sections and humongous features.
Click to expand...

Yup. Most of them even when they are Freeway-ish the freeway is very rough (Schlad is a great example) and way faster than regular tracks. Not to mention how tech the wood sections are. I've ridden 4 or 5 WC tracks and while all of them are rideable I wasn't riding fast on any of them, even though I like Maribor WC track. They will test your body. Even when you think you're fit.
 
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General Lee

Turbo Monkey
Oct 16, 2003
2,860
0
The 802
dhbrigade said:
Exactly. Know some czech tracks that are handled like this. They get rougher and rougher every year. Great fun to ride.
Click to expand...
Read again, I think you've misunderstood me. Leogang is the way it is because they want a 'sustainable' trail, which has come to mean as maintenance free as possible. All fine and good, just don't call it a World Cup track. But with no incentive to do otherwise don't expect it to change.

People love to bag on South Africa but at least they actually make an effort.
 
R

ritche

Monkey
Dec 3, 2011
311
19
what's the best tire for wooden planks and rubber matting?....just joking

why not remove it during WC race time?
 
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E

EVIL JN

Monkey
Jul 24, 2009
491
24
Looks like they have teched up the woods a bit from last year atleast, still it is way tamer than the first time when I was there. First berm section now was so sketchy it was ridiculous. I am not against some berms an jumps here and there but there should still be a higher % of proper dh tech than smooth gravel, berms and jumps etc.
 
norbar

norbar

KESSLER PROBLEM. Just cause
Jun 7, 2007
11,516
1,738
Warsaw :/
General Lee said:
Read again, I think you've misunderstood me. Leogang is the way it is because they want a 'sustainable' trail, which has come to mean as maintenance free as possible. All fine and good, just don't call it a World Cup track. But with no incentive to do otherwise don't expect it to change.

People love to bag on South Africa but at least they actually make an effort.
Click to expand...

That is true. My first time in leo was 6 years ago and it has progressively been getting worse and worse. It's still popular because it's close to big cities but the whole park is a wasted opportunity. Maintanance is non existant and some jumps were made by a crazy person when you land short on the first one in a rythm and then flat land the 2nd jump that's only 50m away.
 
slyfink

slyfink

Turbo Monkey
Sep 16, 2008
9,874
5,724
Ottawa, Canada
I'm just sad that they taped up the "Hart hukk" from the berms into the woods section from two years ago. Isn't that the same place Matti cartwheeled "tomahawked" his bike into the trees? that was a gnarly line that needed testicles of steel to launch into... and mad skillz to pull it off.

I love how we have the recurring conversations on RM about how great certain tracks are (were) and why can't all tracks be the same. Next will be the people saying "we have local tracks that are totally WC worthy", and then the explanation that the town needs to be able to host the whole WC circus, and then how much it costs for promoters to bring the race to the mountain.

See, I just resumed four pages of discussion in one post, so now we can get back to the racing. Leogang is what it is. I think Smith will prevail and take the overall. But that's just caus' I'm Canadian. The reality is that there are so many people that have the skills and fitness to win on this track, it's a total crapshoot as far as I'm concerned. Smith, Gee, Blenki, Hart, SikMik, Minnaar... so strong right now.

And as trib said, is Fairclough serious about the 29r/650b combo?! wtf, that has to be bullsh!t... I can't believe I'm falling for that... but am I?
 
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T

trib

not worthy of a Rux.
Jun 22, 2009
1,688
711
The claudio/Longden video doesn't make it seem too easy. I think Smith will still be riding the bigger bike.

I ride hardtails and road bikes though, what do I know.
 
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trib

not worthy of a Rux.
Jun 22, 2009
1,688
711
you're the only one speaking sense in this forum too.

excitement, good.

poorly informed rants, bad.

rife speculation, ok
 
cableguy

cableguy

Monkey
Jun 23, 2007
463
1
Southern California
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