The Brian Lopes wins the air downhill for the fourth year in a row.
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Words and Photos by: Fraser Britton
Flyin' Brian Lopes is unstoppable when it comes to racing his way down the most ridden freeride trail on earth. The former 4x world champion was in fine form taking the competition to school once again on the fabled A-Line jump trail here in Whistler.
Rain on and off all week had made parts of the trail slick, as the blue groove turned to slime making berms treacherous and the faces of the jumps icy in some spots. Pedaling is the rule of the day here, as riders make their way over 100+ jumps in what amounts to a four and a half minute sprint through the Whistler Bike Park.
Lopes ran a 4:20.45, over 3 seconds ahead of his nearest rival, Chain Reaction Intense's Chris Kovarik. The Australian looked to be in fine form heading to the World Championships in Canberra, a course that requires much of the same fitness as the Air Downhill.
Third place went to South Africa's Andrew Neethling who scored a 4:24.42.
For the women it was Fionn Griffiths taking a surprising win in front of the favorite and Olympic BMX Bronze medallist, Jill Kintner with a 4:50.71. France's Emmeline Ragot placed third and Canada's Micayla Gatto took 4th.
