[Trekrules]

I know that most world cup races are held at lift acces mountain resorts & bikeparks,been following world cup downhill races for about 10 years and they are always very thrilling to watch with allot of action.But i always wondering after watching some of the best South American urban downhill races like Valparaiso etc that draws massive crowd of spectators.

Could a urban style downhill track like in South America for example be worthy for a world cup venue?

 

[Mo(n)arch]

For sure! That would really push the popularity of dh racing. Red Bull made the same with their crashed ice serie for example. Result: 30.000+ spectators and one hell of an event. Maybe with RedBull as media partner for the World Cup there will be an event like this in the future.

 

[norbar]

Why a world cup event? I'd rather see a big urban dh event out of the WC circut. the WC badge won't really draw more casual viewers.

 

[William42]

Why a world cup event? I'd rather see a big urban dh event out of the WC circut. the WC badge won't really draw more casual viewers.

I think the idea would be to draw more regular viewers to the WC, not the other way around.

And as much as I think that real DH biking should be on dirt, I like the idea of drawing more viewers, sponsors, and riders.

 

[jonKranked]

its not a matter of whether or not its cool, it's a question of who is gonna put up the $$ to host the event (which is still a question when it comes to bike parks / resorts)

 

[norbar]

I think the idea would be to draw more regular viewers to the WC, not the other way around.

And as much as I think that real DH biking should be on dirt, I like the idea of drawing more viewers, sponsors, and riders.

So if there is a WC label casual viewers who see dh for the first time will follow the rest of the circut and without the WC label they won't? I guess crankworx was **** before fmba then

 

[Transcend]

The last thing they need is the world cup involved. They have UCI points and UCI officials and they are enough of a pain in the ass as it is.

 

[PArider29]

its not a matter of whether or not its cool, it's a question of who is gonna put up the $$ to host the event (which is still a question when it comes to bike parks / resorts)

Well this year it was a UCI Class 1 event ... maybe they could swing a WC

 

[Transcend]

Well this year it was a UCI Class 1 event ... maybe they could swing a WC

It has been on and off for about 8 years. It was even hors categorie one year, which is higher than cat 1.

 

[jonKranked]

Well this year it was a UCI Class 1 event ... maybe they could swing a WC

logistics aside, there's still a substantial financial difference between having a race for UCI points, and having an actual WC event.

 

[PArider29]

logistics aside, there's still a substantial financial difference between having a race for UCI points, and having an actual WC event.

Please enlighten me.

 

[Transcend]

Please enlighten me.

You have to provide higher prize money, infrastructure, accommodation for the entire UCI staff, a fairly substantial bond etc etc.

The list of financial obligations alone is huge, let alone the technicalities of shutting down a city for 3 days of practice, pit space, completely taped/fenced course 4 days before for inspection etc. Not possible.

 

[General Lee]

You have to provide higher prize money, infrastructure, accommodation for the entire UCI staff, a fairly substantial bond etc etc.

The list of financial obligations alone is huge, let alone the technicalities of shutting down a city for 3 days of practice, pit space, completely taped/fenced course 4 days before for inspection etc. Not possible.

This^^^^^. It's hard enough in some places to get local businesses to allow a one day or even a half-day road race or crit do to concerns about loss of business. Unless the WC race could somehow generate enough revenue for a dense urban area to offset the loss in business it would create then it's not even in the realm of possibility.

The WC would have to be akin to the prestige and participation of something like the NYC Marathon, and even that only gets to use the city street for a couple hours.

 

[Eastern States Cup]

Fraser, how do they get around the practice schedule as a class1 race?

 

[Transcend]

Fraser, how do they get around the practice schedule as a class1 race?

They do not have a set practice schedule as they do with world cups.

 

[jonKranked]

Please enlighten me.

Fraz and Lee hit the nail on the head.

You have to provide higher prize money, infrastructure, accommodation for the entire UCI staff, a fairly substantial bond etc etc.

The list of financial obligations alone is huge, let alone the technicalities of shutting down a city for 3 days of practice, pit space, completely taped/fenced course 4 days before for inspection etc. Not possible.

This^^^^^. It's hard enough in some places to get local businesses to allow a one day or even a half-day road race or crit do to concerns about loss of business. Unless the WC race could somehow generate enough revenue for a dense urban area to offset the loss in business it would create then it's not even in the realm of possibility.

The WC would have to be akin to the prestige and participation of something like the NYC Marathon, and even that only gets to use the city street for a couple hours.

 

[Pslide]

Should ASP World Tour Surfing add a stop in Chicago on Lake Michigan so they can pull more of a crowd?

Uh, no.

I'm for keeping the mountain in mountain biking. Just my opinion.

 

[iRider]

You also have to consider what the Pro racers are thinking about the course. For example Willingen WC had a ton of spectators and IMO a different but awesome course. It was extremely fun to watch but the Pros kept on bitching about it. And then there was Canberra....but I guess it was OK after Peaty won the stripes there. I am all for variety. So bring on an UCI sanctioned urban DH race.....and a Kamikaze style event!

 

[ldw222]

i say no...i was a "professional" paintball player in the 90's. we did make a little money at it here and there but the best part was that we traveled all over the world, played paintball, and got everything paid for. but they took it out of the woods more and more putting the tournaments on in weirder and weirder places on man made fields hoping for the same thing...audiences, tv shows, media, and all that. it sucked and no one wanted to watch it and i quit after a while. sure there were some people there but for the most part the general public doesn't know what is going on. i think the same thing goes for dh racing in its own way. the track is too big and only one guy is on it at a time. once in a while a bike goes by really fast and people will lose interest. people want to be able to watch sports where you can see the whole thing at once (e.g. a football field) and there is a focus (e.g. a football). it's a great sport but the only real interest will come from people who do it themselves or have done it...keep it in the woods!

 

[Banshee Rider]

i say no...i was a "professional" paintball player in the 90's. we did make a little money at it here and there but the best part was that we traveled all over the world, played paintball, and got everything paid for. but they took it out of the woods more and more putting the tournaments on in weirder and weirder places on man made fields hoping for the same thing...audiences, tv shows, media, and all that. it sucked and no one wanted to watch it and i quit after a while. sure there were some people there but for the most part the general public doesn't know what is going on. i think the same thing goes for dh racing in its own way. the track is too big and only one guy is on it at a time. once in a while a bike goes by really fast and people will lose interest. people want to be able to watch sports where you can see the whole thing at once (e.g. a football field) and there is a focus (e.g. a football). it's a great sport but the only real interest will come from people who do it themselves or have done it...keep it in the woods!

Well put. Building off that, it really puts into scope how impressive of an event the Tour De France is from a coverage and popularity standpoint.

 

[norbar]

Should ASP World Tour Surfing add a stop in Chicago on Lake Michigan so they can pull more of a crowd?

Uh, no.

I'm for keeping the mountain in mountain biking. Just my opinion.

Great example. I'm with you on that though Fraser reminds us of the main reason why it won't happen.


@iRider tbh for a WC race I think there would be a lot of complaining for the pros. Urban races are much more dangerous and the differances would be smaller therefore it would not really be about technical dexterity but rather not making mistakes.

 

[knarrr]

Urban or not, there need to be a WC stop in South America. Downhill is popular in both hemispheres, and the WC schedule ought to take advantage of this. Lots of talented riders in South America, plenty of mountains, and this huge gap between the South Africa WC stop and the rest of the tour....seems pretty obvious.

 

[Transcend]

Urban or not, there need to be a WC stop in South America. Downhill is popular in both hemispheres, and the WC schedule ought to take advantage of this. Lots of talented riders in South America, plenty of mountains, and this huge gap between the South Africa WC stop and the rest of the tour....seems pretty obvious.

Until you realize that as it is, the current schedule is barely affordable by even some of the bigger teams. South Africa alone costs some of the large squads more than $15 000 in airfare alone. Would be be great to have more races in more places? Sure. I love South America, I would go in a heartbeat, but it's simply not financially viable at this point when teams are already struggling with budgets and travel costs.

It would make more sense to have a NZ/AUS back to back round, or Chile/Brazil etc. At least make the travel costs worth it. (And have real mountains and real tracks to race on.)

 

[norbar]

Until you realize that as it is, the current schedule is barely affordable by even some of the bigger teams. South Africa alone costs some of the large squads more than $15 000 in airfare alone. Would be be great to have more races in more places? Sure. I love South America, I would go in a heartbeat, but it's simply not financially viable at this point when teams are already struggling with budgets and travel costs.

It would make more sense to have a NZ/AUS back to back round, or Chile/Brazil etc. At least make the travel costs worth it. (And have real mountains and real tracks to race on.)

That's why I had high hopes for the dh1 series. From what Ray has claimed it was also to be more realistic venue wise. PMB may seem fun but the track doesn't wow anyone and there are no tracks around to link it to anything.


btw. Aren't there rumors about a Japanese WC in 2014? That would mean either killing PMB or even higher costs.

 

[?????]

How do the World Cup teams pack up all of their bikes, clothes, pads, armor, helmet, tools, and spares of everything on the plane?

And what's cooler than downhill on streets?


...downhill on dirt.

 

[supercow]

Should ASP World Tour Surfing add a stop in Chicago on Lake Michigan so they can pull more of a crowd?

Uh, no.

I'm for keeping the mountain in mountain biking. Just my opinion.

Weelll, not to nit pick, but they stopped in New York (Long beach) last year for exactly this reason.
Turns out they got a bit of swell, but it's hardly A+ venue for surfing.

Bobby wasn;t happy about it
http://www.aspworldtour.com/2011/09/07/bobby-martinez-disqualified-from-asp-competition-in-new-york/

Also, they have dropped the Billabong Pro - J-Bay event this year for financial reasons. Everyone knows J-Bay pumps some of the best waves in the world, and never fails to deliver (though last year it wasn't great for the contest)

http://www.aspworldtour.com/2012/02/23/billabong-pro-jeffreys-bay-downgrades-from-asp-world-title-to-asp-6-star-for-2012/

Agree on your point though, keep the mountain biking to the mountains!

 

[p-spec]

never


should there be a fat camp 600+lbs playboy photoshoot ???

never

 

[manhattanprjkt83]

Until you realize that as it is, the current schedule is barely affordable by even some of the bigger teams. South Africa alone costs some of the large squads more than $15 000 in airfare alone. Would be be great to have more races in more places? Sure. I love South America, I would go in a heartbeat, but it's simply not financially viable at this point when teams are already struggling with budgets and travel costs.

It would make more sense to have a NZ/AUS back to back round, or Chile/Brazil etc. At least make the travel costs worth it. (And have real mountains and real tracks to race on.)

Is that really the reason there isnt currently a stop?