fort william

[kona krew [26"]]

whats up with sam hill lately?? hes not doing as good although he said he will try and lead it again..

although greg minaar has always been up the top 3 or so

 

[S.]

Clearly he has no talent left.

 

[Saffa]

Everyone has a few bad days.
greg carried an injury all of last season and still was up there, now he's better it shows, also the track suited the "fitter riders" more, not to say that Sam isn't fit.

 

[kona krew [26"]]

Clearly he has no talent left.

well either your a pessimist or you dont like sam.

but it is nice to think he will still put in his best effort and do well for his racing career and sponsors no matter the circumstances!

exactly right saffa, some riders are stronger on the technical part and some are stronger on the fast tracks

 

[S.]

well either your a pessimist or you dont like sam.

but it is nice to think he will still put in his best effort and do well for his racing career and sponsors no matter the circumstances!

I was being sarcastic... nobody wins everything. He's still been on the podium in every race this year. Oh noes, he's not winning all the races by 7 seconds - so what?

 

[Ivan]

well either your a pessimist or you dont like sam.

but it is nice to think he will still put in his best effort and do well for his racing career and sponsors no matter the circumstances!

They said after the race that they accidentally had the anit-squat on Sam's bike turned off, which is why he wasn't on the pace.

 

[nickmann]

Everyone has a few bad days.
also the track suited the "fitter riders" more

Rennie.....

 

[Ozza]

Sam cannot win everything, and just because he doesnt win a race doesnt necceserily mean he had a bad day! The fact is some tracks dont suit some riders as much as others.

Look at who Sam is up against, the whole sydicate team is 6 foot massive and physicaly alot stronger than Sam. Im not at all saying this track put an unfair disadvantage on Sam, as physical strength is one of the most important factors of downhill. But at Fort Bill (Physical demanding track eg long and pedally) it is almost like a light weight vs a heavy weight in boxing.

As you all know, Sam is an amazing rider! Just because he flogged everybody last year doesnt mean he is going to do it over and over again on every track. He has already shown us a month ago at Maribor that he is hard to beat in his suited conditions.

 

[ajay]

He has already shown us a month ago at Maribor that he is hard to beat in his suited conditions.

Thats it, thats where he shines. Steep technical stuff. Last year he won Maribour, Mt St Anne, and Schladming, all pretty technical tracks (although MSA is pretty damn long) and the Worlds - it was wet.

The 2 earlier rounds: Champery - as wet and technical as they come. Pure bike skill, power at fitness would be secondary to bike control, and Vigo - got rained out, but not so steep so power is big factor.

 

[Kirky]

Since when was getting 5th in a world cup considered bad?

 

[Ozza]

Since when was getting 5th in a world cup considered bad?

It isnt.... But some people hold super high expectations on the fella. I think Sam would be quite happy with 5th. (Well not dissapointed)

Yep your right Ajay.

Mt Beauty was loose and muddy, Rotura is pretty technical (from what i have seen in vids) and was some what tacky.

 

[jda]

You got to be taking the piss?

 

[Adrian]

They said after the race that they accidentally had the anit-squat on Sam's bike turned off, which is why he wasn't on the pace.

sigged. booya.

 

[Grebbo]

He has already shown us a month ago at Maribor that he is hard to beat in his suited conditions.

Absolutely. There were a few tracks last year that were virtually tailor made for Sam. Champery, Schladdming, Maribor. I think Peat cracked at MSA, and with Minnar not fully fit, it virtually handed Sam the win on a track not suited to his style. Vigo, wasn't his day, not his style of track, and he bent a crank (fully fit?).

There is also some luck involved. At the WC in Bill, Peat broke his seat post (also back from injury?), Barrel was coming back from a long time off the bike, Minnar wasn't fit, Rennie was out of sorts, and, it was wet. Not to take it away from him, he rode awesomely. It's just the fickle nature of the world champs.

Sam is the undisputed master of steep and technical. There isn't a rider that can touch him in those conditions.

I'm sure that the rest of the field are relieved at the venue schedule for this years world cups. There are 7 races (only 5 last year, 3 on "his" tracks) so more oportunity to get points. With Fort Bill, MSA and Canberra all suiting the likes of Peat and Minnar, Sam is going to have his work cut out to stay in the hunt for a back to back.

Overall, Gee is the one most likely to spoil the party. He's good in all conditions and seems to be getting better every year. And the world cups is all about consistency.

 

[steffo123]

ok, i believe that he has got a first and a second so far and he gets one position that is still good but not first and he is not good all of the sudden????

 

[Bomb446]

Sams a smaller rider, and while he may have the best line choice and excells on tight technical trails, the bigger riders just have more momentum and carry speed better through the rocks on a trail like Fort William. They generally have more pedal power as well, and the bottom of Ft Bill is all pedalling.

 

[BLAKE-2234]

he did bad cause they ran out of monster energy drink and he didnt have it on his cereal

nah seriously as said nobody wins everything and im sure everyone expected him to win there as he has done it twice before and it just wasnt his day

 

[chu]

i reckon that he will get dropped from monster energy iron horse

not the best thread ever made. but dont worry it will blow over

 

[patto_15]

All i have to say is.... Its a world cup, not a world champs... I would have thought winning the overall would be what he is after rather than winning just one or every round (though he would certainly like to). Fort Bill is a very demanding track, and for a rider of Sam's stature he would have been out just to cruise (not saying he didnt go hard), so he didnt injure himself so close to the up coming World Champs.. Think also, it was only a week since Sam got 2nd at the previous WC round at Andorra.. One week isnt much time to recover, travel then get used to one of the most unforgiving, demanding tracks on the circuit.. Give him a brake.. I'd say Sam wasn't out to win it, mearly just do well to hold his series lead. Sam is playing his cards to ensure he does well at the World Champs, building himself up to them, making sure in time he doesnt injure himself, while in turn ensuring he still stays on top of the series.. He is playing tatically, not falling off the pace

*still, i'm not trying to take away the win and awesome ride from Greg, Gee, Steve or Rennie, they rode well, and evidently, better than Sam on the day..

 

[HEC]

At this level all the riders are so close together. One mistake and you'll probably lose a few positions. Besides at Vallnord Minaar looked real good, after the switchbacks right at the beginning, he was one of the only riders to clear the humps with a perfectly judged bunny hop that would of made him some good time. Little things like this here and there all add up.