08/21/2008

Kokanee Crankworx 2007 Slopestyle Report An American sneaks his way into the Great White North for a new take on the event

This was the fourth year of the Saturday night gong show at Whistler, and every year has been bigger than the one before. I've covered Slopestyle (in its current format) since it was launched. I was there when Paul Bas was just some kid from Nevada and didn't have any sponsors to thank, when Bearclaw did the 360 off the road gap and got robbed of the crown, when one Cam beat another Cam with a sweet set of tricks to take the big cheque home. And I wrote the words that went along with pictures from the NSMB shooters. So many, many words.

This year, I decided it was time for a break. I would take 2007 off and Cam and I would let a fresh pair of eyes file the Slopestyle report. That honour fell to Ed Snyder, an American from Washington state who was recovering from ankle surgery. At least we knew that he wouldn't be goofing off on a bike when there was work to do...

What follows is Ed's take on the Slopestyle event, complimented as usual with a plethora of amazing shots from NSMB's gifted shooters. I hope you enjoy.

- Stuart Kernaghan

Crankworx Slopestyle at the Whistler Bike Park is the big enchilada. Riders look forward to it like the Superbowl, the Stanley Cup finals and the World Series all rolled into one. It is their unofficial world championship. The best of the best risk it all to win it all, and this year's course looked to challenge them as never before. Before the opening runs went off, several storylines were already shaping up and flavouring this year's showdown in the Boneyard.

The best and brightest riders were back, led by Cam Zink, who came looking for a repeat win after taking the title in 2006. A pack of young Whistler locals were angling to turn lap after lap on their home course into a major advantage, and over 100 other riders were hungrily eyeing the open qualifying round as their ticket to freeride stardom. The best 26" riders in the world descended on Whistler's doorstep for Crankworx Slopestyle 2007 and it was time to get it on.

Grant Fielder came all the way from England to say hello to the Whistler locals in his own special way || Photo: David Ferguson

The Course
This year's course was a study in size. It lit off at the top with the Mavic drop box and riders then had to choose distinctly different right and left lines. Right was the larger of the two, with a massive step down to step up combo that led riders to a quarter pipe transfer. The left line led riders over a small gap and through the woods towards the now-famous Whistler road gap and bowl jump combo. Riders could also choose to drop off the road gap to the side and head for a double-layered jump box.

Bearclaw beats the Gap-o-tron landing into submission || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

The two lines then merged and riders headed back and forth across the hill to a series of wall rides and smaller jumps, and eventually out over long ramp that led to the "Gap-o-tron" drop over the main video screen. This last drop towards the village crowd was immense, measuring a full 30' (10m) to the dirt transition below.

The middle part of the course - double box on the left, Giro trailer on the right || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

Riders came off the Giro trailer and into these jumps / wooden kicker before the Gap-o-tron || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

Bearclaw launching off the Gap-o-tron at the bottom of the course during warm-up || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

The Qualifiers
As riders began practice on Thursday for the qualifying round, the goal was clear. Eighteen riders would advance to join last years' top six finishers to create the field of 24 for Saturday's Slopestyle final. Over 100 riders took to the course looking for a shot to show the judges their 'A' game and earn a shot at glory and mix it up with the sport's top guns before a capacity crowd in the final.

Riders were divided into three heats, with each rider getting to post two runs in his or her heat. Some big names were in the qualifying this year. Paul Basagoitia was a notable name in the early going - he didn't finish in last years' top six. He cruised through qualifying, doing just enough to show the judges he belonged without extra risk or reaching too deeply in to his bag of tricks reserved for Saturday's big show.

Paul B. working the kinks out - slope style. || Photo: Malcolm McLaws

The rest of the qualifiers worked hard to distinguish themselves from the sea of riders. This led to some riders pushing beyond their limits in the early going. The first heat was marred by a serious crash as a rider ejected over the step down and landed very hard. The first-rate Whistler patrollers were on scene to help him immediately, but he left the hill in an ambulance before qualifying continued. The third heat also featured a rash of crashes as riders overestimated their abilities on the very demanding course. By the end of qualifying, more than a dozen riders had been taken off for medical attention.

Kyle McDonald, leading the charge for the Whistler youth movement. || Photo: David Ferguson

Locals made the most of their home court advantage throughout qualifying. The Whistler youth movement was well represented with Kyle McDonald, Alex Prochazka and Brandon Semenuk all using their familiarity with the course and knowledge gained from sessions in Whistler's Airdome to move on. As the rest of the qualifiers made their bids for a spot in the Slopestyle final, it became clear that Saturday's event would have decidedly international flavour. Australia, France, Norway, Spain, the UK and the U.S. all tossed riders into the fray to join Canada's best. The stage was set.

Andreu Lacondeguy carried the Spanish hopes at Crankworx 2007 || Photo: David Ferguson

The Crankworx Slopestyle at Whistler is the pinnacle of competition and exposure in this burgeoning discipline. A win at this world-wide mecca of the sport can make the rider a household name overnight in mountain biking circles. All the riders know what is at stake and are willing to risk everything to stand on top of the podium. With the stakes that high, Whistler Bike Park tries to build the biggest and best course in the world to showcase the elite talent on hand for the event.

The course designers push the envelope every year and this year was no different, with one exception: Richie Schley's name was no longer on the marquee as the 'lead' designer. John Cowan got that honour this year. He didn't shy away from the task, and the course had huge volume. The jumps were immense and the exposure was equally large.

Berrecloth on the SRAM wallride || Photo: Malcolm McLaws

As riders worked out the kinks over this year's course, it became clear that it was more difficult than previous editions. The transitions were not as smooth or dialed-in, and the right and left lines did not allow as much flow as in the past. Some elements, like the quarter pipe, lacked traction. This forced 90% of the riders to stay conservative (and upright) rather than tricking aggressively off those features.

The Finals
Rider dissatisfaction with the course was evident but so was the notion that when all was said and done, you did your best on the field provided. One Canadian rider summed it up: "It is what it is. You gotta deal with it, right?" There was no doubt that despite the riders' dissatisfaction with the course, when the flag dropped on Saturday's event they would pin it to the limit in the quest for the top spot.

Soininen's HUGE superman seatgrab. || Photo: David Ferguson

Saturday dawned cool and cloudy with the threat of changeable alpine weather that is common at Whistler. The largest worry early in the day was the strong breeze at the top of the course. During practice it was a factor, but it calmed down and the weather held off nicely, allowing the competition to go off without a hitch. Riders trickled into the Boneyard course about noon to work on their tricks a few more times before crunchtime. By just after 2 p.m., riders were off the course and waiting for the event to begin.

Andreu Lacondeguy (left) getting warmed up for Slopestyle with the support of his crew || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

At 5 p.m., the crowd was packed on to the hill and in full voice. They wanted a big show and it was coming. Geoff Gulevich lead off the finals and took the less-used left line leading to a backflip onto the jump box.

That set the tone right away and the rest of the riders followed suit. Everyone was pushing their limits and crashes were not uncommon in the early going. Grant Fielder recovered from an early crash on the top of the course, pulling together a solid run including a backflip of his own that got the crowd roaring.

Spectators are a huge part of the Slopestyle event. These young ladies were Gully fans. || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

The crowd letting the riders feel the love. || Photo: Malcom McLaws

Each of the 24 riders had two runs in the finals. Their best run score would stand and the top 12 would advance to the super finals for two more runs. This put pressure on riders to go hard right off the bat. If they crashed in the first, they had to nail down a solid second pass to keep alive any hope of advancing. This meant big tricks came out of the bag early and often. Backflips, Superman seat grabs, and 360s were sprinkled in to almost all of the runs.

Pokoj - Before the fall || Photo: David Ferguson

Australia's Darren Pokoj looked tremendous in practice and his first run didn't disappoint. He backflipped early in his run and rode strongly down the rest of the course. The tension was building and the spectators knew that one of the riders would break the seal and try a big trick off the Gap-o-tron drop to play to the huge crowd assembled below. Pokoj was guinea pig for a huge finishing move. He went for it and paid the price, going down extremely hard and knocking himself unconscious in the process. While he was the first to try and tame the final drop, he would not be the last.

Local ripper Alex Prochazka didn't wait long after Pokoj was scooped up and runs resumed to show the world he was ready to step up. He was the first to backflip the step down / step up combo and did it with style.

Alex Pro flips over the step up, on his way to earning a spot in the next round || Photo: Malcolm McLaws

Paul B. followed with nice combo run, including a backflip and then tried his hand at tailwhiping the final drop. His set-up was clean but he landed slightly nose-heavy, tacoing his front wheel and initiating a pinwheel crash that folded him in half. Ever the gamer, he was up right away, shaking off the cobwebs. Incredibly, Paul came back to have strong second run.

Paul B. finding his inner pretzel. Amazingly he walked away and rode on in the competition.|| Photo: Cam McRae

Andreu Lacondeguy served notice he wanted a super final spot with a huge backflip of his own and a 360 out of the satellite dish ramp near the bottom of the course. Kyle Strait went big and broke his bike on the first run, adding pressure for his second pass. The level continued to elevate as the heavy hitters came on line late in the heat. Darren Berrecloth, Ben Boyko and Cam McCaul all posted solid efforts with plenty of sparkle. Last year's winner, Cam Zink, decided to close out the first heat by serving notice he was primed for a repeat. He was the first rider to backflip the step down, openly tossing down the gauntlet for the second heat.

Bearclaw launches off the quarter and over the hip || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

Dave Smurtok gets all artsy on us. || Photo: David Ferguson

Ian Nelson's flying lessons paid off with a smooth no-hander. || Photo: Malcolm McLaws

With the bar set fairly high after the first heat, riders knew they needed results to get attention and earn a spot in the final. Whistler's Kyle McDonald pulled together a big second run and capped it with a no-hander off the final drop. NSMB's own Ian Nelson posted a solid second effort by focusing on riding the big lines smoothly and with style, rather than hanging out big tricks he might not land. He pinned his hopes on one of his two solid runs being enough to move on.

Ian Nelson flies the nsmb colours with a no hander off the Giro trailer || Photo: Stuart Kernaghan

Grant Fielder decided to grab for the brass ring over the last drop and crashed attempting a tailwhip. Although he didn't land it, Fielder walked away and earned a big cheer for his effort. Basagoitia rebounded from his slam in his first run for an inspiring second run that netted him a ticket to the final twelve. Boyko, Strait and McCaul finished off the heat with runs worthy of a spot in the big show and Berrecloth and Zink both passed on their second runs, knowing their first efforts had them in the super finals.

Ben Boyko wasn't about to miss out on the fun over the step up, as he shows with this Superman seat grab || Photo: Malcolm McLaws

PART 2: The Super Finals