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MVP is one of the most skillfull bike riders in the world . Why would he choose to slow down and roll that rock jump even if the ramp had been there ? That would cause him to lose momentum and time when he is quite capable of jumping it like all the rest of the field .
Because on lap one when everyone's in a big group elbow to elbow and it's a bit nervy it can be the safe option while the race settles down. If one of the riders in front had stalled, fallen, whatever, it gives you more options to avoid them and not lose time or crash yourself. Same as using the B lines on lap one to avoid traffic jams.
MVP is one of the most skillfull bike riders in the world . Why would he choose to slow down and roll that rock jump even if the ramp had been there
dunno but the evidence he did so is backed up by a video of him doing so and subsequent photos of it going wrong ....
He did it that wasnt ever in dispute - its his supposed reason for doing it thats doubtful....
Neff and PFP do have previous form. Cyclocross 2018. Neff breaks elbow and collarbone...
Yeah... but that just looks like a crash as opposed to anything nefarious or dangerous, rider on high line can't hold the high line, loses front wheel, drifts down into rider on low line. Not sure how she could have avoided it really. Nasty though.
I'm with you markgraylish, that course was ace. A mountain bike race in 2021 should require full sus and a dropper, and this one did. I'd watch a lot more xc if it's like this. What a great day for British mountain biking.
As for the drop, the dude just messed up. Extra respect to Pidcock for not running him over.
"Mathieu van der Poel, another of the pre-race favourites, pulled out after the fifth lap having crashed heavily early on. “He went in super slow and I backed off because I knew that wasn’t going to end well,” Pidcock said."
that just looks like a crash as opposed to anything nefarious or dangerous
Yeah, I can't really see why anyone would try to do this deliberately.
He'll be back - his wins are often spectacular, and so are his disappointments. According to Wielerflits he may aim to bounce back at the MTB Worlds in Val di Sole - it wouldn't be a huge surprise if he won both the XCC & XCO World titles...as Pidcock will be at the Vuelta.
https://www.wielerflits.nl/nieuws/mathieu-van-der-poel-gaat-via-wk-mountainbike-naar-wk-op-de-weg/
MVP is one of the most skillfull bike riders in the world . Why would he choose to slow down and roll that rock jump even if the ramp had been there ? That would cause him to lose momentum and time when he is quite capable of jumping it like all the rest of the fiel
Looked like he was going to pump down the ramp to me (hence nosediving so hard), which might not have been all that much slower maybe...?
A mountain bike race in 2021 should require full sus and a dropper,
100% agree. If riders (professional or grass roots) don’t like that, they can go to CX - which many of the subjects of this thread also race successfully.
What a load of nonsense. If I want to enter an XC race on a hard-tail with no dropper that is up to me.
If I may backtrack a bit - a full suspension with a dropper should be the ‘ideal solution’ to such a race, rather than mandatory.
Obviously there isn’t anything stopping you (although they may have something to say about your dropped bar fixed gear) but it should be an equipment disadvantage.
One that might be overcome at the amateur by having significantly more skill than your competitors.
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MVP is one of the most skillfull bike riders in the world . Why would he choose to slow down and roll that rock jump even if the ramp had been there ? That would cause him to lose momentum and time when he is quite capable of jumping it like all the rest of the fiel
Looked like he was going to pump down the ramp to me (hence nosediving so hard), which might not have been all that much slower maybe…?
Interesting points.
to add, if he had meant to pump, why would he end up sort of half-jumping it?
Also consider that the women knew it would be in place and many of them effectively did the jump direct to the rocks on landing missing out the ramp anyway.
So rather than anything shady, did VdP just get caught between pumping and jumping and just mess it up? or does it look like he was trying to pump it and ended up pumping thin air?
So rather than anything shady, did VdP just get caught between pumping and jumping and just mess it up? or does it look like he was trying to pump it and ended up pumping thin air?
Or alternately you could just say that he fell off and was therefore not the best rider on the day and did not win as a result.
What a load of nonsense. If I want to enter an XC race on a hard-tail with no dropper that is up to me.
And if you're not able to ride the main lines, take the chicken-lines instead.
I heard that the ramp control on his fork failed.
MvP mis-judged. Did he mean to jump it? Did he mean to roll it? Form his socials I'd say it was a moment of indecision that even he isn't sure of. No mystery, no conspiracy. The guy's human.