Making Up The Numbers MTB Podcast with Benoit Coulanges, Camille Balanche, & discontent in the pits.

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[Music]
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[Music]
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thank you
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welcome to the making of the numbers
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podcast
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I'm making up the numbers podcast is
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sponsored by hope technology j-tech
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suspension Revolution Bike Barn ride
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southern Spain schwalt on the world's
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finest independent mountain bike
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magazine single track
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hello and welcome to episode 6 of season
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five it's only been six weeks since the
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last episode but it feels like a
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lifetime ago we've had four huge races
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in that time and we'll be working our
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way through those shortly then we'll be
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joined by the winner of the legere World
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Cup Memoir cool arms before closing out
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the show with a few predictions for the
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final two World Cups of the season and
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some team rumors Jack Emmy let's get
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into it and let's start with worlds can
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can you remember that far back
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no
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neither well I've written a few bits so
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as we've got some scripts off firstly
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can I just say a big thank you to
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everyone I met when I was up in Fort
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William from Charlie hatton's mum to
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Ryan pinkerton's dad everyone at James
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loves the Pod and you never get tired of
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hearing nice things about the things you
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do so thank you in the junior women it
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was a kiwi one two three Eris van leuven
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took the win with popular and grabbing
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silver and Sasha Ernest bronze so first
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question Emmy are these girls all first
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year Juniors and just how good are they
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going to be
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I think I think they all are to be
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honest and also it was pretty funny
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because of course Jonah Hasting was
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um the reigning world champ so obviously
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she was like very interested and she
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watched the race and then
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um passing on her like world's Jersey to
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another key it was very special to her
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and I feel like
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yeah they're all gonna be like Sasha got
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picked up actually by um track Factory
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racing like if only just before
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well so she raced on a Trek bike and she
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hadn't really ridden it so she she was
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struggling a little bit because I think
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she's shown like that she has the
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probably the most roast beast of the
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three
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um but she still like makes a lot of
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mistakes and also like obviously like
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with the new bike and everything she had
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to like get into it but she still got
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bronze and Poppy Lane was like also
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someone that we didn't see much so far
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but she proved to be like very strong I
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think like kiwi is a proven also in
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other categories to be fasting but
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willing before so yeah it was it was
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very good to see cool and in junior man
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Henry Kiefer took the win but then
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crashed out in Andorra so we haven't had
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much chance to see more of him in the
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stripes but hopefully he's on the mend
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in Elite women Rachel and Nina had big
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crashes in practice but still rest which
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surprised a lot of people including
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myself Louise Ferguson had a great
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result in fourth Marine in third Cami
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second with a smooth run but she didn't
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really risk it is that pretty accurate
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Emmy
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so she crashed in in qualities and I was
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like very unusual for her yeah and she
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crashed in well it's also the weekend
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before as well so I think it was like
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it's not that she didn't want to risk it
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or whatever but
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there's something going on there I was
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like a little bit like out of a
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character so because she slid out
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completely like
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um unexpected in quality and her bike
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didn't feel right the bike was better
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for finals she said but
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um yeah I think her run was like close
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to take the win
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and value has always been strong and
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fought willing before Valley didn't very
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did mistakes in the past so
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um I think a run was like good but
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she didn't really risk it but I think
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also because she crashed in the run
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before I don't know if you guys saw it
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but Valley posted a helmet cam on the
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after the first day of practice and I
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looked at it and I remember seeing it
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was like five minutes five seconds and
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when I went and looked the guys weren't
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going much quicker than the national if
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anything if they if quicker than the
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national and that was already five
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seconds faster than Nina's winning time
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at the at the national and I thought
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crash she's gonna take some beat in here
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did you see that oh
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the course was a little bit different
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than National so I don't know if you can
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really compare
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but um it was definitely faster as well
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the way they like worked on the course
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but but Valley has been so strong this
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year and also like
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she always liked the chorus she also did
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good there so I wasn't surprised at
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right only would take a lot like for
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come to video and especially Nina was
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not on the best weekend with a crush the
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first day on ahead and then crashes
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after crashes so
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um yeah I think kami's silver was like
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her last medal that she missed on the
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set so she was still kind of happy with
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her no she stopped in the men's the
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weather played a huge part um Greg
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Williamson who was a rather
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controversial selection for final
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selection for team GB was leading for a
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long time with the dry run Mike picked
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Annie Hart was going good until he lost
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time on the motorway but Charlie Hatton
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put one together Jack you picked Charlie
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for the win was it track knowledge in
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those conditions was it just holding it
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together when others didn't what do you
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think separated Charlie from the rest
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yeah I think it was a bit of everything
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on the day wasn't it I the room was the
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room was awesome and it it clearly
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clicked for him and
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I've kind of been waiting for Charlie to
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put a result down for a while and I yeah
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I'm surprised it was winning worlds I
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thought he'd get a World Cup Podium
6:04
before he did that book yeah I think
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everybody uh everybody who knows Charlie
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was absolutely over the moon yeah
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obviously he's out injured now and I
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think he might be having an operation
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today because I did speak to him about
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coming on tonight
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um so he'll fast Charlie the big
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question though did do you think he'll
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go on and win a World Cup now
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oh yeah definitely I I think it's just
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becoming more and more like
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whoever's
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good at the time
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is in with a shout on a win and as we
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saw last week especially with I know
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like ended up Fifth but like he was off
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the boil all weekend and he was happy
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with his fifth place and Finn wasn't in
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the mix whereas earlier in the season it
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you know they were right or especially
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Finn was right there so
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yeah you can't rule Charlie out in
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future years of him just building on
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this um you know he's one of the best
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bike handlers on the circuit for sure
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and he's certainly got some confidence
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behind him now so yeah I definitely
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wouldn't be ruling him out on wins but I
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I honestly think the days of
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someone just consistently winning races
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those days have to be over there's just
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too many top guys fighting over 10
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seconds
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yeah so I think I mean look let's look
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at Sunday or Saturday top four three
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nineteen 0.6 separate in the podium it's
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[ __ ] ridiculous it's exciting it's
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ridiculous before we move on I have to
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ask if either of you know what exactly
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happened in Fort William with gregman
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are PA in quality a flat in his race run
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and you think oh that's unlucky but then
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in an interview afterwards does he he's
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not too happy he says we weren't
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prepared for the weather and you see the
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photos after I didn't notice at the time
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but you see the photos after and he's
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gloveless which is really unusual and
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then you go to Andorra and Lyle's been
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moved on to other duties and Greg's got
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a new mechanic you heard any more about
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that
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honestly you've told me things there
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that I didn't know so
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so I've heard he's changed switched
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mechanics yeah
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um but I don't know like what happened I
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know he had a lot of Mechanicals
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um this year
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but I've yeah I haven't had any details
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but yet obviously he's always been a
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contender on this
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on this track and he was riding well in
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practice like
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way better than the rounds like before
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and even in the rounds before when he
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was in writing like I felt like the pace
8:35
of the audio who was still like right
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there before he had a flat tire or
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whatever so I was like oh he's on
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and then he had like in that tight
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attorney obviously made that mistake of
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pushing too hard or whatever with his
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way and I don't know what about the
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other stuff but it's definitely seemed
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to like have helped a little bit because
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he was pretty on it after that so I I
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zoomed into a photo of him gloveless as
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well and it looked like he was running a
9:02
NASA guy on the front and I was like
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yeah that's probably about right I don't
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think he'd have what do you change tires
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in those conditions Jack
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at Fort William yeah I'm not sure
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because I don't run Maxes I can't I
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wouldn't say I think most of them had
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that audio chars I wouldn't I wouldn't
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yeah it would go to more aggressive you
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meant yeah yeah it wasn't didn't look
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like you know they got to the top and
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had gone right let's put some different
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wheels on them they didn't have them
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but then it seems a bit brutal
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if it's just over some gloves you know
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like well I mean it's like Emmy said
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he's had a lot of Mechanicals I mean to
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be honest was Andorra the first race
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really finished like he'd this year is
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almost gone through every quality and
9:45
every race every semi-final sorry just
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on a merit of that number 10 board yeah
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because of his Mechanicals so
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um sometimes it's just you need a change
9:57
and maybe this Syndicate just sat down
9:59
and went right things aren't working
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let's just mix things up I mean I I
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that's just hypothetical I literally
10:04
don't know anything that's been said but
10:07
yeah as Amy said this the changes have
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worked because he's back in the mix
10:13
on to Andorra then and so many talking
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points here we could probably do a whole
10:17
show about about Andorra I think but
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let's start by saying I bet ESO thank
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the Lord that they had another rest
10:23
right after because this was a car crash
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really let's start with Adam Breton
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it seems inconceivable that the 55th
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ranked rider in the current standings
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didn't have enough points to race a
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World Cup I know you've got some strong
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views on this one Jack
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yeah I mean before the Pod I promised
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myself I was gonna uh
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take some advice from thumbprout abandon
10:46
if I haven't got anything nice to say
10:47
don't say anything at all
10:49
so I am going to moderate myself
10:51
um because the last three weeks have
10:53
been you know a bit of a [ __ ] show but I
10:56
mean I used Brayton as an example purely
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because
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he is a rider who has raised two
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semi-finals secured 47 UCI points
11:06
um or World Cup series points we have to
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now distinguish between we never had
11:10
distinguished between that before now
11:13
all of a sudden we have to distinguish
11:15
between that just for semi-finals not
11:18
for qualifying or race but for
11:19
semi-finals apparently there's something
11:21
different which is purely an oversight
11:24
they've gone let's not give the top 30
11:27
points twice in semi-finals and finals
11:30
so we won't give anyone points for semis
11:33
so they've forgotten all about the
11:35
Riders between 31st and 60th in the
11:37
semis so what this means is you could
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qualify
11:42
21st at every World Cup because points
11:45
go down to 20th in qualifying you could
11:48
then finish 31st in every semi-final
11:51
this would laughable laughably give you
11:54
a top 30 overall because of the
11:56
consistency you'd probably end up you
11:58
know somewhere between 25th and 30th in
12:00
the World Cup overall the end of the
12:02
season but if you had done no other
12:04
races
12:06
other than World Cups on the UCI website
12:08
you wouldn't exist you would have zero
12:10
UCI point so you would be a top 30 World
12:13
Cup rider having raised every round
12:17
and 31st in every semi and they wouldn't
12:19
give you any acknowledgment for being
12:21
there and it's purely an oversight it's
12:23
just once again them looking at the top
12:26
people and going that's all we give a
12:28
[ __ ] about everyone else can you know
12:30
sail off down the river we don't care so
12:32
I used Brighton as an example because
12:34
he had a top 60 overall which just made
12:38
it laughable
12:40
Dan slack my teammate is affected by it
12:43
Dan's now back riding and if he wanted
12:45
to come to America despite finishing
12:47
31st in Lanza hide and with those points
12:50
and this Portugal points he has more
12:52
than 40 he still wouldn't be allowed to
12:54
raise Snowshoe Montana Merit he would
12:56
have to apply for a BBC Jersey it's also
12:58
happened to Taylor Vernon
13:00
um
13:01
and probably a few other people so
13:04
yeah Britain was a prime example but
13:06
it's not just him affected
13:08
um and it's just another one of those
13:11
many oversights that this new organizer
13:14
is uh has done this year where they've
13:16
just clearly not not been aware of
13:18
everything they need to be aware of
13:21
yeah for sure like the the the UCA
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points have not been changed like the
13:25
the annex of the rule book hasn't been
13:27
changed it still stays final first to
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60th but because there's only 30 people
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or 31st people or 32nd people in final
13:37
these people
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we'll get points like you see outgoing
13:41
spit but you don't yes below 30th so
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they'll give you points so you can hear
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your funny first you are you have you
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say points but you don't have serious
13:51
problems
13:52
on semis so those guys racing the final
13:55
end of horror which was the second and
13:58
the final together so they got the UCA
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points did they not I don't know uh can
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we check yeah we'll get some reason here
14:05
but I don't know on the day in the
14:08
series we were racing but we got nothing
14:11
everyone from first to 60th we got [ __ ]
14:13
off
14:14
like it is just bizarre and and I spoke
14:19
to one of the uh ESO
14:21
um staff members about this
14:23
just in passing one of my friends I
14:25
won't say the name
14:27
um I think we've got to that stage where
14:28
we publish people now
14:30
um
14:31
and and it's oversight it's not what
14:34
they wanted but because of UCI admin and
14:37
rules and the new organizer it just
14:40
meant close to [ __ ] yeah yeah right and
14:43
there's there's other points like that
14:45
in the rule book as well for example
14:47
serious Pawn for the last round it says
14:52
no points for qualifying
14:54
and then points for final but it doesn't
14:56
say anything about semis so we don't
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know what's going to happen in hell yeah
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what's an ad yeah so so we try to like
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investigate because we're like I'm not
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gonna give any points for semis like if
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I was me I would be like I'm not doing
15:10
Sammy's like if there's no points I'm
15:13
not doing it because if it's muddy and
15:15
you don't have even time to like clean
15:16
your bike especially what would you even
15:18
like
15:18
just go through the gate and then you
15:20
protect it if you protect it you know
15:22
it's like yeah so it's like stuff like
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that is pretty but we are like
15:28
the association and Miriam and Greg we
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all talked about this point issue we
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applied to make some changes there's
15:34
like a deadline mid-season the 31st of
15:36
July we haven't heard anything well I
15:39
heard something so you guys sent your
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document in the UCI yeah UCI myself and
15:45
said what the [ __ ] is going on or what
15:48
was going on and they replied and told
15:50
me again I won't say the name of the
15:52
person I spoke to but they replied and
15:54
told me that oh yeah
15:55
um that's how it is we'll look at it for
15:57
future years
15:58
so they haven't replied to the union
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that they should be replying to but
16:02
they're telling some random Rider
16:03
they're going to go through the UCR
16:05
representative they're not going to go
16:07
directly to the association because
16:10
there's always like kind of like but
16:12
yeah I don't know like what's going on
16:13
with it but why but they've told me
16:16
change until next year when there were
16:18
five World Cups left so yeah but we
16:21
asked for a retroactive change we didn't
16:23
ask for like to do it next year we asked
16:25
to like do it the current year yeah yeah
16:28
I agree with you but what you know what
16:29
I mean yeah I know that and I'm saying
16:32
they haven't got back to you guys and
16:33
replied when they should be done but
16:35
they're telling me some random person
16:37
who's asked the question that nothing
16:38
will be done until next year
16:40
they just it's just a complete [ __ ] show
16:44
and also so it's it's hard to like also
16:48
know
16:49
um because they're all like playing
16:50
themselves you know they're like oh yeah
16:52
that's UCI that's you so like you never
16:54
know who you need to like
16:56
because that's important
16:57
I don't know but it's like it's
16:59
definitely not easy to try to like fix
17:01
some stuff
17:04
let's let's move on to something else
17:06
that happened which was Camis crashing
17:08
seeding and I think she might be there
17:11
Emmy is she available for a quick chat
17:13
yeah I'll just go get her
17:17
Camille bellange how are you doing I'm
17:20
good thank you
17:21
cool talk us through what happened in
17:24
Andorra what can you remember
17:26
well I just know because people told me
17:30
but I don't remember anything from the
17:33
crash and almost six day after so not
17:36
much but yeah basically I was in quality
17:39
run and once I was on the road Gap a big
17:43
wind camp and just blew my my bike under
17:46
me and I I landed
17:48
pretty much Underground on the side and
17:51
yeah hit my like my whole body but my
17:54
head was the worst and yeah how the
17:57
trauma and yeah it was a quite a long
18:00
time to be back but I feel like I'm
18:02
quite kind and normal now in my head at
18:04
least so that's that's really really
18:06
good news and does anyone have any
18:09
footage of this have you have you been
18:10
able to watch it or
18:12
no nobody took any videos I was just
18:15
lucky that
18:16
um a photographer was there and because
18:18
of the wind it didn't took any picture
18:20
because like he lost his heart and
18:22
everything but he saw it and he kind of
18:24
tried to explain me how he was so I kind
18:27
of know yeah what happened but um no I
18:29
don't have any video or anything and we
18:31
still really don't know exactly how I
18:33
crash and what happened after the world
18:35
and why I have like pain there and then
18:37
but yeah I crashed because of the wind
18:40
for sure and three weeks in hospital and
18:43
I believe he he had some real changes to
18:45
your personality with the competition
18:49
the scariest part
18:52
well not for me because I yeah I don't
18:56
remember anything so I don't have any
18:58
memories of me being weird and like you
19:01
know like I don't yeah I don't remember
19:03
those stuff so for sure for my family
19:05
and Emily and all my yeah all my close
19:08
friendly was for sure the hardest but
19:10
for me honestly it was easy like I don't
19:13
remember being in so much pain I don't
19:15
remember crashing so yeah I will say
19:19
yeah there was is like
19:22
yeah you don't know what to expect and
19:24
you don't see that injury because it is
19:26
in the head so you don't know
19:28
how fast is gonna heal and yeah it's
19:31
quite it's super weird injury and for
19:33
sure the the yeah the walls are hard but
19:37
yeah at least you can feel already super
19:40
I'm super happy that every week is going
19:43
better and like my my everything is is
19:46
improving so that yeah that's a really
19:48
good sign and that's also super
19:49
motivating when you see yeah okay I was
19:52
struggling to memorize and then you you
19:54
you miss two words and then just one and
19:57
so yeah that's for sure cool to see and
20:00
I hope I just hope I'm my whole body is
20:03
gonna be back that's something I need to
20:05
wait because I can walk but like
20:08
everything is quite slow like if I want
20:10
to move my foot fast and stuff yeah I
20:13
can feel like today was the first time I
20:15
was back on a bike just to see if like
20:18
the aerobic like the endurance is a
20:20
problem for my head
20:22
and it was all good but I could feel
20:24
that on the bike I was like
20:26
not yeah like I could pedal but it's
20:29
like everything is quite slow and you
20:31
don't feel comfortable and like yeah
20:32
it's super weird so like you're sure
20:35
it's gonna take time but yeah like you
20:36
have to think yeah like I mean I didn't
20:39
have to think about like peddling or
20:41
stuff like that was that was easy but I
20:44
was I'll say most maybe you think about
20:46
what could happen I don't need to like
20:49
I'm not allowed to crash or like you
20:50
know like you're more scared of
20:52
everything it's like quite weird I don't
20:54
know but yeah it was the first time so
20:56
so I believe the physio's already
20:58
started and as you said you're back on a
21:00
bike this season's done and dusted is it
21:03
just now a waiting game until
21:06
they tell you yeah
21:07
yeah I think I will say yeah I need time
21:11
like my body is healing and most of the
21:13
stuff gonna take six weeks so I don't
21:15
have any pain so
21:16
yeah I need to wait I need to be patient
21:19
and then
21:20
at one point when my body's gonna be
21:23
healed we also gonna know if everything
21:24
is 100 back to normal but for that I
21:28
yeah I need more time after three weeks
21:30
it's just too short and then as soon as
21:32
I'm gonna be all good then I'm gonna
21:34
start training again and everything but
21:36
yeah right now it's just a bit like yeah
21:38
I need to be patient and do step by step
21:41
obviously for the head we need also to
21:42
have like protocol testing that was like
21:45
today first 30 minutes Arabic when that
21:48
is okay then you can test the next and
21:50
then coordination whatever but you need
21:52
to go like step by step and not go to
21:54
too faster
21:56
do you Emmy do you want to tell us a bit
21:58
about about the journey what what he's
22:00
been like
22:02
um well that's what when you ask me if I
22:04
remember Fort William I was like no way
22:06
because it felt like these three weeks
22:09
felt like
22:10
I don't know like six months you know in
22:13
the sense of like since the crash and
22:15
the way she was like I was like
22:17
literally I thought
22:19
like me and her sister were there yeah
22:21
like five minutes after the crash and to
22:24
be honest with you I didn't even know
22:25
she would like survive because we didn't
22:28
know she had like internal bleeding she
22:31
was like not making any sense she was
22:32
like erratic like the Medics were pretty
22:35
stressed so we didn't know anything yeah
22:38
so until we had like news that the city
22:40
scan didn't show any internal building
22:42
also the head seemed to be kind of all
22:44
right then we were like first relief you
22:47
know but then she when we talked to her
22:50
or like try to talk to her she was just
22:52
like not talking or like she was just
22:54
like sleeping but then when she was
22:56
awake she was like
22:58
honestly the pain would take over she
23:00
just like really really like aggressive
23:02
and like
23:03
would like say everybody was like you
23:06
know she's swearing like it was it was
23:09
weird and I was like surely something's
23:11
wrong
23:12
like and people would tell me as well
23:14
yeah like if she hasn't had trauma
23:16
obviously this is all symptoms yeah so I
23:18
was kind of even hoping something was
23:20
wrong because I was like oh hopefully
23:22
she doesn't stay like this you know like
23:24
in the sense of like
23:27
yeah she wasn't herself yeah and it was
23:29
only like maybe a week after when she so
23:32
we had to like we had it flew back with
23:34
it
23:34
Swiss entrance medical jet it was like
23:37
she doesn't remember any of this but I
23:39
was like in the jet in the in the
23:41
cockpit having kind of like the only bit
23:44
of fun I had in this week like the pilot
23:46
so now everyone was really nice so that
23:48
was nice but then obviously she was
23:50
still like kind of
23:52
in the clouds or whatever
23:54
and it's only after maybe a week or so
23:57
that she first like yeah I don't know
23:59
show me like any signs of being normal
24:02
like a little bit of affection nothing I
24:04
was just like maybe she just forgot like
24:06
not who I am but like who I am to her
24:08
you know everyone's like kind of did
24:10
panicking I was like whoa she's gonna
24:12
like
24:13
stay like this forever or and then she
24:16
started to like say oh yeah like talk
24:18
normally and I was like the second
24:20
relief because I was like okay it's
24:22
coming back yeah and then she got to the
24:24
clinic and I was like also good that she
24:27
started to do stuff but then she was
24:29
bored
24:30
and then I was like oh then now she's
24:32
definitely herself
24:35
and then now she's out of the clinic
24:37
that's another relief and now she can
24:39
start like all the therapy that she
24:41
needs but still be at home and not be
24:43
that depressed in that facility which is
24:45
just doing the job but I think as an
24:47
athlete it's hard to be surrounded by
24:48
people that like are really really in a
24:51
bad way yeah
24:53
so yeah no it was definitely it felt
24:55
like a lifetime but and a hard journey
24:58
as well
25:00
everyone but it was it was a way better
25:03
outcome when I think about the accident
25:05
itself so two-part question for all of
25:08
you should Riders have been on tracking
25:11
those wins
25:13
oh I think OnTrack wasn't any problem
25:16
it's just we can't fly like we can't be
25:19
in the area for that much when he's
25:21
sideways that's for sure they need like
25:23
to close the the road map and then it's
25:26
not any problem at all yeah I think the
25:30
point that's like maybe Jack interested
25:32
in your answer because I feel like in
25:36
the history of Daniel as well wind
25:38
affects people in a different way
25:40
and also like lighter Riders I was
25:43
always always been more affected
25:46
than other writers because I'm like 50
25:48
something kilos
25:50
and like someone has 80 kilos would be
25:51
less affected because this is a huge
25:53
weight difference but also like she says
25:58
like where you build features is not
26:00
being like looked at
26:01
and
26:03
we've been in under uh maybe a week
26:06
before the race already and we've ridden
26:08
the three days like Friday Saturday
26:10
Sunday and every day from like 11 30 to
26:14
12 to 2 30 there's like wind gusts like
26:17
huge ones and the common sale guys were
26:20
telling us yeah it's every day is the
26:21
same the win comes up at lunch time and
26:24
then it goes back down to like 3 P.M
26:27
and
26:28
everyone that lives there knows this but
26:31
for some reason the the only big road
26:34
gap of the track is built in the most
26:37
exposed
26:38
piece of track that there is yeah so
26:41
like
26:42
I mean you can still try to do it but if
26:45
you put like a win sensor of anything
26:46
that any Wind sports have and you say
26:50
okay if it goes until like a certain
26:51
amount then you'd be just close the roll
26:53
Gap and then you just like or you build
26:55
it somewhere else or you just try to be
26:58
safer but like there are solutions for
27:00
stuff like that
27:02
but yeah
27:03
um when people when you try to like get
27:06
into that people tell you oh yeah you
27:08
can just ride a b line you see that like
27:11
no one is going to take the B light if
27:13
they have the possibility to go over the
27:15
world Gap because they might just hope
27:18
that they're not going to be the one who
27:20
gets the gust you know and second part
27:23
to that question the canceled semis
27:26
should the race have gone ahead
27:30
was it safe without doing the road Gap
27:33
yeah I mean we had like we had a
27:35
ridiculous experience throughout
27:37
practice like hopping back to the first
27:39
thing you asked like we were at the top
27:41
and they were saying to us
27:43
we're not sure what we're doing we're
27:45
probably gonna come close the road Gap
27:47
so familiar familiarize yourselves with
27:50
the beeline
27:52
and we might close two jumps at the top
27:54
so check those b-lines out as well and
27:56
we were like
27:57
what do you mean you might cause jumps
28:00
like so first run I think pretty much
28:02
everybody tried going around the Rogue I
28:04
want it to be fair it was a really good
28:06
line like it was all it was way more fun
28:08
than the Rover
28:09
um and uh
28:11
and then when we went up for second run
28:13
they started really saying they were
28:16
going to potentially close these two
28:18
jumps at the top and I think Danny was
28:21
there and a few other people were there
28:22
and we were asking we were like what
28:24
jumps are you talking about and we made
28:26
the track guy explain properly which two
28:29
other jumps he was talking about and
28:31
they had no reason to be closing them
28:33
and the around lines were so dangerous
28:35
because we were going too fast anyone
28:38
who actually tried them nearly crashed I
28:39
didn't even bother I like looked at what
28:41
they were and was like no I'm not even
28:44
gonna waste my time with it and I said
28:46
to the
28:47
the track guy and the UCI comms at the
28:49
top I said if you're if this hill is too
28:51
windy for us to hit those jumps not the
28:54
road Gap but the other two we shouldn't
28:56
be on the hill at all so I was quite
28:59
strong in my opinion and everybody
29:01
around all the Riders were in agreement
29:04
so the UCI Commissary at the top said to
29:06
me you need to say this exact thing to
29:10
the chief com at the bottom because he's
29:11
the one relaying this message up so I
29:14
just kind of carried on my run hit those
29:16
two jumps went round the road Gap did my
29:17
run
29:18
um got to the bottom went to the chief
29:20
com had the same conversation and he
29:22
said
29:23
I don't know what you're talking about
29:24
we're not closing two other jumps we're
29:26
just closing the road Gap and I was like
29:28
are you [ __ ] serious
29:29
well staff are at the top of this track
29:33
telling everyone that you're saying
29:35
you're causing additional jumps and you
29:36
don't even know what I'm talking about
29:38
but honestly the whole event from top to
29:40
bottom was a [ __ ] show and then 15
29:43
minutes later loads of the girls had
29:45
already gone up for their runs they then
29:47
postponed it so then back to your second
29:49
question should they have canceled
29:52
um semis
29:54
um I mean they couldn't have
29:57
certainly after what happened to Cami
29:58
like there's no way they could have
30:00
chance it with the gusts of wind and we
30:02
were pitted right at the top and while
30:05
we waited for that news as to whether we
30:07
were going back out again it was [ __ ]
30:09
windy like a couple attacks dropped all
30:11
our tents and like you wouldn't have
30:13
wanted to be on the hill in that wind
30:15
and then it calmed down later on so
30:17
um
30:19
yeah
30:20
who knows it's like hypotheticals right
30:23
but in terms of what Amy's just said
30:25
about where they're building gyms I
30:26
couldn't agree more like
30:28
they put the biggest most exposed hang
30:30
time Jump
30:32
in the most exposed place on the
30:34
hillside like it's it's just stupid
30:37
for me a good example is like thorium
30:40
it's super often windy at the top but I
30:43
don't put any dirt and then for sure
30:45
it's scary to ride when it's super windy
30:47
but you can yeah it's not that dangerous
30:49
I mean you can survive and be on the
30:50
track you're maybe not exactly on the
30:52
right line but you're still on the track
30:53
and then where they build the jump at
30:56
the bottom it's quite hidden and most of
30:58
the time is front or back wind so it's
31:00
not a problem so for me it's like yes I
31:03
know they have the wind but they they
31:05
don't build jump at the top and for me
31:07
yeah on the right it's cheapest because
31:09
I know they have wind and it's super
31:10
high
31:11
altitude and they build the biggest jump
31:14
at the top and they know they have wind
31:15
so you're like yeah I think yeah that's
31:17
stupid because as a rider we we know the
31:20
risk of down here and we we agree with
31:22
it we're okay but being injured because
31:25
of the wind the strategy thing is stupid
31:28
because they could have avoided so yeah
31:30
yeah definitely and then they had done
31:33
that Loudonville the top of the track
31:34
was super exposed and there were jumps
31:36
but they were all
31:38
lips like you could push through them
31:41
fast if you didn't want to jump them in
31:42
the wind whereas in Andorra like you
31:44
either jump those jumps or you're gonna
31:46
lose like four seconds every time you go
31:48
around one of them so
31:50
yeah not ideal well
31:53
thanks for joining us Cami yeah thanks
31:55
for having me we'll let you go and get
31:57
some rest and hopefully we'll see you um
32:01
back on a bike real soon and uh
32:04
it all comes good
32:06
thank you yes hope to see you guys soon
32:08
bye-bye
32:12
Jack
32:13
for anyone who hasn't watched your Vlog
32:15
you've just described it as a [ __ ] show
32:17
I think tell us a bit about life as a
32:19
second class citizen over on a
32:21
completely different Hill to the race in
32:23
Andorra
32:24
yeah I mean I won't go into too much
32:26
detail because like you said at the
32:27
start of the pub we could literally talk
32:29
about this all night so anyone who does
32:31
want more more detail can go and watch
32:33
that video there's some entertaining
32:34
footage on there and me having to get a
32:36
bus to my race room with about 100
32:37
Spectators and basically long and short
32:40
of it is this year the elite team's got
32:43
a pit at the very bottom of the track
32:44
and everyone else was just given the
32:46
middle finger the UCI mountain bike
32:48
teams were two kilometers Upper Road in
32:50
One Direction and the gondola to come up
32:53
from town was two kilometers in the
32:55
other direction and that's where my pit
32:57
was where the tech support and the XC
32:59
was so it wasn't just me that was
33:01
affected by where I was it was also
33:03
anyone who was getting the Gondola from
33:04
town and didn't have an e-bike
33:07
last year we were all pitted there and
33:10
they ran shuttle service
33:11
and to be fair in 2022 the short service
33:14
was efficient we didn't have any
33:16
problems the mechanics were doing the
33:17
same as this year and they were taking
33:19
the tools across but this year the
33:21
shuttle service was non-existent
33:24
on the way for practice
33:26
um in the morning a shuttle wouldn't
33:28
take me because
33:30
um on res day they wouldn't take me
33:32
because they had a lot of drummers in
33:33
the show the shuttle had bike stunt bike
33:36
rack on the back for bikes and it
33:38
wouldn't stop calls because it had one
33:39
of the it had a lot of drummers in there
33:41
who were going to the bottom to make a
33:42
lot of noise so you're leaving the
33:43
athletes behind and taking taking them
33:46
and then the second time to go back for
33:48
restaurant after they gave us the green
33:50
light
33:51
um on race day when the wind settled
33:53
there weren't any Shores we stood there
33:55
for 15 minutes and in the end we just
33:57
had to get on a bus
33:59
um
34:00
and then after the race there weren't
34:01
really either so by then they wouldn't
34:03
even put us on the buses so I had to
34:05
e-bike bags back and then bring a car
34:07
down from the suntop it get one of the
34:09
guys to kind of come and help in the net
34:10
to tour Sam back on my download Bike and
34:12
it was the same going back to the UCI
34:14
mountain bike pitch people just couldn't
34:16
get back there so it was just once again
34:20
Elite teams here's your space everyone
34:22
else can [ __ ] off
34:24
um and that in a nutshell is what the
34:26
World Cups has become this year
34:28
so all they care about is putting a show
34:31
on with those top Riders on the elite
34:32
teams they don't want the rest of us
34:34
there
34:35
so next year they've got worlds in
34:38
Andorra
34:39
how do they fix it because at a World
34:42
Cup you can I don't want to use getaway
34:45
with but you can get away with what
34:48
you're saying is you know it's whoever
34:50
pays the most money gets the best pits
34:52
and the World Cup is a commercial entity
34:55
they could probably get away with it can
34:57
you get away with that a world Champs
34:58
you can't have half of Team GB on one
35:01
here
35:03
it's unfixable it's not a viable venue
35:06
like this is the problem we have with
35:09
the World Cups it's all about money now
35:11
so
35:12
these venues are paying to host the
35:14
World Cup so they will host the World
35:16
Cup and
35:18
honestly like the number of police we
35:21
saw doing nothing at one one day I rode
35:24
back on the e-bike from our pits to from
35:26
the race bottom to my pit
35:28
you know four kilometer
35:31
um journey I saw 11 police vehicles
35:34
doing nothing including like Riot police
35:37
like
35:39
that it was just the weirdest week oh
35:43
two busy arresting my teammates
35:48
of people by driving the the Grom
35:52
motorcycle without gloves
35:54
yeah like honestly that
35:57
there's just it's just laughable that
35:59
weekend and Aura me and Sam were
36:01
literally we just we were just laughing
36:04
because we were like this is so bad
36:07
like what else can we do other than just
36:09
laugh at the situation we're in yeah so
36:11
yeah so let's go talk about some some of
36:15
the racing that they managed to get on
36:17
yeah erase took the winning Junior women
36:19
Ryan Pinkerton and Junior man and we'll
36:22
talk about Ryan in the in the team
36:24
rumors section at the end Nina took her
36:26
first win of the year with an incredible
36:27
run also on an incredible run with our
36:30
very own Jack Redding
36:32
[ __ ] helmet against all the odds up
36:36
at the final split on course for a top
36:38
ten
36:39
talk us through it I should get a bus to
36:42
more restaurants
36:44
did you get excited I must be no
36:47
honestly I was thinking about this
36:49
earlier because I'd read the script and
36:50
I was like
36:51
what went on and basically I think I
36:54
just had a perfect build through my
36:55
weekend I never really felt like I was
36:59
at my end pace
37:01
so
37:02
like ludenville was the opposite I did
37:04
four runs and was like I'm good to go
37:05
and then I didn't put enough on it in my
37:07
race room because I just
37:09
I got comfortable if that makes sense
37:11
whereas Andorra never got comfortable
37:12
and I even remember the run I had before
37:15
the race run when we got sent back again
37:17
after the delay I was still like making
37:20
decisions about how I wanted to ride in
37:22
that run and I think it just all timed
37:24
up quite nicely and
37:26
um I remember
37:27
I was before a crash that was sat 16th
37:30
and I'd just gone through the fourth
37:33
split sixth fastest and I was just
37:36
building momentum and I can remember
37:37
riding through that split and
37:39
there were a couple of Corners where I
37:41
can just remember we had Eddie on the
37:43
podcast talking about the Flow State and
37:44
I was [ __ ] in it like I was literally
37:46
just flowing through everything I was
37:49
catching everything just right and
37:51
um
37:51
The Annoying Thing is where I crashed I
37:53
made the same mistake last practice run
37:55
just too aggressive too fast slightly on
37:58
the bank but in the race run I just
38:00
landed on that knuckle Rock and it just
38:03
wiped my front wheel out and purely
38:05
Rider Arrow I can't blame anyone but
38:06
myself it was just one of them I didn't
38:09
feel like I was getting over excited in
38:11
my head it was just that was the pace I
38:12
was at it it all kind of come together
38:14
nicely at exactly the right time as you
38:17
say it could have been a great result
38:18
and uh yeah threw it on the floor two
38:20
corners in about 12 seconds Finish Line
38:22
so so yeah it was uh I was I was [ __ ]
38:25
good I can't lie I was absolutely good
38:27
but um yeah is what it is that's racing
38:30
it was there yeah well you gave us all a
38:32
buzz mate yeah through and you come
38:34
through it in green I was like what the
38:36
[ __ ]
38:37
I know I've come to you to finish and
38:40
then obviously I just got myself out of
38:41
there because I was pissed off and Aaron
38:44
Gwen stopped me in this little tunnel
38:46
that we had to go through to get out and
38:47
I was like I remember thinking I
38:49
obviously I was annoyed I didn't want to
38:51
see anyone but I remember thinking why
38:53
is gwinny stopping me like
38:55
and he was like you all right there I
38:56
was like yeah I'm fine he was like you
38:58
were on one and I was like
39:00
was I because obviously I don't know
39:01
anything I didn't even look around like
39:03
yeah you've just got out of there you
39:05
went he went yeah he went you were green
39:07
and I was like you've made it worse I
39:09
was like
39:10
are you [ __ ] serious so I just went
39:13
back to our little
39:14
um pit at the bottom of the chairlift
39:16
and I just sat there on my own I'm still
39:19
cried and anything just sat there
39:21
staring into space for about 20 minutes
39:24
um processing it so but that's racing
39:26
and that's why we love it
39:28
you you picked table for the win and he
39:31
came down with 10 Riders still to go off
39:33
Finn was the rider behind him and he got
39:36
third but after that the best ranked top
39:38
10 Rider from qualifying was loiku who
39:40
seeded first but finished 20 seconds so
39:42
it was definitely weather affected
39:45
we'll never know for sure but in a word
39:47
wood table of one if the weather hadn't
39:50
changed
39:51
no no no I think lying was too strong
39:56
yeah I think there were a couple of them
39:58
who qualified hard
40:00
he was riding harder he was running well
40:03
it was completely dry it could also have
40:05
like it pushed even more but
40:09
um yeah I think it was like was just
40:11
I think you've also got to look at the
40:13
time table one with yeah and based
40:16
offset but based off qualifying it was
40:18
beatable so yeah no disrespect to Tebow
40:20
like yeah
40:22
in in a words at the end the answer is
40:25
no for me it reminds me of uh I can
40:28
never remember the the guy's name the
40:30
lad who won a rain affected World Cup
40:32
and got time
40:37
it reminded me of that run because that
40:40
run would have been a Podium run yeah
40:42
for sure it but it wouldn't it wouldn't
40:44
have won if the weather hadn't changed
40:46
difference is Tebow's been there and
40:48
done it whereas he has yeah
40:50
he's done multiple times when he won
40:52
Legend was also a little bit helped by
40:54
the by the rain too are these two wins
40:57
yeah yeah but it's loads of podiums
41:01
like he's legit yeah one result and it
41:04
just like ruined his career because he
41:05
couldn't deal with it he said yeah so
41:07
tell us a bit about Antoine Vidal
41:09
because he won the European Champs and
41:12
he had a good run here he was on the hot
41:14
seat for a long time and scored his
41:16
first World Cup Podium with fourth
41:19
yeah I mean is it his word should use
41:21
for Vidal he's kind of a French Ronan
41:23
Dunn he's wild he's man rides was out on
41:27
his sleeve
41:28
um yeah good really good lad get on with
41:31
him really well but yeah raw pace for
41:33
sure yeah anything the newest French
41:35
champ as well like
41:38
um
41:38
was it last year it was yeah it was last
41:41
year yeah yeah so he beat like Lloyd
41:44
first has gone I know Benoit
41:46
um
41:46
had a flat tire on the last corner he
41:48
blew us down the last corner but like he
41:50
beat like even Emery was racing then so
41:52
he beat Emory and pretty boy a bit Lloyd
41:54
Loris Fern Square there in Lazar yeah
41:58
but yeah like obviously they're
41:59
sponsored by this also maybe he had a
42:01
lot of guys to practice but still like
42:03
he's
42:04
he's still very young as like you said
42:06
it's a little bit wild so he has still
42:08
stuff to learn but yeah you can
42:10
recognize Cecile Ravenel style in the
42:13
type of writer that she chooses because
42:15
every recently is a bomb on a pretty
42:17
loose too it's pretty funny
42:20
on to ladenville then so the junior race
42:23
the race Dom Platt and a host of other
42:26
British Riders have probably been
42:27
waiting their whole lives for and it
42:29
gets canceled because the track's
42:31
unrideable although it clearly isn't for
42:33
anyone who can ride in mud thoughts
42:36
yeah it's a tough one I walk the track
42:40
at the exact time the Juniors would have
42:42
been racing
42:44
um because at my accommodation was at
42:46
the top yeah my plan was to take Sarah
42:48
and Blake down to the pits while the
42:50
Junior's raced and then after that take
42:52
the lift up because it was our day off
42:53
and do a track walk so once we heard
42:55
that had happened I just said to them I
42:57
was like I'm just gonna go and walk it
42:58
now so
43:00
I was on track at that time
43:02
um and
43:04
yeah all the way down I was just like
43:07
really like this isn't even that bad
43:11
like there was some bits that was Steep
43:14
and muddy but
43:15
I couldn't see a reason why you'd need
43:18
to cancel a world race for it and then
43:20
at the bottom I bumped into Rory
43:22
Cunningham who's like in charge of the
43:24
track and I've asked Rory if I can share
43:27
this and he said yeah
43:28
um and he came over for a chat and
43:30
basically the main reason they canceled
43:33
it was they had some riders that were
43:36
crashing on the steeper sections
43:39
and Marshals and medics couldn't gain
43:43
access to the rider the rider couldn't
43:45
move to get their bike and get off the
43:47
hill because it was too slippery and too
43:49
steep so they they made the decision not
43:52
based on how rideable the track was but
43:55
on what would happen if there was a
43:57
serious injury in one of those zones at
43:59
the time of chatting Aurora it all made
44:01
sense to me and I was like well yeah
44:02
fair enough and then since then I've
44:03
gone off and you know shared this you
44:06
know talked with various people about it
44:08
um and the resounding message coming
44:11
back which makes perfect sense is they
44:14
haven't prepared the venue properly
44:16
because it rains in the French mountains
44:18
so if you've got a venue that you have
44:21
no plan in place for when it rains for
44:24
downhill mountain biking you're [ __ ]
44:26
up
44:27
where these on access points where are
44:29
your medic access points like so
44:32
their reason on the day is like
44:35
all well and good however that just
44:38
means they haven't prepped properly for
44:39
their event so it's a it is once again
44:43
um uh pretty embarrassing situation for
44:46
them to be in and like I said I saw the
44:48
track at the time when it was due to be
44:51
raised and from a riding perspective
44:53
there is absolutely no reason why it
44:55
wasn't safe to be raised
44:57
but then I was just like so the messages
45:00
that were going on
45:03
and it came about just before 11.
45:06
like the cancellation
45:08
and I'm like
45:10
dude it's the whole day like there's
45:13
nothing going on Saturday
45:15
why wouldn't you just like try to like
45:18
make some because it had to do some ruts
45:20
for the day after and it did it like
45:22
shout out to him you try his hardest to
45:25
like try to like fix the track because
45:27
it's like
45:28
he was like a racer and he's like a good
45:31
Builder but like obviously they
45:33
they didn't prepare enough and then he
45:35
did some rats and stuff and he had time
45:37
to do it until like three or four
45:38
o'clock I mean it rains again then
45:40
cancel it for real but like why wouldn't
45:42
you just like wait for it to dry
45:46
like when it's complicated try to do
45:48
something and obviously all the videos
45:50
that we saw of people crashing
45:52
they hold like dry tires on like you
45:55
wouldn't go then in your dhrs I mean
45:58
come on like it's unreadable if you have
46:00
not prepared but if you have four spikes
46:03
and like maybe flat pedals if you need
46:05
to yeah you like try to like ride a line
46:08
that's like digged in
46:10
100 almost everyone would have made it
46:12
yeah for sure like did you see Leo again
46:15
2020 it was not like it was way
46:18
more holes and everything so like I know
46:22
that the genius were gutted they're like
46:23
what the hell you meant there was so
46:25
much anger in the pits it was really so
46:27
if you at least try to like get them
46:29
back on the track see okay how is the
46:31
track like even the junior girls I
46:33
texted Aries Texas and they're like no
46:35
we want to race like for sure everyone
46:37
wanted to try so it's like robbing these
46:40
young people of like and mud experience
46:42
or like a challenge as well so that was
46:44
like
46:45
I was like okay I understand some of the
46:47
reason but like obviously you can at
46:49
least try to like you have the whole day
46:51
to try to figure out something so the
46:53
the scene came so early I was like mind
46:55
blown I was like oh wow interesting
46:57
thing at the moment as well is they're
46:58
not making any effort to discuss these
47:01
big decisions
47:03
with anyone then you know they Andrew
47:06
Chandra manages the Trek team he saw
47:09
this conversation I'd had with Rory from
47:10
the Bottom Road and he flagged me down
47:13
on the road angry and said I've just
47:15
seen you chatting with Rory what what
47:17
the [ __ ] are they doing what what's the
47:19
reason behind this you know he's in a
47:21
he's a manager of a huge elite team and
47:23
yet he didn't know why it was going on
47:25
they're not Consulting Riders they're
47:27
not Consulting team managers and when
47:29
it's a decision that big when like Emmy
47:32
says it doesn't really make sense and
47:34
the suggestions people could have made
47:36
like Flo Paya made a great suggestion
47:39
on Eddie Masters and
47:41
um Dean Lucas's yeah little chat thing
47:45
do what we would have done in the old
47:46
days open the track for the day get us
47:49
out there the Riders who feel confident
47:51
and know what they're doing in the mud
47:52
can get out and ride the roots in the
47:54
track will be plugged in for the rain if
47:56
the track's suitable run the junior race
47:58
later on in the afternoon and then we
48:00
would continue the following day like
48:02
there were Ways and Means of making the
48:04
event happen ultimately it was just like
48:07
such a strange strange move as an
48:10
outsider kind of looking in for me
48:13
whoever's making the decisions isn't
48:16
very good at making decisions the big
48:18
decisions when you look at the big
48:19
decisions from like well we're going to
48:21
do a semi-final we're not going to get
48:23
Rob to do the commentary you know the
48:25
big decisions
48:26
there's somebody's getting paid the big
48:28
books for we're going to cancel the race
48:30
it's
48:32
they're not very good at making big
48:33
decisions in I don't think it just seem
48:36
like fish out of water the whole the
48:38
whole thing just seems like it's just
48:40
yeah
48:41
everyone's everyone's just disillusioned
48:44
with what's going on really so perfect
48:46
weekend for Valley going for one one one
48:49
and looking pretty imperious doing it
48:51
what a race in the men's Dax run was
48:54
wild lots of mistakes but still good
48:56
enough for a second
48:58
depressed crash was brutal we couldn't
49:00
find his bike
49:02
that's the entire common style muck off
49:04
team out we've seen them have some
49:06
incredible success but this is the other
49:08
side to riding the edges and do you
49:11
think they're going to have to try and
49:12
tone it down a bit
49:15
I don't know like there's still the
49:16
junior is still racing
49:18
and then they got um
49:22
like helping out but um definitely well
49:28
they all have the certain character like
49:30
Tebow Miriam and and Amory I know like
49:34
they've been
49:35
sometimes riding with injuries and
49:37
they've been riding like on the limit so
49:39
many times obviously other people do
49:41
that as well
49:42
but like it's still kind of the way they
49:44
operate and
49:45
that's why they like also such a family
49:48
and how they work together yeah but
49:52
I don't know like for sure Armory has
49:54
probably learned like a lot a lot of
49:56
things
49:58
about himself about the sport I'm on the
50:00
way he does things to this injury and
50:04
I I would be surprised if it's still
50:06
like goes out and take that many risks I
50:09
think it will probably be like a little
50:11
bit more of a smarter racer now and
50:13
maybe for the better I'm gonna share
50:16
something with you which maybe
50:17
contradicts that yeah sure yeah I saw
50:20
romery at the after party that comes now
50:23
um and uh
50:25
I had a pretty hilarious exchange with
50:27
him I uh obviously we're both on the
50:29
beers and I said
50:31
I said are you back for Snowshoe Montana
50:33
or are you done and he was like no man I
50:36
am I'm done for the season I will wait
50:39
and then he just looked at me with these
50:41
wild eyes and just went I will train so
50:46
hard this winter I will destroy all of
50:48
them
50:51
and just literally just went off and it
50:54
was like Yeah The Raw Armory is still in
50:58
there and it was like whoa like dude
51:02
it's like it's August
51:04
but that that's who it is I don't think
51:07
that would go away but to be honest also
51:09
I think the staff probably low so
51:11
learned a lot through this seasoning but
51:13
it's like such hard times and yeah and
51:16
um there might have been
51:19
also sometimes like not preventing the
51:21
athletes to race when it should have
51:23
been racing I remember like Miriam and
51:25
Lords after a crash like as a team
51:27
manager you should have said you're not
51:29
going to start gay you know and it
51:31
didn't do it
51:32
it's hard but it's kind of your job
51:35
see things differently as well probably
51:38
the same with Amerie in the Endora last
51:40
year and that must be really hard when
51:42
he's leading the overall but
51:45
yeah yeah like I don't know maybe we'll
51:48
see but I I would say like not like
51:50
completely change the identity because
51:51
it's who they are but like
51:53
a little bit more on the smart side when
51:55
you go when you have to like make tough
51:57
decisions
51:58
that they don't adapt I can't remember
52:01
it from I mean I only have knowledge for
52:04
the last kind of 12 13 years but I can't
52:07
remember an entire team being out
52:09
injured before we've always been able to
52:12
talk yeah but but yeah I mean I think
52:14
they are what they are aren't they like
52:16
Amy said you can't if you try and change
52:19
who they are then
52:21
you know they they you're gonna lose
52:23
that that fire they've got the athlete
52:26
would essentially not be what they are
52:28
so maybe like like Emmy said a little
52:31
bit more kind of uh
52:34
you know smart decisions going on but
52:37
ultimately they are what they are and
52:39
that's why they've been so successful
52:40
they've got to take the smoothing
52:41
extreme sport
52:43
so finals missing those polls and
52:45
getting dsqed loik taking the win in a
52:49
word will that cost him the overall
52:53
not necessarily
52:55
we were talking about this like with the
52:57
amount of points you can score in semis
52:59
if lorick has a mayor in Snowshoe and
53:02
one of the riders in the top kind of
53:03
three to five what is everything it'll
53:07
be old to play for again
53:09
it's it's in Luke's hand isn't it he has
53:11
a good one Snowshoe and he then are you
53:13
going to catch him but
53:14
um yeah I think it's definitely still
53:16
racism
53:19
cool well that seems like a great place
53:21
to pause because we'll be back with the
53:22
man who won quality and sami's in
53:24
Edenville Benoit collage after these
53:27
messages we're now joined by the man of
53:29
the moment Benoit collage what a few
53:31
weeks Matt how are you feeling
53:35
it's insane honestly
53:37
I just like no I feel pretty good but a
53:42
few days ago it was like insane uh very
53:45
emotional uh yeah I I cried few times so
53:49
it was it was sick did you party
53:52
afterwards
53:54
uh yeah until two yeah so the after the
53:58
race but the biggest moment was crossing
54:01
the line with uh the fun and everything
54:03
yeah that's so cool nice well let's
54:08
rewind a little bit mate
54:10
um you were last on the show end of 2021
54:12
after your breakout season you finished
54:14
eighth in the overall picked up your
54:16
silver medal at World Championships
54:18
um 2022 great first half of the Season
54:21
fourth in Lords fourth in fourth William
54:23
fifth in lenzside
54:25
was a little bit about the pressure you
54:27
felt to repeat the success of 2021
54:32
um I think a bit like uh every year
54:37
like
54:39
um
54:40
during the winter
54:42
um
54:43
when the season coming like I always
54:46
felt a bit like
54:48
daunting I think a bit like
54:51
I don't know if I lose my magic border
54:54
to go fast yeah but honestly honestly
54:58
after the first race in London
55:01
I finished fourth
55:03
um
55:04
it was pretty good for me because like I
55:07
didn't have the the run I wanted
55:09
I I know I was able to do better for the
55:14
the rest of the racing yeah after that
55:17
and it was pretty stressful also because
55:20
we received like the new frame the V5 uh
55:24
one week before the race
55:26
um
55:27
but at the end yeah it was a really good
55:31
year and after the first race I I forget
55:33
the pressure of like two years before
55:36
yeah for sure so you had a couple of
55:38
dnfs in Andorra and monsonan but then
55:40
you qualified fastest World Champs in
55:43
legere
55:44
um last year and we talked about this
55:46
didn't we in the in the gondola the
55:47
other day
55:48
um how much confidence was that giving
55:51
you
55:52
um going into this week I already know
55:53
the answers to this one but go and share
55:55
share with everybody how you were
55:56
feeling
55:57
yeah I think you just like show show me
56:01
that I can do it but again it just like
56:04
a quality run is way different than
56:07
finer one
56:09
um at the end uh Luke was really faster
56:12
than everyone at this race but yeah like
56:15
I think it can race like every year like
56:18
this uh it's same for everyone like
56:20
sometimes you have like some highlight
56:22
yeah
56:24
but I knew I was able to to perform on
56:28
this structure and
56:30
I also had a chat before
56:34
uh Leisure race with Leon who shaped the
56:39
track in Asia and he said oh this year
56:41
will be slower and more Technical and
56:43
I think I prefer how is no
56:46
yeah yeah okay so those changes you felt
56:49
you felt that worked well for you this
56:51
week yeah
56:53
nice okay so you went on to finish 2022
56:56
with your sixth place involved Soul
56:58
um and finish the overall in seventh by
57:01
this point firmly established as a top
57:04
10 Rider we were you happy the way you
57:07
finished the 2022 season
57:10
uh yeah honestly really because like
57:14
every year I'm better I was like one
57:19
one place before the last uh the last
57:22
year like at the over also is always
57:24
something I can take for Podium or three
57:27
Podium is pretty good and also
57:29
after
57:32
2021 my goal was to win a race because I
57:36
I did like second at warchamp so it was
57:39
already my goals and I won the quality
57:43
in Logan this year in 2022 yeah um I
57:47
think I was pretty close for the uh race
57:51
run 2 but I crash but light and also
57:55
winning the the calling
57:57
in World Championship Malaysia like show
58:00
me I already can do it I was close this
58:03
year so it was like big motivation for
58:05
me for the winter
58:07
and yeah
58:09
honestly pretty good yeah like four
58:11
Podium like I think like if I had a good
58:15
run I can I wasn't I was able to
58:20
um do a Podium at every race so it was
58:23
pretty pretty Korean yes this is
58:26
something I really like about Bernard
58:28
because
58:30
some people don't really understand that
58:31
but he can also like sometimes like oh
58:34
yeah you're getting seventh or eight and
58:36
it's always someone that says oh yeah
58:37
I'm really happy with my eighth place
58:40
yeah and sometimes someone like Max come
58:42
inside would be like why are you happy
58:44
with your eighth grade and you're like
58:46
well
58:47
try to become anything in the world I
58:49
don't see how hard it is especially like
58:51
with the times now
58:53
so yeah it always makes me smile when I
58:55
when I see Max saying this stuff because
58:57
I'm like oh my God anyway let's move on
59:01
to this season then
59:03
um 2023
59:05
so you were kind of you're going good
59:07
but like a little bit under the radar
59:09
like solid result learn to hide fifth
59:11
you qualified fifth and then Fifth and
59:14
Sammy eighth and finals I remember Logan
59:16
I think he had a crushing qualifying in
59:19
a three or 40th then 16 semi 10th and
59:22
finals always in the top ten then while
59:25
this old fourth inquiry Knight since I
59:27
mean eighth in Final
59:28
and um so when I was in Andorra I was
59:32
always like next to the track and like
59:34
trying to film people and I've heard
59:37
some people I'm not even someone he was
59:40
like yeah this year
59:42
is a little bit less on price and I was
59:44
like
59:45
this made me angry I was like dude
59:48
that's disrespectful like and then two
59:50
weeks later you were like when and you
59:51
woke up and I was like there you go you
59:54
know like it's always people are quick
59:56
to like
59:58
tell oh it's not your year but you can
1:00:00
turn it around in one second so after
1:00:03
these results like did you feel like you
1:00:05
were getting closer to it even though
1:00:07
people might think oh yeah you know in
1:00:09
the podium or whatever
1:00:11
um
1:00:12
I think like this year for me was the
1:00:14
beginning of the year was pretty pretty
1:00:16
tough honestly because we have the new
1:00:20
format
1:00:21
and
1:00:23
first race in uh lens ride I was pretty
1:00:26
good in uh query and Sumi I think and I
1:00:30
did some big mistake in the final
1:00:32
but after that like every race we had we
1:00:36
have like weather issue issue
1:00:38
like
1:00:40
and it was hard for me to understand
1:00:42
like how all the rider like evolved
1:00:46
between Sami and final or how they
1:00:49
manage that and how they improve their
1:00:52
time and everything so
1:00:55
like for me even
1:00:58
um a lot of your response to that has
1:01:01
just been to just win everything
1:01:04
I know what I'll do I'll just win
1:01:07
[ __ ] all of it
1:01:08
maybe it's uh no no for me but
1:01:13
it just like
1:01:15
yeah I think it was after the French
1:01:19
Champs
1:01:21
um same I was good in Kali I won the
1:01:24
quali uh uh and I I finished Sean I
1:01:28
think yes sir and I was like okay I have
1:01:32
problem in final because like every time
1:01:35
my quality is pretty good and on the
1:01:36
final I'm
1:01:39
otherwriter smoked me so
1:01:42
I photo a bit about that um
1:01:46
I tried to maybe change a bit my
1:01:49
strategy and
1:01:52
I I take some notes on my book of
1:01:55
different strategy I can't I can try
1:01:58
so we come to hondura
1:02:03
and again the way they are play Big role
1:02:07
yeah a big hole and I wasn't able to
1:02:11
to see how how the new strategy working
1:02:14
but
1:02:15
at the end I crashed but that was pretty
1:02:18
good at the two first bit I think in the
1:02:20
same time as Louis Rooney yeah so it was
1:02:23
pretty good yeah
1:02:24
yeah definitely so you crash into three
1:02:27
but I felt like you were like really
1:02:28
really trying to take some risk like
1:02:30
more than maybe any other final runs
1:02:32
before yeah yeah really well it was the
1:02:36
strategy I I failed like this year
1:02:40
uh nobody is really faster than other
1:02:45
like last year with Armory yeah
1:02:48
uh because like everyone takes so much
1:02:52
risk and I think a lot of Rider ride
1:02:55
over the limit like we can see how many
1:02:59
Crush we have in final yeah
1:03:02
so it was also my new strategy because
1:03:05
my goals still the same winning uh World
1:03:09
Cup
1:03:10
um uh I think
1:03:13
to win a World Cup no for me still like
1:03:15
something I need to I I really need to
1:03:18
take some some risk here to do it yeah
1:03:22
so lastly in Andorra you had a crash in
1:03:25
was it clearly a practice and then you
1:03:27
had
1:03:28
a little injury and this year like
1:03:31
obviously you were doing a bit better
1:03:33
but yeah you had the weather against you
1:03:36
like
1:03:37
it's it seems like Andorra maybe doesn't
1:03:40
wish you well and now with Kami we need
1:03:42
to turn around for next year because
1:03:44
Pandora is not doing us any favors so
1:03:47
far do you you like the track or any me
1:03:50
too about this place
1:03:52
I think I think last year
1:03:56
um I wasn't really happy about the track
1:03:59
but because of the bottom yeah like with
1:04:02
the bridge and everything but this year
1:04:04
is look it was pretty good honestly not
1:04:06
my favorite but it was very good to ride
1:04:09
and
1:04:11
yeah it's it's still a dangerous strike
1:04:13
like yeah we have a lot of
1:04:16
um moving rock
1:04:18
moving
1:04:19
and the wind at the top it's the high
1:04:23
speed also is pretty crazy yeah and last
1:04:28
year I crashed because like in the Rock
1:04:30
Garden I had in my line like a rock wall
1:04:33
moving so like because that's so it's
1:04:36
like a bit of and look
1:04:39
yeah I think but and dcis was my foot
1:04:43
like I tried to push in the yeah during
1:04:46
the rain and it was slippery like I
1:04:50
think in Mosin two days ago I spoke with
1:04:52
Lois he said he said to me oh I was
1:04:55
pretty close to took this 3-2 it was so
1:04:58
sketchy and it was but um me I
1:05:02
I push so hard during the the runs of
1:05:05
sometimes it happen yeah for sure but I
1:05:08
don't think it's the track
1:05:15
[Laughter]
1:05:20
so it all seems to click you were first
1:05:23
in ceiling first in Sami and apparently
1:05:26
you had also a big mistake in your in
1:05:28
your semi-final run yeah last man down
1:05:31
the hill and you you were like on Pace I
1:05:34
remember
1:05:35
me and Camo in front of TV because we
1:05:37
were in there and cam was like
1:05:39
come on he's not gonna win and I'm not
1:05:41
there he's supposed he's almost pissed
1:05:43
he was like come on like and then I was
1:05:46
like he's gonna do it he's gonna do it
1:05:47
because like's bottom was not the best
1:05:49
and we're like
1:05:50
and then you took your foot out and were
1:05:52
like ah and then you put it back on and
1:05:55
then you slid over and we were like oh
1:05:56
my god what the hell
1:05:58
and we almost yeah we felt for you but I
1:06:01
guess you got you were like pretty upset
1:06:03
about that crash yeah yeah
1:06:07
um yeah the track honestly I I don't
1:06:11
know why the truck I don't know what
1:06:12
it's why it's click sometimes it's just
1:06:14
like this
1:06:15
uh I think the truck is pretty French is
1:06:19
the planet Steeps number two
1:06:22
it's a lot of grass and and on the
1:06:26
French cup we have a lot of stuff like
1:06:28
this so yeah at the Korea I was pretty
1:06:32
surprised but like for the semi like it
1:06:35
rained a lot during the night or the day
1:06:37
before
1:06:38
and like exactly the morning I felt
1:06:42
really good on the track and even my uh
1:06:46
the staff of my team
1:06:48
said to me are you you're the only one
1:06:50
who look really easy on the track and
1:06:53
everything like I was pretty please talk
1:06:56
honestly to ride in the mud this track
1:06:58
it was pretty cool
1:07:00
and so I went to the to the semi
1:07:03
and with the plane to the plan to ride
1:07:07
the
1:07:08
light freed uh with a lot of flow
1:07:11
because I wasn't protected for the final
1:07:14
so it's a shame if you don't go in the
1:07:16
final and you you want the quality yeah
1:07:19
um
1:07:21
but like always after two turn I forget
1:07:24
that and I try to push
1:07:28
[Music]
1:07:29
until this busy big mistake honestly it
1:07:33
was a big save because I was almost off
1:07:36
the track
1:07:38
wasn't it yeah yeah
1:07:41
and I was at the bottom with the
1:07:43
compression at the end I was like
1:07:45
sideways but it was it was where it was
1:07:48
pretty difficult
1:07:50
and after this mistake I I really calmed
1:07:54
on and like
1:07:56
make it to the to the line so I was so
1:07:59
confident for the final like I felt like
1:08:02
okay I have so much in the tank and
1:08:05
I can do it
1:08:08
uh
1:08:10
uh because I yeah I won the the semi so
1:08:15
um last guy is on the on the hill yeah
1:08:19
but like the start of Winterville is a
1:08:22
bit special like you've you felt like
1:08:24
your moaned like local race and the
1:08:27
World Cup because nobody are at the top
1:08:29
it's pretty flat nothing to to see it's
1:08:32
just like so it wasn't too bad about the
1:08:35
the pressure and everything
1:08:37
and yeah good good run until I crashed
1:08:41
[Music]
1:08:42
um
1:08:43
yeah I don't know if I didn't manage the
1:08:46
pressure or if it's
1:08:48
something else but yeah and at the
1:08:52
bottom I was pretty upset because like
1:08:56
I felt like last year
1:09:00
um Amore was the boss
1:09:02
uh like in Ligon you it it wasn't a good
1:09:07
weekend for for a movie
1:09:11
um I know
1:09:12
when it's like this where I have more
1:09:15
chance to to win so I really need to to
1:09:19
take this opportunity to do it yeah
1:09:22
uh and I crash one time in lugon and
1:09:26
this time I crash again and
1:09:29
for me was like okay one other
1:09:32
opportunity that I
1:09:34
I put to the trash and I was yeah when
1:09:37
you're upset like
1:09:39
for me I I don't I don't feel like I can
1:09:42
be like the guys would uh domain uh yeah
1:09:47
dominate dominate uh
1:09:50
so when I have the opportunity I really
1:09:53
want to to do it because like it's not
1:09:56
every weekend we can do it I can do it
1:09:59
so yeah I was a bit like upset but
1:10:01
honestly after one day it was okay okay
1:10:04
it was good weekend overall like one two
1:10:08
race um
1:10:10
and yeah I was close for for the win I
1:10:14
think
1:10:14
so we're like talking about obviously
1:10:17
you mention the track the fact that you
1:10:19
like the track that the track was like
1:10:22
like a French track and also obviously
1:10:24
the weather
1:10:25
because I could be wrong and you proved
1:10:28
me wrong in Legend but I always thought
1:10:30
you you'd be closer to winning World Cup
1:10:33
in the mud because I've seen how amazing
1:10:35
you are racist
1:10:37
huh you won't racing with World Cup
1:10:40
again they've all been canceled
1:10:46
um yeah same
1:10:48
um
1:10:49
but also like you you hire your
1:10:51
opportunity like in Andorra and stuff
1:10:53
like with the change of weather also
1:10:55
been a problem so
1:10:57
um but you talk also about your strategy
1:11:00
so what do you think like you
1:11:03
clicked in new novel after the race
1:11:05
after your crush you like made the
1:11:08
changes for the next week
1:11:12
um
1:11:14
I think I I didn't do any change because
1:11:18
he was working in ludenville so
1:11:22
it was the same plan for
1:11:25
foreign like do the my strategy was like
1:11:30
to do a really good quality
1:11:34
uh then like keep energy doing the
1:11:37
semi-final for the final
1:11:40
that was the goal
1:11:42
yeah you went you went quicker on every
1:11:44
run though didn't you
1:11:46
uh yeah I think yeah yeah you did yeah
1:11:49
yeah
1:11:50
not much it was like 321 323 19 or
1:11:54
something like that
1:11:56
I don't remember
1:11:59
George knows all the numbers it's making
1:12:02
up the numbers for a reason yeah
1:12:05
yeah so let's talk about Leisure
1:12:08
um
1:12:10
tell us a bit what you were thinking
1:12:12
when you were like sat at the top after
1:12:15
you won quality and seating
1:12:18
um how are you feeling like
1:12:21
in in negate going down last again
1:12:26
um honestly this time the pressure was
1:12:30
you because like
1:12:34
after ludoviel
1:12:36
I received like so much demon message
1:12:40
and
1:12:42
fans that told me okay
1:12:45
um next race it's you you need to win
1:12:48
now uh you can do it uh we believe in
1:12:51
you
1:12:52
[Music]
1:12:53
it was just a little mistake that just
1:12:56
it will click and everything
1:12:58
so um
1:13:01
yeah it's pretty it's pretty good to
1:13:04
receive this kind of message but like
1:13:08
sometimes you felt like it's look easy
1:13:10
from outside to do it again and in the
1:13:14
real world is like really hard
1:13:17
and it put me a bit more pressure and
1:13:21
again
1:13:23
I want the quality two time
1:13:25
and I crash two time in the final so
1:13:27
it's play a bit in you in your head
1:13:31
and also we have like
1:13:35
a huge crew
1:13:37
a lot of fun was there more than ludovia
1:13:40
so and from the top from the top you can
1:13:45
hear it
1:13:47
and yeah also
1:13:50
um Mass commentary come to me before the
1:13:53
race
1:13:55
and he said to me
1:13:57
um
1:14:01
our top Raider uh like engine so
1:14:06
no it's it's your time yeah we're gonna
1:14:10
win so
1:14:11
it was
1:14:13
this guy I try to translate in English
1:14:17
but it's not exactly this world but it's
1:14:19
pretty much that and
1:14:21
so yeah he said we are 100 in
1:14:26
here for you so let's do this
1:14:30
[Music]
1:14:31
so yeah honestly when I come to the top
1:14:34
for my warm-up uh in Asia I was pretty
1:14:38
pretty stressed
1:14:40
um
1:14:41
I told to my coach at the top because
1:14:45
um we have like I have my trainer at the
1:14:48
top and my mechanic and my trainer
1:14:53
um
1:14:55
play with me for the warm-up
1:14:58
so it's always pretty good because I
1:15:02
I just play with with my uh my coach to
1:15:06
warm up and after we go to the gate like
1:15:09
this I can think about other stuff and
1:15:12
it's pretty easy for me
1:15:14
and it's pretty good to follow the focus
1:15:19
also we try to be
1:15:23
late as we can like I think I come to
1:15:26
the to the start like two minutes before
1:15:28
my start yeah honestly it's pretty late
1:15:31
because like at the top between Ryder we
1:15:34
are four minutes is
1:15:38
crazy room it's crazy crazy room like to
1:15:42
wait four minutes in front of the gate
1:15:44
with like no people around and no Rider
1:15:46
with is like really really young so we
1:15:50
try to to arrive pretty late
1:15:53
and honestly after when I was on the
1:15:55
gate I was pre-focused and yeah what I
1:15:58
remember I was pretty ready
1:16:01
so yeah
1:16:04
so let's go on and talk about the run a
1:16:06
little bit then because uh I was
1:16:08
actually watching the live timing I was
1:16:10
at the lake actually with Sarah and
1:16:11
Blake and I didn't really know what was
1:16:13
going on with the race but I wanted to
1:16:15
know if you if you if you were going to
1:16:17
win so I think it was Dak was halfway
1:16:19
down his run when I flicked the live
1:16:21
timing on
1:16:22
um
1:16:23
so your first split came up and you were
1:16:26
you were you were red but you were in
1:16:28
touch and then your second split came up
1:16:30
and you were a little bit more red I
1:16:32
think 0.2 but you were still in touch
1:16:34
third split came up and you were half a
1:16:37
second back and I remember thinking ah
1:16:39
this gap's getting bigger it's only
1:16:40
small and then all of a sudden fourth
1:16:43
split you were green did you have any
1:16:46
feeling during the Run of how it was
1:16:48
going on were you just in your own Zone
1:16:50
doing your thing
1:16:52
no we never know
1:16:54
it's always something when people speak
1:16:58
about children from the outside because
1:17:00
like it's totally different during my
1:17:02
run now honestly I was
1:17:06
um
1:17:07
honestly I stick to my plan like during
1:17:09
the semi I did few mistakes because like
1:17:12
the dust was so insane in few Corners uh
1:17:16
so I play safe in
1:17:18
two part of the the track I think one
1:17:22
where Corp did a big mistake
1:17:25
so it was a good uh good choice a good
1:17:29
decision uh
1:17:33
uh and yeah just like the last corner of
1:17:35
the track
1:17:37
I I did it so bad so slow
1:17:40
[Music]
1:17:41
but honestly the the Run was really good
1:17:43
yeah really really good
1:17:46
um I pushed away I wanted to push and
1:17:48
play Safeway
1:17:50
where I wanted so yes it was insane and
1:17:53
when I
1:17:56
when I I took I wrote the last turn I
1:18:00
saw the like the split but like no how
1:18:03
is it like you can really know why is
1:18:07
this pity I I saw one split green but I
1:18:10
didn't know if was the last one or the
1:18:13
second one like he was so strong
1:18:16
foreign
1:18:17
fans
1:18:27
tell us about when you knew you'd done
1:18:30
it because like you say you saw the
1:18:31
splits but you didn't know what order at
1:18:34
what moment did you realize [ __ ] I've
1:18:36
just won
1:18:37
yeah honestly uh I crossed the line I
1:18:41
directly checked the uh the screen and
1:18:44
I saw my name in first and maybe I wait
1:18:48
for once again I felt like it was
1:18:51
really long yeah
1:18:55
I just turned to the crew and run into
1:18:59
the crew because I was just like I just
1:19:02
wanted to enjoy like this woman with the
1:19:04
fun and yeah
1:19:06
it's
1:19:08
yeah I just wanted to enjoy as much as I
1:19:11
can uh
1:19:14
is like
1:19:16
I I I I start to
1:19:20
is not to describe how easy he was yeah
1:19:23
it was just insane for me like
1:19:26
it was surreal I think it was yeah 10
1:19:30
years is it 10 years have you been
1:19:32
racing World Cups for 10 years I think
1:19:34
it's 11 years 11 years for that moment
1:19:37
first year leads
1:19:40
um Claude my team manager create the
1:19:43
team
1:19:44
so I did 10 years with him yeah like and
1:19:48
at the beginning we were just like
1:19:50
pretty much a group of creator with like
1:19:53
maybe
1:19:55
10 grand of Euros of budget we buy the
1:19:59
bike and everything
1:20:00
you know we are like
1:20:03
a big team with big razor chubby won
1:20:06
World Championship World Cup and me I
1:20:09
just won my first
1:20:12
age race uh yeah at the beginning like
1:20:15
how you can see like the plates at the
1:20:18
beginning I've been looking at them yeah
1:20:20
it just like yeah it's it's a big
1:20:24
Improvement for me and then my current
1:20:26
plot numbers those been one yeah
1:20:29
[Laughter]
1:20:33
maybe maybe maybe maybe in 10 years you
1:20:37
can win a World Cup but yeah for me it
1:20:40
was huge work and
1:20:42
I just feel like he's
1:20:47
yeah I'm just so proud of me and the
1:20:50
team uh
1:20:53
because at the beginning I
1:20:56
I didn't even dream to win a World Cup
1:20:59
like the the dream Watchers like to do
1:21:01
the corridor and uh and after that like
1:21:04
to be on the on the live TV on some
1:21:07
stuff like this
1:21:09
and yeah for the last
1:21:13
last two years is really is my goal it
1:21:16
was my goal to win a World Cup so
1:21:20
yeah honestly two years look like small
1:21:23
but in the same time I saw like math
1:21:27
worker did his first World Cup last year
1:21:30
Phoenix Goldstone this year Jordan
1:21:33
William
1:21:37
I was like okay they did it
1:21:41
I don't do it baby uh finale I can't do
1:21:46
it because I did like I was a bit like
1:21:48
maybe jealous because it did it be for
1:21:50
me yeah but in the same time it showed
1:21:53
me like it's possible
1:21:55
um
1:21:57
yeah for sure yeah I don't know for me
1:21:59
it's like
1:22:00
it's like your gift after like 10 years
1:22:03
of
1:22:04
of try to improve myself
1:22:06
yeah it's obviously it's quite emotional
1:22:09
for me to hear you talking about it
1:22:10
because obviously we've known each other
1:22:12
a long time and yeah up until kovid we
1:22:15
we kind of rest together and we're
1:22:17
getting similar results we had similar
1:22:19
sponsors and I knew you really well and
1:22:21
to see how hard you've worked and to now
1:22:24
see you you you know enjoying the fruits
1:22:27
of that and winning is uh yeah I'm just
1:22:30
you've set such an amazing example for
1:22:33
any young athlete coming into this of
1:22:36
not everything's easy not everything's
1:22:38
going to be like you know here it is
1:22:41
just go and do it you have to work hard
1:22:42
for it and you're you're living proof
1:22:44
that if you want something enough you
1:22:48
can go off and do it and uh yeah you
1:22:50
should be massively proud of yourself
1:22:51
because
1:22:52
yeah it's very hard because like it's
1:22:56
takes so much time man like some time
1:22:59
doing one or two years you don't feel
1:23:00
like the improvements
1:23:03
so it's it's pretty hard to believe in
1:23:05
yourself like doing so long
1:23:07
I'm pretty lucky because like pretty
1:23:09
much every year I
1:23:11
step up a bit so they keep me really
1:23:15
motivated but like I think it was
1:23:21
2019 I enjoyed myself yeah and it was
1:23:26
pretty stressful for me because
1:23:29
like
1:23:31
I I make a bit of money like it was
1:23:35
enough to to let to lie but I I knew if
1:23:38
like the year after that I wasn't able
1:23:41
to do good results it was maybe the end
1:23:43
of my career
1:23:45
um
1:23:46
I wanted so bad like to to keep this
1:23:49
this life
1:23:50
um
1:23:51
to be better
1:23:53
so doing like the covidia I worked so so
1:23:56
hard like everyone say okay we took some
1:23:59
time but me I was working so hard
1:24:01
because I really wanted to
1:24:04
to achieve and to keep my life like this
1:24:08
and yeah
1:24:10
from this year I think 2020
1:24:14
every year changed a lot and I did my my
1:24:17
first volume in 2021 yeah
1:24:32
yeah a lot of people I ask me how you
1:24:37
can do it how we can do it but I can
1:24:40
take someone and say we do we do that
1:24:42
that and that's it
1:24:44
we will receive like the gift but nice
1:24:49
it's a bigquery yeah it has to be
1:24:52
everything I remember as you say it was
1:24:53
2020 when you left me behind I remember
1:24:55
coming to France during covid for some
1:24:58
races and you you
1:25:01
just smashed a French cup and I was like
1:25:04
where the [ __ ] been wagon like
1:25:07
like similar he just smoked man I
1:25:09
remember thinking ah it'll even out and
1:25:13
then we went and did the World Cups and
1:25:15
you I can't remember your results in
1:25:17
2020 but they were certainly better than
1:25:18
nine and ever since like you say you've
1:25:21
just kept climbing so so yeah I mean on
1:25:24
that note
1:25:25
um
1:25:25
you're sitting fifth in the overall now
1:25:28
you're on
1:25:30
1112 points 218 points behind loik the
1:25:35
big question is
1:25:36
how you feeling alike you can keep this
1:25:38
form going into the last two World Cups
1:25:40
in
1:25:42
when we watched the the practice look
1:25:45
easy you know
1:25:48
2001 and like for one win if you win the
1:25:52
the three is like four
1:25:56
it's a lot 100 even more I think more
1:25:59
than that
1:26:00
because it's 250 to win no so it's like
1:26:02
they changed and then like no they
1:26:05
changed semis
1:26:08
400 this way I think I I I almost did
1:26:11
like the half in one weekend so
1:26:15
but yeah honestly yet the plan is
1:26:19
to to keep entering like this Victory is
1:26:23
not happen every weekend
1:26:25
um yeah for sure
1:26:27
it was like like yeah it's it's why I
1:26:33
I try to to enjoy
1:26:37
um
1:26:37
as much as possible with the fun because
1:26:40
like it's it's not happening every
1:26:42
weekend
1:26:43
um yeah I think when
1:26:46
I will take the plane for snowsho the
1:26:48
main will uh Swift and here is okay it
1:26:51
will be after after that at the end I
1:26:54
think everything will play at the last
1:26:57
room
1:27:00
they will put like all the points just
1:27:02
for the final like
1:27:04
we've just been talking about that talk
1:27:06
about that we don't know yeah because it
1:27:08
changed like a few times no the
1:27:10
skepticism on whether you point to semis
1:27:13
so
1:27:14
um yeah I would imagine it would be all
1:27:16
the points yeah everything is possible
1:27:18
but not just for me like for six people
1:27:21
or 70 Riders so it's an exciting finish
1:27:24
yeah I just wanted to ask you about the
1:27:27
Supreme V5 the v4s were known for
1:27:30
developing a few cracks have you cracked
1:27:32
a V5 yet
1:27:34
yeah I know the V4 is
1:27:37
everyone know like is
1:27:39
we had some problem of the ability
1:27:42
but like the the V5
1:27:46
um I still riding in the mud like my
1:27:49
first bike
1:27:51
from like load last year nice it's my
1:27:55
training bike and we didn't have any
1:27:57
problem and it's like a pre-series frame
1:28:01
it's pretty much the same it's not
1:28:02
exactly the same like the difference it
1:28:05
just I think like the we can change the
1:28:08
rigidity yeah at the rear of the by of
1:28:11
Dubai
1:28:12
but yeah when he's Moody I still riding
1:28:15
this bike in uh in Mosin because I don't
1:28:20
want to destroy my my new bikes and at
1:28:24
the beginning we count the number of run
1:28:26
and I stopped counting at
1:28:29
500 runs
1:28:32
it's just insane and we changed like
1:28:35
three times the brewing and yeah like I
1:28:39
did like
1:28:40
first workout with this bike
1:28:43
um
1:28:44
all my first year training
1:28:48
in Marsing
1:28:50
Whistler two weeks New Zealand three or
1:28:54
four weeks
1:28:55
my winter training with this bike and
1:28:58
after I I changed my training bike but I
1:29:01
keep for the Moody days
1:29:03
that's good bad yeah
1:29:06
well thank you for making the time to
1:29:08
come on the Pod as I said I I said drop
1:29:10
you a message yesterday and I said as I
1:29:13
said then I'm just genuinely so bloody
1:29:15
pleased for you
1:29:17
it's a victory for perseverance for grit
1:29:21
and determination and it's so wonderful
1:29:23
to hear you know that possibly my that
1:29:27
that's possibly my favorite interview
1:29:28
we've ever done on this podcast we've
1:29:30
done some belters but that is possibly
1:29:32
it to see to hear someone
1:29:34
who's put so much into it and tried so
1:29:37
hard to get there
1:29:38
it's amazing thank you so much George I
1:29:42
really appreciate it yeah I hope you can
1:29:44
win another one soon I hope to best of
1:29:48
luck for the rest of the season we'll be
1:29:50
back thank you after these messages sir
1:29:52
wrapping up legere Sasha Ernest was five
1:29:56
seconds up when she crashed and still
1:29:58
finished fourth but volte Valentina Roa
1:30:01
Sanchez held it together to win Junior
1:30:03
women she's leading the series now on
1:30:05
285 points with Lisa Bula doing second
1:30:07
and the reason third
1:30:10
two really contrasting Styles there
1:30:12
Emery so we've got a Reese who's either
1:30:14
top two orbit or bust with three wins
1:30:17
this season including World Champs and
1:30:19
then Valentina and Lisa who have won win
1:30:22
each podiums at pretty much every other
1:30:24
race as a team manager kind of looking
1:30:27
at prospects coming through what do you
1:30:30
prefer to see Junior's display is it raw
1:30:33
speed
1:30:33
or is it consistency
1:30:36
I'll go with row speed for like Junior
1:30:38
women's but because you can still like
1:30:41
learn consistency because I know for a
1:30:42
fact that I started downloading with 21
1:30:44
I was like crashing my brains out every
1:30:47
two like runs because I was like whoa
1:30:49
this bike is just like so fast and like
1:30:52
you know so fast on it but then
1:30:53
obviously when you do a mistake
1:30:54
consequence is a little bit higher than
1:30:56
on a cross-country bike so
1:30:59
um
1:31:00
I think
1:31:01
I don't know how every school do like
1:31:04
she had a concussion after a crush like
1:31:07
from Leger so
1:31:08
it's not even really sure if she's gonna
1:31:10
do the last two rounds hopefully for her
1:31:13
I think she was doing better but I was
1:31:15
really struck to see Valentina taking
1:31:17
her first walk-up win as well because
1:31:20
she's been third in Leisure the year
1:31:22
before when Jenna won but she was really
1:31:25
close to like win some other World Cups
1:31:27
and I think she's she probably was gonna
1:31:29
win a lot of yell because she was the
1:31:32
only writer that could make it down like
1:31:34
without like getting sketchy and her
1:31:36
coach was like damn like I feel Rob like
1:31:39
she was she had it in the bag and then
1:31:41
she was devastated but then she turned
1:31:43
it on and win the next one so like
1:31:46
Benoit a little bit
1:31:47
so when you can bounce back from that I
1:31:49
think it's like
1:31:51
it's pretty impressive
1:31:53
um so we'll see what it's pretty it's
1:31:55
pretty exciting finish to be honest in
1:31:57
almost every category maybe the junior
1:31:59
men have a little bit less
1:32:02
um surprise but yeah it's pretty
1:32:03
exciting for sure so Ryan Pinkerton took
1:32:06
the winning legere with with body con
1:32:09
injured hey Ryan looks to have the
1:32:11
overall wrapped up in junior men Valley
1:32:13
has pretty much done the same in Elite
1:32:15
women 424 points ahead of Nina in second
1:32:18
and Marine in third great rides from
1:32:21
Marina Monica harassment though in in La
1:32:23
Jolla oh yeah Monica's um there's a
1:32:27
personal best second place yeah so she
1:32:30
had a quality win in valisole when he
1:32:33
was like pouring down a few years back
1:32:36
and um I know because I got second it
1:32:39
should be me and quality and I was like
1:32:41
oh I couldn't even and then she like got
1:32:44
second this time so I think it was like
1:32:47
she hadn't had top five this year yet it
1:32:50
was going rough for her and I think also
1:32:53
for seeing how she was
1:32:55
riding in Door after comes accident I
1:32:57
think she was
1:33:00
she was pretty like drawn off by it like
1:33:04
a lot of people are but like also
1:33:05
Bernard said he was thinking about it on
1:33:07
the World Cup and stuff but she was like
1:33:09
definitely affected so
1:33:10
and there I didn't go well but then she
1:33:12
turned it back and Marine back on the
1:33:14
top step after one year off
1:33:17
that was pretty cool to see obviously
1:33:19
because you know I was like damn like
1:33:23
she crashed in the first corner and then
1:33:24
she tried to push and I thought nine
1:33:26
seconds you know she could come close if
1:33:29
she really pushes and then she crashed
1:33:30
again and gave up so loik leads the
1:33:33
elite men on 1330 with Jackson on 1273
1:33:38
and Loris on 1208 given how he's riding
1:33:41
giving me so strong psychologically
1:33:45
you've said already that it's possible
1:33:47
Jack for other people to do it
1:33:49
can you see anything other than a lot of
1:33:51
Rooney win
1:33:52
yeah I can actually like yeah yeah
1:33:58
I I think in that group Jackson's the
1:34:00
danger man what the [ __ ] is he gonna
1:34:03
lose yeah no pressure
1:34:05
at all
1:34:06
he's going to Montana like
1:34:10
yeah I think he's the danger man in
1:34:12
there
1:34:13
um so it's gonna be it's gonna be
1:34:14
exciting it's nice that we're going into
1:34:16
these last races thinking that this is
1:34:17
anyone's yeah so so what's Lloyd done to
1:34:21
Jordan and Finn
1:34:23
like these Riders on his team right who
1:34:26
he thinks are going to be the biggest
1:34:27
threats going forward I think I'll just
1:34:29
destroy him
1:34:30
[Music]
1:34:31
[Laughter]
1:34:33
God knows like they're still all hanging
1:34:36
out together I had a nice chat with Finn
1:34:38
in ludenville about Jordan and he said
1:34:40
he's loving having him on the team and
1:34:42
they share lines and get on really well
1:34:44
and
1:34:45
um I've seen like and and and Finn
1:34:48
together in Leger and practice chatting
1:34:50
and so the team Vibe looks from the
1:34:52
outside all fine it's just uh your
1:34:56
results have just been up and down and
1:34:57
look at Emmy she wants to throw in the
1:34:59
ring God
1:35:01
it would be so good to be a little
1:35:03
flying coming to the pits
1:35:06
I'll be like the most exciting pip to be
1:35:10
around when they're like all under
1:35:11
pressure and
1:35:13
like they all have I don't know Joe done
1:35:15
that well but Finn and like definitely
1:35:17
like huge personalities and yeah also
1:35:20
Eagles like in in a good way or in a bad
1:35:23
way both of them like
1:35:25
yeah I remember Armory was like also
1:35:28
dominating
1:35:31
um but then like to the overall of him
1:35:34
in Snowshoe that crazy race that we all
1:35:36
remember yeah he was just they were like
1:35:38
talking after the race obviously they
1:35:40
had some beers and they're like uh yeah
1:35:42
I'll get it next year as well destroy
1:35:46
all of you like you said like I'm always
1:35:47
saying he's gonna stroll over that's
1:35:49
really the vibe like they're like yeah
1:35:51
for sure it's like differential like
1:35:54
this so it can be a bit hard probably to
1:35:57
have someone that
1:35:58
just like this all the time he wants to
1:36:01
to whip everyone apart basically even
1:36:03
their own teammate probably like on the
1:36:05
inside you know he's feeling that way
1:36:07
but yeah it's just exciting I think the
1:36:12
drama Jack you predicted that with your
1:36:16
predictions have been so on point the
1:36:18
last five have we got five in a row you
1:36:21
didn't predict president Benoit at this
1:36:22
one did you did you yeah you should uh
1:36:24
try to like get some money I have a
1:36:26
podcast but that is what I predicted
1:36:27
before we started practice I was like I
1:36:30
was really torn but I was like no I am
1:36:32
going to go with him
1:36:34
um
1:36:35
the Loudonville thing threw me off for a
1:36:37
bit I was like at the same as you George
1:36:39
I was like is he going to hold it
1:36:40
together but I went with him so so yeah
1:36:42
last five Charlie Tibor
1:36:45
no last four Charlie bar like and demois
1:36:49
so who's gonna win him Snowshoe and
1:36:52
Monson and then oh it's a tough one in
1:36:54
there like I I really want to stand by
1:36:57
my eight different winners
1:37:00
um so it it ends the herd
1:37:04
because obviously we've lost their mind
1:37:07
now so so yeah
1:37:08
um
1:37:11
it really depends on the weather like if
1:37:14
it's Snowshoe and monster and a mud fest
1:37:17
burnaker is going to come out swinging
1:37:19
but if it's dry it could be someone
1:37:22
completely different like Loris who was
1:37:24
always fast there yeah
1:37:26
um Andy cob has come really close to
1:37:28
Leger I can't have him because he's
1:37:31
already got one so I know but I mean he
1:37:34
could like have you looked at that um
1:37:36
show with Elliot and Rob no in the show
1:37:40
like they show like the difference even
1:37:42
on the the live thing like he lost half
1:37:45
a second in his mistake like he had it
1:37:47
oh yeah oh he throws it away like he
1:37:50
gives it him yeah but like it was like
1:37:52
so you're like
1:37:54
so he's like on it but he's making
1:37:58
mistakes at everyone
1:38:00
yeah
1:38:02
I I'm right it's tough I you've got to
1:38:06
have if you're going to go for a
1:38:07
different one you've got to probably
1:38:08
have Loris getting one well Snowshoe I'm
1:38:10
torn between Dak and Loris yeah duck
1:38:15
that's good anyway yeah yeah but you
1:38:18
you're so hit and miss that's the thing
1:38:20
with dark
1:38:21
um
1:38:22
all right I'm gonna go to Laura Snowshoe
1:38:24
Finn monsonan
1:38:27
I think you find his magic again I ain't
1:38:29
got burned it's not sure because I
1:38:30
really believe we could do it then I
1:38:33
wonder I want to hear the end of the
1:38:35
story here I can't keep it going on like
1:38:37
this I'll be really like saying we come
1:38:40
and and normally I'll be pissed because
1:38:42
I'm not gonna be there
1:38:46
um
1:38:48
will be amazing and Monster Land
1:38:54
huh gotta be Jackson
1:38:57
if I choosing a different winner yeah
1:39:00
Jackson
1:39:02
and for the women
1:39:05
it's not sure Bali
1:39:08
and Montana and also Valley because
1:39:18
I've seen a fall under pressure before
1:39:19
though is that crash gonna get to her no
1:39:22
she's so far ahead she can she if she
1:39:25
can wrap it up he was like she was like
1:39:27
she was like to me she was like I'm so
1:39:29
reliever crashed like I haven't cried
1:39:31
for so long I saw that on the win TV
1:39:33
that she was like I kind of knew I was
1:39:35
going to crash this week strange no
1:39:37
because like she hasn't crashed in Solo
1:39:39
also in practice so she was like
1:39:41
oh my God like and also after Karma's
1:39:44
accident she was like why am I gonna
1:39:46
crush and then she was like oh I'm okay
1:39:47
I crashed I'm okay and then like
1:39:49
sometimes I had the same feeling because
1:39:51
I was at the end of my career I didn't
1:39:53
crash much and I'm like
1:39:55
I haven't crashing so long like when is
1:39:57
it gonna happen you know so
1:39:59
I think I think she if she's like
1:40:02
healthy at the start because she'll get
1:40:03
it because she's like
1:40:05
these are two great technical tracks
1:40:07
yeah and I think she's like
1:40:10
the technical ability is just she's just
1:40:13
better at the moment
1:40:15
two riders in the men's who were
1:40:16
bubbling away nicely who might surprise
1:40:18
us
1:40:19
at both of these next to uh Troy Brosnan
1:40:22
and Danny Hart
1:40:23
two of the kind of bit more veteran
1:40:25
Riders now but
1:40:28
getting good splits and podiums Danny's
1:40:30
wanted Snowshoe before so
1:40:32
um I wouldn't be surprised to see big
1:40:33
performances out of uh Danny and and
1:40:36
Troy
1:40:38
so I purposefully haven't mentioned the
1:40:40
TV production until now because it's
1:40:43
actually nuts the the coverage at World
1:40:46
Champs was awful lot I don't know how
1:40:50
much of the production ESO we're in
1:40:51
charge of but the commentary was the
1:40:54
worst I've ever heard and Rick
1:40:55
McLaughlin and Neil Donahue was pretty
1:40:58
much everything I feared the the GM
1:41:00
being takeover would be there was there
1:41:02
was a moment I don't know if you watched
1:41:03
it but there was a moment in the junior
1:41:05
men's when Leo robella crossed the line
1:41:07
went into the hot seat and he ended up
1:41:09
third and he's buzzing and Neil said oh
1:41:12
he's going to be gutted when he sees or
1:41:14
how much time is left on the hill and it
1:41:16
was like the opposite of Cedric it was
1:41:19
so dull it sucked the life out of it the
1:41:21
production in Andorra was a mess from
1:41:24
the interviewer introducing tania's Nina
1:41:26
to the graphics for the elite women
1:41:28
having male Riders into the horrible
1:41:30
drone shots it was terrible and I work
1:41:34
in a kind of similar field event
1:41:35
production with a broadcast element and
1:41:37
if you win a competitive tender like the
1:41:40
bare minimum that you do in the first
1:41:42
year is that it's as good as the
1:41:44
previous company but this was nowhere
1:41:46
near what Red Bullet delivered
1:41:49
then leading Veil I don't know what
1:41:51
happened but that was probably the best
1:41:53
production of a mountain bike race I've
1:41:55
ever seen the errors were gone the Drone
1:41:56
work was fantastic Miriam was good in
1:41:59
core commentary Aaron was amazing
1:42:02
and I just can't figure out how you go
1:42:04
from one to the other so quickly like I
1:42:06
wondered if it was because there was no
1:42:08
XC in Laytonville did they put a
1:42:11
different team on it
1:42:12
what were you guys seen and what do you
1:42:15
think
1:42:16
well it was the first time actually well
1:42:19
Andorra I didn't I kind of look back but
1:42:21
London via was the first time I looked
1:42:23
like
1:42:24
for some reason final at home
1:42:26
yeah and I like you I was surprised
1:42:28
because I know I was just crazy like
1:42:31
we had a big chat about it with the
1:42:33
women because Tony got third didn't she
1:42:37
yeah in hondura they showed 37 seconds
1:42:41
of a run
1:42:42
in finals she got third like that's
1:42:45
crazy we will promise they're gonna show
1:42:48
whole runs yeah so you got not even like
1:42:50
40 seconds of a ranch on
1:42:53
like I couldn't see anything
1:42:55
so yes that was like shocking to us as
1:42:58
well because we were like well this is
1:43:00
not what the writers were promised and
1:43:02
the writers has to have to like ride
1:43:04
more perform more but then they don't
1:43:07
really get the same coverage as before
1:43:08
so and then another thing happened
1:43:11
and then they showed a longer section as
1:43:15
well
1:43:16
but I realized I need to like still do
1:43:18
some stats on this but I think they show
1:43:20
more of the men the top men in the
1:43:22
moment like I could be wrong with this
1:43:24
but like sometimes also the way
1:43:26
interviews were introduced sometimes
1:43:28
didn't work but lunovia were much better
1:43:30
definitely Miriam
1:43:32
having Miriam there and Aaron there and
1:43:35
then also Charlie on the last one was
1:43:37
really something that uh worked good
1:43:40
that was like way better
1:43:43
I can I can know why they it changed
1:43:46
that much I would think maybe this like
1:43:49
a local team that's doing oh no I don't
1:43:51
know yeah it was like it was a
1:43:52
completely different team doing it my my
1:43:55
next question was going to be are the
1:43:57
big teams still supporting ESO
1:44:00
or are they losing trust as well but
1:44:02
I've heard there's up to seven teams
1:44:05
leaving
1:44:06
racing next season World level racing as
1:44:09
I mentioned earlier it seems pretty
1:44:10
clear that GT are one of them mondraker
1:44:13
or another then there's LaPierre abyss
1:44:16
and da Vinci and EDR
1:44:18
it's not looking good is it
1:44:20
yeah it almost seems like with the
1:44:22
industry being on a bit of a downward
1:44:25
turn
1:44:26
coupled with
1:44:28
whatever the hell is going on with the
1:44:31
World Cups just seems like everybody's
1:44:34
pissed off initially after the first few
1:44:37
we were kind of thinking it was just us
1:44:39
privateers and smaller teams that were
1:44:42
annoyed and all the big teams were happy
1:44:44
but
1:44:45
the last three weeks in Europe nobody's
1:44:47
happy any team managers cameramen
1:44:50
athletes everybody's
1:44:52
it pissed off about something
1:44:55
um and the kind of the big thing that
1:44:57
I've picked up on over the last few
1:44:59
weeks
1:45:00
is that a lot I think a lot of these
1:45:02
kind of mid-sized teams
1:45:05
um and smaller teams and privateers
1:45:07
everyone's just going to [ __ ] it off and
1:45:09
just go off and do European cups
1:45:11
Nationals crank works because it's
1:45:14
pointless
1:45:15
you're not one there it's a hostile
1:45:17
environment now it's top 30
1:45:20
there's far fewer people who have even a
1:45:22
chance of going going on to race
1:45:25
um
1:45:25
pits or shambles every time you sign on
1:45:28
you give them different bands or no
1:45:29
bands or some lift passes there's no
1:45:31
continuity at any event
1:45:33
in legere pits were
1:45:36
everyone had to keep moving and then in
1:45:39
Loudonville it was just really easy you
1:45:40
could pick where you wanted but then
1:45:42
Andorra it was a talk so there's
1:45:44
everything's just
1:45:46
yeah it's just rubbish and it's going to
1:45:48
be interesting next week and the week
1:45:50
after because usually the North American
1:45:52
ones are so chill because there's quite
1:45:54
a lot of space to park there's less
1:45:56
people there
1:45:58
and honestly I've got some people coming
1:46:01
with me who haven't done World Cups
1:46:02
before and you know I've said to them
1:46:04
normally in North America it's more
1:46:05
chilled and but you can just guarantee
1:46:07
they're going to turn it they're going
1:46:09
to somehow do something
1:46:11
impossible and they're going to try and
1:46:13
fix something that didn't need fixing
1:46:15
they're gonna in the process break it so
1:46:18
yeah I mean I I personally feel like I'm
1:46:20
getting out at the right time like
1:46:22
um obviously I'm still going to be
1:46:23
running my program and I'm not ready to
1:46:24
disclose what we're going to be doing
1:46:26
but
1:46:27
um yeah I'm certainly uh
1:46:29
feel like I'm getting getting out the
1:46:31
right time and uh
1:46:32
you know some reports today online that
1:46:35
Global cycling networks look for sale
1:46:38
and it's you know he's lost 16 million
1:46:42
and 10 million in the last two years wow
1:46:45
so
1:46:46
I don't know I don't know
1:46:49
they hold the contract I don't know who
1:46:51
exactly ESO on the contract I don't know
1:46:54
if they're owned by global cycling
1:46:56
Network now or if that's a discovery
1:46:58
thing or whatever but then on the other
1:47:01
side there's rumors of propane coming
1:47:04
back in
1:47:05
YT going big next season I haven't heard
1:47:09
that mondraker were finished what I'd
1:47:10
heard was that Ms was done like we're
1:47:14
running their own thing that's what I
1:47:15
heard but whether that's true or not
1:47:17
it's all speculation
1:47:20
um so team rumors let's start with those
1:47:23
Riders on GT I've heard yes blue it's
1:47:25
already signed for someone else any
1:47:28
ideas who that might be I mean
1:47:31
not really but probably must have needs
1:47:34
to have a girl so maybe probing yeah I
1:47:37
don't like I haven't really talked to
1:47:38
her because she was obviously like
1:47:39
injured after hard line so she went home
1:47:41
yeah so yeah obviously it's like we
1:47:45
haven't been communicating but it seems
1:47:47
pretty cool that she found something
1:47:48
when she's like solid Rider you know so
1:47:50
yeah it seems pretty clear GT is is
1:47:53
packing up so any word on where Ryan or
1:47:57
Ethan are going you Ryan would be a
1:47:59
great Prospect for me the big thing is
1:48:02
like when you look at so I I was
1:48:04
chatting with one of my Junior's parents
1:48:06
earlier and in legere my room was good I
1:48:10
was 61st in the men's
1:48:12
I would have been eighth in Junior with
1:48:14
that time so that means next year not
1:48:17
all of those guys are second year
1:48:18
Juniors but some of them are
1:48:20
every week you've got that number of
1:48:22
Juniors qualifying and say four or five
1:48:25
six of them are moving up yeah
1:48:27
now
1:48:28
they're they're making the pits smaller
1:48:31
by pissing everyone off and make it
1:48:33
harder for these smaller teams these
1:48:35
mountain bike teams to operate
1:48:37
where are all these Riders going to go
1:48:39
Trek out all of a sudden gonna have a 10
1:48:41
Rider team Syndicate and all of a sudden
1:48:43
gonna have eight Riders In The Paddock
1:48:46
any you guys in pivot aren't all of a
1:48:48
sudden gonna sign five more Riders like
1:48:51
all these new talented Riders are coming
1:48:54
through
1:48:54
there's what like
1:48:56
there's only a few of us that announce
1:48:58
and have announced where we're retiring
1:49:00
I do think more people will retire this
1:49:03
year because
1:49:04
a lot of a lot of guys who used to
1:49:06
qualify now um but my point is like yeah
1:49:09
you've got Ryan you've got Ethan you've
1:49:11
got these Juniors they're all coming
1:49:12
through some teams are closing down
1:49:14
where the hell is everyone going to go
1:49:16
yeah there aren't going to be enough
1:49:18
seats
1:49:21
so strange rumor and this was on the
1:49:25
vital thread Lori Greenland off The
1:49:28
Syndicate
1:49:29
no I don't believe it I can't see that I
1:49:33
haven't heard anything and I feel like
1:49:34
he is
1:49:36
like on a good vibe with Jackson as well
1:49:38
and yeah like the bike is working really
1:49:41
good so and then Steve get on well he's
1:49:44
not going to raise you at a Syndicate so
1:49:45
he's going to be desperate to stay to
1:49:47
tick that box I can't see him wanting
1:49:49
rid of him
1:49:50
so Greg did an interview I don't know if
1:49:53
you've seen it with win
1:49:55
after the last round and he sounded like
1:49:58
he might be retiring from the turn of
1:50:00
how he was speaking have you seen that
1:50:03
yeah on the win TV yeah yeah he seemed
1:50:06
like it almost made his piece with it
1:50:07
didn't he but yeah at the same time like
1:50:09
if someone's going to pay him to race
1:50:11
World Cups he's clearly still fast
1:50:13
enough he's getting podiums in top tens
1:50:14
so who knows what he'll decide to do so
1:50:18
Valley moving on from track
1:50:22
yes
1:50:23
yeah yeah she's she's moving on
1:50:27
she's moving on and I think she was just
1:50:29
like
1:50:30
also she was not on track Factory racing
1:50:33
she wasn't a smaller team and with the
1:50:34
result that she's getting
1:50:36
on a structure where she's like
1:50:40
in the biggest structure I think would
1:50:42
you say she's moving on or would you say
1:50:44
she's moving back
1:50:49
that might be a clue for the listeners
1:50:51
so
1:50:55
um
1:50:55
run and done
1:50:58
too if somebody had told me that
1:51:01
comments I wanted him but I I'd heard
1:51:02
that mondraker had a hard-on for him in
1:51:05
their new non-mst so okay oh okay you've
1:51:09
got to go to come and sell mock off come
1:51:11
on he would he would like fit well in
1:51:14
there but follow me I don't know if
1:51:16
they're like
1:51:17
not French speaker to be honest I think
1:51:20
they're trying in the past he's wild
1:51:22
they're not struggling he's the right
1:51:24
kind of Rider and he is wild enough but
1:51:26
yeah I can see what he's saying but I
1:51:28
think he'd probably have it depends a
1:51:30
little bit on his end of the season but
1:51:31
he's so consistent this year he had like
1:51:33
trouble with his wrist or whatever yeah
1:51:35
but he could be like also a surprise
1:51:37
rider for the last two rounds and like
1:51:40
get Advantage from that to like make a
1:51:43
move yeah yeah and there was some
1:51:45
interview with loik I think on the full
1:51:47
attack
1:51:49
and it's in French
1:51:50
yeah the duck got second to him and he
1:51:54
said some comment about
1:51:56
that doesn't even have a team or
1:51:58
something like that
1:52:00
yeah so I think that team they're just
1:52:04
at that time where contracts are due for
1:52:06
renewal is this intense yeah yeah yeah
1:52:08
sure
1:52:10
I hadn't heard the team was folding all
1:52:12
I'd heard
1:52:14
some reliable source was that contracts
1:52:16
were just offered up for Renewal
1:52:19
um discussions were going on yeah
1:52:22
whether anyone else has heard more on
1:52:24
top of that I'm not sure but um do you
1:52:26
think Finn's gonna stay
1:52:29
no idea
1:52:30
I think yeah
1:52:34
they are developing the by the bike is
1:52:35
really like yeah little baby
1:52:38
is there a better chance to win anywhere
1:52:40
else that's the if you're on that team
1:52:42
that is the best chance to win isn't it
1:52:44
you're still gonna have to beat Lloyd
1:52:45
somewhere else
1:52:47
yeah none
1:52:50
I wouldn't see him move but I mean you
1:52:53
never know and Dean Lucas retiring so
1:52:56
yeah he's gonna be he's got two races
1:52:59
left I hope we can get Dean on the show
1:53:01
to do 20 questions with you as well back
1:53:03
at the end of the yeah yeah I'll teach
1:53:05
them about it in America I'm sure so
1:53:07
someone might go to school then
1:53:10
someone oh yeah that's a little rumor
1:53:12
I've got um I know that gonzalo's riding
1:53:14
with Scott at the end oh yeah
1:53:17
um it's been well obviously he's
1:53:18
supported him at the last couple and it
1:53:21
you know it sounds like they're
1:53:23
interested in for next year so I think
1:53:25
that'll probably depend on
1:53:27
on the rest of his season
1:53:29
but yeah he certainly deserves a shock
1:53:31
because he's you know he's fast and he's
1:53:33
starting to make it work so anybody else
1:53:35
you could think who might go to Scott
1:53:37
Emma
1:53:40
no because like the in um in the
1:53:43
development development team that they
1:53:45
have
1:53:46
um there's some guys
1:53:48
are like doing good qualifying yeah but
1:53:52
they're not like yeah like Gonzalo was
1:53:55
doing like it was still a little bit
1:53:58
missing
1:53:59
yeah but I mean they they could in the
1:54:02
last two rounds I don't know there's
1:54:03
always they're always been good Riders
1:54:05
also in the mud so if it's get crazy up
1:54:07
there it could be
1:54:09
we could be up for anything
1:54:12
Jack two races to go in your career you
1:54:15
finish it on your favorite track monster
1:54:16
and Anne how are you feeling about it
1:54:19
yeah positive to be fair I mean across
1:54:22
those three weeks like
1:54:24
the better split times I've had
1:54:27
um I've been on the fast sections even
1:54:29
in legere my run that I didn't qualify
1:54:31
with I was 12 fastest through the last
1:54:32
sector and I think I was about 30th
1:54:34
through the top sector so Martin said
1:54:37
arms flat out suits me down to the
1:54:39
ground
1:54:39
um but I mean ultimately I'm just
1:54:41
enjoying it like in legere I couldn't be
1:54:44
annoyed I'd had a good run and there
1:54:46
were 60 riders that were faster than me
1:54:48
I was a bit [ __ ] off with Laurie like
1:54:50
he decided not to race he couldn't have
1:54:53
decided that before crawling
1:54:56
I hope they're having a word with him
1:54:58
come on mate next time just throw it
1:55:01
down have it all I can't have it all
1:55:03
just throw the old man a bone you know
1:55:05
what I mean I've already threatened
1:55:07
Harry Miller if he does that to me again
1:55:08
we're gonna have words
1:55:14
uh we fly out on Monday the 25th so
1:55:17
normally we go a little earlier but now
1:55:19
I've got Blake are trying to minimize uh
1:55:21
minimize unnecessary lengths to road
1:55:24
trips so
1:55:25
playing a Monday drive straight there
1:55:27
and crack on with it so hopefully it
1:55:29
won't be snowing and Emmy you're you're
1:55:31
not heading out no I had to decide quite
1:55:35
a little like a little bit earlier
1:55:38
and obviously we didn't know how come it
1:55:41
was gonna do and now
1:55:43
she's doing okay but like still she
1:55:45
she's not driving
1:55:47
and she might have like also I think I
1:55:50
just wanted to support her during this
1:55:53
time and being away working I was just
1:55:55
like not feeling
1:55:57
100 confident that we'll be able to like
1:56:01
enjoy being away and stuff like that so
1:56:04
I had to decide to wake after underwear
1:56:05
I was like no no way I can imagine
1:56:07
myself being
1:56:08
being away but um yeah it's been it was
1:56:13
my last race there
1:56:15
um in snowshoes I always enjoy go back
1:56:18
but I guess uh we'll probably enjoy it
1:56:20
even a bit better if it's snowing and
1:56:22
I'm in front of my TV with a blanket and
1:56:25
Jack is like freeing freezing on the
1:56:28
hill no I'm yeah I mean I'm excited to
1:56:31
see
1:56:32
how everything falls out from the
1:56:34
outside would be a good experience too
1:56:35
cool well I think that's about all we've
1:56:37
got time for apologies to any of the
1:56:39
racers who did amazing things that we've
1:56:41
missed there was so much to cover thanks
1:56:43
to the wonderful sponsors of the show
1:56:45
hope technology Geotech suspension
1:56:47
Revolution bike part rad Southern span
1:56:49
Schwab and singletrackworld.com if
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you're enjoying the podcast I'm sure you
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know what to do by now please subscribe
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1:57:02
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1:57:04
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1:57:06
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