Fort William World Cup - Greg Minnaar has won the DH! by IanHylands

168 Comments

Score Time

+ 73

Heroical (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:09)

Stoked for Danny!

+ 37

PlumStick13-Magnus (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:16)

danny hart shocking the world!! and such a lairy run!

+ 73

PlumStick13-Magnus (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:16)

anyone see cedric no hander the ladder road gap? what a boss!!!!

+ 74

Empire-Matt (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:20)

love it when rob said "who cares about his time, its Cedric, he can do anything he wants!"

+ 18

konabike4321 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:22)

cedric has the best efortless style

+ 32

PlumStick13-Magnus (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:24)

yeah that was funny. and after dannys crash, summet like "i bet his arse is as open as a vintage golf bag" hahaha

+ 61

tomboulter (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:29)

My personal favourite, "He's off as easily as a Jewish foreskin!"

+ 18

melonhead1145 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:31)

I love Cedric, just because he has such a casual attitude towards the World Cup, while most of the guys are nervous and under pressure, hes just so relaxed and throws down big style, one handers, no handers big whips and doesnt really care about his position too much, definately one of the best riders to watch.

benko (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:31)

"I am Rob Warner's love child!"

+ 32

marinlmasher (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:33)

Sam Hill- "He's ore dangerous than a Spanish cucumber"

johnny-compton (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:34)

what happened with arron gwin?? he did so well in the qualifiers

- 16

adamdigby (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:42) (Below Threshold) show comment

"His butthole is stretched like an old golf bag" too Danny Hart after his bobble up top. Gwin slipped his pedals at the bottom, causing hi to lose all that time. Go Brook Macdonald!

Sean1708 (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:00)

warner's controversial quotes are the main reason i watch the world cup, that and the sick dh of course.

jakeheath (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:26)

Rob warners getting a telescope

Downhill-Christy (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:45)

Really stoked for Danny too. But all us Brits seem to be forgetting that Brook came from the same junior year as Danny and was up in third! (Good to see a Brit on top though Wink

)

pierpoint33 (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:48)

I didn't see cédric no hander it but i seen in his qualification run he done a bar turn point at the camera, what a guy he is. And Danny looked sick, one of the best weekends i have had in a very long time.

melonhead1145 (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:30)

most might have missed the earlier rob warner quote, one of the trek team took a tumble and warners reaction was "and he's off like a jewish foreskin"

dannyweiland (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:37)

how did gwin slip his pedals he rides clips

MiloXC3 (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:39)

Cedric Gracia = Riding genius. Rob Warner = comical genius.

Empire-Matt (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:42)

foot came un clipped?

Joelrider (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:56)

Ride Life, Ride Giant! Danny 4EVER

MiloXC3 (Jun 5, 2011 at 12:17)

If only he didn't slip! Still, major props to Danny!

pierpoint33 (Jun 5, 2011 at 12:26)

Anyone got a clip of CG no handering the drop ?, i have missed it everytime on eurosport and missed it at firt william aswell, silly me.

peterman1234 (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:49)

i saw gwin in his race run fumbling to get clipped back in

melonhead1145 (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:19)

quick search in youtube and found a clip from today including cedrics run. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ohu2vLL0Dsc

Will-BrownGT (Jun 5, 2011 at 17:11)

"dont want to bore anyone with the details but im getting a telescope" HAHAHA

cazneaux (Jun 5, 2011 at 19:48)

Can I watch these world cup races live anywhere?

peterman1234 (Jun 5, 2011 at 19:53)

http://freecaster.tv/mountainbike/1014860/uci-world-cup-2011-dhi-2-fort-william-gbr

Empire-Matt (Jun 6, 2011 at 3:00)

hahahahahaha...

http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/6691104/

Trealairborne (Jun 6, 2011 at 4:20)

Cedric said one time that he only cares about charisma and style... And what a style!

daniel-sanchez (Jun 7, 2011 at 1:50)

Nice work on Danny's side and also stoked for SA. Represent.

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+ 23

tom-cuthbert (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:12)

4 out of top 8 were Kiwis.

Two words: F**k. Yes.

chainsawnz (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:15)

5 in the top 20!!

+ 29

whitetux (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:45)

6 brits in the top 20 Wink

+ 13

tom-cuthbert (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:56)

Not bad considering the UK has 12x the population of NZ though!

IrishTom (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:00)

Meant to prop you up, but hit the wrong switch...go on the Kiwi's.

TheGoose (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:47)

@tom-cuthbert: NZ has considerably superior geography for DH than the UK Wink

nonetheless, props to all the lesser known kiwis and brits placing well today Smile

manchicken (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:03)

but the main point none of you have seen, we got Peaty

whatthehellmannn (Jun 5, 2011 at 12:33)

7 brits whitetux Wink

TheBAMFpro (Jun 5, 2011 at 16:07)

1 canadian top 10

jaketinnelly (Jun 5, 2011 at 18:06)

Brook Macdonald is so fast because hes pumped up with so much red bull nowadays Big Grin

DirtyDee (Jun 6, 2011 at 1:38)

Tom, do you not mean "F**k. Yiss." ?!

But seriously, NZ is taking over DH and fair play.

Empire-Matt (Jun 6, 2011 at 12:54)

i wanted ol' blenky to do better though!

daniel-sanchez (Jun 7, 2011 at 1:51)

Hard bro

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+ 16

dickturd-jnr94 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:17)

if danny wasnt as loose he would of took the win!!

benjiscott82 (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:19)

if danny wasnt as loose he'd have come off at the top whe he slipped though, may have cost him a second or two but it saved hi 2nd spot. amazing run, what a legend

PerryDH (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:22)

Yea, but to be as loose as Danny was and only be 1.29 seconds down is AMAZING!

tup

to Danny

p-romano (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:15)

Danny outrode everybody but was outpedaled and that's why Minnaar won.

savmeister (Jun 5, 2011 at 12:54)

if danny wasnt as loose he wouldnt be danny hart !!!

benjiscott82 (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:43)

EGGS ACTLY!

mic9654 (Jun 5, 2011 at 15:10)

danny is looser than a sluts pussy

benko (Jun 8, 2011 at 17:00)

if danny wasn't as loose he wouldn't have been going as fast. i don't think he would've won anyway, i mean, anyone could've won. aaron crashed and gee effed up his back tire really bad. anything can happen, danny just happened to have a combination of good luck and a solid run. if everyone had a run with no problems though then i think aaron definitely would've had it

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+ 14

sam-oakes (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:13)

Amazing work from Danny, so unbelievably pleased for him, he definitely deserves it.

gazmataz (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:18)

Agreed. I've missed the live feed on this so I'll watch it tonight on eurosport. Sounds like a well deserved podium for the little man. Could this be a season for danny to finally show his potential????

Downhill-Christy (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:42)

I think he showed his potential last year; his first year in elite and he got 8th overall and 8th at MSA... And don't forget Brook, who being the same age as Danny managed a third...

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+ 12

tamvi (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:19)

What the hell happened to Gwin on the lower section?? So happy for Minnaar, so dissapointed of Hill..

hyperpower88 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:31)

Also disapointed for Hill, Pietermaritzburg wanst his kind of track (although he got 4th in 2009 I think), but I really tought he would step it up at Fort William!

benko (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:08)

gwin was doing so well i kept on waiting for him to come over that one table top but he didn't come for so long

emarquar (Jun 5, 2011 at 19:19)

I suspect that after what happened last year, Hill only rode at 95% or so. I don't really blame him. I think Warner mentioned something about Sam saying that he would essentially do just that. It's also possible that he's not in prime fitness for whatever reason. I'm sure he'll get a lot stronger as the season goes on.

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betsie Plus (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:26)

We watched up top and Gwin was head and shoulders above the rest, everyone has some catching up to do.
Gee, Greg and Danny struggled for speed out of some corners where Gwin was on the gas mid corner.
Truly epic to watch him live up at pinball, have never seen a rider ride Fort William like that.
Whatever happened to Gwin might be a good thing for the season or he would run away with it...

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chyu (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:37)

It was a DH slopestyle race for Cedric Gracia .

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galliwasp (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:30)

Yeah, Danny Heart!

'Competition is great this year.

Side note with respect to some talk about Rob Warner -- if Freecaster were to get rid of Rob, I'd cease to bother with Freecaster. Rob is an original. He is a big reason why I love watching the WC on Freecaster.

'Sunny right now. I'm going biking. Yee-doggie!

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MrQuad (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:39)

What I can't believe after just returning from watching it live is how the video footage makes the road jump look pretty tame.
Watching at the side of the track, that jump is huge, the run in tiny and trecherous and the landing so incredibly steep and loose (more than 45 degrees)! For sheer entertainment CG was awesome and got some of the biggest cheers of the day - Fantastic day out for me and the daughter!
Not many other sports where the the superstars from it stay behind for hours having their pictures taken with kids, giving autographs and chatting to them - a lot of other sports could learn a lesson or two.

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badgermeister (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:06)

Another amazing weekend of racing, pity Danny didn't take the win but to make up the time after such a sketchy start is unreal. With Gwin over 5 secs in his favour on the second split I'm still dying to know what happened? Alas I was at the back of the hot seat with my pooch in hand getting high fives from passing riders

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MOUSTRO (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:53)

just wanted to point our that spanish cucumbers are not dangerous. That's german bullshit

emarquar (Jun 5, 2011 at 19:20)

Why don't you guys just compromise, and blame the French?

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kavika (Jun 5, 2011 at 21:51)

Seems strange that people forget there is a fine line between a fast run, and crashing out. Danny was flying, but barely in control, yes, IF, he had a clean run, he could have won. But IF the others were riding on the edge, they too could have gone faster still.

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Dusterr (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:20)

Can someone tell me why you all writing about danny hart? Greg Minaar won and he deserves it very well. I have always thought of why its so little about him on pinkbike? Congratz Minaar! Wink

n3lson666x (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:29)

because danny hart is still a young up and coming rider that destroyed 99% of the big names?

Dusterr (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:04)

okey, never heard of him but now i have (:, but doesnt Minaar deserves attenction anyway?

3lfd3wd (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:34)

It's BECAUSE you've never heard of him that everyone is talking about him! Minaar is a steady bet for a good position, Danny absolutely threw it down the hill and achieved something that no-one would've put money on!

WolfRidge08 (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:36)

Not really, people arnt suprised if minaar does well, hes a top class rider and everyone expects him to do well, for a rider of dannys age to come out and do that, and brook macdonald as well, they deserve probs from everyone for their efforts.

Dusterr (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:03)

I agree with you guys, its awesome when a non expected rider is showing the world but i havnt heard much of Minaar and i didnt thought people expected him to do good anymore, i thought it was sort of a comeback or something... Well, like i said now i know who danny hart is, congratz to him! (:

lochussie (Jun 5, 2011 at 15:23)

Yeah, it seems Minaar is kind of like a Schumacher or Armstrong in this respect.

emarquar (Jun 5, 2011 at 19:26)

You get this kind of discussion if a really young rider, a rider back from injury, or a complete unknown places really well. You also get this discussion if guys like Gee, Minaar, Hill, Peaty, etc. do really, really poorly.

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browner (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:13)

It was good but freecaster totally duffed up my Mozilla with 6 riders to go. I was all ctrl+alt+del and had to load it up so many times just to try and catch another glimpse, saw about 20secs of Minaar. My laptop isn't exactly the sharpest tool but I watched many live events on other websites fine.

lochussie (Jun 5, 2011 at 15:25)

worked fine on my firefox

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pumpkin1979 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:58)

goldenwalt does have a point, warner is brilliant but a bit more commentary would be nice now and again. although i did watched the last round on eurosport and the commentary was excellent but without warners gags and excitement it was flat and way less fun.

emarquar (Jun 5, 2011 at 19:23)

I think that's what the second commentator is there to do - provide serious commentary. But Warner just gets so worked up that he just starts talking over them. I hope they find someone to stay on as a long-term second commentator who doesn't get talked over so easily. More importantly, Freecaster needs to sort their technical issues out. I'm glad their site/feed isn't dying all the time like last year, but the timing and mic issues should be simple to do right....

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IrishTom (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:59)

@ Webbe, it wouldn't cost money. Warner just needs to do some homework. I'm not bashing him, as I said before it's constructive criticism. The world has enough 'yes men' out there.

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ripperboy (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:16)

Yes Brook killing it dude!!!

november29 (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:23)

Brook is a machine! Is it his first cup? Really happy for him

JamesOliver (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:26)

Nah Brook has been doing World Cups for 2-3 years at least.

sagetthegreat (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:42)

If i remember correctly, he won world champs in 09 as a junior.

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leannmetalhead (Jun 6, 2011 at 2:30)

If only Gwin didn't crash, here's his explanation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2r4COtfAZWw&feature=feedu />Same with Danny Hart he could have won it! Well that's racing, either you give it all or you don't podium at all.

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BulldogUK (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:28)

Well done to Danny Hart for 2nd place, dunno what Gee was thinking ??

hoolydooly (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:33)

"hes off faster than a Jewish foreskin"
"hes more dangerous than a Spanish cucumber"
"that would of opened his arsehole like a village golf bag"

Rob Warner you legend!

game (Jun 5, 2011 at 12:23)

"he threw it all away like phil collins in his 3rd divorce"

that ones good too

whitetux (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:04)

gee finished his run with 6 spokes on the rear wheel or something like that

cyrix (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:42)

Gee's run here, his back wheel certainly got messed up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N0gF4OVIAE

BulldogUK (Jun 9, 2011 at 17:35)

Geez that is one wobbly rear wheel :-/

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Shredder-boy (Jun 6, 2011 at 11:07)

I'm gutted thatthe Athertons didn't do too well, they didn't seem to be having much luck withtheir wheels, what with Dan's puncture and Gee's icident! At least Rachel didn't do to bad and took second.

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FatTireTOKWA (Jun 6, 2011 at 1:03)

wow! how did Danny do that with those mistakes!?!
damn!
Props for Cedric Gracia!

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djmaxy12 (Jun 5, 2011 at 15:16)

4 nz riders in the top 8 AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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haz1700 (Jun 5, 2011 at 17:28)

A lot of chinese whispers going on with some of Warner's quotes, there's about 5 different renditions of the 'golf bag' analogy above!

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iambike4lyf (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:54)

following DH world cup seriously loses something when theres no videos, how do they expect the sport to grow when they treat the world cup like a secret?

PerryDH (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:23)

Its called freecaster.tv and watching it live!

ben-06-7 (Jun 5, 2011 at 12:55)

plus the world cup finished like 4 hours ago, most film companies/filmers and photographers were still there while we were cleaning up, expect more edits and photos and reports a few days after the event, not a few hours, details will come out in time

cyrix (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:46)

Hit up youtube right after the WC rounds iambike4lyf, tons of people putting up videos, usually two runs a pop of the top mens riders only though.

iambike4lyf (Jun 6, 2011 at 6:42)

freecaster never seems to work for me, last year was super laggy this year i couldn't even get on to their site!
and doesn't UCI have rules about releasing videos too soon after an event, meaning you can't see footage of the world cup untill the next ones coming up!

PerryDH (Jun 6, 2011 at 7:52)

Freecaster is always running can watch a replay right now if you want. and there are no rules, its just everyone has been filming constantley and are trying to edit them to perfection before releasing, it just takes time to trickle through

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leopffm (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:16)

I stayed like: Omg Danny is making less 1.5 secs. and then... oh no, bad luck in there. And still 2nd place! Congrats!

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pumpkin1979 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:16)

go danny, your the man

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FakeDeath (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:13)

Stoked for Greg Minnaar!

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hoolydooly (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:26)

Danny is the f*ckn man!! if he didn't come off he would have defs won that. next year buddy, next year,

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motorcrosser12 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:18)

Well done Danny! I was hoping that Gee or Peaty would come first though instead of Minnaar...at least Tracy came First though!

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FetusOven (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:55)

Gwin fell and took 5th. He is insane

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TheBAMFpro (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:18)

Nooo I wanted gee to take it but congrats to greg

whitetux (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:03)

gee finished the race with 6 spokes left in his rear wheel

TheBAMFpro (Jun 5, 2011 at 16:06)

what a beast

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chauzie (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:27)

Where can I download a Eurosport feed?? I love to watch DH racing but in the USA, I can't find any coverage.

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wesdadude (Jun 5, 2011 at 19:20)

Shame for Steve Smith. Also, anyone know what happened to Fabien Barel? He stopped and dnf but I don't know why.

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vandenbeekdh (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:30)

f*ck ya minnaar

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ScaryGerry (Jun 5, 2011 at 16:45)

That would have opened his ass hole like a British golf bag!!! Rob Warner is awesome... HAHA...

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will100 (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:51)

dannnny what a run man Smile

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VesoDH (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:39)

Wath is wrong with Sam Hill ?

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UnisaurProductions (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:07)

SA Represent!

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Toby24 (Jun 6, 2011 at 0:55)

Props to Danny, i thought he only dirt jumped?

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pjelinek (Jun 6, 2011 at 10:30)

What happened to Barel, did he wreck, get hurt?

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dh-freeeride (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:08)

NOOOO!! i was going to watch this tonight on Euro sport 2 damn you pinkbike!

DirtyDee (Jun 5, 2011 at 12:41)

So in order to avoid the possible news of who won the race you came to Pinkbike? Makes sense?!!

dh-freeeride (Jun 5, 2011 at 16:58)

it's kindof part of my routine when i go on the lap top ya'know, Facebook, Twitter, Crc, P*rn, Pinkbike and i forgot about the world cup because of the order of the list previously mentioned ...

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Lordofdogtown (Jun 6, 2011 at 13:39)

does somebody know what happend to Nick Beer?

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noni310 (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:31)

I had a feeling Danny would pull on out of the bag so pleased for him

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DH-DANIMAL (Jun 5, 2011 at 21:11)

Good day to be a kiwi. So stoked

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soutie1 (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:34)

Gee was such a moody bitch, that boy should be happy with 5th. And as for Gwin crashing ?????? That's bullshit his jersey and shorts where cleaner than when he started ! Best race so far....Hart could have won that by a mile if he was a little be less Crazy lol

bderricks (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:45)

Gwin definitely had some form of crash. If you had watched the race you would have seen that Gwin was over 5 seconds up on Minaar at the second split, but was late coming on camera shortly after. After watching South Africa you'd have to be mad to think Minaar took over 8 seconds out of gwin in the pedal section. Great race though, exciting for Brook and Danny!

whitetux (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:11)

Gee finished his run with minimal spokes left in his rear wheel. And when you go to win and you don't get the chance because of a mechanical then you have every right to be moody, especially if you devote your entire life to the sport.

iainmac-1 (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:47)

Gee came in 4th did he not? That's a damn good place considering he had a mechanical. whitetux is right, it's out of your control so of course he would be raging, and he knows that he was on a winning time - just look at his 1st split time! Don't tell me you wouldn't be "moody" if that happened to you.

fox7 (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:21)

Yeah, he did get in 4th.

El3ctroplatano (Jun 6, 2011 at 6:13)

I maybe wrong, but I clearly heard Rob say several times that the graphics for the first split time were wrong, so maybe this is why Gwin was over 5 seconds up on Minaar. Can some one confirm this...

bderricks (Jun 6, 2011 at 10:55)

@El3ctroplatano: I believe Rob was confused throughout the entire broadcast. The splits (whether its green or red) are based off of the current first place run, not the individual sector times. Rob seemed to think that every time a person went green through the first sector it meant they were in first place, when really, it's just that they were faster than Minaar's first sector. The reason they were coming up as like 7th at the split is because guys like Stevie and Sam threw down super fast first sectors Either way though, in the official timing up above, Gwin's second split is 3:22.040 and Minaar's is 3:27.555, which is good enough confirmation for me, haha. Hope that cleared it up.

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fox7 (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:13)

did NOT expect this. Gee didn't even get on the podium! And Gwin..........must've had eaten something wrong.

SMMScotland (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:29)

he did get on the podium

whitetux (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:09)

gee finished his run with minimal spokes left in his rear wheel

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crosskiller42 (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:12)

after watching danny and how big his off was he probably could have won it

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r8mac24 (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:14)

what about dannys run? was crazy. minnar well deserved. That flat pedal section needs looked at for next time, messes times to much, 5secs came be made or lost on it.

webbe (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:59)

The speedway adds alot to the track, the rest of it is so balls out gnarly, that the speedyway sections adds another element, think it's that diversity that makes it such a brilliantly challenging track, you have to be skilled in many areas to win at Fort Bill.

whitetux (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:02)

Whats wrong with pedalling sections being part of downhill tracks? Its a good thing!

dh-freeeride (Jun 5, 2011 at 17:00)

especially considering fort bills not a very pedally track at the top and the middle so it kinda balances out (:

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b4life (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:16)

woaah, what happened!?

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over9000ninja (Jun 5, 2011 at 18:33)

i wanted smith to win Frown

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amateur-Soldier (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:34)

Damn... Looks like despite all the training Affy still isn't up to it

juanzo (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:41)

Reventó la rueda trasera.

amateur-Soldier (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:45)

Diioooos eso tiene k joder! y en su primera carrera (de este año xD)

Lordofdogtown (Jun 6, 2011 at 13:38)

does somebody know what happend to Nick Beer?

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Below threshold threads are hidden

- 27

Goldenwalt (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:35)

Hart's run was amazing, he was so determined to not only finish but pin it. It looked like he would have crashed at least two times, but he was able to hold on and keep the throttle down. WOW! Freecaster really needs to step it up. Coverage is getting spotty at best. Maybe its time for some new announcers. Rob would rather talk sh*t and tell stories than tell you who is on course and what their time is. Sometimes I wonder if he has spiked his RedBull with vodka. DH is on a really good upswing, let's not screw it up with bush league announcers to be our face/voice to the rest of the world.

+ 14

tomboulter (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:42)

Shut up you tool.

Rob Warner is hysterical just look at some of the quotes from today! Wouldn't be nearly as entertaining to watch without him commentating.

notallowedtoswear (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:52)

watch it on eurosport if you dont like rob warner. everyone else loves him so hes not going anywhere

tom-cuthbert (Jun 5, 2011 at 8:58)

Goldenwalt is 48 years old (according to his PB profile) so most likely doesn't appreciated the humour the same as we do.

IrishTom (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:02)

Fully agree with Goldenwalt, watch any other sport and you get true in depth analysis...not 'pushing it hard there'...or 'he's on course'..Rob may craic some funny one liners but he is meant to be a commentator, not a comedian.

IrishTom (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:08)

Here are a list of things Warner should know:
The riders sponsors, country of origin, years on the circuit, race history, teams they have ridden with. Along with major moments in their career...clips or flats, riding style...Then he should notice things about their run, how it compares to their quali, what strategy they might be using, the lines they've taken,..some info regarding their bike/spec/set-up/tyres etc and how it will be an advantage/disadvantage in relation to the track/or section of track.

He can still throw in his quips and retain his style, but we need better analysis. Racing would be even more interesting and we might even benefit from listening...

That said, great days racing, and it's good to see the top ten getting a bit mixed up...major props to Danny and Greg.

webbe (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:11)

Lets not forget that he is commentating on "free"caster. How can you possibly make an argument against something we all get for free anyway (except those few races last year...)

That point aside, Rob is hilarious and makes the viewing far more enjoyable, as for the age argument, Warner is like 80 himself, his humour will never get old in my eyes.

Goldenwalt (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:19)

I completely appreciate the humor that Rob is throwing out there. But I compare his situation with someone who had too much free time on their hands so they end up getting into trouble. Freecaster is having way too much in the way of tech. difficulties. They'll start out with two people announcing, then it seems like they end up with one mic. being shared between the two. Camera coverage is there one minute and then gone the next. The announcers are trying to figure out who is actually on course and what their actual split times are compared to UCI. If you watch an ASP surfing competition online, you don't see the same type of difficulties. They too put on events that don't have the best in broadband availability, and they don't have the number of on-air type of problems that we are experiencing with the DH events. How can we expect to get air time on Fuel and other TV media with this type of coverage. If UCI/Freecaster steps it up, DH will get more sponsors, more money and that will end up getting to the riders who deserve it the most.

IrishTom (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:26)

I wouldn't call it free, in reality you pay for it through the products you buy. They charge us a bit extra and then pay Freecaster. When I did pay for it, nothing changed, your argument is a straw-man. I am offering some constructive criticism, they could improve it at no extra cost, don't think for a second Warner's there due to some altruistic desire to help the world, it's a paid job.

webbe (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:33)

I'm not for a second suggesting that, what I'm saying is that Warner is a great guy and I think 90% of people that watch the freecaster feeds feel Warner adds a great deal to it. Sure coverage could be better, but comparing it to a sport such as surfing isn't entirely fair considering that this is being live streamed from the Scottish highlands from a course which requires numerous cameras and a great deal of coordination to even make the recordings, as opposed to a single beach. Yes the whole thing could be made alot slicker, but that requires money, money that would be even more limited if they employed people less passionate about the sport and more influenced by money. For the time being bashing Warner doesn't solve anything.

- 11

mayardmtbeames (Jun 5, 2011 at 9:40) (Below Threshold) show comment

look guys, you might as well just give up this "debate" because i would f*ck you all up.

TheGoose (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:04)

^what?

adampage6 (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:23)

dont mess with mayardmtbeames hes hard as f*ck!!

:L

JimBowen (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:28)

Right check this, Freecaster receive their time recordings and television feed from the same broadcasting company that the UCI hire to run the event - check out Eurosport and see they have the same footage, angles etc.
Freecaster is run through sponsorship and endorsement, stretching much further out of the circle than just MTB. The people bashing Warner (yes, I'm a massive fan of his but hear me out..) should take into consideration his wage, and the cost for Freecaster to attend/stream the event, let alone have another person in their team that should do the homework of all the racers, sponsors and teams before passing this information over to Rob. Rob has forgotten more than most of us will know about the pro DH circuit.
If you don't like the broadcast, then please don't watch it as there's only so much bandwidth available..

IrishTom (Jun 5, 2011 at 10:44)

FFS, it's not bashing....can I not recommend some ways to improve a service...

It's not as simple as not 'liking it',. Do I want to watch the WC?, the answer is yes. Could the service be improved?, the answer is yes.

It's nothing personal, I don't really care what Rob has or hasn't done, that has no impact on my enjoyment of the race coverage. Nor would it take a team of researchers to provide a bit of rider info, just asking for him to boost his flamboyant style with more killer and less filler.

soutie1 (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:38)

Dont know what you all moaning about, if it was not for Freecaster we would not have shit to watch regarding the UCI DH world cup. Be glad its free, and for you who say you pay it through the products you buy, I dont know about you but i defo get my money's worth out of my products, So its really FREE Whoop Whoop......" Stop your whinning "

StueySasquach (Jun 5, 2011 at 11:58)

Jeez guys, can't someone pass an opinion without other people throwing their dummies out of the pram? Freecaster's service is sketchy or non-existent for some, that's a fact! I have never been able to view Freecaster broadcasts and the guys at Freecaster certainly seemed less than bothered when I asked them for technical support. But hey, that's just my own experience of them but i know of several other mates who have trouble too. For those who get it just fine; fair play, you're lucky Smile

And some people don't like Warner's stye, cool, ok! Not sure I'm that bothered by the commentary (I have 2010's DVD), however I can't see an issue with people passing an opinion about it. But I sure as hell have a problem with bitch attacks against those who have simply offered their thoughts. Value-laden criticisms and insults are not cool, grow up!

nateb (Jun 5, 2011 at 13:24)

Well put Irish Tom....I guess Rob can only work with the info he is given though, seriously write this as a constructive criticism letter to Freecaster, I agree with what you're saying.

cyrix (Jun 5, 2011 at 14:50)

I love Rob, but you have to admit, having someone like Phil Ligget call the races would be easily just as entertaining. Phil is by far and away one of the most entertaining people to ever do sports commentary. I would literally watch grass grow on TV if Phil Ligget did the commentary.

lochussie (Jun 5, 2011 at 15:45)

I love a lot of the stuff that Warner comes out with, definitely wouldn't want to lose that. That bit about getting into telescopes and astrophysics was classic. That said, more information and insight would be great. Some of the time I know more about what's going on than he does and I'm just somebody who reads a bit of Pinkbike and Dirt. The best way to achieve this would prob be to get a switched on second commentator but it all costs money.

StueySasquach (Jun 8, 2011 at 1:57)

There's always one dickhead who has to negatively prop the most sensible comment isn't there. Yes you FetusOven, I guess you like throwing your dummy out of the pram and you don't like being criticised for it...sad!

FetusOven (Jun 8, 2011 at 4:54)

Actually, I meant to plus prop you. I was using my iPhone and accidentally negged you. I was about to apologize in response to your post on my noteboard until I came and saw you calling me a dickhead. You're a 33 year old bitching about pinkbike props....sad

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