World Cup Finals- France

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MERIBEL, FRANCE Meribel was a good venue and a challenging track for World Cup finals. A bit steeper, rootier, and more natural than a lot of tracks we have seen this year. I was glad it was dry, but day 1 was a little greasy on the roots . Spike tires all week long. I had a rough weekend. Coming in not 100% and a bit sick, plus landing on a rock didn't help. No excuses, I just need to get better at riding this kind of terrain and letting off the brakes. Rough one finishing 10th and going a bit too slow with some mistakes. Just never really felt good physically the whole time. No matter, with a week off and time to rest, I should be good to go for world champs in Norway.

Finished the season in 7th overall. Some highs and lows, but happy still. Au revoir france.

On a side note, it was super cool to watch the showdown for finals. Overall world cup champion is a difficult task, and Ratty and Mannon earned their victories with lots of pressure coming down to the wire. So congrats to them, and also Sam Hill and Rachel for the wins on the day. Good stuff.

Crankworx

2 outta 3 aint bad- won Air DH and Slalom, 2nd in pumptrack. Bit of a whirlwind of a trip with one day off on either side of flying in from New York and out to France sun. 

Windham, NY, World Cup

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2014 back in Windham New York. This time a little wiser, faster, adn made it outta there in one piece. 6th is how I finished, one step higher would have been better:) There was a red flag in the start just before my race, so I had to wait a bit, but no matter. that track was all about maximum speed and pinning it. I had the course good, and was happy with my riding, just could have been a little more aggressive in the final to attack and let off a bit longer.

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Mt.St.Anne

The past month, we have been busy training, regrouping, and getting ready for the next stint of racing which has a lot of travel and back to back weekends. We just made it to Eastern Canada- Quebec, then to the Catskills of NY, Whistler, France, Norway, Vegas, and then home:) I think. One step at a time though really. Been working on physical building and mental skills to really give myself the best of opportunities. Ready to race right now and feeling fast on the DH bike.  Race is on Sat. Wish us luck.

Next up...

We have had about a month off from World Cup action, but have still been travelling a bit and ramping up for the next couple rounds. As a popular Norco event at Silverstar resort- Rider Appreciation Day or Rad-fest anyone on a norco bicycle got 50% off of lift tickets, which is a cool thing that norco does for the community. We were there for 5 days with a handful of our favorite people and riders from Nocro for a fun little bonding trip and photo shoot on our new Aurums. Fun place to ride, totally worth the trip, good flowt berms, long runs, no lines really. I rode one day on my range and was murdering the green challenger trail, which seemed to have an endless amount of rollers and gaps if you are willing to pin it. Anyway, once home, the following weekend, Bryn and I did some high end coaching at Stevens Pass. One day for women with both of us coaching, and the otherday for guys. Hot days, but tons of attention and a lot of specific knowledge most people can't teach. We had a good time, and have another weekend scheduled in September with the same set up. Don't miss it, spend the weekend in Leavenworth with your significant other, rider the park one day, take a class the next. Kinda limit it to people who are invested into riding by a couple of years, so it's worth it for us. Intermediate to advanced skills. That's where we can make the biggest difference.

Other than that lots of Intervals, gym time, ordering parts, etc. really excited for the next block of races.

In some unfortunate news, our team Rider Lorenzo Suding was in a car accident, adn will not be joining us for awhile till he's all healed up:( We wish him the best, as it's hard to have to sit out mid season, but character building.

So one more trip to Canada to ride in Whistler before we go, and that's it. Quebec, Windham, NY, Crankworx in Whistler, France, A week in europe somewhere, Worlds in Norway, Interbike, another camp at stevens, and then home:) Wish us luck..

Oh and congrats to my pal Arielle who just had a baby girl:) Alta.

c ya.

Opening day at Stevens Pass

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STEVENS PASS, WAThe snow has melted, and the trails at Stevens Pass are finally ready to rip. The new PBR jump trail is pretty fun. It is super easy to get a bunch of riding done in a short period of time. Think we had 8-10 runs in a couple hrs. Luke and Bryn show you how its done... iphone vid, made by me:) http://www.pinkbike.com/video/369061/

http://www.stevenspass.com/site/summer

Usa DH champ

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ANGELFIRE, NMWell after a long hot weekend, I got it done in the DH today, making for my 4th us national title in DH and 13th national elite title overall. 4 -dh, 4- 4x, 3-slalom, and 2-bmx. Pretty good effort considering I flew here straight from Austria, raced two events, and was solo with this campaign. Fox and Shimano helped tons though with fine tuning and letting me hang out.

The course got pretty blown out and sketchy. There were lots of flat tires and crashes, so holding it together was key. Especially at 9,000 feet.

Gwin killed it for the men's title. Dominated really. These guys are lucky to get to race the best in the world, and push themselves. Neko Mulally 2nd, Mitchypoo 3rd. Luca Shaw flatted in Juniors and Shane Leslie won.

Anyway. Cruisy day tomorrow getting home, and then back to training...

Here is a helmet cam video I made from Practice: http://www.pinkbike.com/video/368353/

Slalom champ

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ANGELFIRE, NMSlalom finals went down last night after DH qualifying. It felt like a lot of effort pushing up the hill in the heat, but I had fun and took the title.

Luca Cometti took the men's title. Kyle Strait is one of the very best slalom riders in the world , and Luca was pinning it through the shitty loose turns to keep the pressure on after the first round by .1. Round two, luca was on the better course and rode a perfect run to win by .3, so congrats to him. He was on the Junior Worlds team last year for DH and is a ripper. This is probably the biggest win of his career, and he did it on an Intense tracer trail bike.

Luca Shaw had a crash in the semi and put in a blitz on the second run, but came up short, finishing 3rd. Cody johnson was here as well, but was acting weird , super quiet, which isn't normal for him, so I don't think he was firing for this event. He went out in the first round.

Other than that, this course was not really anyone's favorite, morale was down. I think it was slightly better than last year, but that's not saying much. I don't think the dirt allows for good tight turns. All good though, racing is fun, slalom bikes are my favorite to ride, and another title added to the collection.

just ready for dh :) Loving riding here. Had a bit of a mistake in Quali, so looking to improve a bunch today:).

Angelfire, NM - US NATIONAL CHAMPS

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Well after Austria, I had a day at home to do laundry, repack, hit our local breakfast spot, and fly out to New Mexico. The drive from Albuquerque up the windy mountain road in the dark all jetlagged was pretty wild. Anyway, Angelfire has a pretty big bike park with lots of trails. We were here last year for nationals as well, so they changed up the track a bit to shorten it  from 6 minutes down to probably 3 or 4. We start at 10,000 feet, so it's a bit easier with the change. This year's national track is set on the old World cup track from 2004. It doesn't feel at all like a current world cup track. There are a lot of straight lines and a general mellow grade connected by high speed fire roads. It's super fun though, and does however have some tricky bits with all the rocks and dry loose dirt. Since every person here, Cat 3, 2, 1, and pro are riding the same course, it's getting really blown out. Lots of orange spray paint on the rocks so you can see the nasty ones.  The racing here is really fun and laid back. Bunch of characters cruising around, that are just nice and familiar:)

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(Matt Thompson- Trail builder extraordinaire/ American/bent ass finger)

I like the course, happy to be racing in America. The slalom course got a slight makeover as well. It's not the best of tracks, in fact last year it was the worst track ever, but for some reason, I liked it better this time with the changes they made. Nothing technical, It is fast down into berms with 4" of loose dirt, couple of flat turns and rollers to pick up for and pump, one jump  maybe two. I love riding my slalom bike so much and I feel like a champ on that bike, so whatever. There are only 2 races a year that I get to race it, so making the most of it.

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DH

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Slalom

Anyway, this is the race for the stars and stripe sleeve and National Championship. Gwin is here for the men, Neko, Logan Binggelli, Aiello, Bubba Warren, Mitchypoo, kyle thomas etc. In the women's field, I just cruised into the bike shop where Jackie Harmony works, only to find her fully pregnant:) so she will not be racing. Lauren Daney is here, becky Garner, Abbey Hippley, and a few others. I haven't raced these ladies in a couple years, so should be fun. I am feeling pretty good, and stoked on the 650b wheels on a course like this with all the fireroad sections.

I don't think there is a single photographer here, so don't expect much coverage. I'll try to keep ya posted though...

6th in Leogang, Austria

TEAM NORCO INTL. - 2014 WORLD CUP #4 LEOGANG, AUSTRIA

Leogang, AUT - JUNE 15, 2014 - Round #4 of the UCI World cup took place under sunny skies last weekend in the mountains of Austria. With some changes to the course this year, and a few rain showers early in the week roughing up the terrain, Leogang Bike park proved worthy to host 340 riders an exciting World Cup event.

For Team Norco Intl, things were going well all week with all members working together and having fun, the bikes performing amazingly, and everything at base camp running like clockwork. As far as racing, times were so close in the final that little mistakes were the difference between 15th and 40th, as both Lorenzo and Bryn found out on the weekend. Isak had still been feeling the effects from his concussion the week before, and took another spill early on in practice adding insult to injury. Jill Kintner had consistency and put a run together to finish 6th, which keeps her striving for podiums.

JILL KINTNER - 6th

“Leogang has been a really good venue for me over the years. From the first turn on, it's just huge braking bumps and holes into sweet ruts, a few switchbacks, rock gardens, high speed jump sections, steep woods with roots, etc. The ground was rolling so fast for finals, that I probably braked in a few more places than I should have, trying to hold it together.  My run was decent and I was in a good state of mind, just kicking myself now for riding the bottom too slow. The podium is where I want to be, so l will do everything I can to find more speed for the next few rounds. Overall, I am happy and having a lot of fun racing with the best."

RESULTS

LEOGANG 2014

WORLD CUP FINAL DOWNHILL RESULTS:

PRO WOMEN

1. Manon Carpenter - GBR

2. Rachel Atherton - GBR

3. Myriam Nicole - FRA

4. Emmeline Ragot- FRA

5. Tahnee Seagrave GBR

6. Jill Kintner - USA

7. Tracey Hannah - AUS

8. Micayla Gatto - CAN

9. Morgane Charre - FRA

10. Emilie Siegenthaler - SUI

PRO MEN

1. Josh Bryceland - GBR

2. Greg Minaar- RSA

3. Troy Brosnan- AUS

4. Brook Macdonald- NZL

5. George Brannigan - NZL

6. Matt Simmonds - GBR

7. Danny Hart - GBR

8. Andrew Neethling- RSA

9. Connor Fearon - AUS

10. Sam Hill - AUS

…

42. Lorenzo Suding - ITA

…

46. Bryn Atkinson- AUS

…

63. Isak Leivsson - NOR

Podium in Ft.Bill

Well honestly, I got a bit lucky with 3 fast British girls getting flat tires, but hey, that's racing and I am happy to be on the podium  in 5th for the second time already in 2014. The 650b wheels were awesome on a really rocky rough course like this, infact nearly everyone with factory support is on 650b dh bikes this year, so it all happend really quick and is proving to be better. Having a lighter bike also helped a ton!! These girls are very talented so it means a lot to get top results this year.

I don't think you can imagine how tough a race Ft.Bill is without doing it. It's mostly holding on from all the big hits and braking that gets you, then all the sprinting at the bottom. Plus surviving practice. I limited my practice, which was good and bad. Luckily the course doesn't change a whole lot, but building speed takes a little bit of time and finding that fine line. This place has everything to do with braking efficiently and getting the most out of the flat turns.

I learned a lot and will take that with me next week. Recovery now, feels like I've had few days at the gym in a row.

Big thanks to the team , Reg my mechanic, and Norco, Red Bull, and all our other sponsors.

Ft.William World Cup 2014

Back in Scotland, ready for one of my favorite courses. It's 5 min + of racing, and very physical, which is good. Schedule is condensed to 3 days, which will save a bit of energy. The Brits have raced here a lot, but it's a very familiar place with a good vibe. Hanging out now till course walk tomorrow. C ya

Port Angeles -NW CUp #2

Chicken dinner for round 2 of the NW Cup at our local venue of Port angeles (that means I won). With over 400 riders and trails that are incredibly fun to ride, It's refreshing to be local and get a victory in a very comfortable place. The course was a combination of trails, which I haven't ridden. They made a few changes for the better, and it was running really well in the dry.

Bryn won qualifying in the men's race, and had one little bobble to finish 3rd in the final. He and Luke Strobel are riding buddies, and this time Luke took the win with a dialled run. Sangers of Canada was 2nd. KT Kyle Thomas 4th, Dean-o Tennent 5th. Remi Gauvin was 2nd in quali and took a nasty crash doing this tricky gap just before cougar chutes and broke his thumb and hurt his back. There were a few diggers this weekend, which is kinda normal but not for PA.

Lots of competition for these events. A few canadians, Americans, an Aussie, etc:)

For my race, Miranda Miller and I battled it out once again. She was a bit ill, which made it not quite a full battle, but I was riding really well all week and finding good speed, so happy to put my Norco on the top step:).

Blue mountains

We just got to spend a couple weeks in our Aussie homeland in the Blue mountains ( hour NW of Sydney). It is such a spacious lovely spot with some of our most favorite people, so it was nice to have a bit of a break and do some hiking, riding, hanging out, etc. We also had a couple of garage sales to clear out all of our life in Australia. It's been awesome going summer to summer in the past. The last two years we have based in Seattle for the winter and it's a bit brutal, but having two complete lives is pretty tricky as well. Onto the next chapter. Feels good to start fresh again I suppose...

Anyway, it's time to focus up for then next two World Cup rounds in Scotland and Austria, both places which I look forward to!!! Can't wait!! c ya.

Cairns World Cup

Well Cairns was a bit of a disaster with the weather. Probably the hardest conditions of all time to ride in. No grip on the off cambered roots clay. Greasy rocks, steamy weather, etc. I had fun only part of the time, it was really quite hard to feel good about things. Obviously some people still managed to rise to the top, but I had multiple crashes in my run and just wasn't feeling great about what happened. Have to move on I suppose and just forget about that stuff. Bit of a skill riding that slow tech stuff and keeping balance on your feet. Once both feel lost contact with the pedals, it was over. Gotta keep one foot on , hands clean, look ahead, and pick up your wheels not to slow down when hitting roots or whatever. Some softer suspension would've maybe helped absorb the hits instead. That's what I learned anyway.

AUSTRALIA

If feels good to be back in Australia. For me, it's been a couple of years since I have been back. We used to go from summer to summer like a couple of snowbirds, but sadly, I have spent the last two winters in Seattle. We sold our Aussie house a couple years ago, and I't just easier to stay in America for winter and get stuff done. Anyway, Cairns is where we are at now. It is green and tropical, but super hot and humid. A lot like florida but with bigger mountains all around. The world cup is as the '96 Worlds course, and it's been revamped by none other than Bryn's little Bro- Rhys, and the World Trail crew. Looks good.

We came straight here from South Africa just to acclimate to the heat and time zone.  Looking forward to riding the hill- Till then. jill

TEAM NORCO INTL. - 2014 WORLD CUP #1 RSA

TEAM NORCO INTL. - 2014 WORLD CUP #1 RSA Pietermaritzburg, RSA - April 12, 2014 - After much anticipation, the 2014 season got underway last week under sunny skies and blazing heat for an exciting race in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Home of the 2013 World Championships, the course saw a few changes for 2014 to add more technicality for the riders. Awkward man made rock gardens, blown out dry soil, big jumps, 60+Km/h speeds, and a huge pedaling effort proved to be a challenging race course for everyone.

Team Norco International had a great start to the year, with Jill Kintner placing on the podium for 3rd, Bryn finishing 23rd after a nasty spill in practice, Lorenzo 26th, and Isak Leivsson 31st.

JILL KINTNER

“ South Africa is a good venue for me. I have come 4th here for the past couple years, and for qualifying I was 4th again. My goal was to improve upon what I did last year so I was calm knowing that my fitness has improved, power is up, and pedalling is my forte. To finish 3rd, which is a personal best in World Cup Downhill, is exactly how I wanted to start this year. It feels good to work that hard in the off-season and see it pay off . Big thanks to the Team and all he people who have helped us get to this point! It was a really fun week.”

Jill coming into the high speed gully to reach 61km/h.

BRYN ATKINSON

“ I am really happy to get a shake down race before heading to home soil in Australia. My bike felt good all weekend in South Africa, and after a bad crash and a concussion, I was relieved just to be able to race. This was a good result all things considered. Bring on Australia.”

Bryn over the hip jump near the finish line.

LORENZO SUDING

“The season is long, so finishing 26th at the first round is a solid result to build on. I was a bit tense before both quails and finals, with first race willies, so it's nice to get that out of the way. All in all I am going into the next race knowing I have some speed left in the bag and I'm confident I can do better. Pretty excited for Cairns!"

Lorenzo bringing it home for Italy.

ISAK LIEVSSON

“Great first race with the team, really a lot of help. Although I felt I had more speed at the top for the finals, I was happy with my effort, and that was a pretty good result coming back from my broken femur last August.”

Isak steezing into the "Bomb hole"

PIETERMARITZBURG

WORLD CUP FINAL DOWNHILL RESULTS:

PRO WOMEN

1. Mannon Carpenter - GBR

2. Rachel Atherton - GBR

3. Jill Kintner - USA

4. Myriam Nicole - FRA

5. Emmeline Ragot - FRA

6. Tracey Hannah - AUS

7. Tahnee Seagrave - GBR

8. Morgane Charre - FRA

9. Emilie Siegenthaler - SUI

10. Fionn Griffiths - GBR

PRO MEN

1. Aaron Gwin - USA

2. Mick Hannah - AUS

3. Greg Minnaar - RSA

4. Loic Bruni - FRA

5. Troy Brosnan - AUS

6. Sam Blenkinsop- NZL

7. Sam Dale- GBR

8. Neko Mulally - USA

9. Sam Hill - AUS

10. Gee Atherton - GBR

…

23. Bryn Atkinson - AUS

…

26. Lorenzo Suding - ITA

…

31. Isak Leivsson - NOR

Team Norco International is supported by:

Norco Bicycles- Bicycle Frames

IXS- Apparel and Protection

Shimano- Drivetrain and brakes

Fox Shox- Suspension

Renthal- Bars, Stems, and grips

Maxxis- Tires and tubes

Bell- Helmets

Industry Nine- Wheels

Enduro Bearings- Bearings

Crank Brothers- Seat posts, Pedals

5.10- Shoes

Stevens Pass Bike Park- Bike Park and Camps

e.13- Chain Guides

Cane Creek- Headsets

Oakley- Eyewear

Fi’zi:k - Saddles

Jet Black- trainers and rollers

Stan's NoTubes - Tubeless Sealant

Camelbak- Hydration

PotentrX -health and performance testing

Maxima- Lube and Racing Oils

Vitargo & High Performance Nutrition- Nutrition

Next up: The second round of the UCI World Cup in Cairns, Australia……

INSTAGRAM: @Teamnorcointl

TWITTER: @Teamnorcointl

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/TeamNorcoInternational

Photography: Paris Gore www.parisgore.com @parisgore

3rd at World Cup #1

PIETERMARITZBURG, SOUTH AFRICA Just finished up racing the first round of the 2014 World Cup in South Africa. It was at the same venue as World Champs in 2013, but they made quite a few changes to prevent people from running anything less than a downhill bike. Lots of people still had modified downhill bikes, and trail tires for the rolling speed, but the course had some really technical features, lots of pedalling, huge jumps, and loose blown out dirt. Not an easy race course that's for sure. Really happy to step one spot higher against the best in the World for 3rd and my best Downhill World Cup result!!! (1st. Manon Carpenter UK  2. Rachel Atherton UK  3. Jill Kintner USA  4. Myriam Nicols FRA  5. Emmoline Ragot FRA.

The boys of our Team Norco Intl. did pretty good as well, with Bryn pulling out a 23rd after a nasty crash earlier in the week, Lorenzo 26th, and Isak 31st. Good start with room to improve.

American Downhill also needs a mention with Aaron Gwin returning to form to take a win, and our Junior- Luca Shaw winning the Junior class, my podium in Elite Women, Neko Mulally 7th. Mitchypoo would have been on point as well but he had a flat tire on his trail bike 29er. Eliot Jackson is back as well, which is fun. There are not too many of us on tour 6 or 7 Americans total in attendance, but we made it count! Eric Carter is the Specialized team manager now too , which is amazing. He is one of my favorites, and so clever.

Anyway, The heat was damn hot to go from Seattle winter straight into 82+ degree sunny dusty conditions. My face was bright red all day. Luckily or unluckily I am in the early practice, which means waking up a 6:30am to be on the course at 8:30 am which is a mellow temperature, but pretty early to go that fast. In the speed trap, which is maxed out down this gully, I hit 61 Kph, which gets you ready.

The rock gardens were quite tricky. Man made stuff never really flows like natural terrain. In all the good lines, they would put an awkward rock right where you wanted to be, but the same for everyone. It was tricky to get anything consistent out of that new middle cloud nine section. I didn't really blitz it in my final run, but knew I could make it up in the pedal a bit.

I felt pretty calm for this event really. We had a scare with Bryn on the first day after he got a concussion and hit the deck hard. spent 5 hrs with him in the hospital that night and got home late . Life happens. He is way more important than a race, so I was happy to see he was ok. Better to know these things than drag out the speculation.

Anyway, this was our first race as a full team. We brought in a local mechanic from Cape town - JP Jacobs to help with Lorenzo and Isak's bikes, and Reg the Wrench was there directing things and sweating his ass off in the tent. We were in a good spot with shade, which made a difference.

New bikes were good too. We are developing a bike with Norco that may or may not ever be made, but so far so good. It's not really a public thing to talk about, as it's a work in progress.

We had a few weeks to get used to em and then race, which is tough. Bikes take time to fine tune. We rode the shittiest hard packed trails trying to get ready for this race on Grand Ridge, and duthie on our dh bikes with droppers:) Not your normal world cup testing. There isn't really anywhere close that matches speeds and technicality, but we were spot on. I didn't really change anything other than a couple clicks of compression. Tires were the main thing, and I just rode a High Roller 2 up front for the added traction for the loose stuff on top, and a DHr2 on the rear for rolling speed - Maxxis TR 3C Trail tires.

Just flew to Australia. We have a mega layover, so I'm sitting here with heavy eyelids waiting to go to our second home and see the fam. :) Can't wait. Couple weeks till the next one.

Team Camp

We just finished up having our first team camp of the season here in Washington. Isak Leivsson, and Lorenzo Suding, our two new team riders, flew over from Europe for the gathering. Building new bikes is always good, plus getting a boatload of new gear, dialling everything in as a group, and going riding/ testing/filming, etc. Not the kindest of weather, but that's what happens in the N-dub when you get a new bike:)

I can't begin to tell you how much work it has been for Bryn and I to organize everything to be set up , and train , but it's a great success to see it all come to light, and have incredible equipment and a really good chemistry between everyone. Feels like a victory already. It should be a lot of fun traveling around the world racing bikes with these foos:). Each person brings a little flair and experience in different areas, plus some culture, so learning and moving forward is all part of it.

Big Thanks to the Norco guys for designing such incredible bikes this year. We are all really grateful to all our sponsors for helping create this program:) Can't wait for our debut in South Africa.

Latest happenings via instagram...

We are down to the last few weeks before the season starts. Winter has been pretty good. Wish it had been a bit warmer and drier, but I guess we need to go to Australia for that.

Adding more riders to the team has been sort of a full time job after training. We have got a few of our new bikes, parts are arriving daily, and we have organized a team training camp for next week with our Euros boys flying out for it. Things are cruising along. It makes me really happy to have such sweet gear, Norco has done really well this year with the bikes, can't wait to show everyone:)  The trees are starting to blossom which means its go time!!!

We are really looking forward to the first few rounds. No sea otter this year because of the World Cup scheduling conflict:( Someone else is gonna have to collect those stuffed otters this year. c ya Jill