Wideopenmag pinner Laurie Greenland ย reports from round 4 of the Halo British Downhill Series.
Most people, like me, are always buzzing for Llangollen. Steep, roosty, rutty tracks usually get people pretty stoked! Being sunny there the few past years means everybody always has fond memories there. The only downside to Llangollen was the uplift but Martin and crew had a new fire road in for the race and no matter what a few moaning people said it ran sweet! More than enough runs were had.
With the sun out and the track looking mint everybody seemed to be have a laugh, it always seems more chilled there than any other BDS at Llangollen, and being one of the nicest venues on the BDS a lot of people opted to camp.
Saturday practice started and the track was wild! It was hard-packed with an ice rink-like layer of slime on the top. But soon it dragged off and got into full on shred mode. As the day went on the track just got better and atmosphere and crowd were at a high. As the end of Saturday came people were reluctant to stop riding and were looking forward to racing!
Saturday evening was full of sun, BBQs, a good vibe and all the usual banter that goes with a DH race. It doesnโt get much better!
Sunday had the same nice weather and racing was soon underway. Seeding was great, with a lot of unexpected people proving themselves on the steep track that was totally different to any other tracks so far. Itโs so cool to see how stoked people are about doing well after having a few bad races!
Race runs came around and quite a bit of wind did too, but it didnโt really affect race runs. With plenty of different victors throughout the categories than in previous rounds it keeps things exciting and leading into the final round in Bringewood!
My race run went well but I took it pretty steady to make sure I didnโt crash like I did in seeding. I came down mid-pack and was in the hot seat for a long time. I posted a good time but wasnโt sure if it would stick. When Frazer McCubbbing dropped in I could see that he had won it โ I was stoked for him and pleased with a second place.
The elite races was exciting and it was great to see Gee and Rachel Atherton both take the win. Both of them are on unreal form at the moment. It was also really cool to see Matty Stuttard get a surprise 4thย place, beating some super fast riders.
See you at Bringewood!
Thanks as ever to mechanics Oscar and Chaz and to all of our sponsors. Cheers guys!
Thanks also to Mr Jacob Gibbins for the photos!
Laurie rides for the Wideopenmag team. He’s powered by:ย
