July 24, 2004 — This past Thursday the Air Downhill kicked off the four-day adrenalin freeride fest. Riders careened down 3.8 kilometres of Whistler, BC’s fabled A-line trail, railing through dozens of berms and lofting off loads of jumps along the way. Australia’s downhill king, Nathan Rennie (Santa Cruz/Syndicate), took the pro men’s win in a smokin’ time of 4:15.40 and an average speed of over 53 kilometres per hour. Claire Whiteman (CAN) won the pro women’s event.

The next day riders flexed their wheels in the Boneyard Biker X with Eric Carter (USA, Hyundai/Mongoose) coming out on top. In Boneyard Biker X, heats of four riders race shoulder to shoulder while jostling for the best position on swooping corners and in the air. Chris Powell (CAN) was top Canadian in fifth place. Canada’s Claire Buchar (Balfa) was the top Canadian pro women’s Biker X field. Jill Kintner (USA, Fox) grabbed the win.

Yesterday racers sweated it out in 30-plus degree weather as they tore up one of the world’s longest downhill runs. The Garbanzo Downhill dropped a whopping 3,400 vertical feet over 12 relentless kilometres and rewarded the fittest riders with top placings. The pro men’s race was a close one, considering Cedric Gracia (USA, Siemens Mobile/Cannondale) winning time was over 15 minutes. Canada’s Tyler Morland (CAN, Chromag/SRAM/NRG) was the runner-up, only six seconds back from Gracia. Katie Pruitt (USA, Luna Women’s Team) laid down the fastest pro women’s time with 17:29.89. Top Canadian was Angela Teng (CAN, Sugoi), whose cross-country background helped her place third in the aerobically taxing race.

Air Downhill — Thursday, July 22, 2004
Pro Men
1.Nathan Rennie (AUS, Santa Cruz Syndicate), 04:15.40
2. Cedric Gracia (USA, Siemens Mobile/Cannondale), 04:16.70
3. Jared Rando (AUS, Giant), 04:18.99
4. Adam Cook (CAN), 04:21.03
5. Eric Carter (USA, Hyundai/Mongoose), 04:21.21

Pro Women
1. Claire Whiteman (CAN), 04:49.48
2. Brook Baker (CAN, Norco Factory Team), 04:53.31
3. Claire Buchar (CAN, Balfa), 04:53.65
4. Katie Holden (USA), 04:54.87
5. Angela Teng (CAN), 05:00.26

Boneyard Biker X — Friday, July 23, 2004
Pro Men
1. Eric Carter (USA, Hyundai/Mongoose)
2. Brian Lopes (USA, GT)
3. Cedric Gracia (USA, Siemens Mobile/Cannondale)
4. Brian Schmith (USA)
5. Chris Powell (CAN)

Pro Women
1. Jill Kintner (USA, Fox)
2. Claire Buchar (CAN, Balfa)
3. Leana Gerrard (USA, Cannondale)
4. Sabrina Jonnier (FRA, Intense)
5. Gale Dahlager (USA, Astrix Poison Spider)


Garbanzo Downhill – Saturday, July 24, 2004
Pro Men
1. Cedric Gracia (USA, Siemens Mobile/Cannondale), 15:17.54
2. Tyler Morland (CAN, Chromag/SRAM/NRG), at 0:06.84
3. Nathan Rennie (AUS, Santa Cruz Syndicate), 0:08.01
4. Jared Rando (AUS, Giant), 0:09.51
5. Joel Panozzo (AUS, SRAM/RockShox), 0:14.27

Pro Women
1. Katie Pruitt (USA, Luna Women’s Team), 17:29.89
2. Anka Martin (RSA, Turner/Honda), at 0:46.09
3. Angela Teng (CAN, Sugoi), 01:10.80
4. Claire Buchar (CAN, Balfa), 01:25.02
5. Amelia Colasurdo (USA, Rotec), 01:34.88

For full results, see http://www.stat-timing.com