May 26, 2006 (Fort William, Scotland) — World Cup triples – UCI/MTB World Cup events that include downhill, four-cross and cross country races at the same venue on the same weekend – are rare these days, but Fort William, Scotland is famous for it’s challenging and attractive courses for all three disciplines. Organizers are expecting 17,000 spectators and a record 580 competitors. Fort William has hosted successful World Cup races every year since 2002.

The fun starts off at 11:00 a.m. (6:00 a.m. EST) on Saturday morning with 82 women on the start list for the cross country. World Cup leader, Gunn-Rita Dahle (NOR, Multivan-Merida) who is unbeaten this year, will be on the start line, along with other favourites, Irina Kalentieva (RUS, Topeak-Ergon), Sabine Spitz (GER, Specialized) and Canada’s Marie-Hélène Prémont (CAN, Rocky Mountain-Business Objects). Other Canadians ripping up the circuit are Alison Sydor (CAN, Rocky Mountain-Business Objects), Kiara Bisaro (CAN, Team R.A.C.E.) and Wendy Simms (CAN, Kona-Velo Bella). The women are expected to do four laps of a 9.4-kilometre course that contains a little bit of everything. Conditions are wet, but rideable.

The men’s race gets underway tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. (9:00 a.m. EST) with 162 men registered to attack five laps of the course, each of which covers 336 vertical metres of climbing. The field is considerably smaller than the 200-plus fields seen at the last two European World Cups. The man in the blue leader’s jersey, Julien Absalon (FRA, Bianchi-Agos) has plate number one. The competition is fierce, with Bart Brentjens (NED, Giant), Jose Antonio Hermida Ramos (ESP, Multivan-Merida), Christoph Sauser (SUI, Specialized) and Ralph Näf (SUI, Multivan-Merida), along with crowd favourite Liam Killeen (GBR, Specialized) all with very good odds for being on the podium. The Canadian men’s contingent consists of Geoff Kabush (CAN, Maxxis) and Seamus McGrath (CAN, Felt).

The four-cross final takes place Saturday at 7:00 p.m. (2:00 p.m. EST) in front of what is anticipated to be a large and rowdy crowd. The course is 240 metres long with a vertical drop of 37 metres. It contains four corners and a heart-pounding mixture of jumps, bumps and drops.

The top three women, Jill Kintner (USA, G.T.), Sabrina Jonnier (FRA, Iron Horse) and Anneke Beerten (NED, Specialized) will be among 19 fast women jostling for the win.

A massive 103 men are on the four-cross start list, but those to watch extra closely include: Michal Prokop (CZE), the current World Cup leader, Roger Rinderknecht (SUI, G.T.), Kamil Tatarkovic (CZE, Kona-Les Gets) and a load of others. Four-cross involves a bit of luck, as the slightest mistake can take even the best rider out of the competition.

The downhill race is the showcase of the weekend, with the finals starting at 2:00 p.m. (9:00 a.m. EST). The partisan crowd will have a fantastic group of Brits to cheer for, including reigning champ Steve Peat (GBR, Santa Cruz Syndicate), Gee Atherton (GBR, Animal-Giant) and Marc Beaumont (GBR, MBUK Santa Cruz). Of course, there are a pack of flying Aussies that could land on the podium: current World Cup leader Michael Hannah (AUS, Cannondale-The Cut), Nathan Rennie (AUS, Santa Cruz Syndicate) and Samuel Hill (AUS, Iron Horse), just to name a few. The women’s side includes World Cup leader Tracy Moseley (GBR, Kona-Les Gets), Rachel Atherton (GBR, Animal-Giant), Emmeline Ragot (FRA, QBikes) and Celine Gros (FRA).

Canada will be well represented in Fort William, with National Champ Tyler Morland (CAN, Team Cove Bikes), Derrick Chambers, Andrew Mitchell (CAN, Team Cove Bikes), Kevin Bartkowski (CAN, Team Cove Bikes), and Jamie Biluk (CAN, Team Cove Bikes). Steve Smith (CAN, Team Cove Bikes) is on the start list, but broke his collar bone during training after pitting his front wheel in a sink hole, according to Team Cove Bikes Manager Gabe Fox. Fox anticipates Smith will be up and at “˜em pretty quickly, as the break doesn’t seem too serious.

Danika Schroeter (CAN, Team Cove Bikes), Claire Buchar (CAN, Specialized-RockShox), Katrina Strand (CAN, Scott-Marzocchi), Brook Baker (CAN, Giro-Beastgear-Sombrio)and Micayla Gatto (CAN, Rocky Mountain-Business Objects) make up a strong Canadian women’s contingent. Both Schroeter and Buchar placed among the top 10 at World Cup #1 in Vigo, Spain.

According to Mitchell, the 2.6-kilometre course is “fast and rough as hell.” The route drops 525 metres and includes a demanding series of obstacles with names like “Disco Hips Kicker”, “Man Trap”and “Hip Replacement.”