The Biketember-Festival kicked off on Friday evening with the all time favorite whip off contest. Soon after, on Saturday morning the downhill bikers took to the track for their seeding runs in the hope of scoring a place in the last European race of the year.300 riders from 25 nations had made their way to the finals of the iXS European Downhill Cup in Saalfelden Leogang.
The finals were no walk in the park. Racers had to conquer the demanding "Speedster" world cup course, which is 2,3km / 1.4 miles long with an altitude difference of 480m / 1575ft.
In the finals on Sunday, Zarja Cernilogar (CZE - GT Blackthorn) sealed the deal with a solid win in the elite women class. Her win in Bikepark Leogang resulted in her consecutive iXS European Downhill Cup overall victory. Alba Wunderlin (CH - Stüzrädli) and Alia Marcellini (IT - LeeCougan Dirty Factory) stood next to her on the podium in second and third.
In the elite men class one Austrian in particular showed great skill. At just 18 years of age, Andreas Kolb (Sports Nut DH Team) took 8 th place. This was his first top 10 result in the elite category. Despite the close competition, Johannes Fischbach (GER - RPR Ghost) remained unbeatable. Following swiftly behind in second and third place was Robin Wallner (SWE - Team W-Racing) and Philip Atwill (GBR - RPR Ghost).
The first time, the iXS European Downhill Cup race in Saalfelden Leogang was covered live and if you missed the action, you can still watch the webcast replay on www.ixsdownhillcup.com/en. The high success of coverage is good news. In 2015 the entire iXS European Downhill Cup will be broadcasted live.
Over 220 riders turned out for the second SRAM Enduro Series edition in Saalfelden Leogang. This final race of the series was the ultimate stomping ground. The 55km track featured everything from roots, rocks and technical steps to flowy freeride sections. Pro class winner Tobias Reiser (GER - Focus Trail Team) finished the course in 33:48.15 minutes. Daniel Schemmel (AUT - Do-Biker Bruck) ended up second followed by Markus Reiser (GER - Focus Trail Team) ranked third. Despite an 8 th place finish, the overall victory went to Fabian Scholz (GER - Focus Trail Team) here in Leogang.
The female pro class was dominated by Anneke Beerten from the Netherlands (NL - Specialized Racing), with 40:38.54 minutes, who took the overall win as well. In second and third were Birgit Baumann (AUT - Trek Gravity Girls) and Antje Kramer (GER - Giant Germany).
All information about the Specialized-SRAM Enduro Series can be found on www.enduroseries.net/en.
