Photo Report: EWS Round 2 Scotland: Practice is Over!
So that is it, practice is now over and tomorrow the racing begins! As you read this, bikes are being tuned, gears are being indexed and cuts and bruises wrapped. Conditions have been challenging over the last few days, and many top riders have been surprised by the sheer intensity of the trails! The weather has also played its part, but it looks as though Scotland is feeling kind, the weather is playing ball and racers will battle it out in the dry!
Practice was not without its excitement, on Wednesday the heavens opened and everything changed, grip and control were washed away in the deluge leaving behind a slick surface that even the most aggressive tire struggled to penetrate! Many riders who took on the challenging trails of Innerleithen after the rains emerged at the bottom either exuberant, shouting excitedly about near-misses, or with 1000 yard stares, mud beards and enough evidence on their clothing to suggest many trips into the dirt. Condition’s were wild, slick mud covered the steep banks and traction was zero. With the trail plummeting down the mountain side, even the fast riders were struggling to find flow and control, and the narrow trees that lined the trail all bore evidence of close-calls that had become crashes!
It was not just the bikes that were suffering either, the stages also claimed their victims, 4 riders suffered broken collar bones, and Italian Champion Manu Ducci suffered a broken ankle. But this is the World Series and the Tweed Valley is delivering trails that are certainly worthy of a ‘world class title’. The atmosphere in the pits is electric, everyone is excited to get into it and spectators are travelling from all over the world to watch the show! Tomorrow the racing begins!
Words: Trev Worsey
Photos: Matt Wragg
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