 FREERIDING IN XINJIANG - CHINA A bunch of friends where traveling to the western part of China, to the Flaming Mountains. To do some freeriding and have fun together!! #friends #freeriding #xinjiang #flamingmountains #turpan #china #daydream #mtbmagasia #looseriderschina #looseridersflamingmountains #looseriders #globalalliance #mountainbike #downhill
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NINGHAI ENDURO - CHINA
SDG JR PRO KIT - REVIEW PHOTO RECAP ENDURO - BANGLADESH
#issue #56 #mtbmagasia #enduro #ninghai #hibp #china #sdgcomponents #jrprokit #review #kids #mtb #rideingoodcompany #maxarnavsherchan #gauravmansherchan #kathmandu #nepal #photo #recap #enduro #aes #warmup #bangladesh
 Silja Fröhlich - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert Rutz and Maderegger Win in the Mud It was only the second race of the EDC season, but it turned out to be one of the hardest. Despite the really extreme conditions, which forced the organizers to push the finals forward to Saturday instead of Sunday, Lea Rutz and Kevin Maderegger delivered impressive runs and took the titles in the Elite categories.  Riders - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert     Alessia Missiaggia - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert Kranjska Gora already hosted its fifth iXS European Donwhill Cup in a row this year and again more than 200 riders from 25 nations made their way to Slovenia for the second of the six EDC races in 2019. They were provided with all of Kranjska Gora’s familiar flair, breathtaking views and some high-class racing.  Lea Rutz - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert However, the weather forecast had been far from perfect right from the start and predicted rain for all three days paired with really low temperatures on Sunday. Everyone who is familiar with the track immediately knew that conditions like these would complicate things immensely. While the last preparations fortunately took place under more suitable conditions, the weather got worse and worse during the week so that the riders were already confronted with the full extent of what was waiting for them this weekend in Friday’s track walk.  Danil Yanichev - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert  Vitaly Khripunov - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert Compared to 2018 there have been only a few smaller changes to the track with a new stone field. But after its complete makeover last year the stage was still set for an exciting and demanding race – especially under the current weather situation: the surface was slippery, the roots downright evil and most of the people involved probably had rather spent their weekend somewhere inside. But nonetheless the first training session was scheduled for Friday, so everyone was trying hard to adjust to the overall conditions and find themselves some fast but steady lines.  Liquid Track - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert As the weather and the forecast for the next two days kept getting worse the organizers finally decided to push the race forward to Saturday, before it would start snowing and temperatures would get lower still. And since it is always ‘safety first’, it was the right – and the only – decision to be made. This left Saturday with a really packed schedule, starting with an early training session, immediately followed by the qualifications and the finals in the afternoon. Saturday confronted the riders with cold and wet conditions, but with this schedule there was simply no time to complain. At least St. Peter seemed to be a little more sympathetic towards the riders and so it stopped raining at 8 am for the time being. After one last short training session the qualifications started, leaving Lea Rutz (SUI - iXS Gravity Union) and Matthias Hafner (GER - Bikepark Albstadt) as the fastest riders of the Elite categories.  Timo Pries - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert After a short break it was already time for the finals, opened by the Masters category in which Frank Hedwig (GER - RAD-ART) delivered the best time of 3.20,282 minutes, followed by Tomás Brozik (CZE - TJ Dobrany) and Willi Lützeler (GER - Cube).  Lisa Rohrbach - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert Kine Haugom (NOR - Drammen Cykleklubb), who had just arrived late the night before, dominated the U17 female category despite missing out on Friday’s training session. In the U17 male category Nuno Zuzarte Reis (POR - Commençal) set the fastest time with 3.20,432 minutes, which already brought him his second title after he succeeded in Maribor two weeks ago. Actually he can look back on several successful races during the last few years, especially in the Specialized Rookies Cup and the iXS International Rookies Championships – so this is obviously a name to remember. While Nicolas Baechler (SUI - Idirt Racing Team) finished in second, Robin Novotny (Ofbike Scott Team) completed the podium in third place. After this weekend it is safe to say that if you can cope with conditions like these, you don’t have to be afraid of other tracks in the future, so this weekend’s efforts really payed off especially for the youngest athletes!  Kevin Maderegger - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert In the Elite Women category Lea Rutz confirmed her result of the qualification run and won the race with a time of 4.05,850 and a more than clear 26-second gap towards second place Alessia Messiaggia (ITA - Team Zanolini Bike). Silja Fröhlich (GER - RC 50 Erlangen) finished in third place which is her first Elite podium – congratulations!  Lea Rutz - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert The U19 category delivered some real racing action: more than 30 riders fought for the title and with a track that got drier by the minute, the times got faster respectively. At the end of the day it was Onni Rainio (FIN - Saracen SportSource) who finished the 2 kilometers fastest, setting a time of 3.08,543 minutes that would even have landed him in third place on the Elite Men podium, while Hannes Lehmann (GER - MRC Saracen Racing Team) and Marko Niemiz (SLO -Sinter Brakes Team) completed the U19 podium in second and third place.  Alessia Missiaggia - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert By the time the Superfinal were about to begin, it had started raining again and it got harder and harder to see amid the clouds especially on the upper section of the track. The Elite Men riders one after the other failed to reach the U19 best time, until Brage Vestavik (NOR - MS Mondraker) came close. Finally it was Kevin Maderegger who finished with a time of 3.04,926 minutes, 5 seconds faster than Vestavik and setting a new best time of the day.  Brage Vestavik - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert In the meantime, the clouds seemed to get lower still, slowly but surely closing in on the finish line, but by then there were only six more riders to go. But it was not until the second but last one, that someone came close to Maderegger’s best time again. Constantin Ruetsch (SUI - iXS Gravity Union) finished in 3.06,642 minutes, placing himself between Maderegger and Vestavik. After that, all eyes were on Hafner, who had finished fastest in the qualifications but ended up in fourth place in the finals. So at the end of the day, Kevin Maderegger took the title, with Constantin Ruetsch in second and Brage Vestavik in third place.  Constantin Ruetsch - EDC Kranjska Gora - © Rick Schubert Despite the bad weather, we will miss Kranjska Gora, but we are also looking forward to the next two stops of the iXS Downhill Cups on German ground that will take us to the Bike Festival in Willingen first, before we make our way to the iXS Dirt Masters Festival in Winterberg. The EDC won’t continue until the end of June, when we will meet again (in a hopefully sunnier setting) in Italy in Abetone.       
Tahnee Seagrave / Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
5 Things We Have Learned from Maribor
What a start to the World Cup season! The Mercedes-Benz UCI Downhill Mountain Bike World Cup in Maribor delivered high speeds, drama, plenty of action and some of the closest mountain bike racing ever seen. Here are some of the highlights of the first World Cup of 2019:
Weather, drama and a great track – Maribor delivers the goods Nine years after the last World Cup race in Maribor, the immensely popular Slovenian venue played host to the first race of the 2019 World Cup season and what an opening round it was. The rider-favourite ‘Black Line’ challenged riders with relentless roots, a fearsome, long rock garden and most of all, incredibly high speeds. After a week of sunshine and warm temperatures, the weather forecast for the weekend looked gloomy and true to the forecast the heavens opened just in time for qualifications, turning the track into a slippery ice rink and providing a healthy dose of drama. The slick track claimed countless victims in qualification, most notably Greg Minnaar (RSA), who after a crash didn’t qualify for the first-time in 20 years, but by Sunday the Sun prevailed to everyone’s surprise and riders were greeted by a drying track and thousands of Slovenian fans. 
Valentina Höll / Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
Incredibly tight racing
Spurred on by the noise of the thousands of fans lining the drying track, the first World Cup of the year saw some of the tightest racing in world cup history. After a mediocre qualification run, Danny Hart (GBR) took to the track early and enjoyed a long stint on the hot seat and watched rider after rider come close, but just failing to beat his time. It wasn’t until 2018 UCI World Champion Loic Bruni (FRA) blasted out of the start gate that split times showed up green. Bruni eventually beat Hart by less than 0.5 seconds and nervously watched the last eight riders come down. In the end, in an absolute nail-biter of a final and one of the closest races to date, the Top 4 men were separated by less than one second and the Top 10 by a mere three seconds. 
Loic Bruni / Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
Charlie Harrison, Danny Hart, Loic Bruni, Troy Brosnan, Matt Walker / Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
Seagrave and Atherton battle it out at the top, close fight for the podium
After Myriam Nicole’s (FRA) injury prior to the start of the season, many expected the race in Maribor to start with a battle between British riders Tahnée Seagrave and Rachel Atherton. In qualifications, it was however Tracey Hannah (AUS) who came out on top nearly 2.5 seconds ahead of Atherton in second and over four seconds ahead of Seagrave. On finals day though, the anticipated battle of the Brits was truly on with Atherton and Seagrave riding in a league of their own. In the end, Seagrave narrowly edged out Atherton to take the win and, for the first time, the leaders jersey. While Seagrave and Atherton may have lived up to expectations, the rest of field has however crept very noticeably closer, with Hannah in third only 2.6 seconds off the winning time and the Top 6 all within six seconds. 
Tahnee Seagrave / Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
Marine Cabirou, Rachel Atherton, Tahnee Seagrave, Tracey Hannah, Monika Hrastnik / Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
The young guns are on the charge
After years of dominance by veterans like Aaron Gwin (USA), Greg Minnaar or Rachel Atherton, Maribor saw a true surge of the next generation. In the Men’s Top 10, seven riders were 25 or younger, while the Women’s Top 6 saw only two riders older than 25. The unofficial award of ‘break-out ride of early 2019’ has to go to 21-year-old Charlie Harrison (USA) and second-year Elite rider Matt Walker (GBR) though. Both showed fantastic pace and finished in 4th and 5th place respectively. Will the charge of the young riders continue at the next round in Fort William or can the veterans strike back again? 
Matt Walker / Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
Three wheel size options on the podium
The debate over which wheel size is faster has been raging on and off for several years. After most of the men’s field settled on 29ers by 2018, a rule-change by the UCI allowing different wheel-sizes on the same bike has thrown another option into the mix for 2019. Maribor was the first World Cup in which the new rule came into effect and, adding fuel to the wheel size debate straight away, Loic Bruni and Danny Hart took first and second place on bikes running 29-inch wheels in the front and 27.5 in the back. Third place however went to Troy Brosnan on all 27.5 and 4th and 5th finishers Harrison and Walker ran 29ers. Will more teams jump on a 29/27.5 combination throughout the season given the early success? Is there a ‘better’ wheel size or does it come down to personal preference? One thing is for sure, the heated debate will continue.
Missed the incredible action from Maribor? Fear not! You can re-watch the entire live-broadcast and all the highlights of the first stop of the Mercedes-Benz UCI Downhill Mountain Bike World Cup on-demand and anytime on Red Bull TV!
 Loic Bruni, World Champs in Lenzerheide ©mesum verma photography The UCI Mountain Bike World Cup kicks off tomorrow in Maribor - Slovenia Watch it live on Red Bull TV Schedule for April 28th: Women's DH finals: Japan / Seoul 19:30 Phillippens / Indonesia / China / Vietnam / Singapore 18:30 Thailand 17:30 Bangladesh 16:30 Nepal 16:15 India 16:00 Iran 15:00 Men's DH finals: Japan / Seoul 20:45 Phillippens / Indonesia / China / Vietnam / Singapore 19:45 Thailand 18:45 Bangladesh 17:45 Nepal 17:30 India 17:15 Iran 16:15  Suebsakun Sukchanya, World Champs in Lenzerheide ©mesum verma photography #uci #worldcup #downhill #maribor #slovenia #redbulltv #mtbmagasia
 EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert Last weekend the long off-season finally came to an end as hundreds of riders celebrated the opening of the iXS downhill season 2019 in Maribor! At the end of an exciting day, Matt Walker and Tracey Hannah took home the first title of the season. It’s that time of the year again! The iXS downhill season 2019 finally started with one of the most anticipated races of the year! This weekend, the iXS European Downhill Cup has been opened in Maribor. And since it was scheduled only one week before the first race of this year’s World Cup which also takes place on the very same track, many riders of the world’s downhill elite made their way to Maribor a week early, creating one hell of a start list this weekend! All in all, 440 athletes from 36 nations registered for the race leaving another 50 riders on the waiting list, hoping for a last-minute chance.  Track walk - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert Maribor’s track had been modified during the off-season creating a course that matches our understanding of the perfect track for an EDC race! After all, Maribor has always been and probably will remain one of the favorite venues for many riders for a reason! As always the opening race of the season first and foremost serves one purpose: checking out the competition to evaluate your own status for the upcoming season. In general, no one knows if the training sessions and preparations will pay off when the season starts and everyone is looking forward to finding out. In addition to the riders’ levels of fitness, another important variable always is, of course, the right equipment. Many riders changed teams, got new bikes or both during winter and especially the new UCI regulations concerning different tire sizes left some room for speculation. Friday started with the track walk during which most of the riders seemed to be rather pleased with the track and the changes made, judging from their grinning faces, so the stage was set for two interesting weekends of downhill racing in Maribor!  Mick Hannah - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert  Alexandre Fayolle - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert The first official 6-hour training session started rather slow, but shortly after noon the track was as crowded as it gets and the lift was working at full speed. While some riders already chose their lines, others still struggled with their setup and after what did not seem to be 6 hours at all, the first day of the EDC season 2019 had already come to an end. Saturday morning greeted the riders with sunshine and mild temperatures – the perfect conditions for both the track and the race and the air seemed to be sizzling with anticipation. And, of course, Friday’s relaxed atmosphere slowly but surely turned into a more focused one, while the athletes started to concentrate on their upcoming qualifying runs in the afternoon. During the last training session everybody was working on improving their runs, choosing their lines and getting up their speed (– everything while constantly updating their numerous social media accounts, because – as you all know – if you don’t serve your followers with enough content you basically do not exist…well, whatever…). The top riders of the Elite Men category then had a rather long break before their runs. After all, the last run of the day was scheduled not until half past six for Danny Hart (GBR - Madison Saracen Factory).  Danny Hart - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert But in the meantime, there was still a lot going on in the qualifications: Vali Höll (AUT - SRAM-TLD Racing), who provided us with an impressive course preview together with Tahnée Seagrave (GBR - Transition Muc-Off Factory) on Friday, set the best time in her category with 3.58,368 minutes. Among the Juniors Thibaut Daprela (FRA - Commencial Vallnord) was fastest, setting a time of 3.18,326 minutes. Tracey Hannah (AUS - Polygon UR) showed everyone that she used her time well during the off-season, when she set a 3.44,840-minute best time in the Elite Women category. And at the end of the day, the fastest rider was Troy Brosnan (AUS - Canyon Factory Racing) with his best time of 3.14,470 minutes among the Elite Men.  Valentina Höll - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert  Tracey Hannah - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert  Troy Brosnan - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert Sunday started with another 4-hour training session. Once more the overall conditions were on point and the track was soon crowded with visitors and fans. At half past noon the Masters category officially opened the race. Benny Strasser (GER - Magura Santa Cruz) was not only the youngest, but also the fastest rider in his category, followed by Jelle Hemelsoen (BEL - Loose Riders), in second and Frank Hedwig (GER - RAD-ART) in third place.  Gee Atherton - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert After the Masters it was time for the youngest riders to show their skills. Izabela Yankova (BUL - Riders United) dominated the female U17 category with Siel van der Velden (BEL - BMX Pernes) and Anastasia Thile (GER - BBS Youth Syndicate) completing the podium. In the male U17 Nuno Reis (POR - Commencal) set a time of 3.31,998 minutes which brought him the first place, while Davide Cappello (ITA - Team Scoutbike) finished in second and Alexandros Topkaroglou (GRE - A.P.O. Koropiou) in third. In the U19 female category Valentina Höll has once more proven to be exceptionally talented setting the best time of 3.43,176 minutes which even would have brought her the second place among the Elite Women. But also Anna Newkirk (USA - Sram Young Guns) and Mille Johnset (NOR - Atherton Bikes) delivered impressive runs and completed the podium in second and third.  Mark Wallace - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert  Noel Niederberger - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert Next up was the Elite Women category, which only consisted of 30 riders this weekend, sadly missing some of its odds-on favorites. Last year’s winner Myriam Nicole (FRA - Commencal Vallnord) could not even make it to Maribor due to an injury, Tahnée Seagrave decided to sit this one out in preparation of the Worldcup and only attended the training and Emilie Siegenthaler (SUI - Pivot) crashed during a training session and reached the same decision. But, of course, there were lots of other high-ranking athletes left in this category! At the end of the day, Tracey Hannah succeeded again with a best time of 3.41,094 minutes and a 4-second gap towards Nina Hoffmann (GER - Juliana Bicycles) who finished in second place. Even though Hoffmann’s downhill career only started not that long ago, she already made quite the career and we are looking forward to what is next. Monika Hrastnik (SLO - Dorval AM Pro Racing Team), who is now supported by a professional team finished in third place and a successful season seems to lay ahead.  Podium Elite Women (Farina, Hoffmann, Hannah, Hrastnik, Widmann) - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert  Podium Pro U17 female - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert The U19 category included 70 athletes and they delivered quite a show with times that would turn out to be close to those of the Elite Men’s podium. Again Thibaut Daprela set the best time with 3.14,500 minutes, which was close to Brosnan’s time during qualifications. Ethan Shandro (CAN - Trek Factory Racing) and Kye A’hern (AUS - Canyon Factory Racing) completed the podium. Then it was finally time for the long awaited Super Final of the Elite Men category in which the fastest 30 fought for the title. And they were in for one hell of a competition. At the end of the day places one to three all finished within one second, but Matt Walker (GBR - Madison Saracen Factory Team) succeeded by setting the best time of 3.10,017 minutes – only split seconds faster than his team mate Danny Hart.  Matt Walker - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert  Podium Elite Men (Norton, Hart, Walker, Harrison, Atwill) - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert This is already the second title for the 19-year old after the opening race of the British Downhill Series last week. Charlie Harrison (USA - Trek Factory Racing) finished in third place, followed by Dakotah Norton (USA - Unior/Devinci Factory Racing) in fourth and Philip Atwill (GBR - Cube Global Squad) in fifth place.  Podium Pro U17 - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert  Awards Ceremony Elite Men - EDC Maribor - © Rick Schubert Maribor once more was the perfect host for the opening race of the iXS EDC season with its mix of perfect weather conditions, a demanding but fun track and a great overall atmosphere. Now the stage is set for a long and exciting downhill season. It is safe to say that his weekend once more has proven that downhill is the greatest discipline in the world. The next stop of the EDC will take the riders back to Slovenia in only two weeks’ time with EDC #2 in Kranjska Gora. See you there!   YT makes traveling with your bike even more fun by adding a bike bag called Body Bag to their portfolio. It's a water resistant bike box cover and a secure, practical and stylish solution for taking your bike with you while discovering new places. The Body Bag is now available in the EU and US via the web shop www.yt-industries.com. Enjoy your next bike trip even more with YTs new bike bag. The YT Body Bag easily converts your bike box into a bike bag that not only provides the best protection for your ride and makes traveling with a bike more comfortable for you, but also looks darn good.  With built-in replaceable wheels, ergonomic carry handles and only 4.5 kg weight, the Body Bag makes transporting your bike so much easier! It's made of water-repellent material and fits over all YT Bike boxes – including the brand new YT DECOY. Inside, two fixing straps hold the bike box in place and the supplied TSA lock closes the two-way zipper securely. Folded up, the bag takes only little space and can be stored in it's storage bag.     Features
 ཅི་ཏོང་ཤིག་སྒྲུབ་བིན་ཡོད་ something is cooking!! #diskovalley #bikepark #mtbmagasia
 March 17th it was the first stop of the Guangzhou Downhill League held at Yanging Lake Resort. The track is relativly short with 1000 meters but with a descent of 178 meters it's steep enough that riders not must pedal hard.    In recent years this race was called "the muddy slippery race". It was always raining, and then it was hard to stay on the bike, as the soil is turning into soap if is coming in touch with water. This year, no rain before, no rain at the race! What a change, and the riders where really happy, to ride for once the trail without crashing and change cloth afterwards.  Open Group (U29) Champion: Xu Shenglin, runner-up: Xu Wentao, third place: Liu Jiahao Open Group (U39) Champion: Liang Junshuo, runner-up: Nong Youchao, third place: Wei Jianping Master Group (40+) Champion: Zhao Yi, runner-up: Meng Mengqian, third place: Xiao Hui Youth Group (U18) Champion: Xu Haoxuan, runner-up: Liang Yefu, third place: Chen Junhua Women's Team: Champion: Dai Yun, runner-up: Chen Yingxi, third place: Jiang Jinyu 
NYD ANHUI - CHINA
ENDURO - THAILAND RACE RECAP HIBP - BPBP CHINA
#mtbmagasia #issue #055 #newyearday #anhui #china #enduro #race #aes #chiangmai #thailand #race #recap #downhill #hibp #bpbp #jiande #zhejiang #hangzhou
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