Crankworx crowns downhill champs on busy day in New Zealand
Casey Brown is the lone Canadian on the podium in Rotorua DH
Photo by:
Clint Trahan / Crankworx
Weather delays in Rotorua are making for a frantic pace at the final Crankworx World Tour stop of 2021. As soon as competitors wrapped up the Speed and Style podium, they hopped in trucks to head back up Mount Ngongotaha for the start of the downhill race.
Weather again reared its head, throwing heavy rain at the top men. The pro women, and early starters of the guys, escaped with tacky, fast dirt.
“In the gate it wasn’t really raining,” said New Zealand’s Louis Hamilton. “I could see it was, and probably maybe 30 seconds into it the goggle lens started filling up with a bit of rain. I entered the woods with a few speckles on the lens but could see. There weren’t too many issues with vision. Certainly coming out into the open it was wet.”
Hamilton finished his run just on time. As he moved into the hot seat, the skies opened up. The rest of the field battled through rain, unable to match or better his time of 2:51.038.
Australia’s Dan Booker landed second and N.Z.’s Jonty Vink third with big World Cup names like Brook MacDonald and Sam Blenkinsop finishing outside the top-10.
“It’s always been a dream, but to win in those conditions…it’s pretty unlucky for the field,” Hamilton said of his fortuitous win. “I guess for me it was good luck, and you’ve gotta take the wins where you can…it’s still work to try and win. It’s pretty surreal at the minute. It hasn’t really sunk in.”
Hastings hustles to first Crankwox pro win
While the women’s race took place under consistent conditions, the winner was just as much of a surprise. 17-year-old Jenna Hastings stunned the field by taking the pro women’s title.
“It’s unreal,” said Hastings, who was surrounded by family and friends to celebrate an emotional win. “I had a bit of a mistake at the top…slipped a pedal, clipped my ankle. Just tried to hold it together the rest of the way and it went pretty smoothly.”
Hasting’s pro podium debut follows a successful string of results in the youth events, but it is her first against the strong Crankworx women’s field. Shania Rawson finished second with Canadian downhill national champion Casey Brown in third.
Hastings crossed the line in 3:15.842, over six seconds ahead of Shania Rawson (who took second) and Casey Brown (who took third).
Racing in Rotorua continues at a frantic pace. Friday is another double-header day with the Rockshox Pump Track Challenge in the morning and Specialized Dual Slalom in the evening.
