Crankworx Whistler kicks off with first race down full 1199 track
Stevie Smith's legacy trail hosts Canadian Open Downhill this weekend
Crankworx is back in Whistler and ready to kick off its new July dates with a bang. The Canadian Open DH will premiere on a new course, the 1199 track, on opening weekend.
A grand opening for 1199
1199 is, of course, a reference to Steve Smith’s winning points total that earned him the 2013 World Cup overall title. Smith remains the only Canadian to win the elite men’s World Cup overall title, generally considered the hardest achievement in downhill mountain biking.
Whistler Bike Park previewed the top section of 1199 last year as a highlight of the Enduro World Series race. The track wasn’t complete yet, though, so EWS racers turned right after an absolutely massive step-down/step-up combo and did a short (but neverending, for racers) uphill sprint to continue that race stage. This weekend in the Canadian Open Downhill, racers will turn left and back down into the woods to continue the full 1199 track.
There is a long list of Canadian and international racers, including Finn Iles and new national champion Lucas Cruz, taking advantage of a break in the World Cup calendar to be in Whistler for the opening of 1199 this weekend.
Canadian Open DH racing will be broadcast live, free on Red Bull TV starting at 4 p.m. PDT on Sunday, July 23, 2023, with iconic downhill commentator Rob Warner on the mic.
Crankworx in July
The Canadian Open DH is just the start of Whistler’s week-long Crankworx festival. After the downhill wraps up, there is plenty more live competition fans to watch, whether you’re in Whistler or following from home.
Pump Track racing is next on the schedule on Wednesday, July 26. Live broadcast for the fast-and-furious racing starts at 6:00 PM PDT.
Dual Slalom takes over on Thursday, July 27. Final broadcasts are also on at 6:00 PM PDT.
Speed and Style gets a slightly earlier start on Friday, July 28. That hits the slopes of Whistler and airwaves of Red Bull TV at 5:30 PM PDT.
The main event of Crankworx Whistler is, as always, the return of Red Bull Joyride. Back in the iconic Boneyard slopestyle course, the world’s best will do what they can to stop the rampant winning streak of Swedish superstar, Emil Johansson. That takes place Saturday, July 29 with Red Bull TV starting up at 4:30 PM PDT.
Canadian enduro national championships
Crankworx is also host to several big events that aren’t on the live broadcast schedule. Canadian enduro national championships take place on Sunday, July 30th and will decide new Canadian national champions.
With several Canucks frequenting the podiums and top 10 at the Enduro World Cup this year, including current u21 women’s leader Emmy Lan and 2022 champion Jesse Melamed, the fight for the right to wear the maple leaf sleeve will be fierce in Whistler.
Coronation ceremonies return to Whistler
Whistler is back in its place as the Crankworx World Tour final, so the King and Queen of Crankworx competitions will be decided over the course of the week’s events. Canadian Bas van Steenbergen currently leads the men’s standings. Tuhoto-Ariki Pene of New Zealand and Jackson Frew of Australia are chasing close behind, though.
Olympian Caroline Buchanan has a more solid lead in the women’s race, with a 203 point advantage over Martha Gill and New Zealand’s Jenna Hastings.
King of Crankworx
1 – Bas van Steenbergen (CAN) – 596
2 – Tuhoto-Ariki Pene (NZL) – 559
3 – Jackson Frew (AUS) – 500
Queen of Crankworx
1 – Caroline Buchanan (AUS) – 803
2 – Martha Gill (GBR) – 600
3 – Jenna Hastings (NZL) – 580
