Crankworx Slopestyle 08 Part II - the play by play

[cam@nsmb.com]

This is how it all went down - with wicked photos from Fergs and Malcolm McLaws (thanks lads!).

Have a look...

[Matt D]

Ian your girlfriend made the crankworx front page before you did

[billytalented]

good write up. also good to see that andreu stopped to see wyper. thats just a first class move. and that double flip is nuts to pull right away in your run.

[King of Fasia]

Awesome event, really cool to watch live.......tough to call between first and second but for me Brandon Semenuk is THE smoothest rider out there. When it looks that effortless, that is what is most impressive. Cool that Andreu went to visit Wyper too, heal up man. Being at the slopestyle makes me want to try no footed cans

[cam@nsmb.com]

Originally Posted by Schleyer

Ian your girlfriend made the crankworx front page before you did

Ian's actually been on the front page wearing that same outfit. They share clothes.

[HeadOverWheels]

Sweet Write up Cam, I feel like I was at the event!

Funny comment about riding smooth and getting judged down. Maybe it's an amplitude thing like, he man, sure you can do all the top stuff and make it look easy, then the judges think, do something crazy, or make what you can do smooth look like it's hard.

I think there should also be a best sequenze or best trick added to the finals. Then you can take things like double back flips and give the guy 3rd and best trick. Or you can give Brandon 1st and Lance Best Sequenze, or you just get guys going for it all over the course.

What is nice though is that there is no mention of someone not on the podium that should be, so top 3 is top 3.

I would call the Kokanee thing the Guzzler to Spewer.

[waterfinger]

Cam- thanks for the summary! Insane event for sure. I might be mixed up but I swear that the rider order in the second round was reverse to the standings in round 1, contrary to what you've written. Does anyone remember for sure? I could swear that Cam was sitting in 2nd with just Lance and Brandon to go, and Andreu was in the hotseat to see all 7 guys ride down. Not that it really matters in the grand scheme of things though.

[fergs]

Originally Posted by waterfinger

Cam- thanks for the summary! Insane event for sure. I might be mixed up but I swear that the rider order in the second round was reverse to the standings in round 1, contrary to what you've written. Does anyone remember for sure? I could swear that Cam was sitting in 2nd with just Lance and Brandon to go, and Andreu was in the hotseat to see all 7 guys ride down. Not that it really matters in the grand scheme of things though.

I thought the order in the second round went lowest first-round score to highest score.

[axisofevelknievel]

The order for each of the 4 rounds went from lowest ranked to highest ranked.
- 1st qualifying run was based on some sort of pre-event ranking (Boyko was #1/last to ride)
- 2nd qualifying run was based on scores from the first run - lowest score to highest score. The last few guys to do their 2nd run already had a spot in the finals secured and rode just for fun.
- 1st finals run was based on qualifying scores - 8th best qualifying score to best qualifying score.
- 2nd finals run was based on scores from 1st finals run...which is why Semenuk was the last to go (he had the highest run after the first finals run).

Other than that, both slopestyle articles were great - well thought out, well writen, smart, etc. Excellant coverage of both the riders who didn't quite make the cut into the finals and those who didn't quite win, the history/progression of the event, thoughts on the format, etc.

Although it's a shame that Berrecloth, Boyko, or Gullevich didn't make the finals, I think the event was better with a smaller finals field than a bigger finals field. The guys were trying desperating to get the 8th spot instead of just cruising into the finals like previous years. If that means big names are watching from the sidelines, so be it - at least we all benefited from qualifying that finally meant something.

As for the finals, I think the article did a good job covering the debate about whether Lacondeguy, McDermot, or Semenuk had the best run. I can't fault the judges opinion that Lacondeguy had the best run, although I can see why people think that McDermot's run might have been better. I don't think either of Semenuk's runs were quite as good, but both were obviously impressive.

I think the course was the best yet, although there were zones that didn't quite work. All summer the most prominent features in park were the quarter pipe and the weird jib/rail thing above it - two features that were essentially ignored the entire slopestyle. It would be interesting to interview some riders about why they picked the Giro Trailer line (Semenuk/Zink) vs the old school line (Hansen, McCaul, Lacondeguy, etc).

My biggest complaint would be the delay between the final two runs. It didn't seem like it was related to the riders at all - the shuttle van was heading up almost right away. Instead it seemed like it was purely for the band & commercials.

[Straya]

Originally Posted by axisofevelknievel

My biggest complaint would be the delay between the final two runs. It didn't seem like it was related to the riders at all - the shuttle van was heading up almost right away. Instead it seemed like it was purely for the band & commercials.

Part of it was some of the riders chose not to get the shuttle and walked up the course and part of it was for TV.

I think the first rider up had a mechanical as well? I seem to remember watching some 'interesting' mechanical manipulations with a piece of PVC pipe.

[cam@nsmb.com]

I will edit. As it turns out I was a bit stunned that night. I was coming down with nasty flu/fever but I didn't know it yet. I'm still sweating into my office chair today. Anyway - I started writing it as reverse order because I remembered it that way but someone was very kindly recording runs for me and he gave me the list and the round two order was the same as round one. I guess instead of putting them in the order of the second round he just used the same order to record them. I should have trusted my memory even if it was mostly delerious.

Thanks for the correction - especially because nobody ripped me a new one.

[Mitch1616]

Originally Posted by billytalented

good write up. also good to see that andreu stopped to see wyper. thats just a first class move. and that double flip is nuts to pull right away in your run.

HAHA i was talking with andreu and he doesn't remember stopping and seeing him and his brother said he as with him the entire time, I think wyper was "BUZZED" off the pain meds or something. Sick write up Cam.

[the Master Plan Dan]

Originally Posted by cam@nsmb.com

Anyway - I started writing it as reverse order because I remembered it that way but someone was very kindly recording runs for me and he gave me the list and the round two order was the same as round one. I guess instead of putting them in the order of the second round he just used the same order to record them.

Don't roast Cam... or do it if you want to. It is my fault, when I was typing out the transcripts from my notes of the runs, I had a number beside the second run so that I knew what order they went in. I guess I neglected to add that to the notes.

Now that I have a nifty digital recording device... it will never happen again!

Sorry guys and gals!

Dan

[cam@nsmb.com]

Originally Posted by Mitch1616

HAHA i was talking with andreu and he doesn't remember stopping and seeing him and his brother said he as with him the entire time, I think wyper was "BUZZED" off the pain meds or something. Sick write up Cam.

Haha!

Maybe he just called then. Wyper even told me what he said "hey Kangaroo - you have to remember to just bounce..." or something like that.

[bullit_kid]

just want to point out lance mcdermott does flairs not mctwists, and zink was going for a flip 1 foot x not a flipwhip

solid write up cam