The Fort William World Cup has come and gone for another year, and it was a sublime weekend of mountain biking – for the viewers at least.
There were surprises, as Rachel Atherton crashed out in training and ended her 14-World Cup winning streak with a dislocated shoulder. There was drama, as Tracey Hannah came down last to claim the women’s title by a huge 10 seconds and Greg Minnaar followed suit in the men’s – qualifying first and following that up with a third consecutive title at Fort William.
There was also a whole lot of carnage. The weekend was pretty much decided by one particularly muddy stretch of the World Cup track which saw competitors drop into the woods on their way down the mountain and work their way through more sticky mud than you’d find in a stable.
It was this mud that threw Rachel from her bike and saw her injured in training, and in the women’s finals only the top three competitors – Tracey Hannah, Myriam Nicole and Emilie Siegenthaler made it through clean.
It caused chaos in the men’s ranks as well. Numerous top class competitors went down in the mud. Neko Mulally was the only competitor to get through without even a dab – though Minnaar, Jack Moir and Aaron Gwin pinned it well also.
