PLAYBIKER - IRON HORSE OPENS ITS WORLD
CUP SEASON IN MARIBOR
The inaugural race of the 2008 Nissan UCI
World Cup in Maribor finished up last sunday
with positive results for team Playbiker -
Iron Horse, with a fifth place for Floriane
Pugin and a good ranking in the finals for
the new team riders Nathan Rankin and Adam
Brayton.
The location in Slovenia which had closed
last year's World Cup was the opening stage
for this year's circuit, with a very tough
race. Starting in the men's semifinal were
almost 300 riders, who fought hard for
qualification. At the end of the almost
neverending semifinal the dust settled on
the finish arena leaving a clear impression:
you had to get an almost perfect run just to
enter the top 80 and earn a chance to
compete in the final. Nathan Rankin, Adam
Brayton and Mike Skinner all did so, while
Lorenzo Suding missed qualification for just
over a second, having suffered all weekend
from a shoulder injury. Further behind Luca
Bertocchi, on the rise from last year, and
junior american Geoff Ulmer, stopped by a
rear flat in the early stages of his run.
In the finals the track proved even faster
and demanding, with very tight margins
between each rider's times. Nathan Rankin
went on to confirm his great experience and
skills with a 35th place that leaves a lot
of room for improvement, with Adam Brayton
trailing on the 36th place, proving he's up
to the game after his excellent 2007 season.
Worst luck for Mike Skinner, who, after
recording a split time which would have
placed him in the top 20, fell hard in his
run, recovering to finish in 74th place.
Bad, really bad luck for Floriane Pugin as
well, who, after proving herself in top
shape after her win at the Test Event in Val
di Sole with a 2nd place in the semifinal,
just behind Rachel Atherton, slid out in the
first woods during the finals. Floriane got
back on the bike to finish 5th, just two
second away from the podium. 21st place with
a fall for italian champion Elisa Canepa,
after a tough and long weekend, which saw
her coming 11th in the 4X.
The team returned back to its home base in
Pila for a couple of weeks of rest and
training alongisde Maribor's winner and
world champion Sam Hill and his teammate
from Monster Energy - Iron Horse Brendan
Fairclough, who will be spending a few days
hosted by team Playbiker - Iron Horse in
Pila.
The next race is the opening of the italian
national series in Pragelato on may 24th and
25th.
Playbiker - Iron Horse is the first
international UCI Trade Team based in Italy
specialized in gravity racing. The team is
supported by the factory sponsors: Iron
Horse Bicycles, UFO Plast, Kenda tires, Pila
MTB Planet, Funn components, RMS Component
Selection, A-Class Wheels, Five Ten,
POC, SRAM, Rock Shox, Formula brakes
and Insight Productions.
Information and contact:
Simon Cittati
PLAYBIKER - IRON HORSE
Road Manager
Cell. +39.338.4016142
