Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Red Bull 400 returning this Saturday

Sports briefs: Sea to Sky shines at DH nationals; RBC GranFondo Whistler partners with Cycling BC
sports_upcoming1-1-ecdc9c4e669a0c05
BULL UP The Red Bull 400 is coming back to Whistler Olympic Park this weekend. FIle photo by Dan Falloon

The Red Bull 400 will be back with more uphill thrills.

The race, where competitors dash 400 metres up a 37-degree incline on the ski jumps at Whistler Olympic Park, will take place this Saturday beginning at 8 a.m.

North Vancouver road cyclist Brandon Critchton, who set a world record time of 3:53 at Whistler's first event last year, will return in the hopes of defending his men's title.

"I totally didn't know what I was in for last year. I saw how steep it was and knew I would just have to smash out a hard grind. When you watch someone run up a steep hill it is actually very similar to a pedal stroke going uphill. It also helps that, as a road biker, I have the ability to shut myself off and not feel pain," he said in a release.

As well, there are co-ed relay and police/firefighter/EMS personnel relay 4x100-metre categories.

Sea to Sky shines at DH nationals

Riders from Whistler and Pemberton made their presence known at the Canadian DH National Championships at Sun Peaks over the weekend.

Several pulled off wins in their respective categories, including Whistlerites Max Edwards (U17 sport men), Stephanie Denroche (UCI junior women), Finn Iles (UCI junior men), and Chris Kovarik (UCI international elite men), as well as Pembertonians Kolt Hoyle (UCI junior sport men) and Lucas Cruz (UCI U17 expert men).

Whistlerites also hit the podium in other positions, with Georgia Astle and Claire Buchar finishing second and third to Squamish's Miranda Miller in the UCI elite women category and Craig Wilson snagging third in the UCI 30-39 masters men. Bracken Camilleri and Kei Nakai took fourth in their respective divisions, while Ian Milley was fifth in his.

Full results are available online at www.cyclingcanada.ca.

RBC GranFondo partners with Cycling BC

The RBC GranFondo Whistler announced Cycling BC is its charity of choice for 2016.

Race organizers announced earlier this month that the RBC Foundation will donate $25,000 to the organization. As well, RBC GranFondo Whistler announced 10 per cent of merchandise sales will also go to Cycling BC.

Those signing up for the Sept. 10 race from Vancouver to Whistler are also encouraged to donate when they register.

Enduro World Series reveals 2017 schedule with three new stops

Whistler's Enduro World Series stop in 2017 will carry a little extra weight in the overall season scheme.

As the penultimate race on the schedule, on Aug. 13, the world's top riders will be jockeying for position heading into the grand finale in Finale Ligure, Italy on Sept. 30 and Oct. 2. The EWS released its slate for next season earlier this month.

This year's race, to be held Aug. 14 as part of Crankworx, is the sixth of eight races.

The 2017 schedule will kick off in Rotorua, New Zealand on March 25 and 26 and will then feature stops in: Tasmania, Australia; Madeira, Portugal; County Wicklow, Ireland; Millau, France; and Aspen, Colorado.

The venues in Australia, Portugal and France are completely new and EWS managing director Chris Ball said in a release he was excited to shake things up.

"The three new venues will offer riders a new experience — the islands of Madeira and Tasmania are wild and remote and will prove the gateway to some unforgettable adventures. Then the Natural Games in Millau will be the first time the EWS has been part of a multi-sport festival and I'm really looking forward to seeing enduro being included in this celebration of the outdoors," he said.