iXS Euro DH series start in Kranjska Gora this weekend - mtb.si

From Friday to Sunday iXS European Downhill Cup season opens in Slovenia with some 400 riders from 27 countries.

Finally it’s time to open the downhill racing season in Slovenia and the occasion is the opening race of 9th season of iXS European Downhill Cup in Kranjska Gora.

According to preregistration there will be some 400 riders from 27 countries battling at this UCI Class 1 race under the Vitranc mountain.

The Kranjska Gora park hosted its first Slovenia DH Cup back in 2004, European DH Championships were held here in 2009, followed by Masters European Championships. The first iXS Euro Cup race was held in Kranjska Gora last year. This year there will be a Slovenia Cup race a week after the iXS race.

The course

The 2km and 300 elevation meters course has been slightly changed from last year. It is routed a bit lower on the Air Line course on the first ski slope crossing because of snow. The notorious Jacuzzi rooted forest section has been routed slightly friendlier which could help in case of wet conditions. The Evil Eye forest section is also routed with more flow. Towards the end there is now a B Line jump next to the wooden jump feature.

Locals against the World

All the fastest names of the past season is coming including last year’s Kranjska Gora winners Johannes Fischbach (Ger) and Carina Capellari (Sui). Plus some even bigger names form the World Cup like the Austrian Markus Pekoll. But everyone will have their hands full trying to beat the fastest locals! Unior Tools Team will be trying to get even higher than last year when the European Champion and 3rd overall in the 2015 series Jure Žabjek finished in 3rd and his teammate Žiga Pandur in 4th place. Zarja Černilogar, who already has 7 victories and two series titles in iXS Euro Cup, will also be present after last year’s absence. Don’t forget the Črn trn/Blackthorn team with 2013 series champ Miran Vauh who missed the superfinal last year and won the “small final” with the second time of the day, and the National Champ Monika Hrastnik.

Last year’s winner Johannes Fischbach is riding for a new team this year, the Radon Magura Factory Team. Photo by Thomas Dietze

Spectator info

Free admission for all but you can spend a couple of euros for the chairlift ticket and go straight to the start.
Come prepared to make some noise!

iXS Eu DH Cup 2016

This year’s series has six stops. After Kranjska Gora it continues in Willingen, Germany (May 27th/29th), Schladming, Austria (June 17th/19th), Špičak, Czech Republic (July 1st/3rd), Les 2 Alpes, France (July 22nd/24th) and resturns to Austria for final race in Leogang (September 16th/18th).