ITALIAN CUP ROUND 1: PRAROSTINO (ITALY)
Like the past year and thanks to its base in the amazing Pila, the team has been taking part to the Italian Cup. Round 1 was an UCI international race, held in Prarostino, a small village not far from Pinerolo, one of the sites of the Winter Olympic Games of Turin. The track was a good training for the team, which in any case was able to be the first team of the day even if only with 4 riders. Floriane took the win and Elisa was 2nd in Elite Women, while Nathan was 2 nd overall (just 0,05 sec. between him and Ben Reid, the winner of the day) and Shaun 4th overall (2nd in Jr class). Not so bad for a training.

IXS EUROPEAN CUP: VERBIER (SWITZERLAND)
The week before Fort William the team was invited to race another UCI international race, the IXS Cup in Verbier. The weather was changing very fast and sun – rain and also snow on the top took the place of each other. Unfortunately Nathan had a bad crash, so was unable to show everybody his skills. Floriane won the girls after the hard training she had with the team mates. Good result also for Shaun who took the 2nd place in the Jr class.

WORLD CUP ROUND 4: FORT WILLIAM (SCOTLAND)
The team travelled from Glasgow to the infamous Fort Willian on Wednesday afternoon in time for Thursday course walk inspection and to set up the Pit tents.
The track was largely the same as in previous years with the exception of a new wood sections at the bottom of the course which was not to the liking of many riders however it was a pleasant change for some - including the Playbiker team - with the off camber making it much more interesting over the old course.
Friday practice went quickly as always with the riders trying to learn the long course to be fast for the next days qualifying runs.
Saturday morning practice went well for all the riders and before we knew it we were into the racing. Shaun and Floriane had good runs both qualifying for the finals however Nathan had some very unfortunate bad luck crashing off the board walk at the top and being unable to get back on the course for some time because the board walk was to tall to climb back up onto, he missed qualifying by one second. Sometime it happens also to very experienced riders like the kiwi is!
Sundays racing was another success for Floriane who put together a solid run to finish on her first podium for the year with a 4th position while Shaun did not do so well with a crash finishing in 72 place. In any case the whole team was very happy to be again on the World Cup podium.
The team would like to thank all of its sponsors for making this season possible and the mechanic Frank for his tireless work.

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP: KRANJSKA GORA (SLOVENJA)
Between round 4 and 5 of the World Cup, the team drove to Kranjska Gora for the European
Championship. Floriane and Elisa where with the respective national teams, while Shaun and Nathan took part on the Open race. The week end was very successful: Shaun came 2nd in the Open junior class while Elisa scored a 11st place in the Elite Women. But the greatest result of the day was the victory of Floriane of the European Championship: she will wear the light blue jersey with the gold starts for a year!
WORLD CUP ROUND 5: MARIBOR (SLOVENJA)
After the successful weekend at the European championships with  Floriane taking the win and Shaun coming in 2nd in the Open Jr  category Playbiker was on the road again to Maribor, which was about 2   hours, drive away.

We arrived on the Monday afternoon and settled into the very nice  accommodation before taking a swim in the pool and relaxing in the hot  tub.

Tuesday came and we chose to ride the bike park, which had some nice  free ride trails.

Wednesday was spending between riding and relaxing in the pool before the Thursday course walk and setting up the pit. Friday was a full days practice and the track was one of the best on  the circuit so far and all the riders were enjoying it however with  the rain forecast for Saturday and Sunday it was all about picking
lines for the wet even though it was perfect blue sky and 30+ degrees.

Saturday came and we all awoke to what he knew was going to happen but  didn’t really want….rain. With the mud spikes on we went out for the mornings practice before qualifying. One run and we all knew it was going to be a little bit of a luck game in getting down the hill due to how slippery the course was. However it was not to be, the storm worsened and lightning forced the closure of the lifts making it impossible to hold qualifying as  planned. The call was made and all the riders headed home to relax and  wait on the new schedule to be released.

Sunday was now an early start with first practice run being at 7.00  and qualifying from 9.30. Once the riders were up there was no time for complaining and before  we knew it was time for qualifying. All the team riders made it through for qualifying on the still slippery course Nathan coming in around the 50’s with 2 crashes, Shaun at 45 with a very bad run and Floriane into 12th with a mechanical.

Sunday afternoon was final time, Nathan held it on with a good run ending in 29th and sitting for longtime on the hot seat, Floriane had another good run coming into the hot seat  and finishing in 3rd place. Shaun has another very good split time however again had trouble in  the lower section ending in 70th position.

ITALIAN CUP ROUND 2: CANAZEI (ITALY)
Also the second round of the Italian cup was an UCI international race. The course was very fast on open grass with the Dolomities on the background. The place was really amazing. Elisa took the victory on Elite Women. Nathan was 2nd even if with troubles on knee ligaments and Shaun was 5th overall and 2nd on Jr class. During the prize-giving ceremony the team manager received the trophy as winner of the Italian Cup 2008 for teams.

NOT ONLY DOWNHILL…
Elisa this year is mostly focused in the Italian Cup and the new SuperEnduro format, a race with transfers to different stages – gravity oriented. Elisa has been winning every single race she entered this year. Just had troubles during one race due to bad signs that made her loosing in the wood during a transfer. She won San Bartolomeo, Sestri Levante , Turin and the last round in Sauze d’Oulx, which is valid also as first round of the SuperEnduro Euro Cup. Shaun took place at Sestri Levante, Torri del Benaco and Sauze d’Oulx, and in all the three round he won the SE1 class, with times valid for the overall standing.

The team would like to thank all of its sponsors for making this season possible and the mechanics Franck and Fausto for their tireless work.
Iron Horse-Kenda-Playbiker

Supported by: Kenda tyres, Pila MTB Planet, Bos-Engineering suspensions, Funn brakes & components, e*thirteen components, Fulcrum wheels, UFOplast, Vanadium Timepieces, FiveTen, Urthplay.com, Insight Production, Ferriani Security, RMS components selection, Qualyline.
For more info and to contact us:
www.playbiker.com
team@ironhorsebikes.it

Posted: July 16th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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Watch the video here >> link

Posted: June 4th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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After La Bresse the team travelled 11 hours across France to Andorra for the World Cup round 3. After the long drive the team checked into the accommodation and got an early nights sleep. The following day it was time to set up the pits and walk the course. With the pits setup the team headed out to walk the track which the course builders had just finished clearing the snow off the day before and beside the track there was still allot of snow to be seen.
The track was largely the same as last year with the exception of a few minor changes so practice went well for all the riders however the Jr rider again unfortunate becoming extremely sick on the way from La Bresse so he chose only to do the 2 compulsory runs so he was able to race. Nathan was feeling good on the bike as was Floriane with Elisa being consistant as usual. Saturday’s morning practice was wet enough for mud tyres before drying a little for qualifying. Nathan put in a solid run to qualify him into the 40’s as did Floriane qualifying her into 4th  position.
The race day came around quicker than expected and before we knew it the riders were on course, Nathan improved his position ending in 33rd although he was still unhappy with his run looking to improve his standings in Fort William. Floriane ended in 7th place.

Posted: June 4th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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La Bresse is a quite town located in the North East of France around 5 hours drive from Geneve.
Playbiker together with Fraser Britton the Photographer and the Mechanic arrived in La Bresse late on Wednesday night after a long days travelling and in the Van.
After settling into the accommodation, unpacking the van we were quickly off to bed to recharge before the following days course inspection.
After walking the course it was clear that it was going to be a fantastic track with very few berms and a deffinate “old school” feel.
The course was mostly made up with flat or off camber turns which were all grass before the riders got to them, thrown in with some rocks and only one man made berm, the riders were excited.

Friday was the first day on course because of the new UCI schedule and it was all about the spikes.
The freshly cut grass was something not usually found on a World Cup course but it was disappearing quickly with the many foot out, flat pedal drifts by Playbiker Junior Shaun O’Connor among others and by the afternoon it was a different track with ruts, holes rocks appearing through out the course.

The Playbiker riders had a good practice sessions before heading back to the chalet for their portion of the 30 kg’s of pasta freshly imported from Italy.

Saturday was morning practice and then qualifying, Floriane and Nathan put down solid runs however  looked to improve their positions for the following with a few mistakes and setup issues slowing their pace. Shaun and Elisa did not have the best of runs and missed qualifying which was unfortunate.

Sunday was race day, morning practice again went well with the course bone dry the big question was the weather.
Rain was forcase for 3pm which would see Nathan and Floriane down in the dry but some top elite riders in the rain.
Nathan put in another solid run ending 39th dispite still having trouble adjusting to the new bike and suspension but is now in the top 80 riders. Thanks to Bos guys to have worked so hard in his super fine set-up!

Floriane  did not have the best of runs and said she was shruggleing to fund speed in practice. She ended in 9th position.

The team then has travelled to Andorra for World Cup Round 3 and we will keep you updated on our progress.

Cheers

Playbiker

Posted: May 21st, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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So, race one is over. It all happened pretty quickly really, nevermind the 5500km that separate us from home. The lowdown is, Elisa flatted her rear tire before the last pedally section and still managed to place 15th, while Floriane slipped away from the podium, going in 6th position only for little more than one second. The team is still 7th overall, so it’s not bad at all. Time to pack up, get dressed and party the night away before the looooooooong flight back home! See you in La Bresse!

Posted: April 13th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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Not much going on today save for 2 hours and 30 minutes of very slippery practice due to yesterday night’s rain. Many riders opted for just a couple of runs or to sit out entirely, our girls Floriane and Elisa did the former and scoped a few lines for tomorrow’s final. Goodnight from Pietermaritzburg, tomorrow’s race day!

Posted: April 11th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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The qualyfing round is gone, with this new, strange schedule, which
gives the riders only one day and a half of practice before getting
head on against the clock…not too good in my opinion, especially
since it’s the first round of the World Cup. The track today was as
dry and dusty as ever, plus really really fast. All the guys and girls
in the team looked fast in practice and the hopes were high as the
season officialy started, and in the end the results were quite good
for the women, with Floriane qualyfing fifth (but saving power for
sunday’s final) and Elisa in 13th, making it clear the top ten is
whitin her reach. Not as good a day instead for our new rider,
australian junior Shaun O’Connor, who went over the bars but still
managed to finish 88th, less than 10 spots away from the final. Off to
our house now for some swimming, dinner and rest, before tomorrow’s
easy day of practice and sunday’s finals!

See ya!

Posted: April 10th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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Hello to all our friends and fans from Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. We are here for the first round of the UCI World Cup and it has been truly an adventure! Almost 24 hrs of travelling between flights and a long drive through South Africa, and then discovering a whole new country and culture, this has been a blast! Tuesday our race mech Fausto put the bikes together and we went for a quick round of shuttles at the very nice Giba Gorge bike park, not far from where we are staying. The downhill course was short but really cool, we had heaps of fun, it was cool seeing all the little local kids riding the BMX track! The wedensday it was track walking, what to say: the track looks very different to what we are used, apart from two gnarly technical sections up top it’s all mega fast with a few big jumps and A LOT of pedalling in between. Today (thursday) was the first day of practice and the whole team killed it, our new rider Sean O’Connor from Austraia seemed right at home on the Sunday while Floriane and Elisa rode in trains with all the fast girls!
Here are some shots from the day, tomorrow we’ll have more training and the semi finals in the afternoon!

Posted: April 10th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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Posted: April 8th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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4 days to go….

It seems yesterday we celebrated the final of the World Cup in Schladming with a great after race party, and we are ready to leave for round 1 for 2009 World Cup.

The Playbiker’s family is going to fly on Sunday the 5^th to South Africa to race in Pietermaritzburg.

Several changes have been taking place in the team. First of all we thank you all the great mates that raced with us the past season. Travelling around together has been really nice and the results of each one great.

For the coming season the Playbiker team wants to step up even further, by streamlining its roster and concentrating on a small number of riders capable of delivering prime results and visibility. Here you are the fantastic four that will train in our home resort Pila MTB Planet and race all the world around:

-          Nathan Rankin, 30 y.o. from New Zealand. The immensily experienced kiwi will race to be on the top and will be the team leader

-          Floriane Pugin, 20 y.o. from France. The former Jr World Champion has already impressed the Circus with her consistence on podium and her 2^nd place in Schladming

-          Elisa Canepa, 23 y.o. from Italy. With 2 national jerseys, she is ready to enter the world top 10.

-          Shaun O’Connor, 17 y.o. from Australia. He is the wild card of the team. He is already a challenger for elites when racing at home. Let’s see what he will be able to do…

There are also some changes on the bike, to have the faster Sunday than ever. There has been a lot of rumors flying around Iron Horse recently, but we simply love our bikes!

We have switched to Bos Suspension, for which the french guys have worked a lot for the best set up. Even if we won’t use them too much, we are really confident in our Funn brakes. We will use also Funn crankset, integrated stem, bar, grips, seatpost and saddle: everything very light. As the last year we trust 100% in our e.13 chain guide. For the wheels we have started working with Fulcrum: you will see how fast will roll the red rims. And last but not last we will continue to use the best tyres available. Kenda has studied some special compounds which will allow us to put our wheels where nobody else will go!

IRON HORSE-KENDA-PLAYBIKER

Pila MTB Planet, Bos suspensions, Funn brakes & components, Fulcrum wheels, e.13 components, Kenda tyres

Clothed by UFO

Timed by Vanadium Timepieces

Photo shooted by Insight

Serviced by RMS

Secured by Ferriani

Posted: April 4th, 2009 under Uncategorized.
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