Turning up the Heat: Windham World Cup Saturday

Boom! How do you acclimatize yourself to a heightened sense of fear? Rich Thomas gives the nerves a test with fire! -Duncan Philpott

Saturdays at World Cups can get a little slow. Is it 4th of July yet? -Tim Lake

From fire explosions to dirt explosions. I'm not sure who this is, but conditions are so loose and dusty that washing out is getting pretty common. I get a full cover up from the dirt barrel in the next frame. -Matt Delorme

Getting to witness amazing mountain bike moments first hand doesn’t suck and never ceases to put a huge smile on my face. My gear isn't as stoked sometimes, though. -Matt Delorme

Blenkinsop shot on Fuji Velvia 50 ASA. Underexposed for the extra pop and blues. We all know you shoot Velvia for the blues and greens. It a took a wee bit to get it turned around in the lab today, hence this late posting. -Sven Martin

There was a slight headwind this morning and despite Wyn Masters and Co's best efforts, "the steeze was not on show." Well, that was until Aaron Gwin came along. -Duncan Philpott

Saturday is all about the XC racing. Sadly Georgia Gould, who led with a big margin, lost out in the final seconds with a flat tire. Flats and mechanicals could be a decider in the DH race tomorrow. Pendrell takes the sprint. -Sven Martin

Mick Hannah loves the heat and the dry conditions here at Windham this weekend. He tackles the steep and loose upper chute with ease. -Matt Delorme

The Italian recession repercussions are even felt here across the Atlantic. Lorenzo Suding and Oscar Harnstrom only have one kit so they kept it clean for race day today. #BrokeBackBiking. -Sven Martin

Greg Minnaar. He's calm and cool, but he wants a freaking win. A mistake-free run will be a necessity to win and if anyone can pull that off, it's Greg. -Matt Delorme

Gee Atherton won it here before back in 2010 by flat landing Peaty's Plunge. He looked extremely fast today, cranking practice up to eleven today. Jon Parkin on his "other" camera gets the goods. -Sven Martin

Sam Hill is back. I haven't seen him tackle practice at this pace since his 2007-2009 legacy. He wants the win and he wants it bad. -Sven Martin

Cody Warren is officially the Arma Energy Ambassador of Fun; he has a name tag to prove it. He makes fun happen. In this instance, the Ambassador is doing some repair work on Lauren Daney’s 110 to do some pit shredding. -Matt Delorme

Thumbs up or down? Brendan Fairclough may or may not be racing tomorrow. -Sven Martin

The Man, the Myth, the Legend. Monk double checking bolts and pressures so the boys of Trek World Racing can go for gold on race day. -Matt Delorme

Yeti veteran, Jared Graves, making the chute look all too easy. He was the fastest through the speed trap in qualifying, so don't sleep on him. -Matt Delorme

Aussie, Jesse Beare, beating the heat with an American classic. He also admits his accent isn’t working on the ladies here. -Matt Delorme

Jeff Lenosky amazing the crowds with a trials demon at the end of the day. -Matt Delorme

Adam Craig. Baggy Shorts. Blood. Singlespeed. Today's XC race. #NFG -Sven Martin

Loic Bruni is looking forward to race day tomorrow after a strong qualifying result and having cleared all the exams out the way! -Duncan Philpott

The fast guys are jumping this gap in the woods, fewer are clearing it and no one else is getting it sideways with as little effort as Josh Bryceland. -Duncan Philpott

What better way to keep the crowds entertained after DH training is over? Windham gets treated to a little moto action. -Matt Delorme

Fresh lids! The DH world just got a lot shinier thanks to the new TLD lids that arrived for the World Cup elite this weekend. Joe Smith, pleased with his! -Duncan Philpott

The crowd turned out today to watch the XC and they left their mark on the DH track, too. Any bets that if we were in Europe that this would be mud? -Duncan Philpott

Danny Hart suffered one of the few crashes he's had in his life that required medical attention this weekend. Hopefully those elbow pads won't slow him down tomorrow. -Duncan Philpott

After a few days in Windham, you start to notice all of these odd little dudes about. More proof that people around here have a lot of time on their hands. -Matt Delorme

Mitch It's-All-Good-A-Lato loving the Utah-like dry conditions here. -Sven Martin

Remi Thiron flatted in MSA, but has been looking flat-out-fast all year in practice and race runs. This course suits his quick-tracking style. Another top ten for sure. A podium? Maybe. -Sven Martin

Mitch Delfs. Fast. Loose. Flat pedals. Pie Eater. 100% Australian. -Sven Martin

Brook MacDonald has been pulling Ragot all year. Today she followed him through all the big jumps on the bottom half of the course, she has certainly gained a few extra seconds after today. -Sven Martin

Last minute tweaks and turns keep everyone sleeping well the night before the show. -Matt Delorme

Curtis Keene "missed" his start yesterday, It just gave him an excuse to smash out runs on his brand new, yet-to-be released Enduro bike. You will see more on it in a few days here on Vital. -Sven Martin

Two Mick Hannah shots in one slideshow is never a bad thing. PINNED! -Sven Martin

If Josh Bryceland beats Danny Hart tomorrow, this may be the reason. Jamie, AKA Jimmy lad, (Josh's Mechanic) watches on while Dave Garland (Danny's mechanic) enjoys a well-deserved cold one after a long hot day. May the best man win. -Sven Martin