Crankworx: The Second Sex
WomenzWorx
Words by Anita Naidu, Stephanie Nychka and Darcey Turenne. Photos by Malcolm McLaws.
Date: 2009-09-02
Crankworx burst into Whistler with its usual pomp and circumstance and this year it brought a squadron of women. They were a great representation of the mountain biking’s improving gender ratio. In the middle of it were Darcy Turenne( Norco, Oakley, Dakine, Shimano, gravity), Anita Naidu( Devinci, Raceface, Lululemon) and Steph Nychka (Transition bikes, Dakine), all competing in various disciplines.
Two of the Sistairs bringing some new excitement to women's riding - Steph Nychka and Anita Naidu. Photo ~ Malcolm McLaws
One of the headlining events was WomenzWorx and there was more buzz in 2009 than in previous years. The modified format combined with monsoon rains made for some long faces the day before the event, because nobody could figure out what was included in the course and how it would be ridden in the wet. There were rider meetings, followed by rider meetings, followed by rider meetings. In the end two women-only events were hosted, WomenzWorx and the Gala. WomenzWorx was a two-part format which involved riding down selected sections of In deep and Dirt Merchant. The Gala was new to this year’s Crankworx, and the ladies hit slopestyle lines through the Boneyard course. The song and dance routine was highly contingent on weather, with heavy rain drenching the qualifiers.
Tough is part of the package; Steph Nychka raced the Air DH down A Line with a broken foot. Photo ~ Malcolm McLaws
Thankfully the sky cleared up the day of the event, yet only 4 riders "manned up" and rode, as more than a few riders, including Naidu and Turenne decided to bow out of the qualifiers due to injury. Nychka however, rose to the challenge and she and Claire Buchar were the only two girls left standing by the final run. Both girls did a superb job of showing how women’s riding has progressed.
This is how Claire Buchar won Crankworx. Right now she's in Canberra racing the World Championships. Photo ~ Malcolm McLaws
Buchar with her effortless flow and control over stunts (that would persuade one to reconsider their health insurance premiums) and Nychka with her gutsy “try anything” attitude each stole the show. In fact Steph gave the crowd something to talk about when she decided to hit the Kokanee wall ride.The entire crowd held their breath when she committed to the wall, but the gasp that came out when she plummeted 15 feet down was all fear. It's rare to see a rider smack the top of a tranny like Steph did and come away relatively unscathed. What a relief! Steph and Claire tied as winners of the Gala and Claire also won WomenzWorx, adding to her list of podiums finishes that week.
This may have been the scariest moment of this year's Crankworx. Luckily it all turned out okay. Photo ~ Malcolm McLaws
The rest of the week went well considering the women’s combined medical centre visit time of 12 hours. Darcy successfully hosted a number of podium events and slideshow premieres, Naidu pulled out a gold in senior women’s Giant Slalom and Nychka still decided to race A Line on a broken foot for the hell of it! Toughest woman on a bike for sure!
Claire Buchar (right) decided to share the cash money with Stephanie. Photo ~ Malcolm McLaws
So what does this past week at Crankworx and the Gala reveal about women's riding? The girls in this sport are absolutely throwing down and becoming aerial threats. We've seen more and more girls landing the coveted backflip, not just here but in Scotland( Miss Lynne Aitchison!), France and everywhere else riding is progressing. There are pockets of talent out there and they seem to be growing. While companies such as Dakine and Raceface have been great about making women's specific armour and apparel and Whistler Bike park hosts ladies only events, we still need to see more support from other industry outlets. One of the reasons the Gala didn’t have a large number of competitors was that the stunts were simply too big. More female specific events, with features that are built for women, will allow the progression to ramp up.
Anita's injury didn't keep her from winning the Giant Slalom - but it did keep her out of WomenzWorx unfortunately. Photo ~ Malcolm McLaws
There is also the argument that our competitions shouldn’t involve combining aspects of biking. Men’s riding is completely divided. The slopestylers do their thing and the racers are separate. Women’s riding should have the same distinctions. This was the thought behind Slopesistair, a women's freeride event organized by Nychka aided by Naidu and Turenne held in Colorado, Aug 26th - 28th. This women's only slopestyle event was meant to encourage the growth and showcase the skills of the ladies of freeride. By all accounts it was a big success.
Here’s some info from the Slopesistair Blog.
It was an incredible weekend out at the Ranch in Grand Junction with a full range of riders who drove and flew in from different states and countries. Thank you to everyone who made the trip! We had a nice write up in the local Grand Junction Sentinel (except for the amusing spelling errors):
Turning up the heat and improving the ratio - left to right Anita Naidu, Steph Nychka and Darcy Turenne. Photo ~ Malcolm McLaws
With Jackie Baker following up the event on her own web site - Freeride Foundation.
After two great days of trail riding and a skills clinic, Sunday showed the following results in the Jump Jam and Slopestyle events:
Jump Jam:
1. Tammy Donahugh
2. Darcy Turenne
3. Kathryn Hayes
SlopeStyle Event:
1. Tammy Donahugh
2. Kathryn Hayes
3. Darcy Turenne
Do you know a grrl who shreds? Did you catch Slope Sistair or WomenzWorx? Tell us here...
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