BURBIDGE-SMITH CLAIMS DOUBLE GOLD IN CAIRNS, AND GILCHRIST TAKES HOME FIRST CRANKWORX WIN IN DUAL SLALOM HEATER
For the third day in a row the vibes were off the charts amongst an especially raucous and rowdy crowd in Cairns. And for good reason, as the Aussies dominated on home soil with Ryan Gilchrist and Harriet Burbidge-Smith leading the charge down the hyper-quick and feature-rich course. The hard-packed “moondust” proved to be just the right consistency for riders to blitz through the technical combination of hits, twists and turns.
Gilchrist, an engineering student, designed the perfect path to victory as he stayed calm, collected and laser-focused on the task ahead.
My strategy today was to go as fast as possible from top to bottom, I take it one race at a time and try not to get too spooked out by the magnitude of the situation as this is as good as it gets.”
Ryan Gilchrist
For the second day (and event) in a row as Harriet “Haz” Burbidge-Smith reached the top step in Cairns. These consecutive wins give Haz a significant boost in the overall standings, placing her just 20 points back of second place and less than 100 points off of the top spot held by fellow Aussie Caroline Buchanan.
Barely rested and recovered from her Speed & Style victory yesterday, Haz was her cool, humble self after claiming her second gold medal in as many days.
Feeling pretty good and stoked to perform how I wanted to, it was one lap at a time this week and it has worked out well.”
Harriet “Haz” Burbidge-Smith
