Event: 2008 Crankworx Canadian Open

Sam Hill - Canadian Open Pro Men Winner

Rounding out the Crankworx event was the Canadian Open. The course was down parts of Joyride with sections of the freshly cut DH trail under the chairlift. You can see a helmet cam video of the course on the event page.

The weather was very hot but that didn’t stop the riders from storming the technical track. Sam Hill took the win with Gee Atherton following closely behind for 2nd. Rachel Atherton took the win for the Pro Women. Check inside for a full race report, pictures, and results.

Sam Hill - Pro Men #1

Gee Atherton- Pro Men #2

Chris Kovarik - Pro Men #3

Andrew Neethling - Pro Men #5

Jared Rando - Pro Men #7

Andrew Mitchell - Pro Men #8

Curtis Keene - Pro Men #10

Tyler Morland - Pro Men #13

Sam Dale - Pro Men #16

Shaums March - Pro Men #25

You can watch a helmet camera run on our Crankworx event page!

Full Results

Race report by Crankworx/Whistler PR:

SAM HILL TAKES FIRST IN CANADIAN OPEN DOWNHILL ON FINAL DAY AT KOKANEE
CRANKWORX 2008

WHISTLER, BC, August 17, 2008 - The Canadian Open Downhill took over the
Whistler Mountain Bike Park today, the final day at Kokanee Crankworx
2008. More than 260 riders took part in the race, having only one run
to clock their best time possible on a course that is said to be as
challenging as any World Cup course.

“All I can say about the course is, wow,” says pro 4x mountain biker and
event announcer Stacy Kohut. “This is the closest we have to a World Cup
and I’m stoked to see the athletes bring their A-game and take this race
seriously.”

In the Pro Men category, Sam Hill of Australia took first place with a
time of 3:09.6; Gee Atherton of the UK took second with a time of
3:11.2; Whistler’s Chris Kovarik took third with a time of 3:17.4 and
Nico Zink of Belgium took fourth with a time of 3:19.1.

“It took a while to get comfortable with the course,” says Hill. “I
tried not to stall in corners and hang it out where I could to get the
win.”

In the Pro Women category Rachel Atherton of the UK took first with a
time of 3:45.8, rounding out an incredible Crankworx success story for
the Atherton family. Second place went to Tracy Moseley of the UK with a
time of 3:47.3; third place went to Whistler’s Katie Holden with a time
of 4:01.1 and fourth place went to another Whistler local, Claire Buchar
with a time of 4:01.5.

This year’s Canadian Open Downhill took place on a course that started
on Joyride connecting to the new line under Fitzsimmons Express, across
Old Olly Road, merging back into Joyride, across the flats to Monkey
Hands and continuing into the finish corral in Whistler Village.

The Canadian Open DH was the highlight of Day 9 and marks the final day
at Kokanee Crankworx 2008. Now that the 2008 festival has come to a
close, visit www.crankworx.com and www.go211.com for festival
highlights, event videos and full results.

Be sure to mark your calendar for next year’s Kokanee Crankworx, August
8-16, 2009.

[2008 Canadian Open Gallery] [2008 Crankworx Coverage]