Sam Blenkinsop on Yeti 08&09- Updated- Interview

[Andrew]

DISPATCH 02.13.08


Sam Blenkinsop on team Yeti/Fox



Sam Blenkinsop (Wanganui, NZ), one of the youngest riders to hit the World Cup circuit, is bringing fresh downhill talent from down under to the Yeti / Fox Shox Factory Team in a two-year signed deal.
It was back in 2005 that Blenkinsop emerged in the foreground of downhill racing at the World Championships in Italy, where the skill and riding style of the 16-year old stood out on the challenging Livigno course. His solid top ten in the junior category was an early indication of the raw talent Blenkinsop has brought to the circuit.

The following year, Blenkinsop took the world racing scene by storm with a silver medal on his home turf at the 2006 Rotorua UCI World Championships as a junior, even after an over-the-handlebar crash. Blenkinsop soon after moved up to the elite ranks and finished ninth in the elite downhill at the 2007 UCI World Championships in Fort William, Scotland, and top 25 World Cup overall—all within his first year of turning pro.

“Yeti has a long legacy of grooming young talent,” said Chris Conroy, Yeti’s president. “Sam is a very exciting rider and we are looking forward to see him progress to the top ranks of the sport.”

Blenkinsop is considered one of the hottest up-and-coming racers and is now joining forces with members on the recently expanded Yeti / Fox Racing Shox Factory Team. The Global team will compete primarily in World Cup competitions and will include Jared Graves (Toowoomba, AUS), fellow New Zealander Justin Leov (Christchurch, NZL), and Ross Milan (Golden, CO). The Yeti / Fox Racing Shox national team will include Rich Houseman (Temecula, CA), TJ Sharp (Boulder, CO), Chris Boice (Albuquerque, NM), and Rudy Unrau (Boulder, CO).

Blenkinsop and Leov are currently racing head-to-head in the New Zealand North Island DH series. And just last week, in the absence of Leov, Blenkinsop took a decisive win at Round 2 in Rotorua. The series will take them through March before they hit the road for World Cup racing and training with the team in Europe.

With goals to be regularly in the top ten this year, Blenkinsop is on his way to rival the big names of the sport on the 2008 World Cup circuit.

“It’s awesome to be joining such an amazing team”, says Sam. “There’s such a history of top riders that have raced for Yeti, and it means a lot to me to be invited to join the team. The bikes are wicked, and I’m already a big fan of Fox Shox having raced them last year. With team mates like Jared and Justin, I’m going to learn heaps this year, can’t wait to get racing on the new rig.”

Yeti Cycles has been home to some of the biggest names in the sport and has the longest running professional mountain bike team in the industry. The company is located at the base of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado.






2008 Team Sponsors



Yeti / Fox Factory Teams rides the best products on the markets and would like to thank its sponsors for their support and involvement.

www.samblenkinsop.com/

[Andrew]

Interview on yetifan very soon.

[Andrew]

Sneak peak for the forum regulars..........


1) - So Sam Blenkinsop, You live in New Zealand, Race Downhill and are the new signing for Yeti Cycles, Tell us a little about yourself and what makes you tick?

Laid back, easy going Kiwi that loves riding anything with two wheels, but mainly DH. Proud member of the Yeti/Fox Shox Factory Team.

2) - It must be good to be on the same team as Justin Leov, a fellow New Zealand native?

Yeah, we're good mates and I have always been impressed by what he's done on the World Cup. We hung out a bit last year on the circuit, always good to hear a familiar accent.

3)- Was choosing Yeti as your team for the next 2 years an easy one to make?

I've always imagined being part of a big team with backing from a bike company, and I've always liked the Yeti 303...so when the chance came up to ride for them, and to be with riders who I could learn from, it was a pretty easy decision to make.

4) - You rode Turner bikes last year, and got 22nd overall in the world cup, and a 9th at the senior Worlds, how do you think 07 went for you overall?

I was feeling the pressure that I wasn’t a junior anymore and I had to step up a bit; I would qualify and do well in those runs, usually top ten, but then in the race I would just poop out and get 20th and stuff like that. I think I was just trying to push it too much. I did feel I had to prove myself last year, and I do think my riding is getting better, just bit by bit – trying to stay on the bike, pick better lines, and train more.

5) - Can you tell us a little bit about how you got started in Downhill racing? What was your first bike?

I started riding when I was 12 years old. All my mates were riding so I wanted to give it a go. I started to ride skate park and then dirt jumps. The following year I got a downhill bike, started racing and it's all sort of taken off from there. When I was just starting out riding I met a guy from New Plymouth, Wyn Masters, and I started riding with him and then I started jumping and going to races and stuff. He was a big influence on me, along with Glen Sisarich. The sponsorship and international racing came a couple of years later.

6) - As well as the World Cup and World Champs, what other races/series are you racing in?

I'll be racing more in the US than I ever have before. It's not fully worked out yet, but some NORBA's, Crankworx which should be sick as, and maybe some Mountain States Cup races.

7)- Where are your favorite places to ride?

Schladming is a pretty sick track, and in Rotorua I really like the national track, as well as most of the tracks down south in NZ.

8) - What interests outside of Mountain biking do you have?

Lately I've been messing around on pit bikes, and I race vintage motocross.

9) - Which other Mountain Bikers do you admire?

That other Sam....Hill. And Kiwi legend John Kirkcaldie.

10)- Any sponsors or friends you would like to mention?

Thanks to my current co-sponsors, adidas eyewear who are new with me this year, and OGK Helmets, also new for me in 08. FiveTen shoes, and IMPACT Designs. Also to the team's main sponsors like Fox Shox and Shimano, and a big thanks to Matt at Wide Open for all the help up until now, and my Mum and Dad for every thing they have done for me. Thanks.