Lance McDermott wins the Qashqai Challenge 2008

Published on May 28, 2008

The writing simply wasn’t on the wall (there was however a large, naked yellow man on the wall of Tate Modern, who nearly stood as tall as the seven storey gallery itself). Even the riders themselves didn’t see it coming until the very last minute.

I ended up stood amongst the riders during the final runs on Saturday, and it was only half way through that Andreu Lacondeguy realised that top Brit rider Lance McDermott, was about to walk away with the largest prize purse mountain biking has ever seen. Those who surrounded the charismatic Spaniard looked puzzled. Could McDermott really have done enough to secure himself first place in the 2008 Nissan Qashqai Challenge?

The simple answer; yes. Lance rode hard all day, throwing down back-flips, front flips and flairs. During qualifiers and practice he hit run after run, looking focused and methodical, and placed 3rd on the day, giving him the title.

Benny Korthaus rode brilliantly, and was a something of a surprised entry. He had placed 3rd in Madrid, and achieved second place in London, landing him in second place overall.

Sam Pilgrim on the other hand was also putting in some awesome runs, and looked to be enjoying the whole event much more. Each run was faultless and every trick fully extended, and he beamed each time the judges announced his score.

Despite being hot favourite to win the overall title, Trond Hansen didn’t seem to be able to produce the results in London. He finished in 7th place on the day, leaving him in 3rd place overall, only two points ahead of Paul Basagoitia who looked so close to winning last years comp. Paul rode consistently, finishing up in fifth place on the day, leaving him in fourth position overall.

Australian Darren Pokoj was looking dangerous all day, pulling out smooth runs and some massive nose-dumped 360’s. Andreu Lacondeguy showed him loads of support and was yelling ‘Kill it, kangaroo!’ during his final run. In the end he finished up in sixth place.

NSMB.coms Mitchell Chubey made it through the qualifying rounds, but it seemed every time he dropped in the wind got up and he had an off in one of the final runs, injuring his ankle, placing him 12th in the comp.

Cam McCaul had his usual big comp bad luck, trying some of the most technical tricks right at the end of the day. Despite his bad luck and a small stack in one of his final runs, he looked like he was enjoying himself.

The course was a lot different to last years shore style event in Newcastle, and concentrated more on the big-air dirt jump aspect of freeriding. Winner of last years Qashqai challenge, Bearclaw broke some ribs and punctured a lung earlier this year, leaving him unable to ride.

Dakine, SRAM, NS Bikes and Giro were all in attendance with their 2008 offerings, whilst the guys at Freecaster.com did a stunning job of providing footage for the two big screens, and also broadcast live to the Net for the final rounds.

It was a brilliant event and drew crowds of around 50,000. There were people on the balconies of the Tate, and hundreds lined up on the bridge outside the gallery, all trying to grab a glimpse of the action, and it was great to see our Brit riders pull in the results.

London Results:

1. Sam Pilgrim	GBR	DIAMONDBACK
2. Benny Korthaus	GER	SPECIALIZED
3. Lance McDermott	GBR	SCOTT
4. Phil Sundbaum	USA	HARO
5. Paul Basagoitia	USA	KONA
6. Darren Pokoj	AUS	FELT
7. Trond Hansen	NOR	SPECIALIZED
8. Adam Hauck	USA	BLACKMARKET
9. Jamie Goldman	USA	SANTA CRUZ
10. Cam McCaul	USA	TREK
11. Kurtis Sorge	CAN	GIANT
12. Mitchell Chubey	CAN	NSMB.COM

Overall Results:

1. Lance McDermott	GBR	SCOTT
2. Benny Korthaus	GER	SPECIALIZED
3. Trond Hansen	NOR	SPECIALIZED
4. Paul Basagoitia	USA	KONA
5. Sam Pilgrim	GBR	DIAMONDBACK
6. Phil Sundbaum	USA	HARO
7. Jamie Goldman	USA	SANTA CRUZ
8. Martin Soederstrom	SWE	COLORBIKES
9. Brandon Semenuk	CAN	TREK
10. Kurtis Sorge	CAN	GIANT
11. Adam Hauck	USA	BLACKMARKET
12. Andreu Lacondeguy	ESP	KONA

You can find more pictures of the event in our gallery.