After a year off, Aussie downhill mountain-biking legend Mick Hannah is back for a world title.
Do you get a rush from downhill racing?
Your first couple of runs can be if it’s a hard track, but by race time, you know the track so well and it’s so calculated, it takes the rush out of it. If you’re getting a rush, it usually means you made a
few big mistakes.
So there’s more to it than hammering down a hill?
Yeah, for somebody who’s not into it, it just looks like a bunch of crazy guys rushing down a hill, but there’s quite a bit to it. The top 10 or 15 guys never really take a risk – everything is done within what our limitations. The idea is to finish the race, ’cos you can’t get any result if you’re not finishing.’
Have you had many injuries?
I broke my collarbone when I was 17, in my first season, and I’ve also broken one of the little bones in my wrist and my little fingers a few times, but not really anything major.
How badly do people get hurt?
I’ve seen three serious spinal injuries in my career, all in the last two or three years. It’s generally not in the top few – it seems to be from around 20th world ranking to maybe 40th. That group of people who are close to breaking into the top ten sometimes push themselves a bit over the edge.
Is there a party scene on tour?
The top few guys don’t party that hard during the season. They usually have a bit of a
bender at the end of the season and then start training for the following year.
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