The second event of the 2014 Ice Cross Downhill World Championship kicked off in spectacular fashion in Saint Paul on Friday with The Couch Garden Crew claiming victory in the Team Competition and the individual winner of the season's opening event, Marco Dallago, also claiming the top time in trials.
The multi-national Couch Garden Crew won the second Team Competition of the 2014 ice cross downhill season on a difficult 430-metre track set against the majestic backdrop of the Cathedral of Saint Paul in the state of Minnesota, USA.
Earlier in the day, Austria's Marco Dallago – the winner of the first race in Finland was the fastest in the individual trials that set the 64-man roster for Saturday's Red Bull Crashed Ice individual finals, on what is arguably the most difficult course in the history of the series. His brother, Luca Dallago, was hot on his heels in second, while Canadian Scott Croxall took third.
For the full list of times and rankings following Friday's racing, visit redbullcrashedice.com/results
At the halfway point of the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship 2014, the race for the overall team crown is tied, with the Couch Garden Crew – Marco and Luca Dallago, John Fisher, of Canada, and Andreas Wirnstl, of Germany – and Canada's Living The Dream each having one first place and one second place finish. As the two rival teams launched out of the starting gates on a clear Minnesota night, Marco Dallago was unstoppable, while Kyle Croxall uncharacteristically ran into trouble both in the air and in the 180-degree turn.
"I had a good individual trial, but you don't really know how good you are until you're out there battling with other athletes," Dallago commented. "Our Couch Garden Crew trained all summer long and it paid off for us here."
The finals on Saturday promise to be be heated, as the top overall skaters from 2013 also finished in the top 10 of the trials, with defending champion Derek Wedge, of Switzerland, in ninth, Canada's Kyle Croxall in sixth, and American Cameron Naasz in eighth. The expected crowd of 100,000 will have plenty of home country athletes to cheer for: including Naasz and Reed Whiting, both local heroes, a record number of American skaters – 18 – are in the final 64.
"This track is amazing, a piece of art," said a happy Marco Dallago. "The start is so high and every obstacle is your opponent. There's going to be a lot of action that's interesting for the fans – and the riders!"
Watch Red Bull Crashed Ice in Saint Paul!
Catch all the action from Red Bull Crashed Ice in the USA:
Webcast: We will stream the entire competition live right here on redbullcrashedice.com, Red Bull TV and Apple TV. Please note that the live webcast is geo-blocked in the US. The event will be broadcast nationally for the first time on Fox Sports 1 on Monday, February 24, at 9.30pm (ET) / 6.30pm (PT).
TV: The main event will be broadcast live on several TV stations outside the United States. Please check local listings.
Live Results: To get results and standings in real-time, hit redbullcrashedice.com/results.
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