Expert James chats with Justin Brown one of Canada's Top Downhill Racers. Justin has just signed to race for Iron Horse/InterSport/DHRacer for the 2008 season.

Justin noted  "Im very excited to be racing for team Iron Horse/InterSport/DHRacer for the 2008 season. I was working with the team based out of Quebec for most of last season and they were a great help to me. I want to bring the team the race wins they deserve!" " 

 Justin took some time out to answer our questions.

DM: You have been a top racer during the 2007 race season. With the Ontario Dh runs being so short how do you train for the longer Canada Cup and Mt Ste Anne World cup events that are almost four times longer?

JB:: Ontario Cup courses are a great stepping stone to Canada Cup racing. I try hard to get every second out of a track which is important at O-cups because most are only about a minute long. When I get to a Canada cup race the high-speed parts are pretty much the only hard part for me. I have a hard time with wide open high speed sections which is what the majority of the world cup tracks are made up of...... I trained hard last winter and wanted to come into last season with no expectations, and it worked well at the beginning of the season.

DM: When you are going to race a new course how do you train on it ? Do you break it down into sections or ride the complete track over and over ?

JB:: When I get to a new race track the first thing I’ll do is walk the course. This is a must for me to be able to choose good lines and to not have any surprises on my first run. When I walk a course I don’t have all my set lines picked out. I look for different creative lines that will work best for my riding style, but I make sure to keep them as a rough idea. Sometimes you will come into a section with to much or too little speed to be able to do the line you wanted to. That’s when I’ll pull off to the side of the course (not stop in the middle of the course!!) and walk back up with the bike to see how I can go through that section fast. Sometimes its just a matter of riding the main line and not trying to cut all the corners.... At a bigger race ill try to walk the course at the end of the day, or like a Saint Anne last year they have practice time for top 80 racers, which is a good time to see how the track is working in and if any new lines are developing.

DM: You have been riding the Iron Horse Sunday frame this year tell us why you choose that frame set?

JB:: I chose to ride the Sunday frame set because I wanted to put my money into a product I believed in. I would much rather pay for a bike I believe in and want to ride.... the bike has been proven time and time again! Sure, the bike doesn’t make the rider, but it sure helps when the rider is confident in his equipment

DM: Describe your bike set up  

JB:: I had to pay for pretty much every part on my bike last year so I wanted to use the best product I could get.... Iron Horse Sunday WC (16 inch),Fox DHX 5.0, Boxxer WC, DT Swiss Hubs, Mavic Rims, SRAM drive train as well. I didn’t have to replace anything but one new seat, which is what I get for running a seat that’s 135 grams right?

DM: Are you a suspension tweeker or do you run the same set up for most everything?

JB:: I’ve started to mess around with my suspension a bit this past season. I don’t have alot of time to have “training sessions” so when I get on my bike it’s usually for a race, and i don’t want to mess with anything if it feels good enough. At Saint Anne last year i tried to make my fork a little stiffer on compression and faster on the rebound for all the hard hits that track has and it felt pretty good.

DM: Are you picky on your bike set-up or can you ride it anyway its built? If your picky what has to be perfect and just right?

JB:: I started to get a bit more picky about my bike set up the last little while. I’ve found that my brakes have to be working properly and everything has to be clean, tight, and preferably drag free.... I like to take my bike totally apart and give it a really good cleaning before I go to a race. I find that I get a little more confidence when I take the time and make sure everything is good on it. That usually means Im into the race and am ready to perform. I try to do the same the night before the race, but there is usually not enough time.

DM: Canada arguably has the best ability to produce great riders. What does Canada need to do in your opinion to get riders to the World Cup level and be competitive ?

JB:: Wow, that’s a pretty loaded question. I wish it was as easy as one thing we had to do to be competitive at World Cups.... There needs to be a lot of time, money and effort to be put forth by both the CCA and the Canadian racers to be competitive on the World Cup circuit. Look at the countries that are winning.... they have junior riders making trips to world cups with coaches to be able to teach them and show them the ropes while they are still young. Why does Canada produce some of the best hockey players? Because young kids are going to the arena for 2 hours after school 3 days a week, then have practice and games the other days of week. If you want top-level athletes you have to train them from a young age. I’m very happy that Ontario Cycling Association is seriously looking into making the entry age for downhill 12 or 13 for the 08 season. If there are kids that show potential, have the drive, and want to work hard at racing, then there is no telling where it could lead. We have a lot of talent in Canada that’s for sure, it just needs some guidance in the right direction!

DM: What type of race courses suit your riding style the best, or do you find course features don't effect your race ability ?

JB:: I excel a lot on tight technical sections.... which unfortunately for me is nearly unheard of on the World Cup circuit.... I have a hard time with letting go on a track like Saint Anne on the high-speed sections. I have been working hard to get better at it though. I have to be rested and on it to be able to go as fast as I need to win especially at the Canada Cup level. It’s all in the risk your willing to take to go fast.

Justin has been ripping the DH race scene for a five years now with outstanding results including the Canadian National Junior Championship, Multiple Provincial O-cup championships and series titles. Watch out for Justin next year as he has his eye focused on becoming the Canadian National Champion. In my opinion, thats a safe bet.

Cracker - January 2, 2008 Great questions, keep up the good work James. Good luck Justin.

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