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2009-12-23 | Tenniken
Wildhaber is the king of Réunion
On the island of Réunion, René Wildhaber has won the season’s last race: On a course whichs middle part had been built from scratch he found his pace easily on his way to winning the 15th Mégavalanche Réunion – his second victory on the island in the Indian Ocean.
René Wildhaber already had posted the fastest qualifiying time on a shorter section of the course of about 15 minutes – ahead of his main rival from France, Rémy Absalon. But the real race lasted for more than 45 minutes, and Wildhaber is a well-known specialist for these endurance downhill races with a mass-start that are dubbed «Mégavalanche» in France – so much that he got the nickname «Mégaman».
«Right after the start I was in fifth position and making up one position after the other until I got into the lead about one kilometer into the race», Wildhaber commented on the somewhat tumultuous initial moments of this race on the Island in the Indian Ocean. Just as Wildhaber took over the lead, Rémy Absalon was forced to abandon the race due to serious mechanical problems – which paved the way to René Wildhaber’s second victory on the island of Réunion after the one in 2004.
«Riding in first position, I was able to fully focus on my line and to further extend my lead. The most precarious moment came when some motorbikes were driving the wrong way on the trail», Wildhaber reflects on his victorious ride. Since the course was pretty rugged right after the start and in its lower stretches just before the finish, Wildhaber chose Onza Tires’ «Ibex DH» in the soft 45a compound and in 2.4 inches width, mounted without an inner tube, but with sealant on Bontrager tubeless rims. This combination worked flawlessly – and it took Wildhaber to the finish faster than anyone else. From the tropic island of Réunion, Wildhaber now travels back to Switzerland’s snowy mountains, as he works for the ski school in his native place of Flumserberg.
15th Mégavalanche La Réunion 2009
Elite Men:
1. René Wildhaber, in 47.37
2. François Bailly Maitre, + 0.44
3. Franck Parolin, + 1.51
René Wildhaber already had posted the fastest qualifiying time on a shorter section of the course of about 15 minutes – ahead of his main rival from France, Rémy Absalon. But the real race lasted for more than 45 minutes, and Wildhaber is a well-known specialist for these endurance downhill races with a mass-start that are dubbed «Mégavalanche» in France – so much that he got the nickname «Mégaman».
«Right after the start I was in fifth position and making up one position after the other until I got into the lead about one kilometer into the race», Wildhaber commented on the somewhat tumultuous initial moments of this race on the Island in the Indian Ocean. Just as Wildhaber took over the lead, Rémy Absalon was forced to abandon the race due to serious mechanical problems – which paved the way to René Wildhaber’s second victory on the island of Réunion after the one in 2004.
«Riding in first position, I was able to fully focus on my line and to further extend my lead. The most precarious moment came when some motorbikes were driving the wrong way on the trail», Wildhaber reflects on his victorious ride. Since the course was pretty rugged right after the start and in its lower stretches just before the finish, Wildhaber chose Onza Tires’ «Ibex DH» in the soft 45a compound and in 2.4 inches width, mounted without an inner tube, but with sealant on Bontrager tubeless rims. This combination worked flawlessly – and it took Wildhaber to the finish faster than anyone else. From the tropic island of Réunion, Wildhaber now travels back to Switzerland’s snowy mountains, as he works for the ski school in his native place of Flumserberg.
15th Mégavalanche La Réunion 2009
Elite Men:
1. René Wildhaber, in 47.37
2. François Bailly Maitre, + 0.44
3. Franck Parolin, + 1.51