This year’s season of the Slovenian 20chocolate Downhill Cup will conclude with its fifth race on Saturday, 19 September, in Sotejska in the municipality of Dolenjske Toplice.
The series first visited the Dolenjska region just last year, in its thirty-third season. The venue was Planina in Podbočje in the municipality of Krško. This year, a new venue in the Dolenjska region is being introduced, situated higher up along the River Krka, not far from Novo Mesto. Soteska, with its bike trails, is already well known to mountain bikers, as is the Pank Kura Sports and Cultural Society from Dolenjske Toplice. In their eighteen years of operation, they have tried their hand at many things; amongst other things, they are a prime example of good practice when it comes to collaborating with the Slovenian State Forests in the development of mountain biking infrastructure. And they certainly know how to combine a passion for live music with a passion for mountain biking – and this too will be on the programme next weekend.
DH Macola
A new track, approximately 1.7 km long with a descent of 357 metres, was built on the right bank of the River Krka, at the foot of Kočevski Rog, below the summit of Peček. In Rog, the terrain is karstic, full of sharp rocks. These are also the main feature of the trail, which takes its name from the tool used to make it a little kinder to tyres and rims – and to cyclists’ bodies – the ‘macola’ (sledgehammer).
There’ll be plenty of dirt under your tyres too, but you won’t be able to avoid the rocks. The first section is not very steep, but then the terrain slopes down towards the finish. The finish is situated above the regional road leading from the bridge at Soteska towards the Bela Krajina region.
The Punk Kura crew have put a lot of work into the track; there are a few jumps on it, but this isn’t a modern downhill ‘motorway’ or supercross track designed to let you carry as much speed as possible through banked bends and make the whole thing look good on camera. The track is more natural; in many places there’s room for multiple lines, whilst in others it’s more of a single trail.
POV from Track
Battle for Overall is Wide Open
Marko Niemiz (Bikehanic Lumar) was firmly at the top of the senior standings after four races, but he broke his collarbone at the European Championships four weeks ago and will only be attending the final as a spectator. Maks Struna (KK Završnica), winner of the Soriška Planina race, is in the best position to take the top spot. Theoretically, the new national champion Matej Osolin and Jakob Lorber (Golovec Trails) are also still in contention for the overall victory.
In the women’s race, Maša Komel (KK Črn trn) is unlikely to let a third consecutive overall title slip away. Neža Štern (MTB Club Kranj) and Eva Podvornik (Grabit) will battle it out for second place.
The leading junior man, Sven Podvornik (Grabit), is also injured, with his wrist in a cast following a crash at the Enduro World Cup. The second-placed rider, last year’s U17 cup champion Svit Kunaver Smolkovič (Bikehanic Lumar), will be going on the attack; the following three also have a theoretical chance of overall victory: Tine Gračner (Golovec), Žiga Žižek (DGK Pohorje – Spank Team) and Max Žvegla (Grabit).
It will be a tight race in the U17 category as well, as just a single point separates the top two, Nika Brumen (427 Savage Squad) and Gaber Novak (Rajd Ljubljana)! A few others will also be competing for race victory and, by picking up points, will inadvertently shape the outcome of the final standings.
It won’t be a quiet affair for the under-15s either until the very end of the final round. The top three are separated by 35 points, and the fourth-placed rider isn’t far behind either. They are Max Sliško (427), Jaka Vujasin, Gal Novak and Gal Palčič (all from Rajd Ljubljana).
Registration
The deadline for pre-registration is Monday, 14 September; entries can still be made on the day of the race.
Practice This Coming Weekend
The track will be open for familiarisation the weekend before the race, on 12 and 13 September, and again on Friday, 18 September. As this track really does need to be learnt a little, not least for safety reasons, it is also important to take part in the on-foot track inspection on Friday 18th, when free transport to the start is provided. Access by private vehicles will not be permitted.
For the 12th, 13th and 18th, bookings are required for transport to the start; details are in the race propositions.
Attention: Hunting!
Due to intensive game hunting, the area – with the exception of the immediate vicinity of the track – will be closed to the public. The restriction applies from Friday, 18 September onwards.
Side Events
As part of the ‘Let’s Ride!’ campaign, a free guided mountain bike tour along the Soteska trails will be organised. It starts on Saturday at 9.30 am and will last up to three hours.
As the Pank Kura club is celebrating its 18th anniversary (MTB joined later, 11 years ago), there will be much more to the supporting programme this time! They are organising a proper festival with events on Saturday from 10.00 onwards. In the evening, in front of the local landmark Hudičev Turn, the day will of course conclude with the awards ceremony and concerts. From 6.30 pm onwards, four bands will take to the stage.