SAM’S ICONIC RIDES

The race runs we’ll never forget

World Cup #3 2005 – Schladming, Austria Sam’s first Elite World Cup victory couldn’t have been won in more convincing fashion. As the rider and fan favourite at Schladming – widely regarded as one of the best tracks ever – Sam demolished the competition, putting in eight seconds between him and secondplaced Chris Kovarik, and giving the world a glimmer of the absolute domination that was to follow.

World Champs 2008 – Val di Sole, Italy

He was six seconds up at the split, riding in a different dimension to the rest of the field, but got shot down in flames within sight of the finish line. This isn’t a race that Sam will be desperate to

relive, but it’s one that we’ll never forget.

World Champs 2010 – Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada In 2010 a brutal crash at the Fort William World Cup saw Sam’s bike being carried down the hill, back wheel in pieces. That year he was plagued by shoulder problems, but his big comeback ride came in September at the World Champs, where he snatched the gold from the late, great Stevie Smith of Canada.

World Champs 2017 – Cairns, Australia

When your home country is hosting the Worlds you pull out all the stops, even if you’ve only raced one World Cup all season! This is what Sam did at Cairns in 2017, rocking up on his trail bike and laying down one of the fastest times of the day. It wasn’t until fellow Aussie Mick Hannah came down and put in a stormer that he was ousted from the hotseat.

EWS finals 2017 – Finale Ligure, Italy

In Sam’s first full season as an enduro racer, it was clear from the start that he wasn’t there to make up the numbers. After superb consistency at every single round, Sam just had to finish ahead of his nearest rival Adrien Dailly to take the championship crown in Finale. He managed it and, in the process, did something none of us thought was possible before he came along – winning an EWS title on flat pedals!