The final round of the 2024 4X ProTour was held in a town called Szczawno Zdroj (pronounced Sch-av-no Stroy) in Poland. 

The track in Szczawno Zdroj is in south west Poland is widely regarded as one of the finest 4X tracks in the world. In the heart of the city, it is the pride of the town, lined by hedgerows and trees. At around 40 seconds long, there is a mix of high and low speed, technical and huge jumps. There is something to suit all the riders and the racing is always amazing. 

Scott arrived on Thursday in the team’s Adria motorhome so that he could take his time practicing the track over the next couple of days. The immaculately prepared track has always been a favourite for the team and we were excited for the race.

Scott did some light practice on Thursday and again on Friday. Immediately you could tell this was one of Scott’s favourite tracks. He was flowing well and jumping all the big doubles looking really comfortable on the bike.

Saturday morning rolled around and the race day schedule began with practice. Knowing just how physical this track is, Scott worked to a plan and restricted his practice to just 40 minutes to save vital energy for the racing.

After practice there was a small break for the riders meeting and then it was time for qualifying. The most exciting but nerve wrecking time in 4X. Riders get just one lap of qualifying. Any mistakes and it is time to head home.

Scott was one of the last riders to qualify. His start was on point and he laid down a great run. Crossing the finish line in 3rd place, just 0.3 behind the fastest time. Confidence was high and we now waited for dusk and the floodlights to come on.

On to the racing. Scott won all his early rounds and looked comfortable out on the track. In the quarter final he again made a great start and won the race start to finish. In his semi final, Scott took gate 2, Leonard Hermes in 1, Pavel Reinl in 3 and Piotr Matula in 4. Scott made a great start was leading on the first straight. In turn 1, Leonard came in strong on the inside and both riders didn’t give an inch. Scott quickly ran out of track and went over the top of the berm. Incredibly, Scott stayed on the bike whilst it went sideways! Losing a load of time, Scott was back in fourth and looked like his race was over. He regrouped and started one of the best charges of his career. Catching up to third, making the pass and then chasing the rider in second. Giving it everything he had and with the crowd screaming fr him from the sidelines, across the finish it was a photo finish….. It was third for Scott. We were absolutely gutted. It was an incredible race, but he came up short. 

Back at the team truck, Scott was absolutely gutted. However. There was no time as he had to return to the start gate for the small final to determine 5th – 8th positions.

Scott took gate 1. Under pressure and stress, Scott made his best start of the night and simply checked out. Taking the win and the final step of the podium for the day with 5th overall.

It was a cruel end to his night but the fantastic news was that Scott had done enough to finish 3rd overall in the 2024 4X ProTour World Series.

“Thank you to my family, friends, all my sponsors and everyone who has supported us this year. I am absolutely gutted with the semi final tonight. I felt we could have won this event, but it wasn’t to be. I am proud to have won the small final because to be honest I didn’t even want to do that race as I was so angry with myself from the semi final. I think the overall result of 3rd is something to be incredibly proud of and I couldn’t have done it without the support from everyone. Cheers.” Scott was clearly emotional in the finish area but could not stop saying thank you to everyone. 

It was straight to the podium for the awards ceremony and then the long drive back home – made much easier by Adria Motorhomes!

Thank you to all our team partners.

On Sunday, thousands of spectators lined the race track to watch the 2024 4X National Championships at the Malverns Classic Festival. 

The day started at 11am when practice got underway. The track was a little different to what we are used to seeing on the British 4X Series. At about a minute long, and speeds in excess of 40mph, the track was fast, flowing and physical.

At 1pm, it was time for qualifying. The senior men and women would qualify against the clock, whilst the other categories would use the traditional 3 moto format for qualifying. 

Qualifying:

Seeded as the number 1 rider, Scott would leave the start gate last as riders qualified in reverse order.

He fired out of the gate and was on a heater, pedalling everywhere and carrying great speed all the way. As he crossed the finish line, it became obvious that Scott was here to win, taking the fastest time by nearly 2 seconds! He was happy and set his focus on the racing.

Racing:

In the semi final racing got very serious. Scott went for gate 1. He made an incredible start and powered out of the gate, leading through turn 1. He carried good speed through the technical corners and pulled a good lead over the 2nd placed rider. As he carried on into the finish aren, Scott had a big lead and was able to coast into the finish and into the final. After a spin of his legs in the finish arena, he set off back to the top for the final.

Onto the final. Scott took 1, Duncan Ferris went for 2, Will Evans in 3 and Ian Forsyth took 4. The gate dropped and Scott got the snap leading down the first straight but it was tight into turn 1. Then on the second straight Scott was able to inch ahead and took the early lead. He continued to pull away down the track and as he entered the finish arena, the crowd were stunned as Scott had a 20 metre lead! The celebrations started early as Scott punched the air before the finish line, celebrating the win.

Taking his 12th Elite mens National 4X title it was a hell of a weekend for Boom Boom.

“I just can’t believe it. I felt good all day, but at National Championships, the pressure is always on. As soon as I got into turn 1 I knew I could win and I just hit all my marks on the track to bring it home. This one is for my family. The support they have given me throughout my career has been second to none and I can’t thank them enough for all their support.”

Scott was ecstatic in the finish area and didn’t leave until every kid had a high five who wanted one!

Next it was the podiums, a couple of photoshoots for British Cycling and MBUK and then it was home time after an incredible weekend at the Malverns Classic.

Thank you to all the riders, medics, commentators, officials, commissaires, marshals, family and friends who attended this race. It was incredible.

After the huge success of the 2023 Championships, the Dual Slalom National Championships were back! Held at The Malverns Classic Festival once again, this head to head format of Mountain Biking would wow crowds on Friday.

With National Champion Jerseys up for grabs in the Championship categories, this MTB festival that is normally about good times, fun and music would turn very serious for about 25 seconds per run!

The Track:

The great thing with Dual Slalom is that you can do it anywhere! The Malverns Classic literally proved this! A grass field became a race track with a few carefully placed flag poles! A 2 rider pro gate start gate would set riders off into 12 corners for both the red and blue lanes. Riders would get a run in each lane, times added together and the winner would move on to the next round until the winners were crowned.

A week earlier, Scott had been asked by the Malverns Classic organisers to create the Dual Slalom track. He had made it fast and flowing, utilising the whole hillside and hopefully making racing close.

Practice:

Scott looked fast right from his first practice run. He initially opted for Schwalbe Magic Mary dry tyres, but then changed to Dirty Dan Spike tyres – normally reserved for mud races, but on this occasion would bite into the dry grass hillside. 

Qualifying:

Qualifying started at 12.30. A single run down the red lane to determine the qualifying order and calculate the brackets for racing later.

Scott got into the gate and ready to go. He made a customary great start and powered along the start straight. He rode a perfect lap and would cross the finish line with the fastest time of the day.

Kockout stages:

Scott rode well in his first couple of rounds , moving through to the quarter finals. In the quarter finals, things started to get a lot tighter. Up against global superstar Matt Jones, In round 1 of the quarter final, Scott was able to win by 2 seconds in the blue lane. On the red lane he was able to control the race and again won by 1.3 seconds moving into the semi final.

In the semi final, Scott again put the hammer down in the blue lane, but a small slide in the final turn meant he cross the lone 0.1 seconds behind. He was confident with a clean run he could get through. The gate dropped and Scott rode a great lap, taking the win, but not by enough, missing out on the final by 0.06 seconds!

Onto the small final.

In the first race, Scott was in the red lane to start. The gate dropped and Scott was able to race a clean lap, taking a strong advantage into the second run. 

In the second round, Scott showed his vast experience and simply sat on the wheel of Will Evans all the way, keeping it smooth and actually giving it a little burst across the finish to take the win and a bronze medal for the day.

“That was such an amazing day of racing. I am gutted to have not taken the win, but I rode great all day and we will take the bronze medal. Huge thank you to Schwalbe for their help today. We continued to switch tyres through the day seeking the perfect grip. This result is owed to them as I was able to push so hard in the last few races there. 4X National Championships on Sunday to focus on now!” Said Beaumont in the finish area.

A huge thanks to The Malverns Classic and British Cycling for organising this incredible event. 

Thank you to all the riders, medics, commentators, officials, commissaires, marshals, family and friends who attended this race. You made it a great day in a grass field!

The third round of the 2024 4X ProTour took place at Dobrany Bikepark in Czech Republic yesterday. With big crowds watching all weekend, this race is certainly here to stay on the ProTour. The track was huge. Big jumps, high speed and a real challenge for all the riders.

Scott arrived at the track on Thursday and was excited to ride the track on Friday for the first official practice session.

On Friday, riders had 3 hours to get to grips with this crazy track. It took Scott most of the session to really dial in the track. It was huge and a lot to work on to get up to speed and dial the tyre choice in. By the end of the session though, Scott was certainly looking quick and we were focused on a great result on Saturday.

Qualifying and the race took place on Saturday, so riders had to be ready for a full day of action. Seeded number 2 into this event, so he would be the penultimate rider to qualify. Scott made a great start and put together a run that was good enough for 3rd position. He was happy and felt good going into racing as the team immediately leapt into action getting the race bike prepared for the racing, whilst Scott relaxed in the team Adria motorhome.

Racing started at 16.00 and went well for Scott winning his early heats and moving through to the quarter finals. Going from gate 1, he made a perfect start and rode his fastest lap of the day so far. He was through to the semi finals and everything was looking good. 

Scott now found himself on gate 2 and a good start would be essential. He was clearly in the mood. He made a good start and battled down the first straight. After a bump and a bang Scott settled was forced into 3rd. All weekend he had a plan of the best passing place in the 180 degree corner near the finish. He tee’d it up and executed the it perfectly to move into 2nd position to the roars of the crowd. He held on to the finish line and booked his place in the final. Everyone was buzzing. It was one of the cleanest, most precise passes that anyone had ever seen. Scott’s experience was the key and he was buzzing too.

In the final, Scott had gate 3. The gate dropped and Scott got pinched but he made a great move in turn 1 and dived inside. A bump later and he was in 3rd. He used every trick he has to get into 2nd, hounding all the way but he could not make it past. Across the line he finished 3rd. A solid day and another podium result which has moved him into 2nd overall in the World Series.

In the finish area Scott said: 

“Whilst I am gutted with the final, it’s been a great day. That semi final was all time! I’ll remember that for a long time to come. I rode great all day and I’ll take 3rd. I’ve just found out that bumps me up to 2nd overall in the 4X World Series so I am stoked. 1 round to go. We will be ready.”

The result, although disappointing for Scott, was a fantastic race. He rode incredible all day. Just imagine being so consistently fast that you are that annoyed finishing 3rd in a World Championship event……. This result now moves him up to 2nd overall in the 2024 4X ProTour overall rankings. His consistency with podiums this year is paying off. There is just 1 round left and he is fighting for the overall title.

The final round is on September 7th is at the teams favourite track Szczawno Zdroj in Poland. Let’s keep the momentum going.

Thank you to all our team partners for your support in 2024.

Scott Beaumont

Qualifying – 12^th 

Race – 10^th 

Round 2 of the 2024 4X ProTour took place in Jablonec, Czech Republic at the weekend. After a strong season so far, Scott Beaumont was looking for a strong result here and to move up the overall standings. Arriving in 7th overall in the points, we were confident and focused on the task ahead.

Historically this track hasn’t been the best for Scott. He was looking to maintain his good form recently though to finally get the result he wanted at JBC bikepark.

The track is the creation of his arch rival, Tomas Slavik, in his hometown of Jablonec in Northern Czech Republic. It is the toughest track on the circuit with the biggest jumps, forest section, rocks, wall rides and rhythm sections. It has it all and it is also the longest track so it is extremely physical.

Practice began on Thursday and it was in perfect condition. With immaculate track preparation ahead of the race, everything was ready to go. Scott completed about 10 laps of the track and was looking much more at home than in previous years. Carful tyre choices from Schwalbe and Fox suspension settings were giving Scott the feel he has always chased at this track.

On Thursday night however, the biggest thunderstorm we have ever witnessed rolled through town. There was literally a river flowing off the bottom of the hill. The track has been washed away in some sections and we feared the worst.

On Friday the weather was cloudy. The JBC crew put out a call to the local town for help rebuilding the track. 100 people turned up with tools and food. By lunchtime, remarkably, the track was in better condition than it was on Thursday. It was an incredible effort. 

After the practice session, it was time for qualifying. Scott was seeded 5th for this race, so he so he qualified at the end of the session. He rode a great lap, and crossed the finish line happy with his run. 12th doesn’t sound that impressive but the times were tight and the main thing at this track is being comfortable.

“I made a great start and rode all the lines well. I pushed where I felt comfortable. I’m happy with the run. A bit gutted with 12th, but times are very tight” said Scott in the finish area.

Saturday 13th July – Race Day:

Race day and it was the hottest day of the week. 28 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. There was a short practice session for the riders before the opening ceremonies. 

The top 10 riders were introduced to the huge crowds. Scott, with his overall World ranking of number 1 set off down the hill to huge cheers from the crowd. The commentators were building him up as the legend of 4X!

After the intros were done, the Red Bull air race planes took over and simply wowed the crowds with an incredible display over the hillside.

Onto the racing. In Scott’s first race, he took gate 2. With a great start he took the lead into turn1 but then got shuffled back to 2nd in turn 2. He rode a great lap and qualified comfortably in 2nd.

In the quarter finals racing got very serious. Scott had the 3rd pick on the gate and he took gate 4. In this race, Bas Van Steenbergen (King of Crankworx) took gate 1, Stefano Dolfin (World Number 4) in gate 2, Jachym Vanek (World Number 10) gate 3 and Scott (World Number 1) in 4. 

Making a great start, he opted to stay wide into turn 1. He dived inside and briefly moved into 2nd before being forced wide by Van Steenbergen. He sat in 3rd and closed in on 2nd, but then lost a bit of time. Closed in again and then lost some more time. In the final 2 corners he was gaining and across the line he missed 2nd by 0.5 second. It was a great effort but unfortunately his night ended there with an overall position of 10th for the evening.

A cruel way to end the night but as Scott said in the finish:

“I would have done exactly the same thing. I was excited for the move in turn 1 but it just didn’t quite work out. I rode a great lap and  couldn’t have done any more in that race. That’s racing and it was fun out there. Over 10,000 spectators just saw 4X in it’s finest light’.

As the finals unfolded things went well for Scott. When the overall results were published, Scott had moved up to 4th in the standings with 2 rounds remaining.

Finally we want to thank all out team partners and sponsors. Without you this great performance would not have been possible. We have the best sponsors and an incredible presence at the events. 

We are forever thankful for the opportunities you give us and want to sincerely thank you all.