From Czech Republic, we headed to Leibstadt in Switzerland for Round 6 of the 2014 4X ProTour. A Bikepark track located in northern Switzerland, this track is liked by Scott and he had been looking forward to racing here. The whole event was run on just one day here so it was important to be fired up and ready for a day of practice, qualifying and racing. Scott got it all dialled quickly. He looked fast and heading into qualifying was one of the favourites. The gate dropped on his qualifying lap and Scott was on the gas. His run was good enough for 2nd position, just 0.1 behind the fastest time.

Winning his first rounds, quarter final and semi final, Scott was in the final. Taking gate 2, the scene was set. The gate dropped and Scott had the holeshot, but into turn 1 a bang of handlebars and Scott found himself wide on the turn and in 4th position. Chasing after the other riders, Scott made up some ground but just could not bridge the gap fully. 4th in the end and again some vital points towards the overall.

So that was the end of a wild 2 weeks on the road.

The next event for Yeti Racing UK team will be this weekend when Scott and Dave will be racing at the Schwalbe 4X National Championships in Falmouth, Cornwall here in the UK. Scott will be defending his National Championship title and Dave will be looking to improve on his 4th position last year.

X ProTour Round 7 – Pamporovo, Bulgaria:

Scott Beaumont
Qualifying – 4th
Race – 4th

Hi all,

The weekend saw the final round of the 4X ProTour in Pamporovo, Bulgaria. Scott entered into this race in 5th position overall but he could move as high as 3rd or drop down to 6th. Looking for a top 5 podium overall result, Scott was focused and ready for the challenge.

Practice began on Thursday. The track was a new venue in the 4X ProTour and a track that Scott had not previously raced on. It was the longest track of the season at just over 50 seconds and it had a great mix of elements. Super fast on the long straights, tight ‘S’ bends, a forest section and some huge jumps. It was technical but Scott was liking it right from the start.

Here is a helmet camera run of the track taken on Thursday:

Friday: Qualifying

Onto Friday first job of the day was a press conference for the top 5 riders for the Bulgarian mainstream media. As joint organiser of the 4X ProTour, Scott hosted the press conference as well as answering questions from the press. In the afternoon it was time for qualifying. Both qualifying and the race were shown live on the Internet in stunning hd quality. Overnight rain made the track perfect. As UCI World ranked number 2, Scott’s qualifying was 2nd from last rider. With a great start, Scott attacked the track and it looked to be a clean run. Across the finish line it was good enough for 4th position overall.

Saturday: Race

Saturday and Scott needed to speed up and work on his race lines. Practice went well and he was ready. At 15.00 it was race time. Scott was flying. He looked good on the track and everything was shaping up nicely. Taking the win in his quarter final he was in the semi final. With a great start Scott led down to turn 1 but slipped back to 2nd in turn 1. He held 2nd to the finish to book his place in the final.

Final time. Tomas Slavik to gate 1, Quentin Derbier in 2, Felix Beckeman in 3 and Scott in 4. Scott made a decent start and with a clash of handlebars by the 3 guys inside he had a great run around the first turn. Unfortunately the riders on the inside drifted wide and cut off Scott’s move. He was quite a way back at this point but fought hard down the track to set up a drag race with Beckeman on the last straight. Drawing level at the last jump Scott was charging for 3rd but then disaster struck. In one of the biggest crashes of his career Scott was thrown over his handlebars when his front wheel bogged down in a soft spot on the take off. The crash was brutal as Scott bounced off his back, scorpioned and ‘rag dolled’ down the track. It was truly horrific.

Here is the official film from the race:

After attention by the medics and after getting his breathe back Scott began to move and after a while he was sat up. A battered Scott finished the race and more or less headed straight to the airport to see his doctors back in the UK.

Scott is seeing specialists today to check his lower back out further and of course we will keep you all updated with his condition as we get information.

For those of you brave enough, here is the footage of the final and Scott’s crash:

The team film featuring Scott’s crash is also on the front page of:

PinkBike: http://www.pinkbike.com/news/crash-scott-beaumont-at-4x-2014.html

Dirt: http://dirtmountainbike.com/videos/scott-beaumont-4x-crash.html#!bKpAzw

Right now, we are unsure on Scott’s next race as we have his condition assessed by doctors and specialists but we will let you know in due course.

The result of 4th in the final was enough to give Scott 4th overall in the 4X ProTour for 2014. After successfully defending the 4X National Championship 2 weeks ago, currently sat in 2nd overall in the UCI World Rankings and also leading the British 4X Series with only 1 round remaining, Scott has had an incredible year and we hope the injuries sustained in Bulgaria are not serious and don’t put a dampener on what has been an amazing year for Scott and Yeti Racing UK.

I last raced the BMX World Championships in 1996 – in front of his home crowd in Brighton here in the UK. It was a great day for me as I went on to win that race and became one of only a couple of British riders to win the World Championships twice. Fast forward 18 years and the majority of my training now done at British Cycling’s fantastic indoor BMX facility in preparation for my 4X racing. With some of my training being done on his BMX bike, it was suggested that I was quick enough to compete at the World Championships in the tough Masters class. In BMX there are 2 30 plus classes. 30+ is for riders who are aged between 30 and 40 but still work outside of racing. Masters class is for riders who are 30 to 40, and who are still professional or are former World/European or National Champions. Masters is stacked with the finest former elite BMX riders. Never one to shy away from a challenge, jumped at the opportunity.

The race was on Wednesday night – 23rd July. It was just possible as I had to be in Czech Republic on Thursday 24th July to start practice for the 4X ProTour round 5.

We arrived in Rotterdam, Netherlands on Monday for registration and his first look at the track. The track had been built in the Ahoy stadium in the centre of Rotterdam. A temporary track built in just 4 days, it was an impressive sight and I was excited about the next 2 days. On Tuesday practice began. The British team had just 1 hour on Tuesday and 1 hour on Wednesday to practice ahead of the racing. As a maximum, I would get 3 laps per day practice so 6 in total before racing started. Practice went well, especially my gates. So important on a tight indoor track. I was gating well, and confidence was starting to grow.

Here is our official Yeti Racing UK team film featuring a lap of the track:

Wednesday and it was race day. The final practice session went well, and I was ready. The motos were announced – qualification races. I would have to finish in the top 4 in his 3 motos to advance. The draw was tough and included 2013 Masters World Champion Kelvin Batey, Former USA Champion Matt Pohlkamp and a host of European and South American Champions.

19.00 and it was showtime. I was nervous, more so that I just had no idea what my speed was going to be like against the riders in Masters. The gate dropped on my first moto and I made a superb start, moving into 2nd and holding on to the finish. I was buzzing! Back on the BMX and importantly for me, in contention. In moto 2 I finished 2nd again, then in the last moto, with the outside gate, I finished 4th. I was through to the semi finals and in the top 16 in the World!

Semi finals and I had 4th pick of the start gate. I went for gate 3. With the start of my night, I led down the first straight. In turn 1 I made a little mistake and slipped back to 3rd, but unfortunately found myself on the outside into turn 2. Bumped into 4th, I was in trouble and in the last turn I got stuck tight on the inside. On the last straight I slipped back to 5th and unfortunately went out of the event. The result officially gave me 9th but I was pretty devastated to go from 1st to 5th on that lap. Here is the YouTube footage of his Semi final. Well worth a watch. Remember I am on gate 3. Bear in mind the Danish rider in gate 2 who finishes 3rd went on to win the final and become the 2014 Masters World Champion.

The Worlds were over, but now it was time to drive to Czech Republic for round 5 of the 4X ProTour.