Last year, we called Hannes Slavik a ‘modern day gladiator’. He competes in man-against-man bike races and some spectacular races you’ve probably never heard of, like the “Down Mall” race (where a GoPro video of his run made hundred-thousands of views). He’s got a lot on his plate for 2015!
Modern day gladiator Hannes Slavik leading in a 2014 4x race run (Foto: Markus Slavik)
What we didn’t talk about when we introduced Hannes Slavik early last year here in the blog: Gladiator fights are spectacular for the audience – but they come at the cost of being quite dangerous for the competitors. Our first season with Hannes turned out to be a patchy one with repeated pausing due to injury. But we never heard him complain. as a true gladiator, the only thing Hannes was concerned with was to get back out there and compete.
Season Preview 2015 – Good Luck From All Of Us!
Here’s Hannes’ preview he put down for us for the 2015 season. We are happy to support him with our Riding Packs and Hydration Systems – especially with his Enduro campaign in mind.
Hannes Slavik: “The upcoming season has some nice specials I am really looking forward to, it will be a sweet and interesting mix of 4 disciplines. Although it’s not always easy to change between bikes when different events are close together – especially when you come from a Downhill race to a BMX one – I love the challenge. I love variety!
Hannes Slavik warming up for the season with his SOURCE Race Hydration Pack (Foto: Markus Slavik)
In my main discipline 4x I will race the Pro Tour Series and the World Championships from A-Z. Some BMX races and the National Championships in Bludenz will show how fast I still am at the sport I grew up with. Besides the man-against-man racing action I will compete at the Bratislava City Downhill Worldcup. Also the Sram Enduro Series in Treuchtlingen and Leogang I will be part of my race calendar and most likely some Czech Enduro races.
Looking forward to the great crowd in Scotland …
One highlight will be the 4x Pro Tour race in Fort William, Scotland (June 6-7). The last time I was fascinated by how many people came to watch the race and I did my first Pro Tour Final there. Visitors where standing next to the track screaming the whole time and supporting the riders. It was a great feeling and I am really looking forward to this special kind of atmosphere.
… and a dream come true: competing @ Crankworx in Whistler
The thing I am most excited about is finally making my way to Canada, Whistler for a two week trip to the biggest MTB Festival in the world: Crankworx! Air Dh, World Whip-Off, Dual and Pumptrack are the events I will be part of. It has always been a dream of mine to shred in Whistler and I cant wait to be part of that unique event.
Spacious SOURCE Whistler Pack is perfect for longer days, featuring insulated Hydration Compartment, holds protective gear and more (Foto: Markus Slavik)
Let’s get it on!
I will definitely keep you up to date about all my trips around Europe and Canada. Beeing at home is great but traveling around, getting to meet great people like I did last weekend during the Beat the Best Festival at Mikes Bike Park in Italy, and racing some exciting tracks is what I love doing most, so lets get it on ;)”
Good luck from the SOURCE team, we got our fingers crossed! Check out all our SOURCE Bike Hydration Packs & Standalone Hydration Systems fitting any packs out there.
Gopro Final Run: chain jumped during the final run, damaged my balls at the stem :p feeling a little bit down after a save ridden 6.place run in the semi final :/
Posted by Slavik Hannes on Saturday, January 31, 2015
Slavik’s Famous Down-Mall Clip