Hackney GT goes Downhill......
This year we have a young whipper snapper, Alex Roberton racing the national UK downhill series 2017 and sporting our new (forthcoming ) MTB jerseys.
He is what he has to say about it and check his video
Hackney GT and me. My journey with Hackney GT started back in 2015 after my first Enduro race, I had sliced open my hand opening a disc rotor package and went down to Beastway to help out for a week. It was here I told Russ Jones what I was doing and all the races I was planning to go and do. He asked if I wanted to race for him and I jumped at the chance. The only problem being I had six stitches in my hand... Next week I raced with three gloves on my right hand and managed to wrap up the junior series that year, a feat I am still proud of.
Over the next year my focus has changed from XC racing more towards Downhill and Enduro racing. Russ told me he was looking to do some DH/MTB kit and again I jumped at the chance to be involved with such a cool company producing rad kit.
This year I am racing the full British Downhill Series and a number of Enduro World Series rounds in Hackney GT kit. Travel, race entry, and bike parts decimates my wages each month, but if you don't do cool stuff when you're young, you'll have nothing to smile about when you're old. The leopard print jersey was debuted this weekend at the first round of the British Downhill Series in Nant-G. The track was an absolutely brutal mix of steep, wet, tight rock gardens at the top followed by a long flat pedal at the bottom. It demanded full concentration to pick the right line up top and then pedal your butt off until you see stars to the finish. A five hour drive, 9 practice runs, 1 stylish jersey and lots of queuing led me to 27th place in Senior men. I was happy with this result considering I had switched to flat pedals from my brand new clips five minutes before my race run. T
The new HGT jersey gathered a lot of attention and admiring looks both on and off track, it certainly made me stand out! The sun came out on Sunday and the lightweight fabrics with an old school perforated front helped to keep me cool.
Throughout the year I'll be learning more about racing Downhill and training hard. I'll be aiming for a top ten in Seniors this year. Look out for me racing Cyclocross next winter as well. I'll be bringing some DH skills to the wet fields of the UK and maybe some flat pedals.... Until next time, go ride your bike in the dirt, fast. Alex Roberton
