Downhill madness in Valparaíso Cerro Abajo

VALPARAÍSO – Some of the world’s best downhill mountain bike riders came together in Valparaíso to compete in the tenth edition of the Valparaíso Cerro Abajo. The downhill race is renowned as one of the craziest in the world and attracts thousands of spectators, who lined the length of the course.

While most mountain bike courses stick to dirt trails in areas outside the city, the Valparaíso Cerro Abajo is among a growing number of urban downhill races, where the riders have to weave their way through the streets. In addition to pre-existing structures such as staircases, roads and footpaths, extra jumps are added in to the course to make things more exciting, both for competitors and spectators.

The Valparaíso Cerro Abajo is known by many as "the craziest race in the world". Photo by Daniel Boyle

One of the biggest jumps was placed just after Plaza Bismarck, with some riders passing over the gap with no fear, while the jump became the end of the race for some other riders. While it was Slovakian Filip Polc who won both the 2010 and 2011 editions, this year it was time for a Chilean to step up to the top of the podium. It was Mauricio Acuña who led the way, while Polc was not too far behind, finishing in second place. The Chilean rider made it through the course in just 2 minutes and 38 seconds, with Polc just .31 of a second slower. The best female rider was Brazil’s Luana Oliveira, who completed the course in 3 minutes and 21 seconds.

Not so far from the finish line, riders were faced with a wallride between two ramps. The gap between the two ramps was too much for some of the riders. Below is a video of one rider who didn’t quite make it all the way.

Aside from negotiating the obstacles, riders also had to watch out for dogs, cars and pedestrians. Known by many in mountain bike circles as “the craziest race in the world”, the event attracted 60 riders, not only from Chile and Latin America, but also from the rest of the world.