Biketember was once again a mountain bike festival of superlatives

Rain, deep mud and a selective course: just in time for the Biketember Festival in Saalfelden Leogang, the "Speedster" World Cup course presented itself in autumnal garb and from its particularly challenging and technical side for the more than 300 starters from 26 nations. For the 10th time now, the riders battled for the day's and overall victories at the big showdown of the iXS European Downhill Cup, the highest race series after the World Cup. At the last of the five European Cup races, 15-year-old local heroine Valentina Höll stood out in particular.

 
Saalbach's "Vali" Höll fastest woman on the course and overall winner U17
 
Austria's greatest young talent secured her fifth victory in a row at her home race and thus also the overall victory in the U17 women's category. What's more, with her time on the Leogang World Cup course, the young Saalbach native could also have been right up there with the elite women: She was the fastest woman on the course both in qualifying on Saturday and in the final on Sunday and therefore also faster than European champion Eleonora Farina (ITA), who secured victory on the day in the elite women's category: "Saalfelden Leogang is simply my living room, I feel comfortable here and know the course inside out - that will probably be it," grinned the Saalbach native: "I've now won all five Tour stops in my category and I'm totally happy. Especially here in Saalfelden Leogang, on my local mountain so to speak, to not only celebrate winning the day but also the Tour is something very special."

Next year, Valentina will be competing in the Junior World Cup and will therefore be back on the Leogang Speedster in June: "Next year I will finally be able to race in the World Cup - I think it's really cool that there will be more competitors. I'm really looking forward to it!"  
The best Austrian in the elite women's race was once again Simone Wechselberger from Tyrol in eighth place.

 Farewell in lederhosen: Markus Pekoll celebrated his last race
 
A great Austrian downhill racer bid farewell to his "living room" at the Biketember Festival: Wearing lederhosen and a traditional hat, Markus Pekoll took part in his very last downhill race as a professional today. Not only does he have a long-standing partnership with Leogang, he also celebrated his greatest successes here, such as a 9th place at the home World Championships. Accordingly, the last appearance of the former European champion and six-time national champion was a particularly emotional one - the race against the clock was of secondary importance for the 22nd-placed rider today: "It was brutally emotional just before the start. That was really it. But then I had a lot of fun and tried to soak it all up again. The placing didn't matter to me today, I even had time to say goodbye to the marshals. There were lots of friends there, my family, my Leogang partners, who have always supported me. I have to let that sink in.  It was a clear step for me. I'm proud to have played a part in raising the profile of the sport and to have got everything out of my career. It's wonderful to stop with this feeling," says Pekoll.

The men's race was won by Ondrej Stepanek from the Czech Republic. The best Austrian was once again Andreas Kolb, who only just missed out on the podium: "Extremely slippery, but great. It's never been as brilliant as this year in Leogang. It's a shame that it just wasn't enough for the podium."

 Bikepark Leogang still open until 5 November
 
The next generation of bikers are already in the starting blocks at the Biketember Festival. The youngsters proved this at the SCOTT Junior Trophy at Ritzensee in Saalfelden. Here, around 60 children and young people aged between three and 16 showed that they are in no way inferior to their role models when it comes to action on the varied circuit.
 
The Biketember Festival opens the autumn season for mountain bikers in Saalfelden Leogang and is also the crowning glory of a summer of events that began with the "Out of Bounds" festival in June, explains Marco Pointner, Managing Director of Saalfelden Leogang Touristik: "Whether young or old, amateur or professional, the diversity is what makes the Biketember Festival so special. The Biketember Festival heralds the start of the autumn season. The Bikepark Leogang is still open for downhillers until 5 November."
The date for next year's Mountain Bike World Cup as part of the Out of Bounds Festival has also already been set for 7 to 10 June 2018. Bike fans can also look forward to another highlight in Saalfelden Leogang: In 2020, the Downhill World Championships will be held in Bikepark Leogang for the first time since 2012.