2012/13 Giant and Yarra Valley Cycles DH TEAM... Read All About it...
Yarra Valley Cycles is proud and excited to announce its latest racing venture. YVC has teamed up with Giant Bicycles and has assembled some of the best up and coming junior riders, and some of the most experienced DHers in Australia to join the Giant/YVC Race Team...
The team will be piloting the brand new 2013 Giant Glory 0 DH bikes, with improved geometry and amazing spec list, to victory in the 2012/13 VDHS events and Australian National Series events. You will also see the team at selected Enduro events and Club events throughout the season. With the new season bikes arriving around the end of August, everybody is getting super excited about giving them a good thrashing.
Joining the team for 2012/13 season will be:
Aiden Varley: Current Victorian U17 Men State Champion, Aiden is committed to his racing and is supremely fit and super smooth on his bike. Living in the North East of Victoria around some of the best XC and DH trails you can find, he has the perfect surrounds to work on his speed. Aiden will move into U19 this year and is sure to shake up the top few spots at every event, and his goal of joining the Australian Junior team next year is a very real prospect. He is currently in Whistler for one month, working with some pro riders on his race speed and technical skills. He is sure to come back flying. It will be scary..........
Louis Armitage: Louis will be in his final year of U17, but this past season Louis showed turns of speed that were impressive. This will be a huge learning year for Louis and the senior members of the team will be working closely with him to maximise his potential. He is very committed to his riding, and trains hard both on and off the bike. Riding recently with him at a club event, he showed great speed and adaptability, despite not being on his DH bike. Louis will be one to watch this year.
Matt Swann: Matt is the veteran of the team, but is trying not to slow down. He has over 20 years MTB racing experience, and will use that experience to help develop the riders and the team into winners. Matt will be the Team Manager and will take care of day to day operation of the team and ensure the guys have everything they need to win. Early pre-season races for Matt show he still knows how to get down the hill, and he is hoping for a Top 5 overall result this season.
Alex Swann: DH racing is in his blood and despite a quiet year for 2011/12, Alex will be back to his winning ways on the new Glory. With plenty of racing experience both nationally and internationally, and style to boot, Alex has what it takes to stand on the podium. One of Victoria’s most successful riders with numerous State Titles and other victories, when Alex get on board the new 2013 Glory, he will be flying. Get trackside to watch his smooth style, and join Alex in the pits for a wealth of knowledge from the baby face assassin.
Liam Panozzo: If Alex is the baby face assassin, then this bloke is an out and out DH weapon. Liam was born to race DH. The unlikely looking racing legend with amazing style and mind blowing speed, will leave you shaking your head and asking ‘how the f**k’. Liam has amassed a wealth of racing experience overseas and at home and boasts a list of results like podiums at World Champs, Top 10 NORBA, numerous top 20 World Cup finishes, podiums all over the Australian National Series, and so many VDHS wins and podiums, we lost count. With a renewed focus on racing this year, he is expecting big things of himself, and after a few years of ‘not trying’ and still winning, we look forward to witnessing his A game.
So there you go, Australia’s newest race team, with some of Australia’s most experienced riders, riding Australia’s most exciting new bikes, for one of Australia’s best bike stores. Come and see us at events and chat to our guys in the pits. We will be more than happy to show you through the new Giant range and we plan to have some test bikes available at some events for XC and DH. Stay tuned for our exciting new film clip due for release in September. See you at the races..............looking out from the podiums!!!!!
