History was made on Mar. 4 at the first-ever Red Bull Crashed Ice race event to take place in Ottawa. For the first time in the rapidly-evolving sport’s 16-year history, racer Cameron Naasz became a two-time world champion.
Fighting against a highly technical and challenging 375-metre course dropping 35 metres vertically, the riders put on quite the show for the thousands of Ottawans who braved the cold to take in the sporting spectacle.
While many in the crowd were rooting for Canadian contenders Dean Moriarity, Scott Croxall and brother Kyle Croxall, it was the American rider Naasz who came out on top.
Taking his second podium-topping finish of the season, and sixth podium finish of the year, Naasz said he was excited to become the first man to defend the ice cross downhill world championship.
“It feels very similar [to the last time] . . . I was very happy that I was able to remain consistent, and to be able to come out on top tonight,” Naasz said.
For Naasz, the Ottawa Red Bull Crashed Ice course was the perfect venue for his athletic abilities.
“The start gate was a two-step drop, which was good for me,” he said. “I’m an agile guy, so I can get out of the gate quick.”
Naasz, who describes himself as a technical rider, also benefitted from the course’s steep downhill decline, evoked by the Rideau Canal Locks which much of the course was built into.
“I was able to pump the transitions, and there wasn’t a whole lot of skating,” he said.
But the course did provide challenges for the 27-year-old rider. He said the bottom roller feature was the most difficult for him.
“The bottom feature was built improperly . . . They built them a little bit too tall, so there was a deep channel that you had to land in,” he said, and added it was his job as an athlete to adjust to the situation.
With temperatures dipping to as low as -20°C, and high gusts of wind, Naasz said it was a factor for him and his fellow competitors.
“[The ice] was hard to deal with all weekend, because it was very, very cold,” he said. “When ice gets to that temperature, it’s very brittle, so it breaks apart, and huge cracks develop in the ice, and it makes it hard for us.”
Throughout the evening, the focus was on the rivalry between Naasz and Scott Croxall. The competition between the pair came down to the final race, where both riders ended up suffering falls.
Croxall suffered the worst of the two tumbles, causing him to barrel into the boards and an eventual fourth-place finish.
“I heard a loud noise on the boards, so I knew somebody had hit the boards,” Naasz said. “[Moriarity] was to my right, so I figured that maybe it was him.”
“During the race, I thought, ‘Was that [Croxall]? Was it?’ and then when I was going over the second feature, I heard the announcer say, ‘It was Croxall! Croxall’s down!'” he said.
“I think that made me a little relaxed, and then I hit a rut going into the Harley Davidson hump. I thought these guys were going to catch me for sure, but luckily I got away with it,” he said.
– Photo by Colm O’Sullivan
