The first weekend in October was once again the time for the last race of the season. The small mountain village of Bellwald, high up in the Swiss canton of Valais, hosted the event and delivered a fitting celebration.

Bellwald has been the last race of the year for quite some time now, and it definitely helps to get people excited about the next season. The race in the beautiful mountain village, located high up at 1,700 metres, once again brought the downhill community together for one last time, and because this is always something special, so many people come and enjoy this event once again in a large group. The race was fully booked in advance, with around 400 athletes from 26 different nations travelling to Valais.

A high-speed course with panoramic views

As is often the case with this race, the external conditions were relatively good, although it was quite cool and the temperatures during the first training runs in the morning did not exactly contribute to a comfortable atmosphere. As always, the track was in perfect condition, although there were some minor changes from last year, such as two additional road gaps and a few slight deviations from the original line. The course can be characterised as extremely fast with large jumps and a fairly hard surface. The technical specifications were 400 metres of elevation gain over a length of 2,200 metres, which further emphasises this description as a high-speed track.

The start of the weekend

As always, Friday was spent getting to know the course with a track walk followed by six hours of training. Despite the cable car having been newly built a few years ago, the lift queue was quite long, giving us plenty of time to chat with the other people waiting about the season coming to an end. Fortunately, at least at the beginning, the sun was still shining, creating a pleasant, relaxed atmosphere. Towards the end, however, the cold slowly set in, making it quite chilly in the lift. Nevertheless, it was a nice day of training. After the athletes had taken good care of themselves and their equipment, the festivities began in the marquee, as Bellwald is not only known for great downhill sports, but also for high-quality live music and long parties.

Seeding run as the first indicator

Saturday started with single-digit temperatures and some fog in the upper part, but during training the sun came out and it turned into a beautiful autumn day. The seeding run began at midday, and luckily the weather held out until the end, with only a light drizzle setting in during the last few runs, which did not cause any further disruption. The fastest times of the day were set by Nicolas Beachler (SUI - Beachler Brothers) with a time of 3:27.706 minutes and Gianna Nef (SU) with 3:59.545 minutes.

Final day with a cold start

Temperatures plummeted overnight on Saturday, leaving the start line covered in snow at the beginning of training. Fortunately, the sun came out quite quickly and conditions were perfect again by the start of the race. The track was once again lined with spectators and the atmosphere was fitting for the final of the iXS Downhill Cup. Many riders were still competing for important points for the overall standings, which meant there was always a certain amount of tension in the field. In the end, Gianna Nef once again prevailed in the Elite Women's class, winning with a time of 4:00.863 minutes. Second place went to Maxima Jaax (GER - Fraezen Factory Racing), followed by Zoé Fay (FRA - DragonSpeed). The overall ranking went to Marlena Rieger (GER - Team Fracebike), who relegated Justine Welzel (GER - ROSE Bikes) to second place. Third place went to Roos op de Beeck (BEL - Loose Riders).

In the Elite Men's class, it was an all-Swiss podium. With a magnificent run, Yannick Baechler (SUI - Baechler Brothers) secured the day's victory. The Swiss rider from the canton of Fribourg has often stood on the podium in Bellwald and thus crowns a fairly successful season with several victories in the HOT-TRAIL series. The best time of the day was 3:26.016 minutes. Elia Saurer (SUI - HOT-TRAIL Racing) finished second, 2.5 seconds behind. The podium was completed by the winner's brother and yesterday's fastest rider, Nicolas Baechler. The series title went to Simon Maurer (GER - Schornsteinfeger Maurer). Second place went to Lino Neumann (GER - Chili Racing Brigade). Third place went to Jannik Abbou (GER - DH Talent Team).

This brought an action-packed season to a close with a worthy final race. The iXS Downhill Cup consisted of six races in four countries and continues to enjoy great popularity in its 22nd year of existence. This series is about much more than just racing. The participants form a large community and live and breathe this sport. We look forward to the next season and wish everyone a relaxing off-season.