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The first Canadian to enter Inline Boarding road races in Europe, Steven Carter, returned from his three week journey earlier this week. Also his first road races anywhere, Steven finished 2nd in the Are Mountain Games in Sweden and 11th at COASH in Switzerland. He brings back with him valuable experience that should make him a force to be reckoned with at Top Challenge and the Paskapoo Downhill Rodeo this year!

Brian Duvall at Inline Boarder posted this interview with Steven after his experience in Sweden:

If you follow what's happening in the sport and on the Canada Dirtsurfer forum then you know that Steven Carter traveled to Are, Sweden to compete in the IGSA race against Germany's Nihat Uysal. The photo gallery is available online.

Name: Steven Carter
Age: 18
Weight: 170 lbs.
Hometown: Edmonton, now in Calgary, Canada.
Rider since: August 2005
Dirtsurfer Specs: Custom painted 2004 GP
Style: I like all roads... off road, all of it.
# of Races: This was my first.
Status: "Ladies, I'm single."

I caught up with Steven to ask him about his race experience in Are. Here is what he said...

Q. Hi, Steven. Thanks for talking to Inline Boarder about the IGSA race in Are. Before we get to the race, tell us a little about yourself.
A. I first saw the Dirtsurfer on t.v. like 4 or 5 years ago and I said to my self that I wanted one from that moment. This was my first race. I came in Second out of only 2 people. Right now I am travelling around Europe but when I get back to Canada I will probably go back into the trades. I worked my butt off for six months saving money to come over to Europe to race but it was worth it. I would like to put a thanks out to Dave Kessler (gravity bike rider) who help me out a lot at +are with my brake.

Q. What was it like there at the race?
A. The experience at the race was so cool during the free rides, qualifying,
and the race. Even though there was a lot of waiting around, all you could do was talk to people, drink water, and eat food.

Q. What were you feeling when you went up to the starting line?
A. I was thinking, "How am I going to beat the man next to me?" was mostly the only thing. (I was in automatic mode from all the free rides that I did.)

Q. You were going up against the 2005 IGSA World Dirtsurfer Champion Nihat Uysal. He's known for being very fast and an agressive promoter of the sport. What was Nihat like while he was racing against you? Did he try to psych you out?
A. Nihat was cool. We shook hands at the begining of the race and we said good luck to each other. He didn't try to psych me out.

Q. What happened when the race started? Who got out in the lead first?
A. The race marshell said, "GO" and all I did was kick as quick as I could. Nihat got off to the lead first. I was right behind Nihat so I was able to draft him.

Q. Were you able to overtake him at any part of the race? If so, what happened?
A. I did. Shortly after I started drafting, I passed him and then in the first turn I did not brake enough. I skidded into the mats. Then Nihat passed me there.

Q. That's a tough break, Steven. We're glad you weren't hurt. What happened in the second heat?
A. In the second race Nihat got out in front and stayed in the lead all the way.

Q. What was the race course like?
A. The race course was about 2 km long with 2 big hairpin turns and a smooth paved surface.

Q. About how fast were you guys going?
A. I think it was around between 60-70 km/h.

Q. What was the hardest part of the course?
A. The hardest part of the course I think is the first turn. You have so much speed and then you have to hit the brakes a bit. In the second turn you did not have to brake as much.
Q. What were some of the problems you ran into that kept you from winning?
A. Part of my brake disk was always touching my brake pad which was taking seconds off my time. I hope to have this problem solved by COASH.

Q. Do you have any plans to change your stance or strategy at the next race in Switzerland?A. I learned all of that during the free ride practice runs and racing at Are. Right now I'm not really to worried about my stance or my starts. I'm more worried about my turns and strategy, especially with COASH (Chill On A Swiss Hill) just around the corner.

Q. Any words of advice for aspiring Dirtsurfers out there?
A. Its easier to learn on a nice hill than on flat land like I did.
P.S. The hardest part about coming to Europe is carrying your own bags a few blocks to a hostel or a hotel or where ever you're staying for the night.

Thanks for the interview, Steven. Good luck at COASH.
Cheers,
Brian

The COASH 2006 video can be found HERE

The first COASH 2006 Photo Gallery can be found HERE

The second COASH 2006 Photo Gallery can be found HERE

Steven had this to say about COASH:

Photo by: Trix Muller of Dirtsurfer-team.ch

Monday morning at 8:00 am you hear this loud truck come rolling in to the camping area. After the truck parks and shuts off its engines you hear "Good morning, Vietnam!...The truck leaves at 9 am" blaring from the loudspeaker that is set up outside the main building.

By the time everyone has some food in there stomachs and their equipment is ready it is closer to 10 am. The truck starts heading up the hill to take racers to the starting line. This truck is something that they would use for hauling cattle and I guess some people could not resist mooing while going up the hill.

Once at the top, people only get 2 or 3 runs in the morning session which ends at noon for a lunch break. Course workers also take this time to repair parts of the barrier that had broken from some crashes. During the lunch break you see people buying food and fixing up their boards so that they are running better for the afternoon session which runs from 1:30. to 5:00 pm.

The worst part about the afternoon session is the heat. Temperatures reach between 30 to 35 degrees Celcius. There is almost no shade at the top or the bottom of the race course. For you Fahrenheit folks, that's about 85 to 100 degrees.

With the afternoon session completed you can go eat dinner that you have to order the night before. The cost is only eight franks. After that is all over you can go for the Night Free Ride from 6:00 to 9:00 pm. This is a better time to ride because the truck is not so crammed with people and it's a bit cooler.

When you finally have your fill of riding there are nightly activities. Monday features the opening ceremonies which are alot of fun. Tuesday and Thursday are the Gravix awards which show off peoples' filming and editing abilities. Some are really good and some are just too long... showing the same thing over and over. Wednesday is Swiss Night where people can enjoy various traditional Swiss pleasures like Swiss cheese on bread, Swiss music and a show on the Switzerland countryside. On Friday night they show more movies or you can relax before the big race day.

The races begin on Saturday morning. This is one really hard and technical course with lots of speed and lots of braking in the turns. If you go off the course in some parts, then you better have wings because it is a long way to fall. The best part about racing on Saturday is that the Dirtsurfers are the last event. This means that we have the biggest crowds in the last corner.

It is an intense day of racing with Ueli Gut being crowned as the 2006 IGSA World Champion in Inline Boarding. You may remeber that Ueli set a speed record on a Dirtsurfer when he reached 136 kilometers per hour at the European X Games back in March.

Now here are a few tips that I have learned about racing in Europe:
1. Come prepared. Bring tools, tires, extra stuff that you think you will need.
2. Pack heavy. Buy a cheap tent from Wal-Mart and then leave it in Europe.
3. HAVE FUN!


Congratulations Steven! You made us all proud and paved the way for more international competition in races both in Europe and in North America!