
Words by Kris Koper & Photography by Howler Photographic
Every year hundreds of riders compete in the Victorian Downhill Series, this year was no different. Almost 300 riders battled for the podium at the infamous Barjarg Downhill Track.
Located just over two hours north-east of Melbourne, this old school rocky track is known for claiming collar bones, and even turning a foot around backwards (Jake, if you’re reading this, hello!).
The weekend delivered classic Melbourne weather, patches of rain kept the mossy rocks slick and the dust down for some loose racing.
This year we saw a few of our top under 19’s riders step up for their first year in the Elite Men’s category, including Cooper Downey and Will Arblaster, who both finished in the top 10 of the category.
To keep things competitive Kona Factory rider and World Cup competitor Jackson Frew got between the tape to finish first with a lightning fast run of 2:38.75 followed closely by Aarron Gungl with a run of 2:41.60 and Darcy Coutts with a run of 2:44.76.





















Elite Women
1st – 204 – Elise Empey – 3:19.04
2nd – 207 – Ashleigh Weinert – 3:34.35 | +0:15.31
3rd – 208 – Kyleigh Stewart – 3:39.95 | +0:20.91
4th – 210 – Maddison Smith – 4:06.75 | +0:47.71
5th – 202 – Jessica Sheridan – 4:08.41 | +0:49.37
Elite Men
1st – 5 – Jackson Frew – 2:38.75
2nd – 7 – Aaron Gungl – 2:41.60 | +0:02.85
3rd – 4 – Darcy Coutts – 2:44.76 | +0:06.01
4th – 2 – Jackson White – 2:48.50 | +0:09.75
5th – 18 – Cooper Downey – 2:49.30 | +0:10.55
Thanks all the volunteers that make these events possible and all the riders for a huge first round. Shout out to our sponsors: Yarra Valley Cycles, Life of Bikes, Dynamite Cycles, Krush, Reckless Race Concepts, Racefit Athlete Development, MTB Suspension Works and Echuca Printers.
For more photos head to Howler Photographic