Sam Dale is a professional downhill racer for GT Factory Racing. He has a solid track record, with 19 top 25 spots in the UCI World Cup, including a 5th place at Lourdes in 2015. We caught up with him during the recent GT Bicycles Good Times Tour of South Africa to find out a bit more about his life on the GT team and the ups and downs of competitive racing.
What got you into downhill?
My grandad was into motorbikes, and that got passed on to my dad, so we did a lot of motorbike trails. My brother and I would go along – watch him ride his motorbike. We’d have our push bikes and follow him down. Then like a typical lazy young lad I didn’t like riding up hill, so downhill it was.
Which is your favourite World Cup track?
It’s got to be Fort William, the track is really good: it’s high speed, got a bit of everything, and the woods section is normally pretty challenging. It has such a good atmosphere and is a beautiful part of the world.
Downhill can be pretty brutal with a few seconds separating the top riders and sometimes making the difference of qualifying or not. How do you handle those times when things just don’t go according to plan?
It’s just bad luck, but it is **** going to a race and not actually racing. But we have a good group of people, a good team, and they keep spirits high, keep it good fun, and although I had a bit of bad luck this year it didn’t affect me too much. I’m still here, happy and having a good time.
We hear you have an epic van for your road trip missions. What all do you pack in it?
Everything. I’m in the process of getting a new one, which I’ll kit out myself. I’ll have my motocross bike, trials bike, golf clubs, shovels, saws, and I can pretty much live in that all year.
You’ve been to SA before for the Pietermaritzburg races, but how have you found this trip so far? Have you encountered any dangerous wild life?
No, luckily I’ve not. We saw a few baboons but they were pretty scared. I’ve kept my eye out because I have heard there are some lethal things kicking about, but it’s been good. I’ve really enjoyed it.
What’s your go-to bike for a typical ride with mates?
At the moment, it is the GT Sanction. I first rode it in the EWS at the end of the season, and since then it’s been out everytime I’ve been riding. I love it: it’s like a little downhill bike that you can pedal to the top on, and where I live, it’s perfect.
For a downhiller you go up hill pretty quick too, do you follow a strict training program in season?
Yes, and a strict drinking one as well- you have to keep hydrated (I’m talking about water). But yes, I just like being outside and riding my bike, and I do get a good program, well more of a routine going: just so I don’t have to think when I get up in the mornings. Get up, have breakfast, rides bikes, go to the pump track, do a bit in the gym, and a bit on the road. I like to keep active, keep healthy. Then it’s just a bit of fine tuning to get good for racing.
Tell us more about 50:01? What’s it all about and where did the name come from?
The name comes from the ratio in which we mix oil and petrol for our motocross bikes and we’ve also got these little mini-bikes that are also 2-strokes, and we run the same mixture in them. Basically it is a group of friends who enjoy riding bikes and want to share that with everyone and want to encourage people to get out riding, build tracks with people. We do a bit of coaching, just to share everything we’ve learned from older people in the past, and keep us busy and have a load of fun at the same time.
