The national bike festival attracted 17,000 visitors and more than fulfilled the organizers' expectations. For three days, Solothurn was the center of the Swiss bike scene. Erwin Flury, head of the organizing committee, is delighted. "The combination of competitions, shows, trade fair and test tracks proved its worth," says Flury, "and the interaction between the various offers ran smoothly." There was a peaceful atmosphere because the focus of interest was on the essential: the bicycle. Erwin Flury was very happy with the choice of location: "Solothurn is definitely the ideal location. With its mix of urbanity and greenery, it offers first-class conditions for the perfect organization of the Bike Days."

Integration of the Racer Bikes Cup a perfect success
The 3rd stage of the Racer Bikes Cup took place as part of the Bike Days. The integration of the well-known cross-country racing series into the national bike festival went off without a hitch. "The integration of the 3rd stage into the Bike Days went perfectly," said a visibly delighted Andi Seeli, organizer of the Racer Bikes Cup. "The coordination between the various events went very well and the atmosphere was exceptional." It was certainly an experience for the riders to ride in front of so many enthusiastic spectators. A total of 759 participants had registered for the various categories. The race in the elite men's category was characterized by the duel between Olympic medal winner Nino Schurter and Swiss and vice world champion Florian Vogel, which the young Grisons rider won. "The race went perfectly. The quick lead we gained was worth its weight in gold," explained the deserved winner. In the women's race, Nathalie Schneitter rode to a brilliant home victory in Solothurn. She relegated her Colnago team colleague Eva Lechner to second place, 15 seconds behind her. She clearly enjoyed being cheered on by her numerous fans in attendance.

Spectacle in the Solothurn ski jump trench
The Schanzengraben in front of the Solothurn city wall was the scene of mountain bike dirt jumps at the highest level. In the super final of the top 4, the German young star Amir Kab-bani deservedly came out on top. The rider from Munich performed his tricks consistently and impressed with high backflip x-up one-foots and 360° tailwhips. Kabbani's compatriot Marius Hoppensack came second. Still struggling with material problems in the top 10 final, the 20-year-old came up trumps in the super final and impressed with 360° no handers. Reigning Swiss champion Pascal Breitenstein was able to make the most of his home advantage. He secured 3rd place with 360° Tailwhips: "I missed jumping the 360° Tailwhips in training. So it was great that they worked so well in the contest in front of a Swiss audience."

German dominance in the BMX dirt jump too
The riders celebrated their love of the sport and offered the Bike Days visitors top-class BMX. The winner of the Top 4 Superfinal was German crowd favorite Simon Moratz. The 19-year-old won the favor of the spectators when he climbed onto the Solothurn city wall and jumped into the dirt line from there. "The dirt line right next to the city wall left room for creative riding, it was so much fun that the victory almost became secondary," said a visibly satisfied Moratz. He earned his victory above all because he was the only one who dared to tackle the challenging front flips and was also able to stand. Second-placed Rafael Adam (GER) also incorporated the city wall into his run: he jumped the wall on the last jump and back onto the dirtline. He scored points for his 360° in both directions. Third-placed Senad Grosic got the Bike Days visitors going wild. The Austrian BMX veteran lacked consistency in his runs, but his backflip tailwhips on the second jump were BMX at its finest. The Swiss finalists Thomas Schmucki and Hannes Erb missed out on a place in the super final.

Nekolny defends BMX Flatland title
The BMX Flatland final turned out to be the absolute crowd-puller of the Bike Days. Numerous visitors lined the edge of the Flatland, where the BMX Flatlanders performed their tricks on flat ground in the most creative way. Four-time Czech champion Dominik Nekolny won the event, defending his title from 2007. No one else could even come close to the 24-year-old's repertoire of tricks. His triple 360° was particularly outstanding. "I traveled to Solothurn under pressure because people expected a good performance from me after my victory in 2007. It's great that it was enough for the Bike Days title again," said Nekolny about his victory. Surprisingly, but not undeservedly, the Frenchman Alex Jumélin took second place, relegating the German top favorite Chris Böhm to 3rd place. Jumélin, a father of two, performed trick combinations that have rarely been seen before. Böhm, for his part, did not match the technical level of his opponents, but the German entertainer will be remembered by the Solothurn audience for his showmanship.

Attractive supporting program
Visitors were able to test ride numerous bicycles on four signposted routes. This offer attracted many interested people and proved to be an attraction. Some came to Solothurn especially for this, such as Niels Mahrer. He was keen to test a Flyer bike and was impressed by the offer: "A suitable test track that meets all requirements." As part of the Bike Days, icon Lukas Stöckli presented his "Gipfelstürmer" project and revealed the secret of the follow-up project: in 2010, he will be the first biker to ride up Mount Kilimanjaro and cross various climate zones - a real challenge! The various workshops, in which visitors were taught by renowned experts such as bike legend Thomas Frischknecht and BMX flatland world champion Karin Bleile, were also very popular.

Exhibitors and partners very satisfied
The trade fair, the centerpiece of Bike Days, offered visitors the opportunity to find out about the latest developments on the bike market and receive professional advice. The exhibitors were extremely positive: "The 2009 edition was a huge success," explained Lukas Liechti, Event Manager of exhibitor Scott, emphasizing: "We were able to present ourselves to the numerous and, above all, interested visitors in personal contact." Manuela Michel from main sponsor Graubünden Ferien also had nothing but praise: "For us as the number one bike region, the Bike Days are the ideal presentation platform." And the integration of the Racer Bikes Cup was a great idea, she affirmed, as it could motivate young people to take up the sport of biking. "The good feedback from partners, exhibitors and visitors is motivation for us for next year," said Erwin Flury. "We will continue like this in 2010." The next Bike Days will take place from May 7 to 9, 2010.

Source: Press release