The golden years of German downhill mountain bikers are a long time ago. So far back, in fact, that it's easy to forget that a German once ruled the scene: Jürgen Beneke. Downhill was new in the early nineties, fullys were still exotic and the sport was dominated by the Americans. Then Beneke, a guy from Freiburg, came along and stole the show. In 1993, he even won the overall World Cup in his first professional year. Hardly anyone could match the power and technical skills of the German. While his rival Marcus Klausmann has won one German championship title after another since the mid-nineties, Beneke has only won one championship jersey. After marrying downhiller Stacy Lee Miller in 1996, the man from Freiburg moved to the USA. He stayed there after hanging up his bike in 2000. In the USA, he started working in house construction. A year later, he became self-employed and specialised in interior construction and renovations. In 2007, he set the bike scene alight again: Beneke returned, but only briefly, as his job caught up with him again shortly afterwards.
In 2007, you wanted to attack again in the downhill. You finished 17th at the World Cup in Canada. After that, the DM was on the programme, but your job got in the way. Tell us about it.
In 2006, I rode a few small downhill races and won relatively easily. Someone said to me that I wouldn't stand a chance in the World Cup. That spurred me on, of course. Well, in 2007 I gave it a go and was vindicated. The better material allowed me to ride completely new lines.
What happened next? Was there a plan to attack again after all?
Without a plan - biking was just a hobby. I had my own business in the renovation sector and had to step on the gas. The DM fell through because a really big order came in - the money was more important. When I broke two vertebrae in my back at the Megavalanche, it was a sign for me that I should hang up my downhill bike. I was really lucky and I'm glad that I can still run.
How are you doing with biking today?
Today I ride everything else: Road, track, cross country, cyclo-cross and I really enjoy it. You put
storage systems for bikes. Do you make a living from it?
My company www.dahanger.co is running at full speed and we are preparing our third crowdfunding campaign at the beginning of 2018. I can slowly make a living from it - but still sparkling wine instead of champagne.
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Gitta Beimfohr
Editor
