The guys over at Epic TV sent us over this video from Crankworx Europe featuring the Enduro races from the event. While the video doesn’t really feature all that much riding and Handlebar Steve has an interesting way of introducing the video…I was more compelled by the comments by Cedric Garcia with the following video footage proving that riders were cutting the course for faster times.
Apparently…there aren’t any (at least in this race) clear cut rules that say the riders can or can not do these sorts of moves to improve their times. Call me a purist…but I don’t believe you win a race unless you race the whole course.
Enduro racing is a new form of mountain bike racing that is sweeping the world that is of particular interest to me. This is the form of riding that I choose to do most often put into race format. In XC racing…the fastest climbers when the race as those are the sections where you can make up the most time. In DH…we just do have enough of it in the SE to really make a push towards refining that skill set. What do we have a ton of in the SE US though? Mountains and chunky, backwoods singletrack. Enduro riding was really built for exactly what we love to ride in this area and I personally have plans for several of these events next year.
Cedric does bring up a great point though. Do we need more rules to keep the racing more consistent? Given the format of the event, is it even possible to really track riders and make sure they follow these rules? What have you guys seen out in your areas in regards to Enduro races and how the course (or lack there of) as influenced the final standings? These are pros doing it on camera so there has to be others that are doing it as well. What are your thoughts?
Enduro Mountain Bike Racing
For those that don’t already know…here is Enduro mountain bike racing as explained by Wikipedia…
Enduro (ND) is a relatively new format which appears to have taken some inspiration from both car rally and motorbike enduro racing. Mountain bike enduro is essentially the competitive side of the mountain biking format often referred to today as “All-Mountain”. It is a stage-race format where the winner is the rider who accumulates the lowest combined time from the various timed sections. Mountain bike enduro competitions typically take place over the course of 1 or 2 days, however, week-long enduro competitions do also exist. A typical one-day enduro race consists of 3 to 5 timed “special” stages which take place on technically demanding, generally descending terrain. These special stages are linked by predominantly ascending “liaison” stages. Although a rider’s specific performance on the physically demanding liaison stages does not affect his or her result, the liaisons are often associated with a time-cut off (i.e. a latest permitted arrival at the summit of the next special stage). The sport has taken root in mostly in the Northwest of United States, a location known for its miles of winding single-track trails alongside old growth forest and bubbling creeks. Northwest Epic Series is the most famous series in Washington state that offers race distances ranging from 30 miles all the way to 100 miles.